Better late than never right? Before the nominations are revealed for the 2022 Academy Awards, have a little gander at my predictions, but also what I would have chosen in those categories that I thought would have had a good chance of getting a nomination (no wild fantasy booking on this one!). Enjoy!
Best Picture
Belfast, Don’t Look Up, Licorice Pizza, The Power of the Dog, King Richard, CODA, C’mon C’mon, Drive My Car
If I was deciding…
Drive My Car, Petite Maman, Flee, The Worst Person in the World, Mass, Piccolo Corpo (Small Body), Tick, Tick… Boom, The Lost Daughter, CODA, King Richard
So as you can see there are a few differences in the two lists! This is for a simple, simple reason, I didn’t rate Belfast, Don’t Look Up, Licorice Pizza or The Power of the Dog as highly as everyone else (especially Belfast, which is quite ironic seeing as that is where I am from). Mass has been rudely ignored for much of the award season which is a damn shame as it was way more powerful than half of those big front runners. In fact very few of the big typical Oscar buzz films impressed me that much this year. It was the smaller more intimate films that worked so much better. This point could be a piece on its own honestly, which do you disagree with?
Best Actor
Benedict Cumberbatch, Andrew Garfield, Denzel Washington, Peter Dinklage, Will Smith
If I was deciding…
Benedict Cumberbatch, Steven Graham, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Will Smith, Peter Dinklage
Steven Graham was spectacular in Boiling Point and in my eyes takes Denzel’s place as while he was great, he wasn’t any better than those on the list. Sadly Garfield misses out on my dream list as Nishijima deserves his spot more and if I had my way, he would be the winner.
Best Actress
Nicole Kidman, Olivia Colman, Penélope Cruz, Renate Reinsve, Kristen Stewart
If I was deciding…
Olivia Colman, Renate Reinsve, Penélope Cruz, Agathe Rousselle, Rachel Sennott
Remember Shiva Baby? It seems everyone else hasn’t and Sennott has been forgotten about sadly, and to me she deserves a nomination. I wasn’t overly fond of Spencer so for me Agathe Rousselle in Titane sneaks in instead. It was a powerhouse performance, even if I didn’t overly enjoy the film. Everyone else fills in well as there isn’t too much to shout out against in this strong category.
Best Supporting Actor
Ciarán Hinds, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Bradley Cooper, Troy Kotsur, Jason Isaacs
If I was deciding…
Jason Isaacs, Troy Kotsur, Vincent Lindon, Ben Affleck, Woody Norman
Lindon was fantastic and devasting in Titane, that it was a performance for me that was hard to ignore. Jason Isaacs is my man for this, even if he isn’t nominated, as everyone else underwhelmed me in comparison to those on the list.
Best Supporting Actress
Caitríona Balfe, Ariana DeBose, Kirsten Dunst, Jessie Buckley, Ruth Negga
If I was deciding…
Jessie Buckley, Ruth Negga, Ann Dowd, Tôko Miura, Ariana DeBose
Dowd and Miura in are givens to me considering how much I loved Mass and Drive My Car, that pushes out Balfe and Dunst and honestly I am more than okay with that. I did enjoy Dunst in Power of the Dog, but when put up against the others here? Just not as strong.
Best Director
Jane Campion, Steven Spielberg, Paul Thomas Anderson, Denis Villeneuve, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
If I was deciding…
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, Céline Sciamma, Siân Heder, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg
Campion in my eyes went far too middle of the road for The Power of the Dog and Licorice Pizza was fine, but not a nom worthy. Whereas Hamaguchi has to get a nomination for how magical Drive My Car was and Sciamma and Heder deserve their noms for how wonderful their films were. Scott goes in for The Last Duel as it was just a stronger piece of directing in my eyes.
Best Editing
Licorice Pizza, Dune, The Power of the Dog, Belfast, Summer of Soul
If I was deciding…
Summer of Soul, Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes, The French Dispatch, CODA, Titane
Summer of Soul needs to be nominated for editing, it would be utter madness if it wasn’t, with Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes, the amount of detailed editing to get everything right has to be applauded and thus nominated, it was such a technical achievement that it pushes away anything Belfast and Licorice Pizza had done.
Best Original Screenplay
Belfast, Don’t Look Up, Licorice Pizza, King Richard, C’mon C’mon
If I was deciding…
C’mon C’mon, Mass, King Richard, Parallel Mothers, Pig
Belfast and Don’t Look Up are just not there for me, I know they will get nominated, but under no terms should they be. Mass and Pig have astounding screenplays that work so well for the films and that earns their slots for me.
Best Adapted Screenplay
CODA, The Lost Daughter, The Power of the Dog, West Side Story, Drive My Car
If I was deciding…
CODA, The Lost Daughter, Drive My Car, Tick, Tick … Boom, The Last Duel
The Power of the Dog and West Side Story miss out as Tick, Tick … Boom and The Last Duel come in. to me their adaptations are not only better but help enhance the piece above what the previous two did.
