The Oscars – Who Will Win Vs. Who Should Win

The 92nd Academy Awards are due to start in just over 12 hours! All the action will be happening on Monday morning here in Australia, so before the weekend ends, we thought we’d put in our tips for who is likely to take out some of the top prizes. 

*Winners updated below*

Best Director
And the nominees are…
Martin Scorsese, The Irishman
Todd Phillips, Joker
Sam Mendes, 1917
Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Bong Joon Ho, Parasite

 With the exception of Todd Phillips, this is a really strong category. It’s a shame that some of brilliant female filmmakers who put out films last year – like Greta Gerwig and Lulu Wang – didn’t get nominated. I think a win for Sam Mendes is a foregone conclusion after he won the BAFTA, but if I had to choose I would opt for Quentin Tarantino. He’s overdue a win for directing.

WINNER – Bong Joon Ho, Parasite 

Best Actor
And the nominees are…
Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory
Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Adam Driver, Marriage Story
Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes

This is another really strong field of nominees. Joaquin Phoenix will win, but I think Adam Driver is more deserving.

WINNER – Joaquin Phoenix 

Best Actress
And the nominees are…
Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
Saoirse Ronan, Little Women
Charlize Theron, Bombshell
Renée Zellweger, Judy

Renee Zellweger has this one under lock and key. Credit where it’s due, her performance in Judy is transformative.

WINNER – Renee Zellweger 

Best Supporting Actor
And the nominees are…
Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes
Al Pacino, The Irishman
Joe Pesci, The Irishman
Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Now this is a strong bunch of nominees. All five would be worthy winners, but only Brad Pitt has yet to win for acting – and after scoring wins at the SAG Awards, Golden Globes and BAFTAs, I think he has this one in the bag.

WINNER – Brad Pitt 

Best Supporting Actress
And the nominees are…
Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell
Laura Dern, Marriage Story
Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
Florence Pugh, Little Women
Margot Robbie, Bombshell

Laura Dern is the favourite here, which is kind of weird – her performance in Marriage Story is good, but nothing special. Florence Pugh was great in Little Women, but I’d like to see ScarJo notch up a win here.

WINNER – Laura Dern 

Best Original Screenplay
And the nominees are…
Knives Out
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Parasite

Talk about a tough call. I’m going to go out on a limb and tip Parasite for the win, but Rian Johnson’s wickedly clever writing on Knives Out and Quentin Tarantino’s typically compelling work on Once Upon a Time in Hollywood would be worthy winners also.

WINNER – Parasite 

Best Adapted Screenplay
And the nominees are…
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
The Two Popes

I’m not sure Joker deserves to be here; what is it adapting, exactly? I think Jojo Rabbit will win, but Greta Gerwig’s smart rework of Little Women is more deserving.

WINNER – Jojo Rabbit

Best Editing
And the nominees are…
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Parasite

Little Women deserves to be in this category (and it should win too). But, seeing as that won’t happen, I’ll tip the frenetic editing work on James Mangold’s Ford v Ferrari in this category.

WINNER – Ford v Ferrari 

Best Cinematography
And the nominees are…
The Irishman
Joker
The Lighthouse
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Another really competitive category. Another win for Roger Deakins (for 1917) is probably on the cards, but I think The Lighthouse would be a very worthy winner also.

WINNER – 1917

Best Picture
And the nominees are…
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Parasite

Joker aside, all the nominees this year are great films in their own right. If Mendes wins director and Deakins wins cinematography, I think 1917 will be the safe, solid winner. That said, it isn’t a very exciting choice. Parasite, on the other hand, would be a landmark moment for film, as the first foreign language film to win Best Picture.

WINNER – Parasite

By Rhys Pascoe 

Images courtesy of Madman Entertainment, Walt Disney Motion Pictures Studios, StudioCanal, Universal Pictures, Roadshow Films, Sony Pictures & PxHere 

Who Should’ve Won At The AACTAs

Josip Knezevic 

The AACTAs, Australia’s version of the Oscars, celebrate the finest achievements in Australian cinema. 2017 brought us a strong pool of nominees that represent a bright future for Australian film, and while these films won’t put Australia on the international film map as say Lord of the Rings did for New Zealand, they’re still remarkable achievements for Australian filmmaking.

Yes, you may be thinking the AACTAs took place in December last year, but seeing as it’s Australia Day long weekend, it seems apt to look back at who won versus who should have won and honour the greatest Australian films of 2017.

Best Film
Winner: Lion
Who Should Have Won: Ali’s Wedding

From the outset, it was obvious that Lion was going to take this top spot, as it did in so many categories. It boasts a much larger production budget than its fellow nominees and also features some of the world’s biggest stars in Nicole Kidman, Dev Patel and Rooney Mara. I can’t complain that it won, it’s a beautiful and gut-wrenching story, but at the same time, Ali’s Wedding represents a fresh breath of air for Australian storytelling and the depiction of our culture on screen. Yes, it may just be a simple love story on the surface, but it has so many little charms and quirks that make it genuinely funny and interesting to watch. It would have been a very deserving winner.

