With the 90th Academy Awards coming up on March 4, one Arts & Culture reporter takes on some of the most hotly contested categories: Best Picture, Best Actor and Actress in a Leading Role, Best Director and Best Visual Effects. Taylor Washington analyzes each section and decides the film or person she think will win, the one that should win and the one that she personally would pick.
Best Picture:
— Who Will Win: “The Shape of Water”
— Who Should Win: “The Shape of Water”
— Who I Want to Win: “The Shape of Water”
“The Shape of Water” was actually the first film I saw at the start of awards season, and even as we make our way towards the end, it’s still my favorite. In my opinion, Guillermo del Toro has always been great at creating detailed worlds on a grand scale, whether that be in his twisted fairytale, “Pan’s Labyrinth," his horror throwback, “Crimson Peak" or even his giant monster flick, “Pacific Rim." Del Toro’s unconventional romance between a mute woman and a fish-man should not work under any circumstances, but it just does.
What amazed me the most about this one was that despite its eccentricity, the love story never faded and remained surprisingly grounded in the reality Del Toro invited his audience to join. In addition, the cast is amazing and everyone brings something quirky to the table. Above all, Sally Hawkins’ moving performance as Elisa pulls everything together. Although the plot is a bit out there, Del Toro handles it with great care, and I had no trouble suspending my belief for two hours. I think this is his best film since “Pan’s Labyrinth,” and I’m pulling for it to win big Sunday night.
Best Actor in a Leading Role:
— Who Will Win: Gary Oldman, “Darkest Hour”
— Who Should Win: Timothée Chalamet, “Call Me by Your Name”
— Who I Want to Win: Daniel Kaluuya, “Get Out”
Throughout his career, Gary Oldman has established himself as a chameleon actor and it’s become apparent that there’s no role he couldn’t take on. That being said, I acknowledge that Oldman is long overdue for a golden statue, and his transformation into former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill further proves this. However, I personally believe that 22 year old newcomer Timothée Chalamet’s portrayal of one’s first heartbreak slightly edged Oldman’s performance in effectiveness.
In my opinion, Oldman has given numerous performances way more deserving of an Oscar than the one he gives in “Darkest Hour,” and it’s the Academy’s fault for overlooking them. Regardless of the tight race between Oldman and Chalamet, my favorite male performance in a leading role belongs to Daniel Kaluuya in "Get Out." As Chris, Kaluuya achieved so much while doing so little, and viewers never quit rooting for him. When the nominations were first announced, I was pleasantly surprised to see him make the list because “Get Out” came out so early in the year and I feared that it would have become lost in award season. Luckily, I was wrong.
Best Actress in a Leading Role:
— Who Will Win: Frances McDormand, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
— Who Should Win: Sally Hawkins, “The Shape of Water"
— Who I Want to Win: Margot Robbie, “I, Tonya”
While I think that Frances McDormand is a fantastic actress and I’ve already professed my love for Hawkins, I’d like to see Margot Robbie take this one. I walked into my screening of “I, Tonya” with a skeptical outlook because of the controversy surrounding its main subject, disgraced former figure skater Tonya Harding. However, what I walked out with was one of my favorite performances of 2017. Robbie has been one to watch since her breakout role as Leonardo DiCaprio’s wife in Martin Scorsese’s, “The Wolf of Wall Street,” but her turn in “I, Tonya” proves why she’s here to stay.
From the start of the project, Robbie was determined to see it succeed, even going as far to produce the film herself. Robbie’s performance as Harding was funny, heartbreaking and made me look at the skater in an entirely different light. If I were a part of a situation as messy as Harding’s, I should be so lucky if an actress of Robbie’s caliber portrayed me in a biopic.
Best Director:
— Who Will Win: Guillermo del Toro, "The Shape of Water"
— Who Should Win: Jordan Peele, “Get Out”
— Who I Want to Win: Greta Gerwig, “Lady Bird”
Despite “The Shape of Water” being my favorite film of the year, Jordan Peele and Greta Gerwig’s directorial debuts are ones for the ages. “Get Out” teetered along the lines of comedy and horror and excelled at both, which is a feat in itself. In addition, I found Peele’s commentary on race in America to be brave and much needed in our current political climate.
Still, Gerwig’s coming of age film “Lady Bird” holds a special place in my heart. I went to see it with my mom and it was like looking into a mirror. Gerwig’s tale of the eccentric Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Saoirse Ronan), her rocky relationship with her mother (Laurie Metcalf) and her journey to self-discovery is universal on many levels. Who hasn’t had at least one rift with their mom while transitioning from adolescence to young adulthood? Who isn’t in search of their place in the world? Although the plot of "Lady Bird" is fairly simple, underneath it all there so many emotions which Gerwig conveys so well. If Gerwig wins, she’ll be only the second woman to do so.
Best Visual Effects:
— Who Will Win: “Blade Runner 2049”
— Who Should Win: “Blade Runner 2049”
— Who I Want to Win: "Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2”
I’m at a loss in predicting the winner of the category. However, I’m leaning towards “Blade Runner 2049” because I thought it was a visual spectacle in every sense of the word and have learned that the amount of detail put into the project was painstaking.
For example, visual effects supervisor Paul Lambert told The Independent, "The idea of any form of pretty vista seeing off into the distance was totally gone; even though we spent months adding so much detail into the buildings, you only really saw the detail when you were up close to it because the atmosphere and the snow and the rain would obscure the exteriors.”
Still, a part of me is biased towards Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2," a comic book flick that has surpassed all of its predecessors in what a Marvel Cinematic Universe film could be. In my opinion, many of the entries in the MCU have a similar look and it has become a little stale. What “Guardians” did so well was create a world that required the use of all of my senses. I couldn’t look away from screen and better yet, I started to wonder how some scenes were accomplished. The opening space battle and the return of Kurt Russell to his youth are the standouts.