The 90th Academy Awards, a.k.a. the Oscars, are happening on March 4th. It will be a typical Sunday, but to a film fanatic, it’s a national holiday where you watch your favorite actors dress up and either win or lose, the tall golden man. Although there are many categories for the Academy Awards, including Best Editing and Cinematography, the one that people hold onto their seats for is Best Picture.
If you are watching the Academy Awards on March 4th, and you have no idea which film is nominated, here they are:
1. Shape of Water
Synopsis: In 1962, a janitor Elisa Esposito works at a classified government laboratory that new technology to help defeat the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Elisa, mute and alone, finds the facility’s most unusual and top-secret project that changes her life forever.
Actors:
-Sally Hawkins, who is also nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role
-Octavia Spencer, who is also nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role
-Richard Jenkins, who is also nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
-Michael Shannon, who starred in the film, Loving, that was nominated for an Oscar last year
Probability: Considering that the incredible, Guillermo del Toro, directed the film and it has received many praises from film critics, Shape of Water may pick up the Oscar for its originality and beauty.
2. Phantom Thread
Synopsis: In 1950s London, middle-aged dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock is at the height of his fame and creative powers. His sister, Cyril, helps to manage his world, but when he falls for a younger, energetic woman, Reynolds discovers that his new muse will change his life in many ways that he couldn’t see possible.
Actors:
-Daniel Day-Lewis (this is his last film before retiring. I know, it’s heartbreaking), who is also nominated for an Actor in a Leading Role
-Lesly Manville, who is also nominated for an Actress in a Supporting Role
-Vicky Krieps, who was in the AMAZING film, Colonia
Probability: This is Daniel Day-Lewis’s last film for the rest of his career, so this fact among the film’s beautiful depiction of his and Krieps’s relationship, the film may snag the award.
3. Three Billboards outside of Ebbing, Missouri
Synopsis: Several months after the rape and murder of her teenage daughter, Mildred Hayes, is completely furious that the case has yet to be solved. She then commissions three billboards, questioning the town’s respected sheriff. These actions escalate tensions throughout the town which brings out the worst reactions to those involved.
Actors:
-Woody Harrelson, who is also nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
-Sam Rockwell, who is also nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
-Frances McDormand, who is also nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Probability: This film greatly illustrates the corruption a town can have, and the relentless efforts a mother’s love can have, and when mixed together, it can tug the hearts of audiences and given numerous praises of film critics. Overall, this film has possibilities of getting the award.
4. Get Out
Synopsis: Chris Washington, who is a photographer, is nervous about meeting his girlfriend’s parents for the first time. Especially since she has not told them that he is black. Their awkward behavior, and the oddness from their two African American servants outs Chris on alert but even so, when the family’s true motivations are shown to him.
Actors:
-Daniel Kaluuya, who is nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role
-Allison Williams, who starred in the hit HBO show, Girls
-Bradley Whitford, who is also in the nominated film, The Post
– Catherine Keener, who was in the amazing film, Capote
-LilRel Howery, who stars in the show, Insecure
Probability: Okay, this film is an emotional and mental rollercoaster. It pulls you into the horror of a family’s demented mind, while also making you think about the mental slavery that African Americans are still facing today. This film has grabbed the attention of many audiences, which is odd considering that it is in the category of horror. It was prevalence in today’s climate, which can outstand the period dramas and other films in this category.
5. Lady Bird
Synopsis: Christine McPherson, a strong-willed teenager who has also named herself ‘Lady Bird’, yearns to leave her hometown Sacramento, California and attend college on the East Coast. Her equally strong mother, Marion, who is struggling to provide for her family, tries to prepare Lady Bird for life’s heartbreaks and encourages her to be her best self.
Actors:
-Saoirse Ronan, who is also nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role
-Laurie Metcalf, who is also nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role
-Timothée Chalamet, who is also nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role in the film, Call Me By Your Name
-Tracy Letts, who was in the film The Big Short and August Osage County
-Lucas Hedges, who was in the film Manchester by the Sea
-Beanie Feldstein, who was in the film Neighbors 2
Probability: I have a strong bias for this film because I am a huge fan of Saoirse Ronan since she starred in The Lovely Bones. With this, I believe that this movie honestly illustrates the relationship between a mother and daughter, which isn’t often shown in films. Ronan and Metcalf’s characters are tremendously complex and strong, showing that women are more powerful than they give themselves credit for. As Greta Gerwig, the director of this film, said, “As I traveled with this film, I realized how wanted it was.” Maybe this need will have it grab the award.