Best Direction
Winner: Lion (Garth Davis)
Who Should Have Won: Hounds of Love (Ben Young)

Although I enjoyed the emotional journey Garth Davis took us upon in Lion, I can’t help but feel that Ben Young’s skills should have been recognised here, and not just because his film Hounds of Love was filmed in WA. Most of his film takes place within the walls of a small home and focuses on the relationship between two emotionally twisted and disturbed serial killers. Young shows great restraint throughout the film, tending to let your imagination take over, rather than simply showing a lot of graphic violence. He creates a lot of tension and directs some skillful, emotional performances from his leads all on a very small budget. I’m looking forward to seeing him take on bigger projects in the future.

Best Lead Actor
Winner: Sunny Pawar (Lion)
Who Should Have Won: Sunny Pawar (Lion)

Cuteness will always reign supreme. 9-year-old Sunny Pawar took out the Best Lead actor category and I agree wholeheartedly with this choice. Let’s hope this child protégé continues his acting success as an adult.

Best Lead Actress
Winner: Emma Booth (Hounds of Love)
Who Should Have Won: Emma Booth (Hounds of Love)

Without Emma Booth’s powerhouse performance, Hounds of Love would not have been anywhere near as enjoyable. Booth brought an emotional delicacy to her serial killer role that encouraged sympathy towards her, despite her horrendous pursuits. Ever since her days on TV’s Underbelly she’s proven herself to be a fantastic actress, and I’m glad she’s getting recognition for her work on the big screen.

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Dev Patel (Lion)
Who Should Have Won: Dev Patel (Lion)

Much like Emma Booth’s strong example in Hounds of Love, Dev Patel has such a powerful and resonating performance in Lion that without him, I doubt the film could have reached the same strong ending. Together, him and Sunny Pawar made a fine team on their emotional journey to find their way home. Patel has gone from strength to strength ever since his lead performance in Slumdog Millionaire. 

Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Nicole Kidman (Lion)
Who Should Have Won: Nicole Kidman (Lion)

The Lion train continues, and the fine performances on offer in this film should make everyone jump on board. Lion is a prime example of what happens when you put together a cast of A-list Hollywood actors and everything clicks. Nicole Kidman plays the mother who adopts a young Indian refugee, and her wisdom as an experienced actor brings an emotional connection to the film that would not have been anywhere near as strong without her.

 

Image courtesy of Madman Entertainment 

Golden Globe Results 2015

Images courtesy of NBC & Getty Images

By Elouise Eftos

Awards season is upon us, and what better way to start it off than with the always entertaining Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosting the glamorous Golden Globe awards for the third year in a row. Mixing the worlds of film and television, both foreign and domestic; the Golden Globes are second only to the Oscars in terms of prestigious Hollywood award ceremonies. In celebration of the 72nd Golden Globes this year, I have allocated my own awards to various aspects of the show.

Movie Review – The Imitation Game. 4.5 Stars

Benedict Cumberbatch is astoundingly good in his portrayal of Alan Turing in the Golden Globe nominated biopic The Imitation Game.

Review by Cherie Wheeler

The name Alan Turing is one that many associate with the invention of one of the earliest computers, but what is not so well known is the impact of his work upon the outcome of WWII, and the persecution he suffered as a result of his sexuality. In The Imitation Game, Benedict Cumberbatch and Alex Lawther bring to life this brilliant man at varying stages of his life. The film focusses mostly upon his work in the 1940s in which he and several other British mathematicians are hired to find a way to decode Enigma; the formula used by the German military to encrypt its communication to its troops. Turing’s genius rendered him socially awkward, and this causes him to clash with his fellow mathematicians. At first his peers fail to appreciate his ideas, and his prickly personality, until the sharply intelligent Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley) is recruited into the team, and manages to allay the tension between them. Game Of Thrones’ Charles Dance, and Mark Strong also star.

This film has earned itself a string of Golden Globe nominations, including Best Picture Drama, and Best Actor in Drama for Cumberbatch who is easily one of the strongest competitors in this particular category. His portrayal of Turing is truly outstanding; he effortlessly balances the character’s intense obsession toward his work, his naiveté in social situations, and also his egotistical manner in relation to his incredible intelligence. In spite of Turing’s flaws, Cumberbatch ensures the character remains endearing, and you become emotionally engaged by his equally comedic and dramatic performance.

