Tuesday, January 31, 2023

2023 Grammy Predictions - Visual Media Categories, Best Music Video, and Best Music Film

Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media
Will Win - Encanto
Could Win - Elvis,  Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4 (Vol 2), or West Side Story
Should Win - Encanto
Commentary - Encanto's flame has hopefully not fizzled over the course of a year. Elvis has the heat with its Oscar nominations, and Stranger Thing's music has become a huge part of the pop culture. But I am banking on Encanto's charm to carry the day. 

Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media (Includes Film And Television)
Will Win - Germaine Franco "Encanto"
Could Win -  Nicholas Britell "Succession: Season 3", Jonny Greenwood "The Power of the Dog"
Should Win - Nicholas Britell "Succession: Season 3"
Commentary - This one feels up in the air. Encanto could sweep both categories, which is what I am predicting. But I could see Jonny Greenwood's powerful score, or the brilliant work of Nicholas Britell sway voters. 

Best Song Written For Visual Media
Will Win - We Don't Talk About Bruno from Encanto
Could Win - Hold My Hand from Top Gun: Maverick or Be Alive from King Richard
Should Win - We Don't Talk About Bruno from Encanto
Commentary - Be Alive is Beyonce and Hold My Hand is a recent Oscar nominee with Lady Gaga. They could easily win. But I am sticking with the power of We Don't Talk About Bruno, which is still a popular and pervasive hit. 

Best Music Video
Will Win - Taylor Swift "All to Well, The Short Film"
Could Win - Adele "Easy On Me"
Should Win - Taylor Swift "All to Well, The Short Film"
Commentary - Duh. But watch out for Adele. 

Best Music Film
Will Win - Adele One Night Only
Could Win - Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story or Billie Eilish Live At The O2
Should Win - Adele One Night Only or Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story
Commentary - An Emmy sweep makes me think this one is locked. 

Sunday, January 29, 2023

11th Annual Awards Psychic Music Award Winners

Album of the Year
Winner - Beyoncé “Renaissance” 
Runners Up - Rosalia “Motomami”, Harry Styles “Harry’s House, Summer Walker “Still Over It”
Lizzo “Special”, Brandi Carlile “In These Silent Days”, Big Thief “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You”, Kendrick Lamar “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers”
Commentary - Like all of us, I celebrated the Bey-aissance with her glorious return to solo work for the first time in six years. Renaissance is a dream of an album. It is politically potent, fiercely fun, and a bold dance, pop, soul, R&B, genre-defying album. It plays on history, showcases and celebrates black excellence, and is a delightfully queer-themed album that celebrates the ball culture and queer influence on electronica/dance music, and on music and style in general. A triumphant return, and a magnificent and inclusive record that will be be remembered as one for the ages. 

Single of the Year
Winner - Taylor Swift “All to Well (Taylor’s Version)”
Runners Up - Adele “Easy On Me”, Lizzo “About Damn Time”, DJ Khaled feat Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, John Legend, and Fridayy “God Did”, Summer Walker, SZA, and Cardi B “No Love”
Commentary - We all knew All to Well, and it was a fan favorite off of her album Red. But we had no idea the full power of this song. Her 10-minute version broke pop culture, broke our hearts, and reminded us of why Swift is one of the best song writers in modern pop music. 

Best New Artist
Winner - Brittney Spencer
Runners Up - Zach Bryan, Omar Apolo, Black Country New Road, Flo Milli
Commentary - With only a handful of EP's and singles, Brittney Spencer is already making her name in country music, and is about to explode as her record deal starts to produce even more content. In this short time, Brittney Spencer has given country music her own spin, beautifully mixing in soul and gospel sounds to create a fantastic sound. She has also been very vocal about the need to continue to diversify and expand country music to be a bigger tent for all artists. Great music and a vision for the future of the music she loves makes Brittney Spencer a star on the rise, and I cannot wait to see what she does next. 

Best Pop Album
Winner - Rosalia “Motomami”
Runners Up - Harry Styles “Harry’s House”, Adele “30”
Commentary - A big bold pop records that blends her previous style, with new fusions of dance and hip-hop. Honestly, it is just a joy to listen to this album. Great vocals, great productions values, and an incredible artist at the top of her game. 

Best Pop Performance
Winner - Taylor Swift “All to Well (Taylor’s Version)”
Runners Up - Adele “Easy On Me”, Rosalia “Candy”, Harry Styles “As it Was”
Commentary - See Single of the Year

Best Rock/Alternative Album
Winner - Big Thief “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You”
Runners Up - Black Country, New Road “Ants From Up Here”, Angel Olsen “Big Time”, Spoon “Lucifer on the Sofa”, Wet Leg "Wet Leg", Wilco “Cruel Country”
Commentary - Alternative music is such a broad spectrum, and Big Thief's record is probably on the far end, with a rock record that isn't head bumping, loud, guitar thrashing. Instead, it is an album that is calming almost, oddly yet effectively experimental, and continues to push forward the genre in fascinating ways. 

Best Rock/Alternative Performance
Winner - Big Thief “Change”
Runners Up - Mammoth WVH “Talk and Walk”, Spoon “The Hardest Cut”
Wilco “Falling Apart (Right Now)”
Commentary - See Rock/Alternative Album.

Best R&B Album
Winner - Beyonce “Renaissance” 
Runners Up - Lizzo “Special”, Summer Walker “Still Over It”
Commentary - See Album of the Year

Best R&B Performance
Winner - Summer Walker, SZA, and Cardi B “No Love”
Runners Up - Beyonce “Break My Soul”, Steve Lacy “Bad Habit”, Jazmine Sullivan "Hurt Me Go Good"
Commentary - I really don't understand why Grammy voters have not embraced Summer Walker, whose Still Over It was a fantastic R&B record this year. They missed the boat, and this particular single with three powerhouses is one of this year's best. 

Best Rap Album
Winner  - Kendrick Lamar “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers”
Runners Up - Megan Thee Stallion “Traumazine”, Pusha T “It’s Almost Dry”, Vince Staples “Ramona Park Broke My Heart”
Commentary - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers may not be the best effort from Kendrick Lamar, yet it is still better than the competition, showcasing just how high Lamar has set the bar for hip-hop music. This album is an incredibly emotional experience, and puts Lamar on another level. 

Best Rap Performance
Winner - DJ Khaled feat Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, John Legend, and Fridayy “God Did”
Runners Up - Kendrick Lamar “The Heart Part 5", Latto “Big Energy”, Nicki Minaj “Super Freaky Girl”, Pusha T feat. Jay-Z and Pharrell Williams “Neck & Wrist”
Commentary - Jay-Z's verse. That is all. 

Best Country/Americana Album
Winner - Brandi Carlile “In These Silent Days”
Runners Up - Miranda Lambert “Palomino”, Maren Morris “Humble Quest”, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss “Raise the Roof”, Amanda Shires “Take It Like a Man”
Commentary - Brandi Carlile just continues to built on her success and talent, knocking it out of the park again with In These Silent Days. She continues her brilliant mix of Americana and country. while blending in blues and pop, with songwriting and production values that are always top notch. It wasn't that long ago that she was an underground hit, only known to the devout followers of the genre. I am so happy that she has finally reached a broader audience, and is showcasing her skills to a continually growing fanbase. 

Best Country/Americana Performance
Winner - Zach Bryan “Something in the Orange”
Runners Up - Brandi Carlile feat. Lucius “You and Me on the Rock”, Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde “Never Wanted to Be That Girl”, Bonnie Raitt "Just Like That", Robert Plant and Alison Krauss “High and Lonesome”, Amanda Shires “Lonely At Night”
Commentary - Zach Bryan, a breakout country star, had one of the best singles of the past year with Something in the Orange. Soulful, simple, and incredibly resonant, Bryan left his whole heart on this record, and made one of 2022's best country songs. 

2023 Grammy Predictions: Best Comedy Album, Spoken Word Album, and Musical Theater Album

Best Comedy Album
Will Win - Dave Chappelle "The Closer"
Could Win -  Patton Oswalt "We All Scream" and Louis C.K. "Sorry"
Should Win - Oswalt, Jim Gaffigan
Commentary - Apparently voters in this category are immune to controversies, as they continue to reward Dave Chappelle and Louis C.K. So I think that Dave Chappelle, who returns to this race for the first time since is 2020 win, will continue his streak. Also watch out for Oswalt, and I would love to Gaffigan finally win. 

Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording
Will Win - Viola Davis "Find Me"
Could Win - Questlove "Music is History" or Mel Brooks "All About Me"
Should Win - Viola Davis "Find Me"
Commentary - Over the last several years, this category has rewarded the political favorite of the year. Don Cheadle talking about John Lewis, Rachel Maddow, Michelle Obama, Jimmy Carter, etc. This year, the trend is broken (Michelle's latest book will be eligible next year!, with all of the nominees being actors/musicians. All five are popular, and so there will be no jaw-droppers. I am personally rooting for Viola Davis' stunning memoir Find Me. A win here would make her an EGOT winner. While Questlove could win after his Oscar win, and these are the music awards, this category has favored non-musicians. Viola and Questlove should also keep an eye out for Mel Brooks. This category rewarded Betty White, Carl Reiner, Sidney Poitier, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee all towards the end of their careers. Basically, Brooks fills the living legend slot. All of that being said, I think Viola completes the EGOT, becoming the 18th member of that elite group. 

Best Musical Theater Album
Will Win - A Strange Loop
Could Win - MJ The Musical or Into the Woods
Should Win - A Strange Loop
Commentary - Usually, the  current Tony winner for Musical or Revival of a Musical wins this award. This year, MJ the Musical might be more popular with Grammy voters than Tony voters, and Into the Woods has an all-star cast. But I think and hope that A Strange Loop will continue its winning streak and Grammy tradition. 

2023 AARP Movies for Grownups Award Winners

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT
Jamie Lee Curtis

BEST PICTURE
Top Gun: Maverick

BEST DIRECTOR
Baz Luhrmann, Elvis

BEST ACTRESS
Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once

BEST ACTOR
Brendan Fraser, The Whale

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Judd Hirsch, The Fabelmans

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Judith Ivey, Women Talking

BEST SCREENWRITER
Kazuo Ishiguro, Living

BEST INTERGENERATIONAL MOVIE
Till

BEST TIME CAPSULE
Elvis

BEST ENSEMBLE
She Said

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down

BEST ACTRESS (TV)
Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary

BEST ACTOR (TV)
Jeff Bridges, The Old Man

BEST TV SERIES
 The Old Man

BEST TV MOVIE/LIMITED SERIES
Black Bird

BEST GROWNUP LOVE STORY
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande

BEST FOREIGN FILM OR BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
The Quiet Girl (Ireland)

Saturday, January 28, 2023

Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards

Best Film
Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Director
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Actor
Colin Farrell "The Banshees of Inisherin"

Best Actress
Michelle Yeoh "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Supporting Actor
Ke Huy Quan "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Supporting Actress
Janelle Monae "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery"

Best Original Screenplay
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Adapted Screenplay
Sarah Polley "Women Talking"

Best Cinematography
Nope

Best Original Score
(TIE) RRR and Nope

Best Animated Feature
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

Best Foreign Language Film
RRR

Best Documentary
Jackass Forever

Vince Koehler Award for Best Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror Film
Everything Everywhere All at Once

Tom Poe Award for Best LGBTQ Film
Everything Everywhere All at Once

2023 Sundance Film Festival Award Winners

U.S. DRAMATIC COMPETITION
Grand Jury Prize: A Thousand and One
Audience Award: The Persian Version
Directing: Sing J. Lee, The Accidental Getaway Driver
Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award: Maryam Keshavarz, The Persian Version
Special Jury Award: Theater Camp
Special Jury Award: Magazine Dreams
Special Jury Award: Lio Mehiel, Mutt

U.S. DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
Grand Jury Prize: Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Audience Award: Beyond Utopia
Directing: Luke Lorentzen, A Still Small Voice
Jonathan Oppenheim Editing Award: Daniela I. Quiroz, Going Vasity in Mariachi
Special Jury Award: The Stroll
Special Jury Award: Bad Press

WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC COMPETITION
Grand Jury Prize: Scrapper
Audience Award: Shayda
Directing Award: Marija Kavtaradze, Slow
Special Jury Award: Cinematography: Lílis Soares for Mami Wata
Special Jury Award, Best Performance: Rosa Marchant, When It Melts
Special Jury Award, Creative Vision: Sofia Alaoui for Animalia

WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
Grand Jury Prize: The Eternal Memory
Audience Award: 20 Days in Mariupol
Special Jury Prize, Directing: Smoke, Sauna Sisterhood
Special Jury Award, Creative Vision: Fantastic Machine
Special Jury Award, Verité: Against the Tide

SHORTS
Short Film Grand Jury Prize: When You Left Me on That Boulevard
Short Film Jury Award: U.S. Fiction: Rest Stop
Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction: The Kidnapping of the Bride
Short Film Jury Award: Non-Fiction: Will You Look at Me
Short Film Special Jury Award, International: Directing: AliEN0089
Short Film Special Jury Award, U.S: Directing: The Vacation

NEXT
NEXT Audience Award: Kokomo City
NEXT Innovator Award: Kokomo City

Wednesday, January 25, 2023

The Oscar Narrative: First Winner Predictions

Best Picture
Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Director
Steven Spielberg "The Fabelmans"

Best Actor
Brendan Fraser "The Whale"

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett "TAR"

Best Supporting Actor
Ke Huy Quan "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Supporting Actress
Angela Bassett "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"

Best Adapted Screenplay
Sarah Polley "Women Talking"

Best Original Screenplay
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Animated Feature
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio

Best Documentary Feature
Navalny

Best International Feature
All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)

Best Cinematography
James Friend "All Quiet on the Western Front"

Best Costume Design
Elvis

Best Film Editing
Top Gun: Maverick 

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
The Whale

Best Original Score
Justin Hurwitz "Babylon"

Best Original Song
RRR - Naatu Naatu

Best Production Design
Babylon

Best Sound
Top Gun: Maverick

Best Visual Effects
Avatar: The Way of Water

Best Animated Short
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse

Best Documentary Short
The Elephant Whisperers

Best Live Action Short
Le Pupille 

2023 Writers Guild of America (WGA) Film Nominations

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Everything Everywhere All At Once, Written by Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert; A24

The Fabelmans, Written by Steven Spielberg & Tony Kushner; Universal Pictures

The Menu, Written by Seth Reiss & Will Tracy; Searchlight Pictures

Nope, Written by Jordan Peele; Universal Pictures

Tár, Written by Todd Field; Focus Features

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Screenplay by Ryan Coogler & Joe Robert Cole, Story by Ryan Coogler, Based on the Marvel Comics; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Written by Rian Johnson; Netflix

She Said, Screenplay by Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Based on the New York Times Investigation by Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey and Rebecca Corbett and the Book She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey; Universal Pictures            

Top Gun: Maverick, Screenplay by Ehren Kruger and Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie, Story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks, Based on Characters Created by Jim Cash & Jack Epps, Jr.; Paramount Pictures     

Women Talking, Screenplay by Sarah Polley, Based upon the Book by Miriam Toews; Orion Pictures/MGM 

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
2nd Chance, Written by Ramin Bahrani; Showtime Documentary Films

Downfall: The Case Against Boeing, Written by Mark Bailey & Keven McAlester; Netflix

Last Flight Home, Written by Ondi Timoner; MTV Documentary Films

Moonage Daydream, Written by Brett Morgen; Neon

¡Viva Maestro!, Written by Theodore Braun; Greenwich Entertainment

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

95th Academy Award Nominations

Best Picture
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
The Banshees of Inisherin
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
The Fabelmans
TÁR
Top Gun: Maverick
Triangle of Sadness
Women Talking

Best Director
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Steven Spielberg, The Fabelmans
Todd Field, TÁR
Ruben Östlund, Triangle of Sadness

Best Actor
Austin Butler, Elvis
Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin
Brendan Fraser, The Whale
Paul Mescal, Aftersun
Bill Nighy, Living

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, TÁR
Ana de Armas, Blonde
Andrea Riseborough, To Leslie
Michelle Williams, The Fabelmans
Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Supporting Actor
Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees of Inisherin
Brian Tyree Henry, Causeway
Judd Hirsch, The Fabelmans
Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin
Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Supporting Actress
Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Hong Chau, The Whale
Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin
Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Adapted Screenplay
Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, and Ian Stokell, All Quiet on the Western Front
Rian Johnson, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Kazuo Ishiguro, Living
Screenplay by Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, and Christopher McQuarrie, story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks, Top Gun: Maverick
Sarah Polley, Women Talking

Best Original Screenplay
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner, The Fabelmans
Todd Field, TÁR
Ruben Östlund, Triangle of Sadness

