Nominations Day

The nominations are here! As always, lots to discuss. Some quick thoughts, followed by a breakdown of the major categories:

• First some bragging. I got 40/44 (91%), a personal record for me! 
• With an impressive 14 nominations, La La Land ties the record for most nominations with All About Eve (1950) and Titanic (1997). 
• After last year's embarrassing #oscarssowhite, the Academy made a big turnaround. 7 of the 20 acting nominees are people of color (Denzel, Ruth Negga, Mahershala Ali, Dev Patel, Viola Davis, Naomie Harris, and Octavia Spencer) and 4 of the 9 movies focus on people of color (Fences, Hidden Figures, Lion, and Moonlight).   I love the diversity of the diverse movies as well, with both mainstream and indie and historic and modern being represented.
• Meryl Streep continues to set records no one can touch with her 20th nomination. Her eloquent anti-Trump speech at the Golden Globes can't have hurt.
• The biggest snub today was probably Amy Adams (Arrival), missing out on a nomination even as her movie did extremely well. Sad for her, and I loved her performance, but I think her time will come.
• My biggest thrill was probably a tie between Ruth Negga (Loving) and The Lobster (Original Screenplay). 
• 3 of my very favorite films of the year (Moonlight, La La Land, Arrival) ended up with the most nominations. That's great.  I'm not looking forward to the inevitable vitriol that will be thrown around the internet. I'll be rooting for Moonlight, but won't be denigrating La La Land or Arrival. I think they are all three really incredible.
• As someone who sees all the Best Picture nominees, I'm really dreading watching Hacksaw Ridge.... I'm having flashbacks to American Sniper, a movie I truly can't stand.

Here are the main categories and my initial take:

Best picture:
“Arrival”
“Fences”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“Hell or High Water”
“Hidden Figures”
“La La Land”
“Lion”
“Manchester by the Sea”
“Moonlight”

I went 8/9 here, correctly guessing 8 and putting Hacksaw Ridge in an unnominated ninth place. With it's record-tying 14 nominations, it's not smart to bet against La La Land, although I think Moonlight will put up a fight.

Lead actor:

Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea”
Andrew Garfield, “Hacksaw Ridge”
Ryan Gosling, “La La Land,”
Viggo Mortensen, “Captain Fantastic”
Denzel Washington, “Fences”

I nailed this category 5/5, as many did.  It seems like an easy win for Affleck, with an outside shot for Denzel to pick up his third Oscar.

Lead actress:
Isabelle Huppert, “Elle”
Ruth Negga, “Loving”
Natalie Portman, “Jackie”
Emma Stone, “La La Land”
Meryl Streep, “Florence Foster Jenkins”

I went 4/5 in this highly competitive category, predicting Amy Adams (Arrival) instead of Ruth Negga.  I'm both sad for Amy and thrilled for Ruth. While I think Emma Stone will probably take this, I also wouldn't completely count out Isabelle Huppert or Natalie Portman.

Supporting actor:
Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight”
Jeff Bridges, “Hell or High Water”
Lucas Hedges, “Manchester by the Sea”
Dev Patel, “Lion”
Michael Shannon, “Nocturnal Animals”

I went 4/5 here as well, picking Hugh Grant (Florence Forster Jenkins) instead of Shannon. Mahershala Ali should and probably will win, with a small chance for Jeff Bridges.

Supporting actress:
Viola Davis, “Fences”
Naomie Harris, “Moonlight”
Nicole Kidman, “Lion”
Octavia Spencer, “Hidden Figures”
Michelle Williams, “Manchester by the Sea”

I went 5/5 on this category, and it's a strong list.  Nobody can beat Viola though.

Best director:
“La La Land,” Damien Chazelle
“Hacksaw Ridge,” Mel Gibson
“Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins
“Manchester by the Sea,” Kenneth Lonergan
“Arrival,” Denis Villeneuve

I went 4/5 here, picking David McKenzie (Hell or High Water) over Mel Gibson. This seems like a really tight race between Jenkins and Chazelle.

Adapted screenplay:
“Arrival,” Eric Heisserer
“Fences,” August Wilson
“Hidden Figures,” Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi
“Lion,” Luke Davies
“Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins; Story by Tarell Alvin McCraney

I went 5/5 here. I don't think anything can beat Moonlight in this category.

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Original screenplay:
“20th Century Women,” Mike Mills
“Hell or High Water,” Taylor Sheridan
“La La Land,” Damien Chazelle
“The Lobster,” Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou
“Manchester by the Sea,” Kenneth Lonergan

I went 5/5 here as well. I think this is one category La La Land might lose, with Manchester by the Sea pulling through. I LOVE the nomination for the brilliant The Lobster.