This years Oscars are brimming with competition, yet again with no host I think we will find more than one close calls. Predicting is very tough this year with so much buzz and acclaim across the board, no single film or actor has received more focus than another which is usually a good way to get a sense of a few sure bets.

Below is each category and all the nominations for those categories. You will find my prediction for each win (In Red), who I want to win (In Blue) and after the night who actually won (In Bold) with a short note on the winner if applicable.

^{Apologies for missing opinion for some categories as it wasn’t possible to watch everything this year and to that end some guessing work had to be done using reviews for films to gauge their potential.}

 

Best Picture

Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
[Winner] Parasite

Not a surprising win in the slightest. Parasite simply gained so much traction in the media and let’s be honest half of the Oscars battle is won in the press coverage of how great a film is. Shame though as for me Once Upon A Time In Hollywood was my film of the year that had me back to see it a total of 5 times at the cinema. Perhaps a little boy of my fanboy-ness around Tarantino but I’d argue that this was a very mature and intelligent film that touched on meta-issues in cinema today in a very subtle fashion.

Best Actress

Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
Saoirse Ronan, Little Women
Charlize Theron, Bombshell
[Winner] Renée Zellweger, Judy

A colossal surprise win here. I for sure it was down to Johansson, Ronan and Theron here. Shame Johansson did not pull out a win as she was truly extraordinary.

Best Actor

Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory
Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Adam Driver, Marriage Story
[Winner] Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes

Again not a surprise in the slightest, this was by far the toughest category as the competition was so strong but simply put. Phoenix was the easy pick for voters as he had the most press coverage. For me though, Driver pulled out a show-stopping performance that outdid anybody else this year.

Best Supporting Actress

Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell
[Winner] Laura Dern, Marriage Story
Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
Florence Pugh, Little Women
Margot Robbie, Bombshell

 

Best Supporting Actor

Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes
Al Pacino, The Irishman
Joe Pesci, The Irishman
[Winner] Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

This was a surprise. Pitt, of course, had a fantastic performance and anyother year would have been a shoe-in win. His talent is well known and on full display in Once Upon but I still believe that Pacino really gave a performance worth the win here, after so many years out of rich roles, I thought a capitalising on his passion for this project would have been nice. Still happy for Pitt grabbing his first though.

Best Director

Martin Scorsese, The Irishman
Todd Phillips, Joker
Sam Mendes, 1917
Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
[Winner] Bong Joon-ho, Parasite

Sure Parasite might be a juggernaut of a film to break into the western view so it seems natural to give him the direction win. But alongside best picture when there are some sensational talent given this year from the other nominees. This felt a bit cheap and I do believe Scorsese, Tarantino or even Phillips should have pulled the win here.

Best Animated Feature

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
I Lost My Body
Klaus
Missing Link
[Winner] Toy Story 4

 

Best Animated Short

Dcera (Daughter)
[Winner] Hair Love
Kitbull
Memorable
Sister

 

Best Adapted Screenplay

The Irishman
[Winner] Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
The Two Popes

Happy that Jojo did win here, I’m not sure why I was so behind The Irishman for this win when looking back on it now. Jojo Rabbit’s itself, as well as the script, is impressive to a degree that I think about it a lot more than The Irishman.

Best Original Screenplay

Knives Out
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
[Winner] Parasite

Another cheap-feeling win for Parasite here. I knew it would most likely grab this win also due to the security in it winning best picture. This almost goes hand in hand for an original script up for best picture. But Marriage Story was a sensationally wrote script that really deserved the win here for being so clever and different.

Best Cinematography

The Irishman
Joker
The Lighthouse
[Winner] 1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Cannot even be even slightly irked by Deakins grabbing another Oscar for his absolutely breathtaking work. But I would have liked to have seen some recognition given to The Lighthouse cinematography or even Once Upon a Time.

Best Documentary

[Winner] American Factory
The Cave
The Edge of Democracy
For Sama
Honeyland

 

Best Documentary Short

In the Absence
[Winner] Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone
Life Overtakes Me
St Louis Superman
Walk Run Cha-Cha

 

Best Live-action Short

Brotherhood
Nefta Football Club
[Winner] The Neighbours’ Window
Saria
A Sister

 

Best International Feature Film

Corpus Christi
Honeyland
Les Misérables
Pain and Glory
[Winner] Parasite

 

Best Editing

[Winner] Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Parasite

 

Best Sound Editing

[Winner] Ford v Ferrari
Joker
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Star Wars: The Rise of SkyWalker

 

Best Sound Mixing

Ad Astra
Ford v Ferrari
Joker
[Winner] 1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

 

Best Production Design

The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
1917
[Winner] Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Parasite

 

Best Original Score

[Winner] Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
1917
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

A very odd win for the Joker here as Marriage Story’s score felt far more complementary to the picture whereas Joker sort of had a catchy song that grabbed peoples attention rather than fitting thematically.

Best Original Song

I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away, Toy Story 4
[Winner] I’m Gonna Love Me Again, Rocketman
I’m Standing With You, Breakthrough
Into the Unknown, Frozen II
Stand Up, Harriet

 

Best Makeup and Hair

[Winner] Bombshell
Joker
Judy
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
1917

 

Best Costume Design

The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
[Winner] Little Women
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

 

Best Visual Effects

Avengers Endgame
The Irishman
[Winner] 1917
The Lion King
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker