Late August Oscar Predictions

Best Picture:

1. Dunkirk
2. The Papers
3. Call me By Your Name
4. Phantom Thread
5. Darkest Hour
6. Last Flag Flying
7. The Shape of Water
8. Downsizing
9. Get Out
10. Wonderstruck
11. Mudbound
12. Detroit
13. The Greatest Showman
14. Blade Runner 2049
15. Mother!

 

Best Director:

1. Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
2. Steven Spielberg – The Papers
3. Luca Guadagnino – Call Me By Your Name
4. Paul Thomas Anderson – Phantom Thread
5. Joe Wright – Darkest Night
6. Guillermo del Toro – The Shape of Water
7. Alexander Payne – Downsizing
8. Jordan Peele – Get Out
9. Dee Rees – Mudbound
10. Todd Haynes – Wonderstruck

 

Best Actor in a Lead Role

1. Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour
2. Daniel Day Lewis – Phantom Thread
3. Hugh Jackman – The Greatest Showman
4. Tom Hanks – The Papers
5. Denzel Washington – Roman Israel
6. Timothee Chalamet – Call Me By Your Name
7. Bryan Cranston – Last Flag Flying
8. Matt Damon – Downsizing
9. Joaquin Phoenix – You Were Never Really Here
10. Jake Gyllenhaal – Stronger

 

Best Actress in a Lead Role

1. Meryl Streep – The Papers
2. Kate Winslet – Wonder Wheel
3. Annette Bening – Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool
4. Judi Dench – Victoria and Abdul
5. Francis McDormand – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
6. Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water
7. Jennifer Lawrence – mother!
8. Carrie Mulligan – Mudbound
9. Emma Stone – Battle of the Sexes
10. Claire Foy – Breathe

 

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

1. Michael Stuhlbarg – Call Me By Your Name
2. Willem Dafoe – The Florida Project
3. Armie Hammer – Call Me By Your Name
4. Mark Rylance – Dunkirk
5. Laurence Fishburne – Last Flag Flying
6. Michael Shannon – THe Current War
7. Ed Harris – mother!
8. Steve Carell – Battle of the Sexes
9. Jason Mitchell – Mudbound
10. Idris Elba – Molly’s Game

 

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

1. Melissa Leo – Novitiate
2. Michelle Pfeiffer – mother!
3. Kristin Scott Thomas – Darkest Hour
4. Holly Hunter – The Big Sick
5. Michelle Williams – THe Greatest Showman
6. Mary J Blige – Mudbound
7. Julianne Moore – Wonderstruck
8. Octavia Spencer – The Shape of Water
9. Hong Chau – Downsizing
10. Lesley Manville – Phantom Thread

 

Best Adapted Screenplay

1. Call Me By Your Name
2. Wonderstruck
3. Mudbound
4. Last Flag Flying
5. Victoria and Abdul
6. Molly’s Game
7. Lean on Pete
8. The Death of Stalin
9. Blade Runner 2049
10. Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool

 

Best Original Screenplay

1. The Shape of Water
2. Wonder Wheel
3. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
4. Get Out
5. Downsizing
6. Phantom Thread
7. Darkest Hour
8. The Papers
9. Suburbicon
10. Dunkirk

 

Best Animated Film

1. Coco
2. The Breadwinner
3. Ferdinand
4. The Boss Baby
5. The LEGO Batman Movie
6. The LEGO Ninjago Movie
7. Despicable Me 3
8. Mary and the Witch’s Flower
9. In this Corner of the Sky
10. Birdboy, The Forgotten Child

 

Best Foreign Language Film

1. Happy End – Austria
2. Loveless – Russia
3. Thelma – Norway
4. Where Life is Born – Mexico
5. The Square – Sweden
6. 120 Beats Per Minute – France
7. A Fantastic Woman – Chile
8. Ishmael’s Ghost – France
9. Wild Mouse – Austria
10. I Am Not Madame Bovary – China

 

Best Documentary Film

1. An Inconvenient Sequel
2. Last Men in Aleppo
3. Abacus: Small Enough to Jail
4. Chasing Coral
5. Aida’s Secret
6. Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin
7. Oit
8. Strong Island
9. City of Ghosts
10. Icarus

 

Best Cinematography

1. Blade Runner 2049
2. Dunkirk
3. Darkest Hour
4. Wonderstruck
5. The Shape of Water
6. Mother!
7. Call me By Your Name
8. The Greatest Showman
9. Phantom Thread
10. The Lost City of Z

 

Best Costume Design

1. Victoria and Abdul
2. Phantom Thread
3. Wonderstruck
4. Darkest Hour
5. The Greatest Showman
6. Murder on the Orient Express
7. The Shape of Water
8. Blade Runner 2049
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. Wonder Wheel

 

Best Film Editing

1. Dunkirk
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Detroit
4. The Papers
5. The Shape of Water
6. Wonderstruck
7. Get Out
8. Darkest Hour
9. Call Me By Your Name
10. Downsizing

 

Best Makeup/Hair

1. Darkest Hour
2. Logan
3. The Greatest Showman
4. Guardians of the Galaxy
5. The Shape of Water
6. Murder on the Orient Express

 

Best Production Design:

1. Blade Runner 2049
2. The Greatest Showman
3. Dunkirk
4. The Shape of Water
5. Darkest Hour
6. Wonderstruck
7. Beauty and the Beast
8. Phantom Thread
9. Star Wars
10. The Current War

Best Sound Editing

1. Dunkirk
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Detroit
4. Star Wars
5. Wonder Woman
6. The Shape of Water
7. War for the Planet of the Apes
8. Phantom Thread
9. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
10. Coco

 

Best Sound Mixing

1. Dunkirk
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Detroit
4. The Greatest Showman
5. The Shape of Water
6. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
7. Baby Driver
8. Beauty and the Beast
9. Get Out
10. Coco

 

Best Visual Effects

1. War for the Planet of the Apes
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Star War: The Last Jedi
4. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2
5. The Shape of Water
6. Spiderman: Homecoming
7. Dunkirk
8. Kong: Skull Island
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. Wonder Woman

 

Best Original Score

1. Dunkirk
2. The Shape of Water
3. Darkest Hour
4. The Papers
5. Wonderstruck
6. Blade Runner 2049
7. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
8. Murder on the Orient Express
9. The Greatest Showman
10. Mother!

