The Oscars are here, and surprisingly this time, the fever is catching up here in India. From fierce online debates and prediction lists, the excitement this time is as high as ever. I, for one do, follow the Oscars, just for the fun. Unfortunately, I have long lost faith in the Academy’s ability to honour great cinema. Over the years, the Academy has acquired the reputation of awarding conventional, “safe” films, the feel-good politically correct ones, rather than looking for pure quality. Of course, opinions may differ on that, but on looking back at awardees over the decades, there is a clear pattern emerging, of brave, out-of-the-box cinema being consistently overlooked. The examples are galore; how else can you explain the fact that legends like Orson Welles and Stanley Kubrick were never awarded. Even in recent history, the utter disregard for films like Mulholland Dr. and The Tree Of Life, clearly displays the Academy’s disregard for bold, unorthodox cinema.
Another raging controversy this year the prevalence of racism in Hollywood, or the #OscarsSoWhite controversy. Finally, people have woken up to this reality, and while, I am not for giving away awards just ‘cuz you are coloured, honest contributions must be recognized. Nobody can deny the apparent discrimination towards African-Americans over the years by the Academy, including the ignorance of Morgan Freeman for The Shawshank Redemption and Steve McQueen for 12 Years a Slave. Not only the coloured people, the blatant disregard for even the LGBT community is apparent, with great movies like Tangerine not given a look this year. So, in my opinion, it was high time Hollywood stood up against this discrimination, and the protests are welcome. A word of caution though; not every snub should not be attributed to racism, since a lot of great films are overlooked by the Academy that it might more be a case of not waking up to reality of unconventional, bold cinema.
So, if you attribute a lot of value to the Oscars, please don’t! As Indians, we must get over the Oscars obsession, because, frankly, theirs is not the last word.Having said all that, I am not going to shy away from making predictions this year. Though most of my favourite films have not made it to the nominations and my choice might most probably not win, doesn’t mean I can’t have some fun. So, here are my predictions on who should win Oscars this year in the top categories:
Best Cinematography
One name, Emmanuel Lubezki. The legendary cameraman, who has wowed the world with his prowess in Gravity, Birdman and The Tree Of Life, he has won it the last couple of years. Will he make three in a row, this year for The Revenant? He might not, but he certainly deserves it.
Best Documentary – Feature
There are no second thoughts here. One movie – Amy. This heart-breaking masterpiece was the best movie of 2015 across genres, and if doesn’t win, I don’t know what should!
Best Animated Feature Film
I have only seen one. I loved it. I think it should win. Charlie Kauffman’s Anomalisa is a beautiful film, a commentary on love and loneliness in this fast-paced world. Though I hear Inside Out is a strong contender; having not seen the movie, I don’t want to comment on it.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Though I would want Room to win, it being my favourite movie among the nominees, The Big Short has a great script, and is more likely to win.
Best Original Screenplay
Spotlight would be my choice, with its gripping, powerful script.
Best Supporting Actress
This is one category which has me in splits. While Jennifer Jason Leigh in The Hateful Eight was outstanding, and has probably given the best performance, I also loved Alicia Vikander in The Danish Girl. So, while I would place my bets on the former, I wouldn’t mind losing this one.
Best Supporting Actor
While the Academy may go with honouring an ageing superstar and give it to Sylvester Stallone, Tom Hardy’s haunting performance in The Revenant deserves the win.
Best Actress
This would my most controversial award. While the Academy and in fact, the world, might go with Brie Larson (a great performance, no doubt) for Room, I think Charlotte Rampling deserves it for her breath-taking performance in 45 Years. However, she hasn’t done herself a favour with her foot-in-the-mouth reaction to the #OscarsSoWhite controversy.
Best Actor
And here goes. Many have predicted him to win this year, as he has been predicted many times in the past. In a year where there were not many amazing male performances, I would give the Best Actor to Leonardo DiCaprio for his outstanding performance in The Revenant.
Best Director
To me, Tom McCarthy’s restrained yet refined direction of Spotlight was the best this year; though the Academy might go with George Miller (for Mad Max: Fury Road) or Alejandro G Innaritu (for The Revenant)
Best Film
The powerful yet emotionally gripping story of investigation into cases of widespread and systemic child sex abuse in the Boston area by numerous Roman Catholic priests, in Spotlight, gave me the best film of the year. It is a beautiful movie, and deserves to win; though there is a good chance the award would go to The Revenant.
INVICTUS 