BEST SOUND MIXING
“Arrival”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“La La Land”
“13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi”
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
Winner: “La La Land”
Should Win: “Arrival”
Upset: “Hacksaw Ridge”
Ponder: “La La Land” should easily win this category. Recent musical winners here include “Les Misérables,” “Dreamgirls” and “Chicago.”
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
“Star Trek Beyond”
“Suicide Squad”
“A Man Called Ove”
Winner: “Star Trek Beyond”
Should Win: It wasn’t nominated
Upset: “A Man Called Ove”
Ponder: There s no way in hell the overall Academy membership is giving an Oscar to “Suicide Squad.” “Star Trek Beyond” should win, but “A Man Called Ove” has a shot.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Allied”
“Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them”
“Florence Foster Jenkins”
“Jackie”
“La La Land”
Winner: “Jackie”
Should Win: “Jackie”
Upset: “La La Land” or “Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them”
Ponder: Again, “La La Land” could win here just on name recognition, but like its screenplay, some members have been vocal about wondering what was so special about the costumes in the first place. “Jackie,” on the other hand, fits the period trend that often dictates this category. No joke, the last “contemporary” film to win was “The Adventures Of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert” in 1995, and that movie featured fantastical drag costumes.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Deepwater Horizon”
“Doctor Strange”
“Kubo And The Two Strings”
“The Jungle Book”
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
Winner: “The Jungle Book”
Should Win: Pick ’em
Upset: “Kubo And The Two Strings”
Ponder: One Academy member remarked to me how, out of the reels provided for members to see the work on each nominee, “Kubo And The Two Strings“‘ was the most impressive. “The Jungle Book” will still win, however.
READ MORE: How The Oscars Fail Movies
BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“Blind Vaysha”
“Borrowed Time”
“Pear Cider And Cigarettes”
“Pearl”
“Piper”
Winner: “Piper”
Should Win: “Piper”
Upset: “Borrowed Time”
Ponder: “Piper” is Pixar’s best short in a long long time, and one reason is because of the remarkable photoreal CG animation. It’s also beautifully directed, and those elements truly pop when compared to the other nominees. It really would be shocking if it lost.
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
“Ennemis Intérieurs”
“La Femme et le TGV”
“Silent Nights”
“Sing”
“Timecode”
Winner: “Ennemis Intérieurs”
Should Win: “Ennemis Intérieurs”
Upset: “La Femme et le TGV” or “Sing”
Ponder: This is where most people win their Oscar pool or find themselves one correct pick short. “Ennemis Intérieurs” is a remarkable short in the vein of some serious and socio-political winners of the past. On the other hand, as much as the Academy members can reward those sorts of shorts, they often have a predilection to picking the more cutesy or heart-warming nominees as well. We still think the quality of “Ennemis Intérieurs” won over the voters, but you could pick “La Femme et le TGV” or “Sing” and end up with more correct picks than me.
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
“Extremis”
“4.1 Miles”
“Joe’s Violin”
“Watering: My Homeland”
“The White Helmets”
Winner: “Joe’s Violin”
Should Win: “The White Helmets”
Upset: “The White Helmets”
Ponder: “Joe’s Violin” is more conventional, but tugs at the heartstrings more than the other nominees. “The White Helmets,” which follows the lives of citizen volunteers in Aleppo, Syria, is stunning, but perhaps a bit too long. It’s honestly a draw between the two, and we’re going with our gut by picking “Joe’s Violin.”
Do you think there will be any upsets at this year’s Academy Awards? Share your thoughts below.