By John H. Foote
By the time the Oscars roll around, it is an anti-climatic event. The glut of award shows since years end, the constant writing from bloggers (including me) since TIFF has worn me down and I just want the whole thing over with. Surprises are rare, they just do not really happen anymore, the Moonlight win an exception. The real surprises come in the nominations these days, where great work is ignored, and we are left scratching out head as to why others are nominated?
Anyway, the awards are coming, ending the 2021 movie season.
I thought last year’s best film was Steven Spielberg’s superb remake of West Side Story. an exuberant, dark remake of the 1957 stage play and 1961 film. Spielberg did the impossible, remade a classic better than the original!! The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, missing Best Actress (Rachel Zegler), Best Supporting Actor (Mike Faist) and Best Film Editing (how?)
Since TIFF the smart money has been on The Power of the Dog to take Best Picture, but the love for that faded through the months as it often does. Is director Jane Campion will win Best Director, but more because the Academy wants her to have an Oscar than for this film. Her greatest achievement remains The Piano (1993) for which she was nominated back in 1993, becoming just the second so nominated.
By now does anyone care about the Oscars? I hate how early award season starts, and that it takes up such a huge part of the year. But I will watch … and rant and rave when the films I prefer lose. Watch for Dune to sweep most of the technical awards, and then things open up.
Here are my predictions. I do not include the shorts because I do not see them all.
JOHN’S ACADEMY AWARD PREDICTIONS
- BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM — DRIVE MY CAR
- BEST ANIMATED FEATURE — ENCANTO
- BEST DOCUMENTARY — SUMMER OF SOUL (Though Attica is a challenger)
- BEST SONG — ‘NO TIME TO DIE’ from NO TIME TO DIE
- BEST FILM EDITING — TICK, TICK…BOOM
- BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN — WEST SIDE STORY
- BEST COSTUMES — CRUELLA (West Side Story might!)
- BEST MAKE-UP/ HAIRSTYLING — CRUELLA
- BEST SOUND — DUNE
- BEST VISUAL EFFECTS — DUNE
- BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY — DUNE (But West Side Story might!)
- BEST MUSICAL SCORE – DUNE
- BEST SCREENPLAY ADAPTATION — CODA
- BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY — BELFAST
- BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS — ARIANA DE BOSE IN WEST SIDE STORY
- BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR — TROY KOTSUR IN CODA
- BEST ACTRESS — KRISTEN STEWART IN SPENCER I have faith!)
- BEST ACTOR — WILL SMITH IN KING RICHARD
- BEST DIRECTOR — JANE CAMPION FOR THE POWER OF THE DOG
- BEST PICTURE — CODA
John H. Foote is a well-recognized Canadian film critic/historian who has been an active critic for 30 years. His deep love for the movies began at a very young age. He began his career as co-host of the popular TV show Reel to Real where he remained for nine years. While on TV he began dabbling in education, eventually ascending to Director of the Toronto Film School, where he also taught film history. After leaving the college to care for his wife, he returned to teaching at Humber College where he taught both Film History and Method Acting Theory. John has written two books: “Clint Eastwood – Evolution of a Filmmaker” and the upcoming “Spielberg – American Film Visionary”. He is currently working on two books, one about the films of the seventies and another on the films of Martin Scorsese. Through his career he has worked in TV, radio, print and the web. John has interviewed everyone in the industry (more than 300 interviews) except Jack Nicholson, he says sadly. Highlights include Martin Scorsese, Tom Cruise, Meryl Streep Robert Duvall, Jane Fonda, Francis Ford Coppola and Kathryn Bigelow.
