Best Picture - Drama
Winner - Sing Sing
Runner Up - The Brutalist, Conclave, Nickel Boys
Commentary - The Brutalist was bold, Nickel Boys was daring, and Conclave was entertaining. But the film I keep coming back to is Sing Sing. It is such as heartbreaking, realistic, and bold film that showcases real-life in a bold, funny, and heartwarming way that lights up the screen. A beautiful story and an extraordinary cast illuminate the screen in a film that will stick with me for a long time.
Best Picture - Comedy/Musical
Winner - (TIE) Anora and Wicked
Runners Up - Challengers, My Old Ass, Saturday Night, Thelma
Commentary - Again, this was a great year in this category, and it was hard to choose. Wicked gets a lot of flack from the film Twitter, film critic, film pretentious world. In fact, an article recently released by a major publication listed it as the worst film nominated for Best Picture. Those writers completely missed the point. For those of us who spent hours singing Defying Gravity at the top of our lungs for the last twenty years, Wicked exceeded every one of our expectations. It was bold, funny, brilliant, bright, and a hell of a theatrical experience that swept you away. On the flip side was Anora, a darkly funny Pretty Woman tale that is ferocious entertainment from start to finish, with a jaw-dropping amount of surprising depth that is a true testament to the brilliant script and deft direction of Sean Baker, who is finally getting his due with Oscar voters.
Best Picture Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Action/Horror
Winner - The Substance
Runner Up - Dune: Part Two, The Fall Guy, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Heretic, Nosferatu
Commentary - Whew, there were parts of The Substance where I had to turn away. But the message was loud and clear. Coralie Farget, Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, and their fantastic team of artists have created a beautifully horrifying dark comedy that has some brilliant references to film history, is a perfect metaphor for the horrors of aging in Hollywood, and is wildly entertaining.
Best Picture - Animated
Winner - The Wild Robot
Runners Up - Flow, Inside Out 2, Memoir of a Snail, and Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
Commentary - The Wild Robot was a bit of surprise, and what a joyous one it was. It is such a profound, endearing, heart-warming and heart-breaking adventure that is perfect for both kids and adults alike. A true joy to watch.
Best Picture - Documentary
Winner - Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat
Runners Up - No Other Land, Sugarcane, Will & Harper
Commentary - I was in awe of creativity of Soundtrack to a Coup d'état. The story was fascinating, and the ability of Johan Grimonprez to weave music, politics, and history into an epic that connects so much of the world at that time.
Best Director
Winner - Sean Baker "Anora"
Runners Up - Luca Guadagnino "Challengers" and "Queer", Edward Berger "Conclave", RaMell Ross "Nickel Boys"
Commentary - See Best Picture - Comedy/Musical
Best Actor - Drama
Winner - (TIE) Colman Domingo "Sing Sing" and Ralph Fiennes "Conclave"
Runners Up - Timothee Chalamet "A Complete Unknown", Daniel Craig "Queer"
Commentary - Another one where I could not make a choice. Colman Domingo is jaw-dropping in Sing Sing, breaking our heart and bringing a gut-wrenching heart and soul to a magnificent film.
Best Actress - Drama
Winner - Marianne Jean-Baptiste "Hard Truths"
Runners Up - Pamela Anderson "The Last Showgirl" and Fernanda Torres "I'm Still Here"
Commentary - Marianne Jean-Baptiste is a master performer, and it takes a lot to make her obnoxious, unlikable character in Mike Leigh's Hard Truths watchable. But Jean-Baptiste navigates the thorniness of her character and brings incredible depth to a role that is magnificently executed. The real shame in this awards season is that Oscar voters could not make room for her in the Best Actress race.
Best Actor - Comedy/Musical
Winner - (TIE) Mike Faist "Challengers" and Josh O'Connor "Challengers"
Runners Up - Ryan Gosling "The Fall Guy", Hugh Grant "Heretic", Gabriel LaBelle "Saturday Night", Glen Powell "Hit Man", Sebastian Stan "A Different Man"
Commentary - So if I didn't already like Faist and O'Connor, damn did they not bring the heat and tension to Challengers. Their relationship is so center to the film, and they manage to make us laugh, keep us entertained, and get our temperature turned up, maybe a little too much.