Best Animated Feature
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio
Marcel the Shell With Shoes On
Puss In Boots: The Last Wish
The Sea Beast
Turning Red

Best Documentary Feature
All That Breathes
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
Fire of Love
A House Made of Splinters
Navalny

Best International Feature
All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)
Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)
Close (Belgium)
EO (Poland)
The Quiet Girl (Ireland)

Best Cinematography
James Friend, All Quiet on the Western Front
Darius Khondji, Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths
Mandy Walker, Elvis
Roger Deakins, Empire of Light
Florian Hoffmeister, TÁR

Best Costume Design
Babylon
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris

Best Film Editing
The Banshees of Inisherin
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
TÁR
Top Gun: Maverick

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
All Quiet on the Western Front
The Batman
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
The Whale

Best Original Score
Volker Bertelmann, All Quiet on the Western Front
Justin Hurwitz, Babylon
Carter Burwell, The Banshees of Inisherin
Son Lux, Everything Everywhere All at Once
John Williams, The Fabelmans

Best Music (Original Song)
"Applause" from Tell It Like a Woman, music and lyrics by Dianne Warren
"Hold My Hand" from Top Gun: Maverick, music and lyrics by Lady Gaga and BloodPop
"Lift Me Up" from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, music and lyrics by Tems, Rihanna, Ryan Coogler, and Ludwig Goransson
"Naatu Naatu" from RRR, music by M.M. Keeravaani, lyrics by Chandrabose
"This Is a Life" from Everything Everywhere All at Once, music by Ryan Lott, David Byrne, and Mitski, lyrics by Ryan Lott

Best Production Design
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
Babylon
Elvis
The Fabelmans

Best Sound
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
The Batman
Elvis
Top Gun: Maverick

Best Visual Effects
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
The Batman
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Top Gun: Maverick

Best Animated Short Film
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse
The Flying Sailor
Ice Merchants
My Year of Dicks
An Ostrich Told Me the World Is Fake, and I Think I Believe It

Best Documentary Short
The Elephant Whisperers
Haulout
How Do You Measure a Year?
The Martha Mitchell Effect
Stranger at the Gate

Best Live Action Short Film
An Irish Goodbye
Ivalu
Le Pupille
Night Ride
The Red Suitcase

Monday, January 23, 2023

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Final List

Best Picture
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
Babylon
The Banshees of Inisherin
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
The Fabelmans
TAR
Top Gun: Maverick
The Whale

Best Director
Edward Berger "All Quiet on the Western Front"
James Cameron "Avatar: The Way of Water"
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Steven Spielberg "The Fabelmans"
Todd Field "TAR"

Best Actor
Austin Butler "Elvis" 
Colin Farrell "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Brendan Fraser "The Whale"
Paul Mescal "Aftersun"
Bill Nighy "The Whale"

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett "TAR"
Viola Davis "The Woman King"
Ana De Armas "Blonde"
Danielle Deadwyler "Till"
Michelle Yeoh "Everything Everywhere All At Once"

Best Supporting Actor
Paul Dano "The Fabelmans"
Brendan Gleeson "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Barry Keoghan "The Banshees of Inisherin" 
Ke Huy Quan "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Eddie Redmayne "The Good Nurse"

Best Supporting Actress
Angela Bassett "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"
Hong Chau "The Whale"
Kerry Condon "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Jamie Lee Curtis "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Stephanie Hsu "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Best Adapted Screenplay
Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, and Ian Stokell "All Quiet on the Western Front"
Kazuo Ishiguro "Living"
Rebecca Lenkiewicz "She Said"
Samuel D. Hunter "The Whale"
Sarah Polley "Women Talking"

Best Original Screenplay
Martin McDonagh "The Banshees of Inisherin"
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner "The Fabelmans"
Todd Field "TAR"
Ruben Ostlund "Triangle of Sadness"

Best Animated Feature
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio
Marcel the Shell With Shoes On
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
The Sea Beast
Turning Red

Best Documentary Feature
All That Breathes
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
Descendant
Fire of Love
Navalny

Best International Feature
All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)
Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)
Close (Belgium)
Decision to Leave (South Korea)
The Quiet Girl (Ireland)

Best Cinematography
James Friend "All Quiet on the Western Front"
Greig Fraser "The Batman"
Mandy Walker "Elvis"
Roger Deakins "Empire of Light"
Claudio Miranda "Top Gun: Maverick"

Best Costume Design
Babylon
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris
The Woman King

Best Film Editing
All Quiet on the Western Front
The Banshees of Inisherin
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Top Gun: Maverick 

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Babylon
The Batman
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
The Whale

Best Original Score
Justin Hurwitz "Babylon"
Carter Burwell "The Banshees of Inisherin" 
John Williams "The Fabelmans"
Alexandre Desplat "Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio"
Hildur Guðnadóttir "Women Talking"

Best Original Song
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - Lift Me Up
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio - Ciao Papa
RRR - Naatu Naatu
Top Gun: Maverick - Hold My Hand
The Voice of Dust and Ash - Dust and Ash

Best Production Design
Avatar: The Way of Water
Babylon
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
The Fabelmans

Best Sound
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All At Once
Top Gun: Maverick

Best Visual Effects
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
The Batman
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Top Gun: Maverick

Best Animated Short
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
The Flying Sailor
New Moon
My Year of Dicks
Save Ralph

Best Documentary Short
The Elephant Whisperers
The Flagmakers 
Holding Moses
How Do You Measure a Year?
38 at the Garden

Best Live Action Short
An Irish Goodbye
Le Pupille 
Nakam
The Red Suitcase
Warsha

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Best Picture and Best Director

Best Picture
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
Babylon
The Banshees of Inisherin
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
The Fabelmans
TAR
Top Gun: Maverick
The Whale

Other Contenders - Triangle of Sadness, Women Talking, RRR, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, The Woman King, Aftersun, Decision to Leave, Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio

Commentary - So we know that The Banshees of Inisherin, Elvis, Everything Everywhere All at Once, TAR, and Top Gun: Maverick are locked and loaded, with the most guild support across the board. I feel like All Quiet on the Western Front's technical and BAFTA support also makes it pretty solid right now. The Fabelmans and Avatar: The Way of Water feel a lot weaker than at the beginning of this process, and I have my concerns. But I feel like both have done enough to make the top ten. That leaves two slots, and I personally, have no idea. I am going with The Whale, which could get 4 other nods, and has the PGA nod, which was a surprise. Finally, I moved Babylon back in. It has hit a lot of guilds, and is the kind of film whose supporters are rabid, which really helps in the first round of voting. But I feel like Triangle of Sadness is strong. In a year of ten, I could see films like Glass Onion, The Woman King, RRR, and Black Panther (aka the bigger movies) squeezing in. Women Talking has faltered a lot, but again, with ten nods, am I crazy to leave it out? Also, indies like Aftersun, Decision to Leave, and GDT's Pinocchio cannot be discounted. 

Best Director
Edward Berger "All Quiet on the Western Front"
James Cameron "Avatar: The Way of Water"
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Steven Spielberg "The Fabelmans"
Todd Field "TAR"

Other Contenders - Joseph Kosinski "Top Gun: Maverick", James Cameron "Avatar: The Way of Water", Park Chan-wook "Decision to Leave", Gina Prince-Blythewood "The Woman King", Ruben Ostlund "Triangle of Sadness", Baz Luhrmann "Elvis", Damien Chazelle "Babylon", Sarah Polley "Women Talking"

Commentary - I have had the same five for awhile now. I feel like Berger will take the Academy's foreign language slot from Kosinski (whose inclusion at DGA showed a lot of strength for the film). But Kosinski's DGA Nod was a big deal, and someone else could be knocked out (I sense that McDonagh is vulnerable). James Cameron is someone not to bet against, and yet I am. He could steal a slot. Also, you cannot discount BAFTA nominees Chan-wook and Prince-Blythewood, or Chazelle, Luhrmann, Polley or Ostlund. 