 

Best Original Song

1. “Come Alive” – The Greatest Showman
2. “Evermore” – Beauty and the Beast
3. “Remember Me” – Coco
4. “It Ain’t Fair” – Detroit
5. “Truth to Power” – An Inconvenient Sequel
6. “This is Me” – The Greatest Showman
7. “Tell Me How Long” – Chasing Coral
8. “How Does a Moment Last Forever” – Beauty and the Beast
9. “I Don’t Want to Live Forever” – Fifty Shades Darker
10. “Chase Me” – Baby Driver

Early July OSCAR Predictions

Hello everybody and welcome back to Awards15. We are now half way done with 2017, and by the next time I post predictions, the first really Best Picture contender, Dunkirk, will have been released, and we’ll have an idea of it’s chances. For now, Darkest Hour seems to have a lock on many of the top categories, including Best Picture and Best Lead Actor. Here’s what I’ve predicted to be nominated come January.

 

Best Picture

1. Darkest Hour
2. Mudbound
3. Detroit
4. Phantom Thread
5. The Papers
6. Call Me by Your Name
7. Dunkirk
8. Get Out
9. The Greatest Showman
10. Suburbicon
11. Blade Runner 2049
12. Wonderstruck
13. The Current War
14. Battle of the Sexes
15. Downsizing

 

Best Director

1. Dee Rees – Mudbound
2. Paul Thomas Anderson – Phantom Thread
3. Joe Wright – Darkest Hour
4. Luca Guadagnino – Call Me by Your Name
5. Kathryn Bigelow – Detroit
6. Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
7. Steven Spielberg – The Papers
8. Denis Villeneuve – Blade Runner 2049
9. Richard Linklater – Last Flag Flying
10. Jordan Peele – Get Out

 

Best Actor in a Lead Role

1. Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour
2. Daniel Day Lewis – Phantom Thread
3. Bryan Cranston – Last Flag Flying
4. Hugh Jackman – The Greatest Showman
5. Chadwick Boseman – Marshall
6. Tom Hanks – The Papers
7. Joaquin Phoenix – You Were Never Really Here
8. Benedict Cumberbatch – The Current War
9. Andrew Garfield – Breathe
10. Matt Damon – Suburbicon

 

Best Actress in a Lead Role

1. Francis McDormand – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
2. Judi Dench – Victoria and Abdul
3. Meryl Streep – The Papers
4. Jennifer Lawrence – Mother!
5. Claire Foy – Breathe
6. Emma Stone – Battle of the Sexes
7. Kate Winslet – Wonder Wheel
8. Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water
9. Rooney Mara – Mary Magdalene
10. Carrie Mulligan – Mudbound

 

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

1. Michael Stuhlbarg – Call Me By Your Name
2. Jason Mitchell – Mudbound
3. Steve Carell – Battle of the Sexes
4. Sterling K Brown – Marshall
5. Ben Mendelsohn – Darkest Hour
6. Laurence Fishburne – Last Flag Flying
7. Michael Shannon – The Current War
8. Woody Harrelson – The Glass Castle
9. John Boyega – Detroit
10. Tom Hardy – Dunkirk

 

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

1. Kristin Scott Thomas – Darkest Hour
2. Michelle Pfeiffer – Mother!
3. Mary J Blige – Mudbound
4. Nicole Kidman – The Killing of a Sacred Deer
5. Melissa Leo – Novitiate
6. Julianne Moore – Suburbicon
7. Kirsten Dunst – The Beguiled
8. Kristen Wiig – Downsizing
9. Michelle Williams – The Greatest Showman
10. Octavia Spencer – The Shape of Water

 

Best Adapted Screenplay

1. Mudbound
2. Call Me by Your Name
3. Last Flag Flying
4. The Beguiled
5. The Death of Stalin
6. Lean on Pete
7. Blade Runner 2049
8. Wonderstruck
9. Victoria and Abdul
10. You Were Never Really Here

 

Best Original Screenplay

1. Darkest Hour
2. Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
3. Detroit
4. Get Out
5. Phantom Thread
6. Dunkirk
7. The Papers
8. Downsizing
9. The Killing of a Sacred Deer
10. Suburbicon

 

Best Animated Feature Film

1. Coco
2. The Breadwinner
3. Despicable Me 3
4. Ferdinand
5. Loving Vincent
6. Cars 3
7. The LEGO Batman Movie
8. The Boss Baby
9. Animal Crackers
10. The Star

 

Best Foreign Language Film

1. A Fantastic Woman – Chile
2. 120 Beats per Minute – France
3. The Square – Sweden
4. Loveless – Russia
5. Wild Mouse – Austria
6. The Day After – South Korea
7. I Am Not Madame Bovary – China
8. Ana, mon Amor – Romania
9. On Body and Soul – Hungary
10. Zama – Spain

 

Best Cinematography

1. Dunkirk
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Wonderstruck
4. Darkest Hour
5. The Greatest Showman
6. Detroit
7. Mudbound
8. Call Me by Your Name
9. The Lost City of Z
10. Mother!

