With the Academy Awards scheduled for Sunday night, here’s my predictions for the non-acting awards. I likely have seen very few of these movies, so I will mostly be going on gut feel and word of mouth.
Best Original Screenplay
Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell, American Hustle
Woody Allen, Blue Jasmine
Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack, Dallas Buyers Club
Spike Jonze, Her
Bob Nelson, Nebraska
I haven’t seen any of these films yet. The backlash against Woody Allen after the Golden Globes will likely hurt him. I’m thinking Spike Jonze’s tale of falling in love with a Siri-like AI will take home the prize.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, and Ethan Hawke, Before Midnight
Billy Ray, Captain Phillips
Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope, Philomena
John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave
Terence Winter, The Wolf of Wall Street
Slave and The Wolf of Wall Street, with John Ridley taking home the Oscar for his adaptation of the 1853 memoir.
Best Animated Feature
Frozen
The Croods
The Wind Rises
Despicable Me 2
Ernest & Celestine
Again, I haven’t seen any of these and I’m likely not ever going to. That said, Frozen appears to be a hit for the ages, so I’m going to go wih that.
Best Cinematography
Philippe Le Sourd, The Grandmaster
Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity
Bruno Delbonnel, Inside Llewyn Davis
Phedon Papamichael, Nebraska
Roger A. Deakins, Prisoners
The technical wizadry that was Gravity should have no problem taking home this prize.
Best Costume Design
Michael Wilkinson, American Hustle
William Chang Suk Ping, The Grandmaster
Catherine Martin, The Great Gatsby
Michael O’Connor, The Invisible Woman
Patricia Norris, 12 Years a Slave
There’s nothing Oscar voters for this category like more than period pieces, and this year gives them many to choose from. My guess is that the Roaring 20s will rule the day and that The Great Gatsby will take home the prize.