13th Guild of Music Supervisors Award Nominations

FILM

Best Music Supervision for Film Budgeted Over $25 Million
Joel C. High – “A Jazzman’s Blues”
Dave Jordan – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
Anton Monsted – “Elvis”
Julie Glaze Houlihan – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”
Tom Wolfe, Manish Raval – “The Greatest Beer Run Ever”
Maureen Crowe, Becky Bentham – “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”
Rachel Levy, Mike Knobloch – “Minions: The Rise of Gru”
Mike Knobloch, Natalie Hayden, Lucy Bright – “Tár”
Tom MacDougall – “Turning Red”

Best Music Supervision for Film Budgeted $25 Million And Under
Joe Rudge – “Armageddon Time”
Robin Urdang – “Bones And All”
Lauren Marie Mikus, Bruce Gilbert – “Everything Everywhere All At Once”
Dushiyan Piruthivirajah – “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris”
Natalie Hayden, Garrett McElver – “Spoiler Alert”

Best Music Supervision for Film Budgeted $10 Million And Under
Jonathan McHugh – “Butter”
Willa Yudell – “Call Jane”
Rob Lowry – “Cha Cha Real Smooth”
Guillaume Baurez – “Corsage”
Rupert Hollier – “Living”
Rob Lowry – “On the Count of Three”
Leah Harrison, Season Kent – “Press Play”
Graham Kurzner, Orian Williams – “sam & kate”
Joe Rudge – “X”

Best Music Supervision for a Non-Theatrically Released Film
Jane Abernethy, Jessica Berndt – “Along For The Ride”
Joel C. High, Sami Posner – “Blue’s Big City Adventure”
Rob Lowry – “Do Revenge”
Gabe Hilfer, Henry van Roden – “Fresh”
Raven Davenport, Shannon Murphy – “Love in the Villa”
Becky Bentham – “Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical”
Lauren Denemark, Julian Drucker, Andrew Weaver – “Purple Beatz”
Linda Cohen – “Spirited”
Rob Lowry – “Wendell and Wild”
Howard Paar – “The Valet”

Best Song Written and/or Recorded for a Film
“Paper Airplanes” – “A Jazzman’s Blues”
Songwriters: Ruth Berhe, Terence Blanchard
Performer: Ruth B
Music Supervisor: Joel C. High

“Lift Me Up” – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
Songwriters: Robyn Fenty PKA Rihanna, Ludwig Göransson, Ryan Coogler, Temilade Openiyi PKA Tems
Performer: Rihanna
Music Supervisor: Dave Jordan

“Honey To The Bee” – “Catherine Called Birdy”
Songwriters: James Marr, Wendy Page
Performer: Misty Miller
Music Supervisors: Jen Malone, Nicole Weisberg

“Vegas” – “Elvis”
Songwriters: Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, Amala Dlamini, David Sprecher, Rogét Chahayed
Performer: Doja Cat
Music Supervisor: Anton Monsted

“This Is A Life” – “Everything Everywhere All At Once”
Songwriters: Ryan Lott, David Byrne, Mitski Miyawaki
Performers: David Byrne, Mitski, Son Lux
Music Supervisors: Lauren Marie Mikus, Bruce Gilbert

“Turn Up the Sunshine” – “Minions: The Rise of Gru”
Songwriters: Jack Antonoff, Sam Dew, Patrik Berger, Kevin Parker
Performers: Diana Ross, Tame Impala
Music Supervisors: Mike Knobloch, Rachel Levy

“Ready As I’ll Never Be” – “The Return of Tanya Tucker”
Songwriters: Tanya Tucker, Brandi Carlile
Performers: Tanya Tucker, Brandi Carlile
Music Supervisors: Jill Meyers, Drew Bayers

“Hold My Hand” – “Top Gun: Maverick”
Songwriters: Lady Gaga, BloodPop
Performer: Lady Gaga
Music Supervisor: Randy Spendlove

“Carolina” – “Where the Crawdads Sing”
Songwriter: Taylor Swift
Performer: Taylor Swift
Music Supervisor: Spring Aspers

“A Song In My Heart” – “The Valet”
Songwriters: Gaby Moreno, Heitor Pereira
Performer: Gaby Moreno
Music Supervisor: Howard Paar

DOCUMENTARIES

Best Music Supervision for a Documentary
Dawn Sutter Madell – “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed”
Justin Feldman – “Louis Armstrong’s Black And Blues”
Jonathan Zalben – “Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes”
Allison Wood – “Tony Hawk: Until The Wheels Fall Off”

Best Music Supervision in a Docuseries
Amanda Krieg Thomas – “The Andy Warhol Diaries”
Ross Sellwood – “My Life as a Rolling Stone”
Dan Wilcox – “Street Food USA”
Barry Cole – “They Call Me Magic”
Andrea von Foerster – “Welcome To Wrexham”

VIDEO GAMES

Best Music Supervision in a Video Game (Synch)
Ryan Tomlin, Brandon Young – “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II”
Alex Hackford, Duncan Smith – “Gran Turismo 7”
Raphaella Lima, Cybele Pettus, Steve Schnur – “Need For Speed Unbound”
Dylan Bostick, Josh Kessler – “Saint’s Row V”

Best Music Supervision in a Video Game (Original)
Simon Landry, Rossen Yankov – “Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarök”
Composer: Stephanie Economou

Steve Schnur – “Battlefield 2042 DLC” – Season 1 – Zero Hour | Season 2 – Master of Arms | Season 3 – Escalation
Composers: Hildur Guðnadóttir, Sam Slater

Brandon Young – “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II”
Composer: Sarah Schachner

Richard Beddow – “Total War: Warhammer III”
Composers: Jamie Christopherson, Jim Fowler, Ian Livingstone, Simon Ravn, Tim Wynn

TRAILERS

Best Music Supervision in a Trailer – Film
Evelin Garcia – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” – Teaser “Leaders”
Deric Berberabe, Jordan Silverberg – “Elvis” (trailer 2)
Anny Colvin – “Avatar: The Way Of The Water”
Gregory Sweeney – “Men” Official Trailer
Matthew Bailey, Shawn Stevens – “Empire Of Light,” Trailer “Home”
Sanaz Lavaedian, Marina Polites – Marvel Studios’ “Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania”
Scenery Samundra, Gregory Sweeney – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” Official Teaser Trailer
Bobby Gumm – “Three Thousand Years of Longing”
Maggie Baron – “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On”
Cynthia Blondelle, Heather Kreamer – “Guardians Of the Galaxy Volume 3” Official Trailer

Best Music Supervision in a Trailer – Series
Will Quiney – “Atlanta” Season 3 ‘Visitors’
Bobby Gumm – “Stranger Things 4”
Scenery Sumandra, Gregory Sweeney – “The Idol” – Official Teaser #3
Brian Sotelo – “Black Bird”
Deric Berberabe, Jordan Silverberg – “The White Lotus”- Season 2
Dylan Bostick, Chris Restivo – “Atlanta” “Shillin’”
Deric Berberabe, Jordan Silverberg – “The Boys” Season 3 (full trailer)
Kelsey Mitchell – “Perry Mason” Season 2 Teaser (HBO)
Evelin Garcia – “Andor” – Teaser “Reckoning”
Emma Allaway, Eduardo Fontes Williams – “The Crown” Season 5

Best Music Supervision in a Trailer – Video Game & Interactive
Glenn Herweijer, Simon Landry, Ben Sumner, Jack Thompson – “Assassins Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarök” – Cinematic World Premiere
Naaman Snell – “Destiny 2: The Witch Queen” – Launch Trailer
Raphaella Lima, Michael Sherwood – “Wild Hearts” Reveal Trailer
Ryan Tomlin, Brandon Young – “Warzone 2.0” Launch Trailer/ “Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0”
Ryan Tomlin; Brandon Young – “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II” – World Gameplay Reveal Trailer

TELEVISION

Best Song Written and/or Recorded for Television
“Walking On Sunshine” – “Acapulco” – Season 1 Ep. 10 – “You Should Hear How She Talks About You”
Songwriter: Kimberley Rew
Performers: Rodrigo Urquidi, Rossana de León
Music Supervisors: Javier Nuño, Joe Rodriguez

34th Golden Raspberry "Razzie" Award Nominations

Worst Film
Blonde
Disney’s Pinocchio
Good Mourning
The King’s Daughter
Morbius

Worst Actor
Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly) - Good Mourning
Pete Davidson - Marmaduke
Tom Hanks - Disney’s Pinocchio
Jared Leto - Morbius
Sylvester Stallone - Samaritan

Worst Actress
Ryan Kiera Armstrong - Firestarter
Bryce Dallas Howard - Jurassic Park: Dominion
Diane Keaton - Mack & Rita
Kaya Scodelario - The King’s Daughter
Alicia Silverstone - The Requin

Worst Remake/Rip-Off/Sequel
Blonde
365 Days: This Day
The Next 365 Days
Disney’s Pinocchio
Firestarter
Jurassic World: Dominion