 

Best Costume Design

1. The Greatest Showman
2. Phantom Thread
3. Victoria and Abdul
4. Wonderstruck
5. Murder on the Orient Express
6. Darkest Hour
7. The Beguiled
8. The Current War
9. Call Me By Your Name
10. Mudbound

 

Best Film Editing

1. Darkest Hour
2. Phantom Thread
3. Mudbound
4. Dunkirk
5. Detroit
6. The Papers
7. Last Flag Flying
8. Blade Runner 2049
9. Wonderstruck
10. Downsizing

 

Best Makeup and Hair

1. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2
2. Logan
3. Darkest Hour
4. The Shape of Water
5. The Greatest Showman
6. Phantom Thread

 

Best Production Design

1. The Greatest Showman
2. Darkest Hour
3. Blade Runner 2049
4. Beauty and the Beast
5. Victoria and Abdul
6. Wonderstruck
7. Dunkirk
8. Murder on the Orient Express
9. The Shape of Water
10. Phantom Thread

 

Best Sound Editing

1. Blade Runner 2049
2. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
3. Dunkirk
4. Detroit
5. The Greatest Showman
6. Transformers: The Last Knight
7. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2
8. Darkest Hour
9. The Shape of Water
10. Atomic Blonde

 

Best Sound Mixing

1. The Greatest Showman
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
4. Dunkirk
5. Dtroit
6. Darkest Hour
7. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 2
8. The Shape of Water
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. Murder on the Orient Express

 

Best Visual Effects

1. Blade Runner 2049
2. War for the Planet of the Apes
3. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2
4. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
5. Dunkirk
6. Spiderman: Homecoming
7. Wonder Woman
8. Kong: Skull Island
9. The Shape of Water

 

Best Original Score

1. Dunkirk
2. The Shape of Water
3. The Greatest Showman
4. Wonderstruck
5. Phantom Thread
6. The Papers
7. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
8. Darkest Hour
9. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
10. Murder on the Orient Express

 

Early June Oscar Prediction

It’s June now, and that means more Oscar predictions are coming. Next month, the first of the contenders for Best Picture, Dunkirk will be released, putting this season into a bit of a premature start. For now, this season is looking a lot like 2015, with Star Wars’s next chapter being a hot contender, and a squeal of a 1980’s Sci-Fi film, Blade Runner 2049, possibly getting in the Best Picture race, like Mad Max: Fury Road. And now, here are the predicted nominees for the 90th Academy Awards:

 

Best Picture

1. Darkest Hour
2. Dunkirk
3. Mudbound
4. The Post
5. Detroit
6. Blade Runner 2049
7. Call Me By Your Name
8. Wonderstruck
9. The Greatest Showman
10. Phantom Thread
11. Get Out
12. Downsizing
13. Suburbicon
14. The Current War
15. The Glass Castle

 

Best Director

1. Joe Wright – Darkest Hour
2. Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
3. Kathryn Bigelow – Detroit
4. Dee Rees – Mudbound
5. Steven Spielberg – The Post
6. Todd Haynes – Wonderstruck
7. Paul Thomas Anderson – Phantom Thread
8. Luca Guadagnino – Call Me By Your Name
9. Denis Villeneuve – Blade Runner 2049
10. Reginald Hudlin – Marshall

 

Best Actor in a Lead Role

1. Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour
2. Daniel Day Lewis – Phantom Thread
3. Hugh Jackman – The Greatest Showman
4. Chadwick Boseman – Marshall
5. Tom Hanks – The Post
6. Benedict Cumberbatch – The Current War
7. Joaquin Phoenix – You Were Never Really Here
8. Andrew Garfield – Breathe
9. Bryan Cranston – Last Flag Flying
10. Matt Damon – Downsizing

 

Best Actress in a Lead Role

1. Judi Dench – Victoria and Abdul
2. Francis McDormand – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
3. Meryl Streep – The Post
4. Brie Larson – The Glass Castle
5. Rooney Mara – Mary Magdalene
6. Emma Stone – Battle of the Sexes
7. Jennifer Lawrence – Mother!
8. Jessica Chastain – Molly’s Game
9. Claire Foy – Breathe
10. Kate Winslet – Wonder Wheel

 

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

1. Jason Mitchell – Mudboune
2. Michael Shannon – The Current War
3. Woody Harrelson – The Glass Castle
4. Michael Stuhlbarg – Call Me By Your Name
5. Sterling K. Brown – Marshall
6. Steve Carell – Battle of the Sexes
7. Steve Buscemi – Lean on Pete
8. Javier Bardem – Mother!
9. Ben Mendelsohn – Darkest Hour
10. Idris Elba – Molly’s Game

 

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

1. Kristin Scott Thomas – Darkest Hour
2. Michelle Pfeiffer – Mother!
3. Nicole Kidman – The Killing of a Sacred Deer
4. Melissa Leo – The Novitiate
5. Julianne Moore – Wonderstruck
6. Michelle Williams – The Greatest Showman
7. Naomi Watts – The Glass Castle
8. Margot Robbie – Goodbye Christopher Robin
9. Mary J Blige – Mudbound
10. Allison Janney – I, Tonya

 

Best Adapted Screenplay

1. Mudbound
2. Call Me By Your Name
3. Wonderstruck
4. Molly’s Game
5. The Glass Castle
6. Victoria and Abdul
7. Lean on Pete
8. The Beguiled
9. Last Flag Flying
10. The Death of Stalin

 

Best Original Screenplay

1. Darkest Hour
2. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
3. Detroit
4. Phantom THread
5. The Killing of a Scared Deer
6. Downsizing
7. Get Out
8. The Post
9. Dunkirk
10. Suburbicon

 

Best Animated Feature Film

1. Coco
2. The Breadwinner
3. Despicable Me 3
4. Cars 3
5. The LEGO Batman Movie
6. Ferdinand
7. Loving Vincent
8. The Boss Baby
9. Animal Crackers
10. The Star

 

Best Foreign Language Film

1. 120 Beats Per Second – France
2. A Fantastic Lady – Chile
3. The Square – Sweden
4. Loveless – Russia
5. The Day After – South Korea
6. I Am Not Madame Bovary – China
7. Wild Mouse – Austria
8. Ana, Mon Amor – Romania
9. On Body and Soul – Hungary
10. Zama – Spain

 

Best Cinematography

1. Blade Runner 2049
2. Dunkirk
3. Darkest Hour
4. Wonderstruck
5. Detroit
6. Mother!
7. The Current War
8. Mudbound
9. Call Me By Your Name
10. The Mountain Between Us

 

Best Costume Design

1. The Greatest Showman
2. Phantom Thread
3. Victoria and Abdul
4. Darkest Hour
5. Wonderstruck
6. Murder on the Orient Express
7. The Current War
8. The Beguiled
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. Mudbound

 

Best Film Editing

1. Dunkirk
2. Darkest Hour
3. Blade Runner 2049
4. Detroit
5. Phantom Thread
6. Wonderstruck
7. The Post
8. Get Out
9. Downsizing
10. Suburbicon

 

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

1. Darkest Hour
2. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2
3. Loga
4. The Greatest Showman
5. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
6. Murder on the Orient Express

 

Best Production Design

1. The Current War
2. Darkest Hour
3. The Greatest Showman
4. Blade Runner 2049
5. Wonderstruck
6. Beauty and the Beast
7. Murder on the Orient Express
8. Dunkirk
9. Phantom Thread
10. The Beguiled

 

Best Sound Editing

1. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Dunkirk
4. Detroit
5. The Greatest Showman
6. Alien: Covenant
7. War for the Planet of the Apes
8. Annihilation
9. Transformers: The Last Knight
10. Beauty and the Beast

 

Best Sound Mixing

1. The Greatest Showman
2. Blade Runner 2049
3. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
4. Dunkirk
5. Detroit
6. Beauty and the Beast
7. Transformers: The Last Knight
8. War for the Planet of the Apes
9. The Current War
10. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2

 

Best Visual Effects

1. War for the Planet of the Apes
2. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
3. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol.
4. Blade Runner 2049
5. Spiderman: Homecoming
6. Dunkirk
7. Transformers: The Last Knight
8. Wonder Woman
9. Kong: Skull Island
10. Alien: Covenant

 

Best Original Score

1. Darkest Hour
2. Dunkirk
3. The Shape of Water
4. Wonderstruck
5. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
6. Blade Runner 2049
7. Murder on the Orient Express
8. Phantom Thread
9. The Greatest Showman
10. Suburbicon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

90th Academy Awards Predictions

Sunday night’s extravaganza was something that won’t soon be forgotten. With La La Land expected to win Best picture then having it given to given to Moonlight during their acceptance speeches is something that will never been forgotten. But Moonlight’s victory for Best Picture highlights the change within the Academy. It is not as easy to predict the top honor since it is the only category that requires voters to rank all the nominees instead of casting a vote for just one nominee (a process I feel they should apply to all categories). So now instead of predicting which nominee will receive the most votes, we’re predicting which nominee will be the first to abstain an absolute majority among all, meaning front runners now have more of chance of missing the top honor since they may night have enough second and third place votes.

But now that the 2017 Oscars are behind us, it is now time to loo forward to 2018, so as of right now, these are the films that I foresee being nominated for nominated for the 90th Academy Awards on March 4, 2018.

Best Picture

• Call Me By Your Name
• The Current War
• Darkest Hour
• Dunkirk
• The Glass Castle
• Mother
• Mudbound
• Rebel in the Rye
• Victoria and Abdul

Best Director:

• Darren Aronofsky – Mother
• Alfonso Gomez-Rejon – The Current War
• Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
• Dee Rees – Mudbound
• Joe Wright – Darkest Hour

Best Actor in a Lead Role

• Sterling K. Brown – Marshall
• Benedict Cumberbatch – The Current War
• Garrett Hedlund – Mudbound
• Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour
• Michael Shannon – The Current War

Best Actress in a Lead Role

• Judi Dench – Victoria and Abdul
• Brie Larson – The Glass Castle
• Jennifer Lawrence – Mother
• Carrie Mulligan – Mudbound
• Charlize Theron – The Coldest City

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

• Armie Hammer – Call Me By Your Name
• Tom Hardy – Dunkirk
• Ben Mendelsohn – Darkest Hour
• Kevin Spacey – Rebel in the Rye
• Michael Stuhlbarg – Call Me By Your Name

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

• Laura Linney – The Dinner
• Sarah Paulson – Rebel in the Rye
• Michelle Pfeiffer – Mother
• Kristin Scott Thomas – Darkest Hour
• Naomi Watts – The Glass Castle

Best Original Screenplay

• The Current War
• Darkest Hour
• Downsizing
• Dunkirk
• Mother

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Call Me by Your Name
• The Glass Castle
• Mudbound
• Rebel in the Rye
• Victoria and Abdul

Best Animated Feature Film

• The Boss Baby
• The Breadwinner
• Cars 3
• Coco
• Ferdinand

Best Foreign Language Film

• A Fantastic Woman – Chile
• Loveless – Russia
• The Other Side of Hope – Finland
• On Body and Soul – Hungary
• Bright Nights – Germany

Best Cinematography

• Beauty and the Beast
• Call Me By Your Name
• The Current War
• Darkest Hour
• Dunkirk

Best Costume Design

• Beauty and the Beast
• Call Me By Your Name
• The Current War
• How to Talk to Girls at Parties
• Victoria and Abdul

Best Film Editing

• The Current War
• Darkest Hour
• Dunkirk
• Mudbound
• Star Wars The Last Jedi

Best Makeup and Hair

• Beauty and the Beast
• Darkest Hour
• How to Talk to Girls at Parties

Best Production Design

• Beauty and the Beast
• The Current War
• How to Talk to Girls at Parties
• Murder on the Orient Express
• Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Best Sound Editing

• Beauty and the Beast
• Blade Runner 2049
• Dunkirk
• Star Wars: The Last Jedi
• War for the Planet of the Apes

Best Sound Mixing

• Beauty and the Beast
• Coco
• Dunkirk
• Star Wars: The Last Jedi
• War for the Planet of the Apes

Best Visual Effects

• Alien: Covenant
• Dunkirk
• Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2
• Star Wars: The Last Jedi
• War for the Planet of the Apes

Best Original Score

• Coco
• Dunkirk
• Murder on the Orient Express
• Star Wars: The Last Jedi
• Victoria and Abdul

 

January Oscar Predictions

Now that the Golden Globes have passed, we can now look forward to the Oscar nominations being nominated next. As it would turn out, the Golden Globes aren’t just Hollywood’s drunkest party, but also a somewhat reliable predictor of who’s going to be nominated for an Oscar, especially in the supporting races. With Aaron Taylor Johnson and Isabelle Huppert unexpectedly taking home gold, their chances of receiving Oscar nominations greatly increase. That switches up something in the final stretch, especially in the Supporting Actor category, which in the past few years seems to be the most difficult to predict. The final set of predictions that I’ll be posting will be posted on the 22nd, which is just around the corner. Almost anything can happen in the time, but there’s hope that these are the nominees announced in 13 days.