Young Alex Lawther is also remarkable in his depiction of Turing in his high school days. At one point when the character receives devastating news, director Morten Tyldum opts to stay on a close up of Lawther for the entirety of the scene, and Lawther’s presence is so powerful that this simple shot is one of the most affecting moments in the whole film. He did not receive a nomination for Best Supporting Actor, which is a crime considering that Keira Knightley’s fairly average performance earned her a chance at winning Best Supporting Actress. Sure, she isn’t woeful or irritating in The Imitation Game, as she is in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, but she is certainly not worthy of an award. Charles Dance and Mark Strong are both very convincing in each of their respective roles, as usual.

I found this entire film to be utterly fascinating as it covers a lot of subjects of which I have very little knowledge, including the outlaw of homosexuality, and how this was enforced. Whilst I was aware that Winston Churchill allowed a British passenger ship to be sunk by German U-Boats during the war, I did not know his reasoning behind this decision, or how this situation came about, until I saw this film. Although it deals with some rather dark subject matter at times, the film as a whole is quite uplifting. There are some heart warming moments, and many of instances of humour, which makes it a very entertaining ride.

The script is also very well structured in the way it flits between past, present and future without becoming disorganised or confusing. It is based on the book Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges, which is possibly why it is so effective at moving through time, and although it is nominated for Best Screenplay at the Globes, I doubt it will win as this is a very strong category with Gone Girl, The Birdman, The Grand Budapest Hotel and Boyhood all nominated.

I do not like to give out inflated ratings, and I have almost never given a single film higher than 4 stars, but I enjoyed this film so much that I am prepared to rate it with 4.5 stars.

Part 2 – Golden Globe Nominations – Best Comedy or Musical

By Cherie Wheeler

Continuing with our coverage of the nominees for the 2015 Golden Globes, here’s a look at the five films that are in the running to win Best Picture in the Comedy or Musical category.

1. Birdman
Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Starring: Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Naomi Watts, Zack Galifianakis and Edward Norton
Release Date: January 15 2015
Other Nominations: Best Supporting Actor (Edward Norton), Best Score, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress (Emma Stone), Best Actor Comedy or Musical (Michael Keaton) and Best Screenplay

Click image to view trailer

Similar to Richard Linklater, Alejandro Inarritu is one of the most unique and intriguing filmmakers of the twenty first century, and he is definitely Linklater’s most fierce competitor for the Best Director award. This Mexican film director has produced some awe-inspiring, and truly beautiful films over the years, including Babel (2006) and 21 Grams (2003), and Birdman is everything you could hope for and more from Inarritu.

In Birdman, Michael Keaton plays over the hill actor Riggan, who was once famous for his portrayal of an iconic superhero, and in a bid to reclaim his former glory, he agrees to take part in a Broadway production. Riggan turns out to be his own worst enemy, and his family struggle to support him in this last ditch attempt to make something of himself. It’s fantastic to see Keaton back on the silver screen doing what he does best, for the first time in a long time, and he is certainly the frontrunner for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical.

2. Grand Budapest Hotel
Director: Wes Anderson
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton, Willem Dafoe, F Murray Abraham and Jeff Goldblum
Release Date: Available now on DVD and Bluray
Other Nominations: Best Director, Best Actor Comedy or Musical (Ralph Fiennes), Best Screenplay

Click image below to view trailer

The Grand Budapest Hotel follows in the footsteps of all of Wes Anderson’s prior films, and exudes his trademark quirky style. The story revolves around the exploits of the hotel’s eccentric concierge Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) and his lobby boy Zero Moustafa (Tony Revolori) after the death of one of their wealthiest patrons (Tilda Swinton).

Weird and wonderful films by Wes Anderson have previously garnered Academy Award nominations, including The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Fantastic Mr Fox (2009) and Moonrise Kingdom (2012), but astoundingly, this is the first time he has ever been recognised by the Globes. My fingers are crossed for Anderson to win Best Screenplay, but he may be knocked out by Gillian Flynn for Gone Girl. If anyone has a chance to defeat Michael Keaton for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical, it is definitely Ralph Fiennes in his portrayal of the witty and sophisticated, yet slightly unhinged Gustave.

3. Into The Woods
Director: Rob Marshall
Starring: Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, Anna Kendrick and Emily Blunt
Release Date: January 08 2015
Other Nominations: Best Actress Comedy or Musical (Emily Blunt),Best Supporting Actress (Meryl Streep)

Click image below to view trailer

The latest of countless fairytales reimagined by Disney, Into The Woods sees Rob Marshall and Johnny Depp reunited after working together on Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides in 2011. Marhsall has a short, but significant list of films to his name, including Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) and Chicago (2002), and I suppose Disney believed he would once again bring his magic to the screen when selecting him to direct Into The Woods.

A baker and his wife (Emily Blunt) must procure iconic, magical items from traditional fairytale stories, including Red Riding Hood, Jack & The Beanstalk, Cinderella and Rapunzel, in order to lift a curse cast upon them by an evil witch (Meryl Streep). You can almost always guarantee that whenever Meryl Streep completes a film that she will receive a nomination for her performance, and this is her 29th nomination for a Golden Globe.