Worst Supporting Actress
Adria Arjona - Morbius
Lorraine Bracco - Disney’s Pinocchio
Penelope Cruz - The 355
Bingbing Fan - The 355 & The King’s Daughter
Mira Sorvino - Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend

Worst Supporting Actor
Pete Davidson - Good Mourning
Mod Sun - Good Mourning
Tom Hanks - Elvis
Xavier Samuel - Blonde
Evan Williams - Blonde

Worst Screen Couple
Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly) & Mod Sun - Good Mourning
Both Real Life Characters in the Fallacious White House Bedroom Scene - Blonde
Tom Hanks & His Latex-Laden Face - Elvis
Andrew Dominik & His Issues with Women - Blonde
The Two 365 Days Sequels

Worst Director
Judd Apatow - The Bubble
Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly) & Mod Sun - Good Mourning
Andrew Dominik - Blonde
Daniel Espinosa - Morbius
Robert Zemeckis - Disney’s Pinocchio

Worst Screenplay
Blonde
Disney’s Pinocchio
Good Mourning
Jurassic World: Dominion
Morbius

Online Film Critics Society Award Winners

Best Picture – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Animated Feature – Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
Best Director – Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Actor – Colin Farrell – The Banshees of Inisherin
Best Actress – Michelle Yeoh – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Supporting Actor – Ke Huy Quan – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Supporting Actress – Kerry Condon – The Banshees of Inisherin
Best Original Screenplay – The Banshees of Inisherin
Best Adapted Screenplay – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Best Editing – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Cinematography – Top Gun: Maverick
Best Original Score – The Banshees of Inisherin
Best Production Design – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Best Costume Design – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Best Visual Effects – Avatar: The Way of Water
Best Debut Feature – Aftersun – Charlotte Wells
Best Film Not in the English Language – Decision to Leave
Best Documentary Feature – Fire of Love

Technical Achievement Awards
3D Effects Design – Avatar: The Way of Water
Original Song – “Naatu Naatu” – RRR
Sound Design – Tár
Stunt Coordination – RRR
Stunt Coordination – Top Gun: Maverick

Top Ten Films of 2022 (in ranked order)
Everything Everywhere All at Once
The Banshees of Inisherin
Tár
The Fabelmans
Nope
RRR
Top Gun: Maverick
Aftersun
Women Talking
EO

Sunday, January 22, 2023

Latino Entertainment Journalists Association (LEJA) Award Nominations

Best Picture
“Aftersun” (A24) — Mark Ceryak, Amy Jackson, Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski
“The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures) — Graham Broadbent, Peter Czernin, Martin McDonagh
“Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths” (Netflix) –Alejandro González Iñárritu
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) — Daniel Kwan, Mike Larocca, Daniel Scheinert, Jonathan Wang
“The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures) — Tony Kushner, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Steven Spielberg
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix) — Guillermo del Toro, Lisa Henson, Alexander Bulkley, Corey Campodonico, Gary Ungar
“RRR” (Variance Films) — D.V.V. Danayya
“Tár” (Focus Features) — Todd Field, Scott Lambert, Alexandra Milchan
“Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures) — Jerry Bruckheimer, Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie, David Ellison
“Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) — Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Frances McDormand

Best Director
Guillermo del Toro – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix)
Todd Field – “Tár” (Focus Features)
Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
Sarah Polley – “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
Steven Spielberg – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
Charlotte Wells – “Aftersun” (A24)

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Austin Butler – “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
Daniel Giménez Cacho – “Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths”
Diego Calva – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
Colin Farrell – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
Brendan Fraser – “The Whale” (A24)
Paul Mescal – “Aftersun” (A24)

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Cate Blanchett – “Tár” (Focus Features)
Ana de Armas – “Blonde” (Netflix)
Danielle Deadwyler – “Till” (Orion/United Artists Releasing)
Mia Goth – “Pearl” (A24)
Aubrey Plaza – “Emily the Criminal” (Roadside Attractions/Vertical Entertainment)
Michelle Yeoh – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Brendan Gleeson – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
Tenoch Huerta – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
Barry Keoghan – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
Pedro Pascal – “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” (Lionsgate)
Mark Rylance – “Bones and All” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
Ke Huy Quan – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Angela Bassett – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
Kerry Condon – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
Jamie Lee Curtis – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
Dolly de Leon – “Triangle of Sadness” (Neon)
Stephanie Hsu – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
Ximena Lamadrid – “Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths”

Best Voice or Motion Capture Performance
Antonio Banderas – “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” (DreamWorks Animation)
Harvey Guillén – “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” (DreamWorks Animation)
Jenny Slate – “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” (A24)
Ewan McGregor – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix)
Zoe Saldaña – “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)
Wagner Moura – “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” (DreamWorks Animation)

Best Animated Film
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix) — Guillermo del Toro (director, producer), Mark Gustafson (director), Alexander Bulkley, Corey Campodonico, Lisa Henson, Gary Ungar (producers)
“Inu-Oh” (GKIDS) — Masaaki Yuasa (director), Fumie Takeuchi, Eunyoung Choi (producers)
“Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” (A24) — Dean Fleischer-Camp (director and producer), Andrew Goldman, Elisabeth Holm, Caroline Kaplan, Paul Mezey (producers)
“Puss In Boots: The Last Wish” (DreamWorks Animation) — Joel Crawford (director), Mark Swift (producer)
“Turning Red” (Pixar) — Domee Shi (director), Lindsey Collins (producer)

Best Non-English Language
“All Quiet on the Western Front” (Germany) – Edward Berger (director)
“Argentina, 1985” (Argentina) – Santiago Mitre (director)
“Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths” (Mexico) — Alejandro G. Iñárritu (director)
“EO” (Poland) – Jerzy Skolimowski (director)
“RRR” (India) – S.S. Rajamouli (director)

Best Documentary Film
“All That Breathes” (HBO Documentary Films/Sideshow) — Shaunak Sen (director and producer), Teddy Leifer, Aman Mann (producers)
“All the Beauty and the Bloodshed” (Neon) — Laura Poitras (director and producer), Howard Gertler, Nan Goldin, Yoni Golijov, John S. Lyons (producers)
“Fire of Love” (National Geographic Films/Neon) — Sara Dosa (director, producer), Shane Boris, Ina Fichman (producers)
“Lucy and Desi” (Amazon Studios) – Amy Poehler (director), Jeanne Elfant Festa, Mark Monroe, Michale Rosenberg, Nigel Sinclair, Justin Wilkes (producers)
“Navalny” (CNN/Warner Bros.) — Daniel Roher (director), Diane Becker, Shane Boris, Melanie Miller, Odessa Rae (producers)

Best Original Screenplay
“Aftersun” (A24) – Charlotte Wells
“The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures) – Martin McDonagh
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert
“The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures) – Tony Kushner, Steven Spielberg
“Tár” (Focus Features) – Todd Field

Best Adapted Screenplay
“All Quiet on the Western Front” (Netflix) — Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, Ian Stokell (based on the novel by Erich Maria Remarque)
“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix) — Rian Johnson (based on characters written by Johnson)
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix) — Guillermo del Toro, Matthew Robbins, Gris Grimly, Patrick Hale (based on the characters and novel by Carlo Collodi)
“She Said” (Universal Pictures) — Rebecca Lenkiewicz (based on the book by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, and the New York Times investigation by Kantor, Twohey and Rebecca Corbett)
“Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) — Sarah Polley, Miriam Toews (based on the novel by Toews)

Best Ensemble Casting
“The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures) – Louise Kiely
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Sarah Finn
“The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures) – Cindy Tolan
“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix) – Bret Howe, Mary Vernieu
“Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) – John Buchan, Jason Knight

Best Production & Set Design
“Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios) — Dylan Cole, Ben Procter (production designer), Vanessa Cole (set decorator)
“Babylon” (Paramount Pictures) — Florencia Martin (production designer), Anthony Carlino (set decorator)
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios) — Hannah Beachler (production designer), Lisa K. Sessions (set decorator)
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Jason Isvarday (production designer), Kelsi Ephraim (set decorator)
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix) – Curt Enderle (production designer), Guy Davis (set decorator)

Best Cinematography
“Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios) – Russell Carpenter
“Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths” (Netflix) – Darius Khondji
“The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures) – Ben Davis
“Tár” (Focus Features) – Florian Hoffmeister
“Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures) – Claudio Miranda

