The curtain has closed on yet another wonderful Oscars ceremony, one which harboured some shocking upsets and entertainment galore. First of all I want to highlight Conan O’Brien, who absolutely nailed his first Oscars hosting gig. Getting to see him on screen once again is such a blessing – it’s the joy the world has been missing ever since his late night show shut its doors. His contagious charisma and energy was present throughout his opening monologue and the remainder of the show. Everything that comes out of his mouth is hilarious and well-timed. If you loved Wicked, or Oz in general, there was a lot for you to enjoy. The show opened with Ariana Grande singing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” followed by Cynthia Erivo performing a cover of “Home”, highlighting two eras of Wizard of Oz storytelling. They then join forces to perform the climax of Defying Gravity, a moment which once again gave me chills. Then later in the show, Queen Latifah graces the stage to sing “Ease On Down the Road” from The Wiz. Wicked may not have won Best Picture, but its presence was certainly felt.
As with every Oscars ceremony, there’s one thing I wish they approached differently – the handling of the Original Song nominees. Rather than getting to see a performance of each song through the night, that runtime was instead given to a random 007 tribute in a year where there’s no notable 007 event. Don’t get me wrong, LISA, RAYE and Doja Cat stun in their respective covers of iconic Bond songs, but it’s a bit random. Even in the announcing of Best Original Song, we barely get snippets of the nominees, which is a frustrating break from tradition.
With all that said, lets get to the actual winners. Coming out on top is Anora with a staggering 5 wins from 6 nominations. Despite being the favourite, it still managed to exceed expectations with surprise wins in the Best Actress and Best Editing categories. Following not too far behind is The Brutalist with 3 wins in its predicted categories. Then we have Emilia Pérez, Wicked and Dune: Part Two gathering their expected 2 wins apiece. A few Anora-led upsets meant Conclave and The Substance went home with 1 win, while The Wild Robot somehow left empty-handed. All that being said, one thing is for certain – regardless if the wins were expected or surprises, every single one was deserved.
As for my predictions, I nailed 17 of the 23 categories. Ironically the 3 main categories I got wrong were ones I thought were certain locks. Funny how the world works.
The winner will be highlighted in RED
My prediction will be highlighted in GREEN.
If you don’t see an option highlighted in GREEN, that’s because my prediction is the same as the winner.
Best Picture
Anora
The Brutalist
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
I’m Still Here
Nickel Boys
The Substance
Wicked
With the way the night has gone, with Anora winning for editing, screenplay, directing and actress, this was a given. Anora is one of the best films of the year and delivers the craziest viewing experience of the year. It will make you love, laugh, cry and feel deeply for its characters and the experiences they’re going through. This is as well-deserved as a win gets so I’m thrilled to see it come to light. Hopefully this means even more people will see this piece of cinematic brilliance.
Actor in a Leading Role
Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes, Conclave
Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice
The suspense was felt through the lead-up to this award, but Adrien Brody has just received his second Oscar. His performance stands out as one of the strongest elements of The Brutalist, transforming into his character and not breaking a single stride. Coupled with a lengthy, poignant speech that had the entire Dolby Theatre captivated, his win is one of the night’s big moments.
Actress in a Leading Role
Cynthia Erivo, Wicked
Karla Sofia Gascón, Emilia Pérez
Mikey Madison, Anora
Demi Moore, The Substance
Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here
Holy shit. This might be the biggest surprise of the night even with Anora sweeping its big categories. Mikey Madison is a phenomenon in Anora, elevating every single scene with her raw, gritty, emotion-fuelled performance. That being said, I thought Demi Moore had this in the bag due to the trajectory of other award ceremonies and the fact that she’s a veteran actor who has never won an Oscar. Madison’s win is huge for such a young actor – I can’t wait to see what she does going forward.
Actor in a Supporting Role
Yura Borisov, Anora
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce, The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice
With the first award of the night we got one of the more predictable results out of the way, with Kieran Culkin unsurprisingly getting the win. All the film’s reactions pointed to Culkin as putting in a phenomenal performance, so it’s a well-deserved win. Plus the fact that it’s a win from his first-ever nomination is even more impressive. He even followed it up with a hilarious speech, setting a high bar for other winners to follow.
Actress in a Supporting Role
Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown
Ariana Grande, Wicked
Felicity Jones, The Brutalist
Isabella Rossellini, Conclave
Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez
One of the few and biggest highlights of Emilia Pérez is Zoe Saldaña’s performance. She shines across every single scene and elevates the film to a level beyond anything it would have been otherwise. On top of that, her speech is inspired and emotional, and she speaks with such conviction that it’s easy to see how much her first Oscar win means to her.
Directing
Sean Baker, Anora
Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
James Mangold, A Complete Unknown
Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez
Coralie Fargeat, The Substance
In the lead-up to this night, this category was a two-horse race, but after Anora took home the wins for editing and original screenplay it was basically pre-determined. Sean Baker did an exceptional job at piecing together every aspect of the film from acting to writing and cinematography, so this is a very deserving result.