 

Best Picture:

1. La La Land
2. Manchester by the Sea
3. Moonlight
4. Fences
5. Silence
6. Arrival
7. Hidden Figures
8. Jackie
9. Lion
10. Hacksaw Ridge

Best Director:

1. Damien Chazelle – La La Land
2. Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea
3. Berry Jenkins – Moonlight
4. Denzel Washington – Fences
5. Martin Scorsese – Silence

Best Actor in a Lead Role:

1. Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
2. Denzel Washington – Fences
3. Ryan Gosling – La La Land
4. Andrew Garfield – Hacksaw Ridge
5. Joel Edgerton – Loving

Best Actress in a Lead Role:

1. Emma Stone – La La Land
2. Isabelle Huppert – Elle
3. Natalie Portman – Jackie
4. Meryl Streep – Florence Foster Jenkins
5. Amy Adams – Arrival

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

1. Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
2. Aaron Taylor Johnson – Nocturnal Animals
3. Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea
4. Dev Patel – Lion
5. Jeff Bridges – Hell or High Water

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

1. Viola Davis – Fences
2. Naomie Harris – Moonlight
3. Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea
4. Nicole Kidman – Lion
5. Octavia Spencer – Hidden Figures

Best Original Screenplay:

1. Manchester by the Sea
2. La La Land
3. Hell or High Water
4. Jackie
5. The Lobster

Best Adapted Screenplay:

1. Fences
2. Moonlight
3. Silence
4. Arrival
5. Lion

Best Animated Feature Film:

1. Zootopia
2. Moana
3. Kubo and the Two Strings
4. Finding Dory
5. My Life as a Zucchini

Best Foreign Language Film

1. Toni Erdmann – Germany
2. The Salesman – Iran
3. A Man Called Ove – Sweden
4. Paradise – Russia
5. It’s Only the End of the World – Canada

Best Cinematography

1. La La Land
2. Silence
3. Arrival
4. Jackie
5. Hacksaw Ridge

Best Costume Design

1. Jackie
2. La La Land
3. Silence
4. Florence Foster Jenkins
5. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Best Film Editing

1. La La Land
2. Moonlight
3. Arrival
4. Hacksaw Ridge
5. Silence

Best Makeup and Hair

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Deadpool
3. Star Trek Beyond

Best Production Design

1. Silence
2. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
3. Florence Foster Jenkins
4. Rogue one
5. La La Land

Best Sound Editing

1. La La Land
2. Hacksaw Ridge
3. Rogue One
4. The Jungle Book
5. Silence

Best Sound Mixing

1. La La Land
2. Hacksaw Ridge
3. Rogue One
4. Silence
5. The Jungle Book

Best Visual Effects

1. Doctor Strange
2. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
3. The Jungle Book
4. Rogue One
5. Captain America: Civil War

Best Original Score

1. La La Land
2. Florence Foster Jenkins
3. Rogue One
4. Jackie
5. Moonlight

Best Original Song:

1. “City of Stars” – La La Land
2. “How Far I’ll Go” – Moana
3. “Try Everything” – Zootopia
4. “Faith” – Sing
5. “Letters to the Free” – 13th

Best Documentary

1. O.J.: Made in America
2. 13th
3. I Am Not Your Negro
4. Cameroperson
5. The Ivory Game

Best Animated Short Film

1. Piper
2. Borrowed Time
3. Sous Tes Doigts
4. The Head Vanishes
5. Pearl

Best Documentary Short

1. Joe’s Violin
2. The White Helmets
3. Watami: My Home Land
4. The Mute’s House
5. Extremis

Best Live Action Short Film:

1. Nocturne in Black
2. Timecode
3. Mindenki (Sing)
4. The Way to Tea
5. The Rifle, The Jackal, The Wolf and the Boy

 

Mid October Predictions

October is upon us, and the Best Picture winner near to being released, or has already has hit theaters. Many of the nominees I am predicting have are in theaters or have already left theaters, and have been a hit or a miss. From here on out, the nominees will be determined by the critics love and box office performance. The submissions have been announced for the Foreign Language Film category, meaning the winner is known to us, we just have to pick the right one.

Best Picture:

1. La La Land
2. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. Fences
4. Loving
5. Manchester by the Sea
6. Silence
7. Moonlight
8. Arrival
9. Nocturnal Animals
10. Lion

Best Director:

1. Damien Chazelle – La La Land
2. Ang Lee – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea
4. Berry Jenkins – Moonlight
5. Denzel Washington – Fences

Best Actor in a Lead Role:

1. Joel Edgerton – Loving
2. Denzel Washington – Fences
3. Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
4. Ryan Gosling – La La Land
5. Jake Gyllenhaal – Nocturnal Animals

Best Actress in a Lead Role:

1. Viola Davis – Fences
2. Emma Stone – La La Land
3. Ruth Negga – Loving
4. Natalie Portman – Jackie
5. Annette Bening – 20th Century Women

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

1. Michael Shannon – Nocturnal Animals
2. Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
3. Liam Neeson – Silence
4. Jeff Bridges – Hell or High Water
5. Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

1. Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea
2. Naomie Harris – Moonlight
3. Kristen Stewart – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Felicity Jones – A Monster Calls
5. Nicole Kidman – Lion

