OSCAR PICKS 2017

MY TAKE ON THE ACADEMY'S PICKS:

1. Hell or High Water 4.5/5
2. Hacksaw Ridge 4/5
3. Manchester by the Sea 4/5
4. Fences 4/5
5. Lion 3.5/5
6. La La Land 3/5
7. Arrival 3/5
8. Moonlight 2.5/5
9. Hidden Figures 2/5 

*As usual, completely different from my list (see below). Hidden Figures completely does not deserve Best Picture recognition. You loved it, were moved, and thought it was great? Fine. But WORTHY OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS, GLORIOUS, AND MOST HONORABLE RECOGNITION a film can receive ... ? Come on now. 

MY PICKS FOR 2016:

20. The Meddler

19. The Bronze
18. War Dogs
17. Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
16. Born to Be Blue
15. Captain Fantastic
14. Lion
13. Fences
12. Manchester by the Sea
11. Zootopia
10. Deadpool
9. Hacksaw Ridge
8. Hell or High Water
7. The Family Fang
6. Everybody Wants Some!!
5. Swiss Army Man
4. The Witch
3. The Lobster
2. Sing Street
1. The Neon Demon

MY PICKS FOR TONIGHT: 

PICTURE: La La Land
DIRECTOR: Damien Chazelle (La La Land)
ACTOR: Denzel Washington (Fences)
ACTRESS: Emma Stone (La La Land)
*Should win: Isabelle Huppert or Ruth Negga 

(Though once again, I'm not impressed with the Best Actress performances of the season.) 

SUPPORTING ACTOR: Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)
SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Viola Davis (Fences)
*Naomie Harris doesn't deserve to win but you get a shout out nonetheless.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Manchester by the Sea
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Moonlight
ANIMATED FEATURE: Zootopia
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: O.J.: Made in America
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: The Salesman
*Should Win: Toni Erdmann
EDITING: La La Land
CINEMATOGRAPHY: La La Land
COSTUME DESIGN: Jackie
PRODUCTION DESIGN: La La Land
MAKE UP: Star Trek Beyond
VISUAL EFFECTS: The Jungle Book
ORIGINAL SCORE: La La Land
ORIGINAL SONG: La La Land
SOUND EDITING: Hacksaw Ridge
SOUND MIXING: Hacksaw Ridge
ANIMATED SHORT: Pear Cider and Cigarettes
LIVE-ACTION SHORT: Sing
DOCUMENTARY SHORT: Wantani: My Homeland 

*La La Land is poised to win a good 10 awards tonight. Though I feel the academy will go traditionally in the sound categories.