Cinematography
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
Maria
Nosferatu
Another predicted and well-deserved win. The Brutalist’s focus on architecture leads to the cinematography being a work of art that’s stunning from start to finish. It’s unfortunate that Dune: Part Two didn’t get the W for its otherworldly cinematography, but it has gone to a very deserving film nonetheless.
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Nickel Boys
Sing Sing
Conclave walking away with this win is as expected as a win gets. The screenplay is wonderful and the dialogue is poignant and captivating. This puts it in a strong position to challenge Anora for the title of Best Picture.
Writing (Original Screenplay)
Anora
The Brutalist
A Real Pain
September 5
The Substance
This was one of the toughest awards to predict, with Anora and The Substance going toe to toe as the favourites. Turns out my prediction was correct, with Anora’s buzz being too strong and taking home the Academy Award. As this is happening early in the night, it has put Anora in pole position to bring home Best Picture, with it being even more of a favourite than before.
Animated Feature Film
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot
Oh my god. Well to be fair I haven’t seen Flow, but there’s not a bone in my body that thought anything other than The Wild Robot would win. The Wild Robot is the absolute pinnacle of animated film in recent years, so it’s the most deserving in my eye. However, Flow being an independent animated feature from Latvia is just as impressive of a win.
Film Editing
Anora
The Brutalist
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Wicked
Okay that settles it. At this point in the night, around half way through, it’s clear Anora is going to get Best Picture. It’s not a lock, but having Anora beat Conclave here and The Brutalist for Original Screenplay is as telling as it gets. Anora’s editing is chaotic and wonderful, with Sean Baker executing every scene to perfection.
Music (Original Score)
The Brutalist
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Wicked
The Wild Robot
Despite this award poised to go in one of many different directions, The Brutalist has come out on top. Daniel Blumberg’s score, while not sticking out to me during the film, is honestly very recognisable in channeling the tone and message of the film. As it has played through the night, it’s actually very strong and deserving of the win.
Music (Original Song)
“El Mal”, Emilia Pérez
“The Journey”, The Six Triple Eight
“Like a Bird”, Sing Sing
“Mi Camino”, Emilia Pérez
“Never Too Late”, Elton John: Never Too Late
The fact that we didn’t get to hear these songs in their entirety is a criminal. Even during this announcement we didn’t even get to hear more than a few seconds. With that being said, the win expectedly went to Emilia Pérez for “El Mal”. While the song remains quite mediocre for me, it’s the most synonymous with the film, so it’s a predictable result.
Sound
A Complete Unknown
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
Wicked
The Wild Robot
While it may not win as many awards as its predecessor, I’m glad Dune: Part Two has won in one of the categories it’s most worthy. The visceral experience of Dune is possible thanks to the sound that accompanies each and every scene.
Visual Effects
Alien: Romulus
Better Man
Dune: Part Two
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Wicked
Well that’s two for two for Dune: Part Two. Much like the sound, its visual effects are breathtaking and bring the world of Arrakis to life in a way that looks phenomenally real.
Production Design
The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
Wicked
Well that was a shock… said no one ever. The production design of Wicked is just astounding. The way they brought the land of Oz to life with vibrant sets that are grand in size and scale is a sight to behold. While it won’t be winning any of the major awards, it’s very fitting that it’s won in the technical categories.
Costume Design
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Gladiator II
Nosferatu
Wicked
The costume design in Wicked is one of the many memorable elements of the film, so it’s only fitting that it would bring home the trophy. Part of what I loved about this presentation was the focus on the costume designer themselves as oppose to the film, hence we didn’t get accompanying sizzle reels.
Makeup and Hairstyling
A Different Man
Emilia Pérez
Nosferatu
The Substance
Wicked
Beautiful. Stunning. Horrifying. The Substance has deserved this win ever since it was first released. The makeup and hairstyling was undeniably exceptional, with high-detail prosthetics that birthed one of the most thrilling and realistic-looking body horror films in a while. If you see The Substance, there’s absolutely no doubt it’s one of the more impressive examples of practical effects in film.
International Feature Film
I’m Still Here (Brazil)
The Girl with the Needle (Denmark)
Emilia Pérez (France)
The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Germany)
Flow (Latvia)
Emilia Pérez went into tonight with a whopping 13 nominations, so to lose out on this category and only walk away with 2 wins is wild. Considering I’m Still Here is also nominated for Best Picture and Best Actress, and has been gaining a lot of buzz, it’s a film that has had a huge impact on its viewers and thus deserves this big win.
Predictions in Additional Categories
Documentary (Feature)
Black Box Diaries
No Other Land
Porcelain War
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Sugarcane
Documentary (Short Subject)
Death by Numbers
I Am Ready, Warden
Incident
Instruments of a Beating Heart
The Only Girl in the Orchestra
Short Film (Animated)
Beautiful Men
In the Shadow of the Cypress
Magic Candies
Wander to Wonder
Yuck!
Short Film (Live Action)
A Lien
Anuja
I’m Not a Robot
The Last Ranger
The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent
Everything Movie Reviews 