Best Original Screenplay:

1. Loving
2. La La Land
3. Manchester by the Sea
4. 20th Century Women
5. Moonlight

Best Adapted Screenplay:

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. Fences
3. Silence
4. Nocturnal Animals
5. Arrival

Best Animated Feature Film:

1. Zootopia
2. Moana
3. Finding Dory
4. Kubo and the Two Strings
5. The Red Turtle

Best Foreign Language Film

1. Toni Erdmann – Germany
2. The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki – Finland
3. Neruda – Chile
4. Elle – France
5. The Salesman – Iran

Best Cinematography

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. La La Land
3. Arrival
4. Silence
5. Nocturnal Animals

Best Costume Design

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Love and Friendship
3. Fences
4. Silence
5. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Best Film Editing

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. La La Land
3. Arrival
4. Silence
5. Fences

Best Makeup and Hair

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
3. Star Trek Beyond

Best Production Design

1. Silence
2. Love and Friendship
3. Florence Foster Jenkins
4. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
5. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Best Sound Editing

1. La La Land
2. Arrival
3. Rogue One
4. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
5. The Jungle Book

Best Sound Mixing

1. La La Land
2. Rogue One
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Passengers
5. The Jungle Book

Best Visual Effects

1. The Jungle Book
2. Rogue One
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Doctor Strange
5. A Monster Calls

Best Original Score

1. Arrival
2. Finding Dory
3. The Light Between Oceans
4. Rogue One
5. Hidden Figures

Best Original Song:

1. “We Know the Way” – Moana
2. “City of Stars” – La La Land
3. “Audition” – La La Land
4. “Victory” – Hidden Figures
5. “Back to Life” – Queen of Katwe

 

Late September Oscar Preidctions

Now that the Toronto International Film Festival has selected it’s Audience Choice Winner, La La Land has shot to the top of most charts and is looking like out first official front runner for Best Picture. Among the other categories, changes are being made. The Foreign Language category is beginning to take shape, with Germany looking to take it’s third win in the category. Predictions in all categories are listed below. Be sure to let me know what you think

Best Picture:

1. La La Land
2. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. Fences
4. Loving
5. Manchester by the Sea
6. Silence
7. The Birth of a Nation
8. Moonlight
9. Arrival
10. Nocturnal Animals

Best Director:

1. Damien Chazelle – La La Land
2. Ang Lee – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. Jeff Nichols – Loving
4. Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea
5. Martin Scorsese – Silence

Best Actor in a Lead Role:

1. Denzel Washington – Fences
2. Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
3. Joel Edgerton – Loving
4. Ryan Gosling – La La Land
5. Jake Gyllenhaal – Nocturnal Animals

Best Actress in a Lead Role:

1. Emma Stone – La La Land
2. Viola Davis – Fences
3. Ruth Negga – Loving
4. Natalie Portman – Jackie
5. Isabelle Huppert – Elle

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

1. Michael Shannon – Nocturnal Animals
2. Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
3. Steve Martin – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Hugh Grant – Florence Foster Jenkins
5. Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

1. Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea
2. Naomie Harris – Moonlight
3. Kristen Stewart – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Felicity Jones – A Monster Calls
5. Margo Martindale – The Hollers

Best Original Screenplay:

1. Loving
2. Manchester by the Sea
3. La La Land
4. 20th Century Women
5. The Birth of a Nation

Best Adapted Screenplay:

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. Fences
3. Arrival
4. Silence
5. Nocturnal Animals

Best Animated Feature Film:

1. Zootopia
2. Moana
3. Finding Dory
4. Kubo and the Two Strings
5. The Red Turtle

Best Foreign Language Film

1. Toni Erdmann – Germany
2. The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki – Finland
3. Neruda – Chile
4. Elle – France
5. Death in Sarajevo – Bosnia and Herzegovina

Best Cinematography

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. Arrival
3. La La Land
4. Silence
5. Nocturnal Animals

Best Costume Design

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Love and Friendship
3. Fences
4. Silence
5. Alice Through the Looking Glass

Best Film Editing

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. La La Land
3. Arrival
4. Silence
5. Fences

Best Makeup and Hair

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Star Trek Beyond
3. Silence

Best Production Design

1. Silence
2. Love and Friendship
3. Florence Foster Jenkins
4. The Birth of a Nation
5. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

Best Sound Editing

1. La La Land
2. Arrival
3. Rogue One
4. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
5. The Jungle Book

Best Sound Mixing

1. La La Land
2. Rogue One
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Passengers
5. The Jungle Book

Best Visual Effects

1. Rogue One
2. The Jungle Book
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Doctor Strange
5. Star Trek Beyond

Best Original Score

1. Arrival
2. Finding Dory
3. The Light Between Oceans
4. Rogue One
5. Hidden Figures

Best Original Song:

1. “We Know the Way” – Moana
2. “City of Stars” – La La Land
3. “Audition” – La La Land
4. “Victory” – Hidden Figures
5. “Back to Life” – Queen of Katwe

 

Mid September Predictions

It is mid September and the fall box office season is underway. The Toronto Film Festival will be going for a another week, while Venice just wrapped up, with the Golden Lion going to The Woman Who Left from the Philippines. Soon the contenders for the Oscars will be released on to cinemas and we’ll see for ourselves who is going to win. Take a look at who’s up for an Oscar!