Best Costume Design
“Babylon” (Paramount Pictures) – Mary Zophres
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios) – Ruth E. Carter
“Elvis” (Warner Bros.) – Catherine Martin
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Shirley Kurata
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix) – Brittany Bennett, Diane Dwyer, Elsa Dye, Laura Kerrigan, Thalia Lane, Helen Plaumer, Annika Schindler, Lucy Sturley, Amanda Thoms

Best Editing
“Aftersun” (A24) – Blair McClendon
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Paul Rogers
“The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures) – Sarah Broshar, Michael Kahn
“Tár” (Focus Features) – Monika Willi
“Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures) – Eddie Hamilton

Best Hair & Makeup Design
“The Batman” (Warner Bros.) — Naomi Donne (makeup designer), Mike Marino (prosthetics design), Zoe Tahir (hair designer)
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios) — Joel Harlow (makeup department head)
“Elvis” (Warner Bros.) — Shane Thomas (hair and makeup designer), Mark Coulier (prosthetics designer), Jason Baird (prosthetics supervisor for Tom Hanks and Austin Butler), Louise Coulston (key hairdresser)
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Michelle Chung (makeup department head), Anissa Salazar (hair department head)
“The Whale” (A24) — Adrien Morot (prosthetic makeup designer), Judy Chin (makeup department head), Anne Marie Bradley (hair department head)

Best Sound Design
“Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios) — Gwen Whittle (supervising sound editor), Gary Summers, Mike Hedges (re-recording mixers), Chris Boyes (supervising sound editor, re-recording mixer), Tony Johnson (production sound mixer), Julian Howarth (TBA)
“Babylon” (Paramount Pictures) — Steven Morrow (production sound mixer), Mildred Iatrou Morgan (supervising sound editor), Andy Nelson (re-recording mixer) Ai-Ling Lee (supervising sound editor, re-recording mixer)
“Elvis” (Warner Bros.) — David Lee (production sound mixer), Wayne Pashley (sound designer, supervising sound editor), Andy Nelson, Michael Keller (re-recording mixers)
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) — Brent Kiser (supervising sound editor, re-recording mixer), Andrew Twite (sound designer), Stephen Nelson (production sound mixer), Alexandra Fehrman, Ian Chase (re-recording mixers)
“Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures) — Mark Weingarten (production sound mixer), James H. Mather, Al Nelson (supervising sound editors), Chris Burdon, Mark Taylor (re-recording mixers)

Best Visual Effects
“Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios) — Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon, Daniel Barrett
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios) — Geoffrey Baumann, Craig Hammack, Hanzhi Tang (vfx supervisors), Dan Sudick (sfx supervisor)
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) — Zak Stoltz (visual effects supervisor), Ethan Feldbau, Benjamin Brewer (visual effects lead artists), Jeff Desom (visual effects artist)
“RRR” (Variance Films) — V Srinivas Mohan (visual effects supervisor)
“Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures) — Ryan Tudhope (visual effects supervisor), Scott R. Fisher (special effects coordinator), Seth Hill (visual effects supervisor), Bryan Litson (visual effects supervisor)

Best Stunt Design
“The Batman” (Warner Bros.)
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
“RRR” (Variance Films)
“Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)

Best Musical Score
“Babylon” (Paramount Pictures) – Justin Hurwitz
“The Batman” (Warner Bros.) – Michael Giacchino
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) – Son Lux
“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix) – Alexandre Desplat
“Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) – Hildur Guðnadóttir

Best Song Written for a Film
“Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
“Ciao Papa” from “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix)
“Naatu Naatu” from “RRR” (Variance Films)
“Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)
“Carolina” from “Where the Crawdads Sing” (Sony Pictures)

The 2023 Rita Moreno Lifetime Achievement Award
Guillermo del Toro – The highest honor for a career that has exemplified Latino excellence, Guillermo del Toro has been a tireless advocate of cinema in all its beautiful forms. Never tied to a single genre, he’s made an indelible impression in Hollywood with various ambitious endeavors such as “Cronos” (1992), “Mimic” (1997), “The Devil’s Backbone” (2001), “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (2008), “Pacific Rim” (2013) and “Crimson’s Peak” (2015). A multi-nominated and winning Oscar recipient, his most recognized contributions have been “Pan’s Labyrinth” (2006), “The Shape of Water” (2017), “Nightmare Alley” (2021), and “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (2022), for which he is nominated for nine awards including best picture and director. He’s the first director of an animated feature to be nominated by the organization. The Latino Entertainment Journalists Association salutes the Mexican auteur and looks forward to more stunning work throughout his lifetime.

Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards

Best Film
Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner-Up: Top Gun: Maverick

Best Director
The Daniels – Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner-Up: Steven Spielberg – The Fabelmans

Best Lead Actor
Colin Farrell – The Banshees of Inisherin
            Runner-Up: Brendan Fraser – The Whale

Best Lead Actress
Michelle Yeoh – Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner-Up: Cate Blanchett – TÁR

Best Supporting Actor
Ke Huy Quan – Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner-Up: Brendan Gleeson – The Banshees of Inisherin

Best Supporting Actress
Janelle Monáe – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
            Runner-Up: Stephanie Hsu – Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Original Screenplay
Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner-Up: The Banshees of Inisherin

Best Adapted Screenplay
Women Talking
            Runner-Up: Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

Best Cinematography
Nope
            Runner-Up: Top Gun Maverick

Best Original Score
(TIE) Nope and RRR

Best Animated Feature
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
            Runner-Up: Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

Best Foreign Language Film
RRR
            Runner-Up: All Quiet on the Western Front

Best Documentary
Jackass Forever
            Runner-Up: Good Night Oppy

Best Science Fiction, Fantasy or Horror
Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner-Up: Prey

Best Tom Poe Award for LGBTQ Film
Everything Everywhere All at Once
            Runner Up: The Whale

International Cinephile Society Award Nominations

PICTURE
• Aftersun
• Alcarràs
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Coma
• Crimes of the Future
• Decision to Leave
• EO
• The Fabelmans
• Godland
• The Maiden
• The Novelist’s Film
• Pacifiction
• Saint Omer
• Saturn Bowling
• Showing Up
• TÁR
• Tommy Guns
• Trenque Lauquen
• Unrest
• You Have to Come and See It

DIRECTOR
• Laura Citarella – Trenque Lauquen
• Alice Diop – Saint Omer
• Todd Field – TÁR
• Patricia Mazuy – Saturn Bowling
• Albert Serra – Pacifiction
• Jerzy Skolimowski – EO
• Charlotte Wells – Aftersun

ACTOR
• Colin Farrell – The Banshees of Inisherin
• Cosmo Jarvis – It Is In Us All
• Benoît Magimel – Pacifiction
• Luca Marinelli – Le Otto Montagne
• Paul Mescal – Aftersun
• Park Hae-il – Decision to Leave

ACTRESS
• Cate Blanchett – TÁR
• Vicky Krieps – Corsage
• Guslagie Malanda – Saint Omer
• Rosy McEwen – Blue Jean
• Park Ji-Min – Return to Seoul
• Tang Wei – Decision to Leave

SUPPORTING ACTOR
• Alessandro Borghi – Le Otto Montagne
• Barry Keoghan – The Banshees of Inisherin
• Ke Huy Quan – Everything Everywhere All at Once
• Achille Reggiani – Saturn Bowling
• Ingvar Sigurðsson – Godland
• Luis Zahera – As Bestas

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
• Hong Chau – Showing Up
• Kerry Condon – The Banshees of Inisherin
• Dolly de Leon – Triangle of Sadness
• Pahoa Mahagafanau – Pacifiction
• Kristen Stewart – Crimes of the Future
• Michelle Williams – The Fabelmans

ENSEMBLE
• Alcarràs
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• The Fabelmans
• Les Amandiers
• Trenque Lauquen
• Triangle of Sadness

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
• Aftersun – Charlotte Wells
• The Banshees of Inisherin – Martin McDonagh
• Pacifiction – Baptiste Pinteaux, Albert Serra
• Saint Omer – Amrita David, Alice Diop, Marie NDiaye
• TÁR – Todd Field
• Trenque Lauquen – Laura Citarella, Laura Paredes

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
• Bones and All – David Kajganich
• Both Sides of the Blade – Claire Denis
• EO – Ewa Piaskowska, Jerzy Skolimowski
• A Flower in the Mouth – Eric Beaudelaire, Anne-Louise Trividic
• Le Otto Montagne – Charlotte Vandermeersch, Felix van Groeningen
• Women Talking – Sarah Polley, Miriam Toews