Best Actress - Comedy/Musical
Winner - (TIE) Mikey Madison "Anora" and Demi Moore "The Substance"
Runners Up - Cynthia Erivo "Wicked", June Squibb "Thelma", Maisy Stella "My Old Ass", Zendaya "Challengers"
Commentary - A great year for this category, with some shoutouts to June Squibb, Cynthia Erivo, Maisy Stella, and Zendaya. I could not narrow it down beyond two, so I picked both. Demi Moore is in the role of the a lifetime in The Substance. She is jaw-dropping capturing the camp and horror of aging in Hollywood. I am so happy to see such a talent get a well-deserved Oscar nod. But who can deny the power of Mikey Madison. When she blazes on the screen as Anora, she is a mighty ferocity that cannot be contained. That is, until the final scene, where her exterior breaks and she breaks our heart.
Best Supporting Actor
Winner - Clarence Maclin "Sing Sing"
Runners Up - Yura Borisov "Anora", Edward Norton "A Complete Unknown", Denzel Washington "Gladiator II"
Commentary - Maclin, whose story is the heart and center of Sing Sing with his true-to-life performance, is magnetic in the role, steals the scene every time he appears, and brings some depth of much-needed humor to the film. A true Cinderella Hollywood story that is worth celebrating.
Best Supporting Actress
Winner - Ariana Grande "Wicked"
Runners Up - Michele Austin "Hard Truths", Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor "Nickel Boys", Natasha Lyonne "His Three Daughters"
Commentary - When they announced the cast for Wicked, I let out an audible "UGH" when they said that Ariana Grande was cast as Glinda (played originally by one of my personal favorites Kristin Chenoweth). But after seeing Wicked, I am so happy to report that I was 100% wrong. Grande rose the occasion on a musical level, and on an acting level. She perfectly captured the camp, glam, and ridiculousness of her character, while also easily finding the depth and emotion lying underneath.
Best Ensemble
Winner - Saturday Night
Runners Up - Anora, Challengers, Conclave, Sing Sing, and Wicked
Commentary - I really liked Saturday Night, and felt like it was underrated during this awards season. In particular, the large cast really did an excellent job of capturing their real-life muses, and the chaotic nature of the first SNL episode.
Best Voice Acting/Motion Capture Performance
Winner - Lupita Nyong’o “The Wild Robot”
Runners Up - Maya Hawke "Inside Out 2", Kevin Durand “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”,Sarah Snook “Memoir of a Snail”
Commentary - Lupita Nyong'o's beautiful work in The Wild Robot elevated the film, and once again, like so many before her, proved that we are not doing enough to recognize the work of voice actors.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner - Peter Straughan "Conclave"
Runner Up - Jay Cocks and James Mangold "A Complete Unknown", RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes "Nickel Boys", Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, and John “Divine G” Whitfield "Sing Sing", Chris Sanders "The Wild Robot"
Commentary - Conclave's twist and turns, all slow boiling to a surprising ending showcase the writing strength of the great Peter Straughn, who will most likely win a well-deserved Oscar (finally) this weekend.
Best Original Screenplay
Winner - Sean Baker "Anora"
Runners Up - Justin Kuritzkes "Challengers", Mike Leigh "Hard Truths", Azazel Jacobs "His Three Daughters", Megan Park "My Old Ass"
Commentary - See Best Picture - Comedy/Musical
Best Cinematography
Winner - (TIE) Lol Crawley "The Brutalist" and Jomo Fray "Nickel Boys"
Runners Up - Sayombhu Mukdeeprom "Challengers", Greig Fraser "Dune: Part II", Edward Lachman "Maria"
Commentary - Both The Brutalist and Nickel Boys brought jaw-dropping cinematography on a small budget with perfect angles, beautiful shots, and both made their camera work almost characters that helped moved the film forward. Beautiful work on both accounts.
Best Costume Design
Winner - Paul Tazewell "Wicked"
Runners Up - Lisy Christl "Conclave", Linda Muir "Nosferatu", Danny Glicker "Saturday Night"
Commentary - Paul Tazewell's beautiful costumes were eye-popping, integral to the story and the character development, and brought a new level of creativity to the craft.