Best Picture:

1. Fences
2. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. La La Land
4. Manchester by the Sea
5. Loving
6. Silence
7. The Birth of a Nation
8. Moonlight
9. Arrival
10. 20th Century Women

Best Director:

1. Jeff Nichols – Loving
2. Ang Lee – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. Damien Chazelle – La La Land
4. Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea
5. Martin Scorsese – Silence

Best Actor in a Lead Role:

1. Denzel Washington – Fences
2. Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
3. Joel Edgerton – Loving
4. Ryan Gosling – La La Land
5. Joe Alwyn – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

Best Actress in a Lead Role:

1. Viola Davis – Fences
2. Ruth Negga – Loving
3. Emma Stone – La La Land
4. Amy Adams – Arrival
5. Jessica Chastain – Miss Sloan

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

1. Steve Martin – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
3. Hugh Grant – Florence Foster Jenkins
4. Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea
5. Liam Neeson – Silence

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

1. Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea
2. Kristen Stewart – Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
3. Naomie Harris – Moonlight
4. Greta Gerwig – 20th Century Women
5. Dakota Fanning – American Pastoral

Best Original Screenplay:

1. Loving
2. Manchester by the Sea
3. La La Land
4. 20th Century Women
5. The Birth of a Nation

Best Adapted Screenplay:

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. Fences
3. Arrival
4. Silence
5. Moonlight

Best Animated Feature Film:

1. Zootopia
2. Finding Dory
3. Moana
4. Kubo and the Two Strings
5. The Red Turtle

Best Foreign Language Film

1. Toni Erdmann – Germany
2. From Afar – Venezuela
3. The Salesman – Iran
4. Ma’Rosa – The Philippines
5. The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki – Finland

Best Cinematography

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. Arrival
3. La La Land
4. Fences
5. Silence

Best Costume Design

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Fences
3. Love and Friendship
4. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
5. Silence

Best Film Editing

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. La La Land
3. Arrival
4. Silence
5. Fences

Best Makeup and Hair

1. Florence Foster Jenkins
2. Star Trek Beyond
3. Suicide Squad

Best Production Design

1. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
2. La La Land
3. Arrival
4. Passengers
5. The Birth of a Nation

Best Sound Editing

1. La La Land
2. Arrival
3. Rogue One
4. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
5. The Jungle Book

Best Sound Mixing

1. La La Land
2. Rogue One
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Passengers
5. The Jungle Book

Best Visual Effects

1. Rogue One
2. The Jungle Book
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
4. Doctor Strange
5. Star Trek Beyond

Best Original Score

1. Arrival
2. Finding Dory
3. The Light Between Oceans
4. Rogue One
5. Hidden Figures

Best Original Song:

1. “City of Stars” – La La Land
2. “We Know the Way” – Moana
3. “Up” – Sing Street
4. “Back to Life” – Queen of Katwe
5. “Victory” – Hidden Figures

Most Anticipated Films of Fall 2016

Just as the summer season has come to an end, the fall box office season is beginning to take shape. As the film festivals are determining who is going to be a frontrunner in the awards season, it does not necessarily predict who is going to be the box office champion of the fall season. The fall season is when the studios save their best movies to be released for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, making for some hotly anticipated movies. These are the movies that I, and many others, are eagerly looking forward to.

# 1 The Magnificent Seven (September 23)

There are two reasons to see this remake of the 1960 western classic: Denzel Washington and Chris Pratt. Of course the cast in much more than Washington and Pratt, and includes Ethan Hawke, Lee Byung-hun and Peter Sarsgaard and the villain. The remake is helmed by Antoine Fuqua, who directed Washington to his second Academy Award win and Ethan Hawke to a supporting actor nomination for their work in Training Day in 2001. In what is looking to be the most epic western fight of the 21st century, the Magnificent Seven is poised to give the fall box office season a sensational start.

#2 Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children 

Tim Burton’s highly anticipated next film, the adaptation of the novel of the same name by Ransom Riggs. In Riggs’s mysterious and adventurous novel we follow Jake Portman as he seeks to discover the secrets left behind by his grandfather, and discovers a magical and mysterious home for children with abnormal abilities. The novel is being given the strange and whimsical Tim Burton touch that fans have grown to love since The Nightmare Before Christmas. What might be most exciting though is the fact that Ransom Riggs has written two more novels, Hollow City and Library of Souls, meaning that this could be the beginning of a wonderful and strange trilogy franchize.

# 3 The Girl on the Train (October 7)

Emily Blunt is back in this thriller adaptation of book by the same name by Paula Hawkins. Drawing comparisons with the 2014 David Fincher film, Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train is going to leave audiences on the edge of their seats and waiting until the last minute of learn what is going on. Directed by Tate Taylor, the same director who gave us The Help, The Girl on the Train will have us holding on for every turn.

# 4 Doctor Strange (November 4) 

I am admittedly not a fan of the Marvel Universe films. In my opinion, they are all the same, and it’s annoying. But after seeing the trailer to Doctor Stranger, I’m willing to change my opinion and see this movie. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Tilda Swinton, this mind boggling, earth bending film looks to be nothing short of the most epic film of the fall.

#5 Billy Lynn’s Halftime Walk (November 11)

The mind blowing director who managed to bring the “unfilmable” book Life of Pi to the screen, and won an Oscar for it is bringing another ambitious book to the screen. In this adaptation of Ben Fountain’s novel, Lee is telling the story of a young man who is a war haro on an victory tour across the United States, while Lynn himself is still trying to process the events of the very day that his is being honored for, while at the same time being given the star treatment before being shipped off back to Iraq. Lee’s direction has already turned heads, when it was announced earlier this year that the film would be shot at 120 frames per second, the highest amount of frames per second ever shot for a movie. Newcomer Joe Alwyn leads an all star cast including Steve Martin and Vin Diesel.

# 6 Arrival (November 11)

When I first heard about Arrival, I thought it was just going to be a movie about aliens. But then I saw the trailer, and realized it was more than just aliens. It was about learning their language and how human will communicate with them instead of expecting them to know our language. In this movie shrouded in mystery, Amy Adams leads the cast of Jeremy Renner and Forrest Whitaker to find out why the aliens are here and how to get them home before the world erupts into war.

# 7 Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (November 18)

Any time that new material from the Harry Potter universe is released, it becomes big news. In the next adventure for the world of wizardry, we leave the land of Hogwarts for New York City, and find a hidden magical world that has been hidden in plain sight. Eddie Redmayne plays Newt Scamander as he tires to recapture escaped creatures from his briefcase while trying to allude the American authorities. For those of us who have been waiting for more magic from the Harry Potter universe, Fantastic Beasts is a welcome treat that can’t come soon enough.