CINEMATOGRAPHY
• Aftersun – Gregory Oke
• Decision to Leave – Kim Ji-yong
• EO – Michal Dymek
• Godland – Maria von Hausswolff
• The Kings of the World – David Gallego
• Pacifiction – Artur Tort

EDITING
• Aftersun – Blair McClendon
• Decision to Leave – Kim Sang-beom
• Everything Everywhere All at Once – Paul Rogers
• Moonage Daydream – Brett Morgen
• Pacifiction – Albert Serra, Artur Tort, Ariadna Ribas
• TÁR – Monika Willi

PRODUCTION DESIGN
• Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths – Eugenio Caballero
• Coma – Anna Bonello, Gaston Portejoie, Daphné Yvon
• Crimes of the Future – Carol Spier, Dimitris Katsikis, Kimberley Zaharko
• Decision to Leave – Ryu Seong-hie
• Pacifiction – Sebastian Vogler
• Saturn Bowling – Thierry François, Dorian Maloine

SCORE
• Aftersun – Oliver Coates
• Crimes of the Future – Howard Shore
• Decision to Leave – Jo Yeong-wook
• EO – Pawel Mykietyn
• Nope – Michael Abels
• Stars at Noon – Tindersticks

SOUND DESIGN
• Aftersun – Jovan Ajder
• EO – Radoslaw Ochnio, Marta Weronska, Suraj Bardia
• Nope – Johnnie Burn, José Antonio Garcia
• Pacifiction – Jordi Ribas
• TÁR – Deb Adair, Stephen Griffiths, Andy Shelley, Steve Single, Roland Winke
• Unrest – Roland Widmer, Miguel Moraes Cabral, Guido Keller

ANIMATED FILM
• Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood – Richard Linklater
• Fairytale – Aleksandr Sokurov
• Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio – Guillermo del Toro
• Inu-Oh – Masaaki Yuasa
• Marcel the Shell with Shoes On – Dean Fleischer Camp
• No Dogs or Italians Allowed – Alain Ughetto

DOCUMENTARY
• All the Beauty and the Bloodshed – Laura Poitras
• Anhell69 – Theo Montoya
• De Humani Corporis Fabrica – Verena Paravel, Lucien Castaing-Taylor
• Malintzin 17 – Mara Polgovsky Ezcurra, Eugenio Polgovsky
• Moonage Daydream – Brett Morgen
• Tales of the Purple House – Abbas Fahdel

DEBUT FEATURE
• Aftersun – Charlotte Wells
• Blue Jean – Georgia Oakley
• Eismayer – David Wagner
• It Is In Us All – Antonia Campbell-Hughes
• The Maiden – Graham Foy
• Safe Place – Juraj Lerotić
• Saint Omer – Alice Diop

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
• Frankie Corio – Aftersun
• Eden Dambrine – Close
• Kayije Kagame – Saint Omer
• Gabriel LaBelle – The Fabelmans
• Guslagie Malanda – Saint Omer
• Nadia Tereszkiewicz – Les Amandiers

Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award Nominations

Best Picture
The Banshees of Inisherin
Everything Everywhere All at Once
TÁR

Best Director
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Todd Field, TÁR
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin

Best Actor
Austin Butler, Elvis
Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin
Paul Mescal, Aftersun

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, TÁR
Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Janelle Monáe, Glass Onion

Best Supporting Actor
Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees of Inisherin
Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin
Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Supporting Actress
Jessie Buckley, Women Talking
Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin
Frankie Corio, Aftersun
Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Dolly de Leon, Triangle of Sadness
Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Michelle Williams, The Fabelmans

Best Screenplay
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once
Todd Field, TÁR
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin

Best Documentary
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
Fire of Love
Moonage Daydream

Best Foreign Language Film
All Quiet on the Western Front
Holy Spider
RRR

Chicago Indie Critics Association Award Winners

BEST INDEPENDENT FILM (budgets under $25 million)
EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE
Producers: Jonathan Wang, Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Joe Russo, Anthony Russo, and Mike Larocca

BEST STUDIO FILM (budgets over $25 million)
RRR
Producers: D.V.V. Danayya

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
DECISION TO LEAVE
Producers: Park Chan-wook and KO Dae-sok

BEST DOCUMENTARY
FIRE OF LOVE
Producers: Shane Boris, Sara Dosa, and Ina Fichman

BEST ANIMATED FILM
GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO
Producers: Guillermo del Toro, Lisa Henson, Gary Ungar, Alex Bulkley, and Corey Campodonico

BEST DIRECTOR
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
WOMEN TALKING
Sarah Polley

BEST ACTOR
Colin Farrell, THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN

BEST ACTRESS
Michelle Yeoh, EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Ke Huy Quan, EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Janelle Monáe, GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST
GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY
Casting directors: Brett Howe and Mary Vernieu

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
TOP GUN: MAVERICK
Claudio Miranda

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER
Dylan Cole, Ben Procter, and Vanessa Cole

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
THE WOMAN KING
Gersha Phillips

BEST MAKEUP
THE BATMAN
Naomi Donne, Michael Marino, and Mike Fontaine

BEST EDITING
EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE
Paul Rogers

BEST MUSICAL SCORE
GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO
Alexandre Desplat

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Naatu Naatu” – RRR
Music by M.M. Keeravaani and lyrics by Chandrabose

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER
Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon, and Daniel Barrett

BEST STUNTS
RRR
Nick Powell

BREAKOUT ARTIST
Austin Butler

SIGHT UNSEEN PERFORMANCE
Jenny Slate, MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON 

IMPACT AWARD
The late Sergio Mims (film critic) 

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Best Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, and Supporting Actress

Best Actor
Austin Butler "Elvis"
Colin Farrell "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Brendan Fraser "The Whale"
Paul Mescal "Aftersun"
Bill Nighy "Living"

Other Contenders - Tom Cruise "Top Gun: Maverick", Tom Hanks "A Man Called Otto", Felix Kammerer "All Quiet on the Western Front", Diego Calva "Babylon", Adam Sandler "Hustle", Jeremy Pope "The Inspection", Gabriel LaBelle "The Fabelmans"

Commentary - 4 slots are a given. We know that Butler, Farrell, Fraser, and Nighy are locked, and the Oscar will come down to one of them. That fifth slot? A doozy. I am going with the BAFTA fifth of Paul Mescal, which I have been predicting for a while. I don't necessarily feel super confident, because Aftersun doesn't feel as strong as I thought it would. Adam Sandler could follow up his SAG nod with an Oscar nod that should have come for Uncut Gems (sometimes that happens). Tom Cruise could ride his film's success (and would show strength), and Tom Hanks could surprise for a loveable grump role that older audiences are indulging in. Also watch out for Pope, LaBelle, Kammerer, and Calva. 

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett "TAR"
Viola Davis "The Woman King"
Ana De Armas "Blonde"
Danielle Deadwyler "Till"
Michelle Yeoh "Everything Everywhere All At Once"

Other Contenders - Michelle Williams "The Fabelmans", Margot Robbie "Babylon", Andrea Riseborough "To Leslie"

Commentary - Again, four slots feel locked. Blanchett, Davis, Deadwyler, and Yeoh have hit enough major precursors. For months I had Michelle Williams. But after SAG and BAFTA snubs, I can officially say it was a huge mistake to switch her to lead. In both cases Ana De Armas replaced her. I think Blonde was awful (she was great, and is great in general), but voters seem to be looking passed that fact. Also watch out for Margot Robbie, and the stealth campaign longshot of Andrea Riseborough. 

Best Supporting Actor
Paul Dano "The Fabelmans"
Brendan Gleeson "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Barry Keoghan "The Banshees of Inisherin" 
Ke Huy Quan "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Eddie Redmayne "The Good Nurse"

Other Contenders - Judd Hirsch "The Fabelmans", Brad Pitt "Babylon", Brian Tyree Henry "Causeway", Tom Hanks "Elvis", Ben Whishaw "Women Talking"

Commentary - Three Guys, Quan, Gleeson, and Keoghan feel locked. Redmayne has hit all the right notes. But does anyone else feel like its one of those nods that just doesn't happen? I am predicting him, because the stats tell me I'm a fool not to. But I have a hunch he could miss. Paul Dano got the SAG, and the BAFTA nods instead don't feel like they will cross over. But Judd Hirsch, Brad Pitt, Brian Tyree Henry, Tom Hanks, and Ben Whishaw are waiting to pounce on an uncertain race. 

