What can I say about last night’s Oscars? Well, at least The Revenant didn’t win Best Picture, right?
Tag: leonardo dicaprio
Oscar Predictions: Who Will, Could, And Should Win?
After a wild ride of an awards season that started out with so much hope and promise, only to end with major disappointment, Oscar night is just about here. Yes, Leonardo DiCaprio is assured his elusive first trophy, and unfortunately it’s come down to The Revenant and Mad Max with some heat from Spotlight.
Yes, the races have solidified pretty quickly; there’s a general consensus of who’s winning. But that doesn’t mean were in for a total snooze fest, right? (I can hold out some hope).
So, let’s get on with putting a cap on this season already by looking at the major races. Who will, could and should win? And who got snubbed?
“The Revenant” Wins Big At The BAFTAS
I don’t know how we got here, but it would seem like The Revenant has got the best chance at winning Best Picture at the Oscars.
The film showed a surprising strength after leading the nomination count with The Academy last month, but there was still a strong consensus around Spotlight and The Big Short. And while those two films each have a big award from an important guild (SAG and the PGA respectively), The Revenant’s unexpected win with the DGA and the BAFTAs makes the heat around it seem that much stronger.
Leonardo Dicaprio’s star power is not be underestimated; He’s been cleaning up this awards season due to a lack of competition and the “it’s time” narrative. But there seems to be an extreme enthusiasm for the film outside of Leo’s work, and director Iñárritu’s win for Birdman last year doesn’t seem to be slowing the momentum down whatsoever.
It’s clearly between The Big Short, Spotlight and The Revenant for the win; a photo finish. Each have their appeal, but if you had to ask me which film stood the best chance at winning right now, I’d say The Revenant. It has the actors, the directors, and the various crafts behind it. And while there’s a case to be made for Mad Max: Fury Road, I’m not sure there’s been enough enthusiasm from the guilds (in terms of wins) to justify that theory.
There’s always room for surprises however; I think it’s been too crazy of a year to have The Revenant take home the gold. When I say it’s going to win, that’s what the stats would suggest. My heart tells me Mad Max: Fury Road is going to win due to a 3-way split. There’s no sure way to say with how spread out the awards have been. This will be one of those years where it won’t be revealed until Oscar night.
Take a look below at the full list of winners from the BAFTAs below.
Awards Season Double Standards: The Curious Case Of Leonardo DiCaprio
It seems as if this is the year that Leonardo DiCaprio will win that (seemingly) elusive Academy Awards.
When it was announced that DiCaprio was leading the cast of Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s follow up to Birdman, he surged to the top of everyone’s Best Actor predictions. The fact that Birdman netted the top awards at last year’s ceremony (Best Picture and Director, to name a few) only cemented those chances, it seemed. Contenders have come and gone, but it’s Leo who seems to be destined for a win.
“Spotlight” Gets A Boost At The SAG Awards
After losing Best Picture at the Producer’s Guild Awards last week, Spotlight got a bump after winning the top prize over The Big Short at the Screen Actor’s Guild this evening.
Seeing as the actors are the largest voting body in the Academy, this is pretty substantial. However, the Best Ensemble prize matches with Oscar’s Best Picture choice less than the PGA’s award has in the past. Films like The Help have won with SAG and gone on to lose the Oscar, so it isn’t always a sure thing.
It’ll be interesting to see how the other guilds vote, and how much of the absence of Mad Max here plays out with the Academy.
In the other categories, Brie Larson, Alicia Vikander and Leonardo DiCaprio predictably won, while Idris Elba unexpectedly (and deservedly) won in Supporting Actor.
Though he was snubbed for an Oscar, it was his first major win of the season (and his first of two wins tonight). Presumed frontrunner, Sylvester Stallone, was not nominated tonight. Though it did rub salt in the wound of Elba’s snub, I was happy to see him get a win. He’s clearly beloved by his peers, and it’s time the industry as a whole took notice of that.
Take a look at the full list of winners from tonight, below.
“Mr. Robot”, “Fargo” and “Mad Max” Sweep Critic’s Choice Awards
Full list of winners below:
“The Revenant” Wins Big At A Dull Golden Globes Ceremony
If there’s anything we learned at last night’s Golden Globes, it’s that we still have no idea who the front runner for the Oscars are this year.
That being said, the Golden Globes aren’t really related to the Oscars in any way besides being awards, but they do indicate where the passion is for the films in contention. Though, I’m not really sure what the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association were smoking when they filled out their ballots.
“The Revenant” Review
I had to sum up The Revenant in one word, it would be: grueling.
That’s not a knock on the film’s quality by any means, though it doesn’t always make for an easy viewing experience. As with his last film, the Best Picture winning Birdman, director Alejandro González Iñárritu continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible when it comes to filmmaking. It’s funny, because there are some parallels between Riggan Thomson, the main character of Birdman, and Iñárritu himself. Where Riggan was tasked with proving himself as a ‘real actor’ and adapting a novel into a stage play (which he was also the star of), Iñárritu has attempted to best himself with the largest, most visually arresting film of his very esteemed career.
Jon On Film 