6. Call Me By Your Name
Synopsis: In the summer of 1983, somewhere in Northern Italy, seventeen-year-old Elio Pearlman along with his translator mother and professor father, are joined by a doctoral student, Oliver, to help his father with work for the summer. Elio and Oliver begin a friendship that blossoms into a journey of love, heartbreak, and emerging sexuality.
Actors:
-Timothée Chalamet, who is also nominated for the Best Actor in a Leading Role
-Armie Hammer, who was in the film Birth of a Nation
– Michael Stuhlbarg, who was in the film A Serious Man
– Amira Casar, who was in the television series Versailles
-Esther Garrel, who was in the film Lover for a Day
Probability: Ah, my heart. This film stars an actor that I am currently obsessed with, Timothée Chalamet, so again I may be biased in my opinion. As I watched this film I was sucked in because the relationship between Chalamet’s and Hammer’s characters is completely raw and honest. Although they are hesitant to follow their attractions, when they get together, they aren’t hiding their feelings. They show that love is love, and that heartbreak is an event that is okay to feel and go through.
7. Dunkirk
Synopsis: In the spring of 1940, thousands of British and Allied troops are trapped by German forces on the beaches of Dunkirk in northern France. The terrain houses the use of large ships, forcing the military to request that civilian boats to join the rescue efforts. While the soldiers continuously endure attacks from the Germans, the RAF provides cover for the hundreds of soldiers that have the fate to survive.
Actors:
-Fionn Whitehead, who was in the television mini-series Him
-Barry Keoghan, who was in the film The Killing of a Sacred Deer
– Mark Rylance, who was in the film Bridge of Spies
– Tom Hardy, who was in the film The Revenant
-Aneurin Barnard, who was in the film Citadel
-Harry Styles, this is his first film
Probability: If this film doesn’t win Best Picture, then it must win Best Score because that is what makes the film. Each second of this film has you at the edge of your seats. Mostly because of the music that crawls into your sin, but the honest depiction of what a human will do to survive and the actions we take to get back home. This is an important lesson to be learned, or seen, which can have the film snag the award as well.
8. The Darkest Hour
Synopsis: Winston Churchill, a controversial politician, is appointed the prime minister of Great Britain during the early days of World War II. He is faced with a tremendous decision of continuing to fight or trying to play fair with Adolf Hitler. Along with the fall of France, and the invasion of Britain looming, Churchill knows his decision will affect the entire world.
Actors:
-Gary Oldman, who is also nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role
-Lily James, who was in the beautiful film Cinderella
-Kristin Scott Thomas, who was in the film Four Weddings and a Funeral
– Ben Mendelsohn, who was in the film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Probability: Gary Oldman= Sirius Black= Harry Potter. Obviously, this movie was superb, especially since period dramas are difficult to execute unless you give every detail attention. Along with the fact that the film depicts one of the most known political figures, it also shows the tremendous decisions that every leader must make for the greater good. These decisions, even though some are poor and stupid, are seen today which can save this film from losing in this category.
9. The Post
Synopsis: A cover-up that spanned four U.S. Presidents, which included the deceptions of the Vietnam War, is given to the country’s first female newspaper publisher, Kay Graham, and a hard-driving editor, Ben Bradlee. They join an unprecedented battle between the free press and the government.
Actors:
-Meryl Streep, (wonderful, amazing, and brilliant), who is nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role
-Tom Hanks (one of my favorite actors), who has been in films such as Forrest Gump, Toy Story, and Cast Away
– Sarah Paulson (badass of American Horror Story) who has been in the film 12 Years a Slave, which won Best Picture at the 2014 Academy Awards
-Bob Odenkirk, who was in the film Nebraska
Probability: If you put brownies and ice cream together, you get an amazing pairing. This goes for Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep in this film as well. In today’s press climate, the truth is something that we are constantly fighting for even if that means we defy the government that rules over us. This film shows the bad-ass moves of a woman who holds a leadership power, and the men who follow behind her. It also shows how the press is the most prevalent item of honesty that we must protect. So, if that doesn’t give this film the award then I don’t know what will.