Best Film Editing
Winner - Marco Costa "Challengers"
Runners Up - Nick Emerson "Conclave", Sean Baker "Anora", Hansjörg Weißbrich "September 5"
Commentary - How the hell did Challengers not get nominated in this category? The fierce and brilliant work of Marco Costa helped build the astonishing tension and build up to its mystic climax. Magnificent work.
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Winner - Stéphanie Guillon, Frédérique Arguello, Pierre-Olivier Persin "The Substance"
Runners Up - Frances Hannon, Sarah Nuth, Laura Blount "Wicked", Mike Marino, Sarah Graalman, Aaron Saucier "A Different Man", Traci Loader, Suzanne Stokes-Munton, David White "Nosferatu"
Commentary - Duh. The Substance has the most Makeup, but it also has the most impactful makeup, truly terrifying audiences and playing up its campy vibe.
Best Original Score
Winner - Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross "Challengers"
Runners Up - Daniel Blumberg "The Brutalist", Hans Zimmer "Dune: Part Two",John Powell "Wicked"
Commentary - Another one that I cannot understand how it missed being nominated by the Academy. Challengers really was elevated by excellent technical work, and its brilliant score by Reznor and Ross, along with its editing, elevated the story and brought us into the emotions of the characters. Another knockout from Oscar-winning legends.
Best Original Song
Winner - The Wild Robot - “Kiss the Sky” - Delacey, Jordan Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Maren Morris, Michael Pollack & Ali Tamposi
Runners Up - Challengers - “Compress/Regress” - Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross & Luca Guadagnino, The Last Showgirl - "Beautiful That Way" - Miley Cyrus, Lykke Li and Andrew Wyatt, Sing Sing - “Like a Bird” - Abraham Alexander, Brandon Marcel & Adrian Quesada
Commentary - Not the best year for this category, but Kiss the Sky was an emotional and wonderful tune that perfectly fit with the vibe of The Wild Robot.
Best Production Design
Winner - Nathan Crowley, Ben Collins, David Lazan and Lee Sandales "Wicked"
Runners Up - Judy Becker and Patricia Cuccia "The Brutalist", Suzie Davies, Roberta Federico, and Cynthia Sleiter "Conclave", Craig Lathrop and Beatrice Brentnerova "Nosferatu", Jess Gonchor, Drew Monahan, Claudia Bonfe, Adam Rettino "Saturday Night"
Commentary - The beautiful blend of real sets and visual worlds created a eye-popping production design that helped Wicked achieve it theatrical visual treat that was amazing.
Best Sound
Winner - Richard King, David Whitehead, Ron Bartlett, Doug Hemphill, Gareth John "Dune: Part II"
Runner Up - Craig Berkley, Paul Carter, Michele Gualdrini "Challengers", John Marquis and Nancy Nugent Title "Wicked", Brian Chumney, Leff Lefferts, Rick Hromadka, Randy Thom, and Gary A. Rizzo "The Wild Robot"
Commentary - Part of the reason Dune: Part II feels so immersive is the remarkable work of the sound designers and editors. Dune encompasses you as you watch it and it is a feast for the eyes and the ears.
Best Visual Effects
Winner - Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe, Gerd Nefzer "Dune: Part Two"
Runners Up - Erik Winquist, Stephen Unterfranz, Paul Story, Rodney Burke "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" and Pablo Helman, Jonathan Fawkner, Paul Corbould, David Shirk "Wicked"
Commentary - Dune: Part II's incredible visual effects continued to provide the visual pastiche that Villeneuve and his team utilize to bring dramatic depths and eye-popping spectacle to this series.
Top 20 Films
1. (TIE) Anora and Wicked
2. Sing Sing
3. Challengers
4. The Wild Robot
5. Conclave
6. Nickel Boys
7. Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat
8. My Old Ass
9. The Substance
10. Dune: Part II
11. The Brutalist
12. Thelma
13. Saturday Night
14. Will & Harper
15. Flow
16. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
17. The Fall Guy
18. No Other Land
19. Sugarcane
20. Nosferatu