Best Supporting Actress
Angela Bassett "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"
Hong Chau "The Whale"
Kerry Condon "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Jamie Lee Curtis "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Stephanie Hsu "Everything Everywhere All at Once"

Other Contenders - Dolly De Leon "Triangle of Sadness", Janelle Monae "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery", Jessie Buckley "Women Talking", Claire Foy "Women Talking"

Commentary - Again, four contenders have hit the marks. Bassett, Chau, Condon, and Curtis seem locked. SAG went for Hsu and BAFTA went for De Leon. It really is a toss up. I think the power of EEAAO will win out, and maybe that is just me being hopeful. Beyond those six, the rest of the potentials have stumbled. But don't be surprised to names like Monae, Buckley and Foy surprise. 

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Best Adapted and Original Screenplay

Best Adapted Screenplay
Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, and Ian Stokell "All Quiet on the Western Front"
Kazuo Ishiguro "Living"
Rebecca Lenkiewicz "She Said"
Samuel D. Hunter "The Whale"
Sarah Polley "Women Talking"

Other Contenders - Rian Johnson "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery", Peter Craig, Justin Marks, Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, and Christopher McQuarrie "Top Gun: Maverick", Guillermo del Toro, Matthew Robbins, Gris Grimly, and Patrick Hale "Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio", James Cameron, Rick Jaffa, and Amanda Silverman "Avatar: The Way of Water", Noah Baumbach "White Noise", Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever", Kogonada "After Yang"

Commentary - This race is oddly tough. Women Talking being snubbed at BAFTA was huge, but I feel like WGA is going to nominate it. Is it still the frontrunner? Will it even get nominated? I am still banking on a nomination, but a win? I am not as certain as a I used to be. Glass Onion seems to be faltering as well? Am I crazy to leave it out? Probably, But I am going with the BAFTA 4 (The Quiet Girl would be a real shocker with American voters), and subbing in Women Talking. Glass Onion, Gun, Pinocchio, Avatar, and After Yang are still possibilities in what has become one of the biggest question mark races of this awards season. 

Best Original Screenplay
Martin McDonagh "The Banshees of Inisherin"
The Daniels "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner "The Fabelmans"
Todd Field "TAR"
Ruben Ostlund "Triangle of Sadness"

Other Contenders - Charlotte Wells "Aftersun", Baz Luhrmann, Sam Bromell, Craig Pearce, and Jeremy Doner "Elvis", Damien Chazelle "Babylon", Seth Reiss and Will Tracy "The Menu"

Commentary - I have been banking on this five for awhile now and after Aftersun didn't get a BAFTA nod, I feel even better about my picks. Aftersun could still get in, and don't discount BP contenders Elvis and Babylon, and even The Menu, which is certainly original. 

Saturday, January 21, 2023

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Best Animated Feature, Documentary Feature, and International Feature

Best Animated Feature
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio
Marcel the Shell With Shoes On
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
The Sea Beast
Turning Red

Other Contenders - Minions: The Rise of Gru, My Father's Dragon, Inu-Oh, Apollo 10 1/2, Strange World, Lightyear, Wendell & Wild

Commentary - Four slots seemed locked. Pinocchio, Marcel, Puss in Boots, and Turning Red have hit all of the major precursors they need to make the cut. The last slot? Who knows? Inu-On got the Globe nod. Strange World may have faltered at the box office, but it was well liked, and Minions got the PGA. Lightyear did really well with some of the technical guilds. This helps its case. Then you have the Netflix trifecta of Apollo 10 1/2, Wendell & Wild, and The Sea Beast. At the Annie Awards, The Sea Beast did the best of the bunch, and had of lot of technical support below the line. Animators clearly love the film, and its production design. I think it surprises, and makes the cut. 

Best Documentary Feature
All That Breathes
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
Descendant
Fire of Love
Navalny

Other Contenders - Moonage Daydream, The Territory, Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song, Retrograde, Bad Axe, Last Flight Home, A House Made of Splinters, The Janes, Hidden Letters, Children of the Mist

Commentary - A tough race to call, because you never know how these documentary voters are going to land. Fire of Love is a huge hit, Navalny is incredibly timely, Descendant has the Netflix backing and the Obamas, All that Breathes is probably the front runner, and I would be so disappointed if All the Beauty and the Bloodshed missed (plus it has done well across the board). But Moonage Daydream has a lot of support, The Territory has been widely seen, Bad Axe is popular, and Hallelujah surprised once when it made the longlists.

Best International Feature
All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)
Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)
Close (Belgium)
Decision to Leave (South Korea)
The Quiet Girl (Ireland)

Other Contenders - EO (Poland), Bardo (Mexico), Corsage (Austria), Saint Omer (France), Return to Seoul (Cambodia), Joyland (Pakistan), Last Film Show (India), Cairo Conspiracy (Sweden), The Blue Caftan (Morocco)

Commentary - The only real guarantee here is All Quiet on the Western Front, which is set to be a huge contender across the board, including a potential Best Picture nomination. Argentina, 1985's win at the Globes put it in the spotlight. Decision to Leave has been a huge hit so far this season, and The Quiet Girl's BAFTA nod puts it on the map. I am worried about Close, a great film, but I still have it making the cut. EO though feels like it should be in here, but critical groups and the Academy are different, and sometimes critical love doesn't always translate. Bardo is also strong, simply because of the Inarritu's name behind it. Saint Omer, Joyland, and Return to Seoul are critical favorites, and keep your eye out for Last Film Show. 

Friday, January 20, 2023

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Best Cinematography, Costume Design, Film Editing, Makeup and Hairstyling, and Production Design

Best Cinematography
James Friend "All Quiet on the Western Front"
Greig Fraser "The Batman"
Mandy Walker "Elvis"
Roger Deakins "Empire of Light"
Claudio Miranda "Top Gun: Maverick"

Other Contenders - Darius Khondji "Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths", Russell Carpenter "Avatar: The Way of Water", Janusz Kamiński "The Fabelmans", Linus Sandgren "Babylon", Larkin Seiple "Everything Everywhere All At Once", Florian Hoffmeister "TAR", Ben Davis "The Banshees of Inisherin" 

Best Costume Design
Babylon
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris
The Woman King

Other Contenders - All Quiet on the Western Front, Amsterdam, Avatar: The Way of Water, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, TAR, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Women Talking, Nope

Best Film Editing
All Quiet on the Western Front
The Banshees of Inisherin
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Top Gun: Maverick 

Other Contenders - Avatar: The Way of Water, The Fabelmans, Babylon, TAR, Women Talking, Triangle of Sadness, The Whale, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, The Batman, Aftersun, RRR, Decision to Leave, Nope, The Woman King

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Babylon
The Batman
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
The Whale

Other Contenders - Blonde, Amsterdam, Crimes of the Future, Emancipation

Best Production Design
Avatar: The Way of Water
Babylon
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Elvis
The Fabelmans

Other Contenders - All Quiet on the Western Front, Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio, The Batman, Bardo, The Banshees of Inisherin, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Woman King, RRR

Thursday, January 19, 2023

The Oscar Narrative: Final Nomination Predictions - Best Original Score, Original Song, Sound, and Visual Effects

Best Original Score
Justin Hurwitz "Babylon"
Carter Burwell "The Banshees of Inisherin" 
John Williams "The Fabelmans"
Alexandre Desplat "Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio"
Hildur Guðnadóttir "Women Talking"

Other Contenders - Son Lux "Everything Everywhere All at Once", Volker Bertelmann "All Quiet on the Western Front", Ludwig Göransson "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever", Terence Blanchard "The Woman King", Nicholas Britell "She Said", Simon Franglen "Avatar: The Way of Water"

Best Original Song
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - Lift Me Up
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio - Ciao Papa
RRR - Naatu Naatu
Top Gun: Maverick - Hold My Hand
The Voice of Dust and Ash - Dust and Ash

Other Contenders - Tell it Like a Woman - Applause, Avatar: The Way of Water - You Give Me Strength, Till - Stand Up, Where the Crawdads Sing - Carolina, A Man Called Otto - Till You're Home, Spirited - Good Afternoon, Everything Everywhere All at Once - This is Life

Best Sound
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
Elvis
Everything Everywhere All At Once
Top Gun: Maverick

Other Contenders - The Batman, Babylon, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Moonage Daydream, Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio

Best Visual Effects
All Quiet on the Western Front
Avatar: The Way of Water
The Batman
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Top Gun: Maverick

Other Contenders - Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Jurassic World: Dominion, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, Nope, Thirteen Lives