Best International Film
Drive My Car, Flee, The Worst Person in the World, A Hero, Playground
If I was deciding…
Drive My Car, Flee, Playground, Clara Sola, The Worst Person in the World
A Hero gets put to the side for Clara Sola which I loved so much. Petite Maman doesn’t come in here sadly, though it would have any other year. To me this category is actually far stronger than the Best Picture one, increase the nomination quota Academy!
Best Cinematography
Dune, The Tragedy of Macbeth, The Power of the Dog, West Side Story, Nightmare Alley
If I was deciding…
Bantú Mama, Pig, The French Dispatch, Playground, The Tragedy of Macbeth
Bantú Mama and Pig were gorgeous to look at. The Power of the Dog looked no different than any other film of recent years set in Montana and doesn’t stand out enough. Playground keeping the camera at child height throughout was a magnificent touch and The French Dispatch was the French Dispatch. My choices showed a boldness with the camera where the majority of those that will get nominated didn’t stand out nearly as much as they should.
Best Production Design
Nightmare Alley, Cyrano, West Side Story, Cruella, Dune
If I was deciding…
Dune, The French Dispatch, Cyrano, West Side Story, The Last Duel
Perhaps I am being a touch harsh on Nightmare Alley, but I wanted The French Dispatch and The Last Duel in there. Cruella will most likely miss out here too, but there is always hope.
Best Sound
West Side Story, Last Night in Soho, Tick, Tick … Boom, Dune, The Power of the Dog
If I was deciding…
West Side Story, Tick, Tick … Boom, The Power of the Dog, Dune, A Quiet Place: Part Two
I haven’t seen Last Night in Soho, so I had to exclude it from my list as that isn’t really fair! So the last slot gets filled with the easy choice.
Best Costume Design
Cruella, Cyrano, West Side Story, Nightmare Alley, The French Dispatch
If I was deciding…
Cruella, Cyrano, West Side Story, The French Dispatch, The Last Duel
Again, I was harsh to Nightmare Alley possibly, but it is another that I have not seen, so I slot in The Last Duel here. I think Cruella should win this, considering that was the whole point of the movie no? Plus they did some great work with it.
Best Original Score
The Power of the Dog, Enchanto, Dune, The French Dispatch, Being the Ricardos
If I was deciding…
The Power of the Dog, Enchanto, The French Dispatch, Dune, The Harder They Fall
Other than the acting, the score is what drove the film during the lulls and Greenwood has earned this one in my eyes. The Harder They Fall comes in for Being the Ricardos as to me that was an easy choice between the two.
Best Original Song
I do not care for this category and feel that it is actual a waste of everyones time and to include the songs within the show takes up the precious time that everyone thinks the Oscars needs to cut down. Expect answers for when it comes to guessing the winner later in the year.
Best Documentary Feature
Summer of Soul, Flee, The Rescue, Attica, The First Wave
If I was deciding…
Summer of Soul, Flee, Lift Like a Girl, Minamata Mandala, P.S Burn The Letter Please
There were a few documentaries this year that I was surprised yet not so surprised that did not come through. Perhaps eligibility was a reason but other than the first two dead on noms I went bold with my picks as I loved the other three. If you haven’t seen them, correct that!
Best Animated Feature
Belle, Encanto, Flee, Luca, The Mitchells vs The Machines
If I was deciding…
Belle, Enchanto, Luca, Flee, Josee, the Tiger and the Fish
I haven’t seen The Mitchells vs The Machines, but did with Josee, so it was an easy choice for me. A hard category this one I am assuming I couldn’t put Mad God in there, and that would have been my first choice.
Best Visual Effects
Dune, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Godzilla vs Kong, Free Guy, Ghostbusters: Afterlife
If I was deciding…
Dune, Godzilla vs Kong, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Free Guy, Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Ghostbusters: Afterlife had fine visual effects, but Shang Chi stood out that bit more for me.
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Cruella, Coming 2 America, House of Gucci, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Dune
If I was deciding…
Cruella, House of Gucci, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Coming 2 America, Cryano
Another tough one with anyone up for winning never mind being nominated, thus why I didn’t stray too far from the original list. House of Gucci Probably wins sadly doesn’t it?
Best Animation Short
Us Again, Affairs of the Art, Namoo, Robin Robin, Bestia
Best Documentary Short
The Queen of Basketball, When We Were Bullies, Lead Me Home, A Broken House
Best Live-Action Short
The Long Goodbye, Tala’vision, The Dress, Under the Heavens, Please Hold.
The Long Goodbye wins this all day everyday for me. I am sure some of the others were great, but The Long Goodbye devastates you.
Well that’s it! How far off will I be? Lets find out in a few hours!
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