Oscar voting is officially over for the 98th Academy Awards, and now we are just patiently waiting until the awards are handed out on March 5th. As we do every year, Will Mavity and I spoke with several Academy voters about what they are voting for and why. We’ll be posting some of those thoughts for your amusement in the lead-up to the Oscars (because that’s all this is at the end of the day). Remember, as you read these, they represent only a tiny fraction of the 11,000+ people who vote on the Oscar winners. While these may help provide some insight into how voters make their selections, they are far from the be-all and end-all of what will eventually win and should always be taken with a grain of salt.
Best Picture:
“Marty Supreme” was the most fun roller coaster ride experience at the movies this year for me. “One Battle After Another ” is no. 2, and it’s very close between that and “Marty Supreme” for me. “The Secret Agent” is no. 3. No. 4 is “Sinners,” which is obviously a good movie but a little overhyped in my opinion. I had fun with “Bugonia,” and I actually liked the ending even though many of my peers were split on it. It made very strong choices and stuck with them, and I admire that, so that goes at no. 5. “Hamnet” is good but feels a little too awards-baity at times in a way that feels old-fashioned. It was lacking a kind of grit I wanted to see from it, so that is no. 6. No. 7 goes to “Sentimental Value,” mostly for the excellent performances from Renate, Stellan, and Inga. I just couldn’t relate to Joel’s character in “Train Dreams.” He lacked concrete opinions or any complexities that would’ve made him more interesting to me. No. 9 I’m going “F1.” Let’s face it, it’s a popcorn movie. Which isn’t bad a bad thing, but it’s not what I think the Oscars should be for. It already has success and money, and I feel like it just got in here due to that. And “Frankenstein” is the worst at no. 10 for me.
Best Director:
I’m a PTA-head, so I have to go with Paul Thomas Anderson. He deserves it, and he directed a great movie. Safdie is on his way to having his own PTA moment someday, given the filmography he’s created and his auteur sensibilities, but it’s Paul’s time.
Best Actress:
I’m going to go with the crowd on this one and saying Jessie Buckley. She’s the best part of the movie. Even when you look at the stills for the film, she’s already breaking you down emotionally. To watch her in that film is a deep and spiritual connection few performances are able to tap into.
Best Actor:
I think Timothée Chalamet did a great job in “Marty Supreme.“ Leonardo DiCaprio, and Michael B. Jordan were both solid. Sadly, I get the feeling no one cares about “Blue Moon” despite how excellent Hawke was in it. But the sleeper pick is Wagner Moura. He’s so good in that movie and has been great for years. He was incredible in “Narcos” and would make a fine winner here, so I’m going with him.
Best Supporting Actress:
I loved Wunmi. She should be in more films, but she’s unfortunately not as memorable as Amy and Teyana were. No disrespect, but I don’t know what Elle is doing here. Inga was emotional but I barely remember Elle. Teyana is so electric on screen, and her presence is undeniable, but Amy Madigan did something weird, fun, and utterly unforgettable, and I’d love to see that represented.
Best Supporting Actor:
Definitely Sean Penn. I walked out of the theater and felt like he stole the film. He was eccentric, but he made it feel real and believable. It was unique, funny, terrifying, and I don’t think anyone else could’ve done it.
Best Adapted Screenplay:
You just have to go with “One Battle After Another.” Paul has a way of adapting that makes his film all his own while still paying respect to the source material. As he did with “Oil” and “There Will Be Blood,” he’s done the same here.
Best Original Screenplay:
This is where I’ll throw a bone to “Sinners.” I respect that Ryan took a horror film and gave it deeper cultural and historical roots, thereby giving it richer, deeper meaning. What he did was very smart and definitely fitting for the title of “original.”
Best Animated Feature:
I’ve only seen “KPop Demon Hunters” so I had to abstain from voting this year.
Best Documentary Feature:
I abstained from this one too for the same reason. Just didn’t have the time to see everything unfortunately, which is a shame because what I saw here so far was very good.
Best International Feature Film:
“The Secret Agent.” I just loved Wagner’s performance. It’s highly original, transportive, full-realized, and it stays with you after it’s over. I found myself still thinking about it days later.
Best Casting:
“Marty Supreme” features so many unique faces and out-of-the-box choices in its secondary characters. “The Secret Agent” did the same but I prefer Jennifer’s choices a little bit more, mostly because of the written material they were given to work with.
Best Cinematography:
This one has to be “One Battle After Another.” It’s not just the cinematography but also the direction of the camera by Paul. That chase sequence over the hills? Amazing! They did things in that film that no one else has ever done before, and to do it with large-format cameras is all the more impressive.
Best Costume Design:
I’m going to go a little different here from where I think a few of my colleagues are going and say “Marty Supreme.” The costumes, and overall design of that movie, felt so real and immersive.
Best Film Editing:
“One Battle After Another“ is sophisticated in its approach and very clean in its choices. The pacing works very well considering it’s almost three hours long. “Marty Supreme“ is a very close second for its relentless pacing and for how it builds tension in each scene without fully exhausting the audience.
Best Makeup & Hairstyling:
This is a tough one for me. “Frankenstein“ seems to be the obvious winner, but it feels a little too fake to me because of how it was shot. I just never fully bought into The Creature’s look. I don’t really know why “Sinners“ is here outside of its gore effects, which I suppose are good, but nothing I haven’t seen before. I never once believed the look of Johnson in “The Smashing Machine.“ “The Ugly Stepsister“ looks really great, though. It’s grotesque but beautifully made.
Best Production Design:
Jack Fisk is a legend and should be an Oscar winner by now. His work on “Marty Supreme“ is massive, but never draws attention to itself the way some of these other films do. People may take it for granted because we’ve seen so many movies set there, but transforming New York on a smaller, even medium budget is extremely hard. Everything he does is gold.
Best Original Score:
I really like Ludwig’s work on “Sinners.” He’s a super-talented guy. The movie is about music, and how it’s incorporated into the film is pretty remarkable.
Best Original Song:
I really want Diane Warren to win finally. I’m positive she does too. I know she’s wanted one for years, and she’s always so hopeful that it will finally be her year, and you can just see the pain and devastation on her face when it’s not her. With that said, “KPop Demon Hunters” had the best soundtrack of the year, and any song that was nominated from that I would be voting for, so I’m sorry Diane, but I’m going “Golden.”
Best Sound:
I saw “Sirāt” in the theater, and it blew me away. The music, the atmosphere, the tension, and the originality throughout are all because of its sound. It was unforgettable and definitely made a lasting impression.
Best Visual Effects:
“Avatar: Fire and Ash” is the most impressive overall package of visual effects. It may be repetitive, but there’s no denying that they’re pretty incredible.
**This voter, a member of the producer’s branch, abstained from voting in the shorts as they didn’t get around to them in time this year.**
Please let us know your thoughts on our X account and be sure to listen to our final Oscar predictions podcast episode coming this Sunday. Please click here for more important upcoming dates this awards season, here for our most recent Oscar predictions, and here for the most recent tally of awards season winners for the current year.
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