# 8 Moana (November 23)

Any time that Disney Animation Studios released a new feature film, it is always the one of most anticipated movies of the year. Moana is the first princess movie from Disney since the mega smash hit Frozen, and hot off the hit from earlier this year Zootopia, Disney is already on a roll and could see it’s biggest year ever is Moana lives up to expectations. Chances are, with the help of Hamilton creator Lin Manuel Miranda, we’re going to have mega hit on our hands with new music that won’t go away anytime soon. Also, it never hurts to have Dwayne Johnson voicing one of the leads on your side.

# 9 La La Land (December 2)

Damien Chazelle burst onto the Oscar scene with his 2014 Sundance hit Whiplash, which took home 3 Oscars. This year he is back with his original musical La La Land, which stars Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling as two struggling artists in Los Angeles who fall in love, but are threatened when they both find success. With a cast including Finn Wittrock, John Legend, Rosemarie DeWitt and Oscar winner J.K. Simmons, Damien Chazelle can’t go wrong with this completely original musical.

# 10 Rogue One (December 16) 

# 11 Passengers (December 21) 

What happened when you mix two the the biggest actors in Hollywood, a new director hot off an Oscar nomination and a script from the infamous black list? You get Passengers. Directed by Morten Tyldum, who was just nominated for a Best Director Oscar for The Imitation Game, Passengers follows Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt as two passengers on a 120 year voyage to a new world when their habitation pods are opened 90 years too early. With the majority of the film consisting of Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt alone in the space ship as they find a way to survive the next 90 years of their journey to a new home.

# 12 A Monster Calls (December 23)

This film based on the novel by Patrick Ness (who also penned the script) is bringing the visually stunning images that Ness creates in the book and brings them to the big screen with the help of Spanish director J.A. Boyona. Liam Neeson voices the tree monster that pushes the young protagonist Connor to express his true emotions as he faces the most difficult challenges of his life, alone with his mother’s battle against cancer. Also starring Felicity Jones as Connor’s mother, in another performance that proves how wide a range she can handle and the third movie for her of the 4th quarter of 2016. Rounding out the cast is Sigourney Weaver as Connor’s grandmother, the main antagonist in the film. If the movie is anything like the book, it will leave audiences inspired and awestruck.

#13 Fences

We start and and this list with Denzel Washington. Washington will be making his directorial debut with the film adaptation of the play that won him a Tony Award, August Wilson’s Fences. Starting alongside Viola Davis, who won her second Tony Award for the same production, as Washington’s wife, Rose. The story follows a 50-some year old Troy Maxson, a former baseball player, who now struggles to support his family as he struggles to come to terms with his life as a garbage collector. The Broadway to Hollywood adaptation is favorite to be nominated for many Oscars, including Washington for Best Director and Best Actor, as well as Viola Davis, who is the frontrunner to win for Best Actress.

Top 5 Films of Summer 2016

It is now September and the fall season has begun, with the film festivals in Venice underway and Toronto just days away. So now is a good time to take a look back on what the best films of the summer were, and which films have the best chance at claiming Oscar Gold.

 

#5 The Conjuring 2

What was surprising about the Conjuring 2 was this is was good, which is saying a lot of a A) a horror movie, and B) a squeal. The first Conjuring film was scary and thrilling, but it’s successor was downright terrifying. Keeping the same basic concept from the first film of the husband and wife team of Ed and Loraine Warren, played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga. This time, they fly to England to investigate the possession of a young girl by a creepy old man who died in her home. The result of this was a terrifying and unexpected movie that left audiences screaming and begging for more at the same time.

#4 Star Trek Beyond

The third installment in the new Star Trek film series Star Trek Beyond lived up to all the other films in the franchise, in my opinion at least. The scene in which the Starship Enterprise was attacked and crashed on the alien planet was epic and unexpected to say the least. The following events were equally epic, which the perfect amount of comedy injected to keep the plot light and fun. The final battle between Captain Kurk and Krall (In an effort by Idris Elba to be in every movie of 2016) was the crowning event of this action pack movie.

#3 Florence Foster Jenkins

One thing that will always happen is Meryl Streep will always give a fantastic performance in every project she takes on. Along with her Hugh Grant and Simon Helburg also give outstanding performances in this Stephen Frears led project. Foster’s desire to be a professional singer while her family and friends hide the truth of her lack of singing ability, leads to a surprisingly sweet and tender film about love and following your dreams.

#2 Finding Dory

It should come as no surprise that Pixar made it onto this list. The highly anticipated follow up to one of Pixar’s more beloved films Finding Nemo followed the most favorite and loved fish forgetful fish, Dory. The reason Finding Dory is not number 1 is probably because of the insanely high expectations that audiences had for the Finding Nemo follow up. To be fair, Pixar has given us the most well made and well written squeal films ever (Toy Story 2 and 3). But Finding Dory did live up to expectations, with Dory having the same amount of fun and heart as she did in the first film, and giving the audience the backs story of how Dory became lost in the first place (while also giving us the most adorable baby fish ever seen). And of course, a brand new cast of off beat characters, from the lovable grump septapus Hank to the harbor seals to the crazy bird Becky. What Pixar did best with this film was giving audiences the answer to the question “Why is Dory so forgetful?”.

#1 Kubo and the Two Strings

Laika Studios is building a reputation similar to Pixar, in that they are constantly producing top quality animated films. While their last film, The Boxtrolls, might have stumbles a little, Laika came back on top with Kubo and the Two Strings. Kubo blended together traditional story telling and stop motion animation with modern technology to create a visual treat for the eyes. It did come as a surprise to me that the story was not an adaptation of a myth of folk story, but a completely original story. This movie creates a beautiful blend of magic, music, visual and an epic quest  that puts it on par with their animation rivals Disney and Pixar.