This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at BC chapter.

February 26. The Oscars. The day of glamour, celebrities, and celebration of movies is quickly approaching. This year, like most others, the celebrated movies have succeeded in inspiring, captivating, and entertaining the nation. In this article, let’s look at the films nominated for Best Picture and their chances of walking away with awards.

And the nominees are…

Arrival

Arrival’s story begins when several mysterious space-crafts appear and a team of experts is sent to investigate these spaceships. Louise Banks, portrayed by Amy Adams, is a linguistics professor on this team of experts whose job is to communicate with the aliens. While this movie does have the star power of Amy Adams, Arrival has not done well at other award shows this year and therefore, its chance of winning big at the Oscars is slim.

Fences

Fences set in the 1950w, centers on Troy Maxson, an African American father, who has long held the dream of being a professional baseball player. This movie’s theme of family and unreached dreams touches the hearts of its audience. It stars Viola Davis and Denzel Washington, who both won Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild awards for their performances. Along with this past success at awards shows and the precedence of the Academy giving awards to movies that depict racial struggles, this film could easily win awards on February 26.

Hacksaw Ridge

Hacksaw Ridge tells the story of Desmond Doss who was the first conscientious objector to ever win the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service in World War II. Despite being a conscientious objector, Doss played a tremendous role in the war by saving many lives. This film stars Andrew Garfield and was directed by Mel Gibson, but despite these big names has not won any major awards at the award shows this year. Because of this, its expectations to win many awards, especially the Best Picture award, are low.

Hell or High Water

With the bank threatening to foreclose on their family ranch, two brothers come together to rob every branch of the bank in order to save their land. However, the other story line focuses on a Texas Ranger on the verge of retirement, who wants to catch the two bank robbers before his career ends. This film has feelings of a modern day Western movie, but also acts as a fast-paced crime film. While it may be thoroughly entertaining, its lack of awards thus far does not bode well for the Oscars.

Hidden Figures

Hidden Figures tells the story of three African American women who worked for NASA in the 1960s and their work largely went unrecognized. It focuses on the work they did in order to prepare to launch John Glenn into orbit. The story shows both the oppression of women in the STEM field, as well as the oppression of African Americans in society at this time. It won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, which could predict good things for the upcoming Oscars.

La La Land

La La Land. Need I say more? This film has taken the movie industry by storm over these last few months winning seven Golden Globes and a Screen Actors Guild Award. The movie is a modern-day musical that tells the story of Sebastian, a jazz pianist, and Mia, an aspiring actress, who meet and ultimately fall in love. Nominated for 14 Oscars, it is sure to take home at least a few wins if not all.

Lion

Lion is a tear-jerker that tells the story of Saroo, a little boy who gets lost on a train and is taken across India away from his home. After living on his own, he is adopted by an Australian couple. The movie then moves forward in time and Saroo decides to go back to India in order to find his lost family. Staring Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman, this film has yet to win any major awards, thus predicting an unfavorable outcome at the Oscars.

Manchester by the Sea

After the unexpected death of his brother, Lee Chandler becomes the legal guardian of his nephew and must travel back to his hometown, where he is faced with the ghost of his past. Manchester by the Sea is unbelievably sad and a movie that sits with the viewer days after viewing it. Casey Affleck won both a BAFTA and a Golden Globe for his performance as Lee Chandler, but the movie as a whole has yet to win any major awards making it unlikely to win Best Picture.

Moonlight

Moonlight is a commentary on contemporary African American life. It tells the life story of Juan, an African American man growing up in Miami. It is a journey of self- discovery and tells the truth of our current state of society. Nominated for eight Academy Awards, it looks as though this film will do well at the award show.

Sources

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http://tomantosfilms.com/9976/should-we-be-upset-with-the-oscars/