The Best Supporting Actress category is quite weak this year with some questionable nominees including Keira Knightley for The Imitation Game and Emma Stone for Birdman, and unlike many of the other categories, there is a clear standout to take out this particular prize, which is Patricia Arquette for Boyhood. I sincerely doubt that Emily Blunt will win Best Actress Comedy or Musical as she is up against the likes of Amy Adams for Big Eyes, and Julianne Moore for Maps to the Stars.

4. Pride
Director: Matthew Warchus
Starring: Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Dominic West and Ben Schnetzer
Release Date: Available on DVD and Bluray soon
Other Nominations: N/A

Click image below to view trailer

The real surprise nomination at the Golden Globes this year is English comedy and true story Pride. The title suggests exactly what this film is about; a group of gay people wanting to shout about something. What the title doesn’t tell you, however, is that the shouting is not about anyone’s sexuality, but about solidarity. We thoroughly enjoyed this heart-warming film when it was released in Australian cinemas earlier this year in October, and we are touched that it managed to receive a nomination, but sadly, we doubt that it will take out the prize. The award for Best Comedy or Musical is really a race between Birdman and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

5. St Vincent
Director: Theodore Melfi
Starring: Bill Murray, Naomi Watts and Melissa McCarthy
Release Date: December 26 2014
Other Nominations: Best Actor Comedy or Musical (Bill Murray)

Click image below to view trailer

St Vincent is the feature film directorial debut of Theodore Melfi, so it is pretty impressive that he has managed to rustle up a Best Picture nomination. The film follows a little boy who is dealing with the recent divorce of his parents when he finds unlikely companionship in his antisocial, self-absorbed, and at times indecent neighbour; a war veteran by the name of Vincent (Bill Murray). This role is absolutely perfect for Murray, and is a nice way for him to end the year, after his disappointing performance in The Monuments Men back in March. Having said that, Ralph Fiennes and Michael Keaton are probably a little too strong for him to beat for the Best Actor Comedy or Musical award, and the other nominees, Joaquin Phoneix, and Christoph Waltz, finish off this really strong category.

As the Golden Globes split the feature film nominees into Drama and Comedy or Musical, it tends to allow for some fairly average films to sneak in and gain nominations, whilst other more deserving films are left out. I don’t believe that St Vincent, Pride or Into The Woods will be recognised by the Academy Awards in the Best Picture category, which allows for a maximum of ten films to be nominated. Instead I believe that other films that have been snubbed by the Globes, such as Angelina Jolie’s Unbroken, will be nominated at the Oscars.

Golden Globe Nominations – Best Drama

By Cherie Wheeler

Get excited folks! It’s that time of year again; no, not Christmas, but the start of the Hollywood awards season. The nominees for the Golden Globes have just been announced, and in the usual fashion, many of the potential winners have not yet been released in Australian cinemas, but never fear! We have the lowdown on all the big releases for 2015 with an overview of the five films nominated for Best Drama, which will be the first in our awards season series. Stay tuned for our look at the nominees for Best Comedy or Musical.

1. Boyhood
Director: Richard Linklater
Starring: Ellar Colltrane, Patricia Arquette & Ethan Hawke
Release Date: Available on DVD and Bluray soon
Other Nominations: Best Director, Best Supporting Actress (Patricia Arquette), Best Supporting Actor (Ethan Hawke) & Best Screenplay

Click image to view trailer

Since first breaking out into the film scene in the 1990s, US director Richard Linklater has proved  his genius as a filmmaker time and time again. From his concept of shooting a conversation between two characters in real time, and using this content to comprise three highly engaging feature length films (Before Sunrise, Before Sunset & Before Midnight), to producing a docudrama on one of the most bizarre and intriguing incidents to have ever occurred in Carthage, Texas, between an overly friendly mortician, and an embittered 80 year old widow (Bernie), Linklater always thinks outside the box, and Boyhood is no different.

Filmed over 12 years, as the title suggests, Boyhood chronicles the life of Mason (Ellar Colltrane) from age 5 to 18, and explores the various challenges, as well as the ordinary, everyday life moments that take place throughout the process of becoming an adult. It is the first film to ever use the same actor to play a character that literally grows up on the screen. Most directors would opt to cast a different actor to play the character at each life stage, or would digitally enhance, or alter an actor with hair and makeup to manufacture the aging process, but Linklater has kept the process organic, and for this, I believe Linklater will take home Best Director. The other major contender from Boyhood is Patricia Arquette, who has a very good chance of winning Best Supporting Actress, for her authentic performance as the mother of Mason.

2. Foxcatcher
Director: Bennett Miller
Starring: Steve Carrell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffallo
Release Date: January 29 2015
Other Nominations: Best Actor In Drama (Steve Carrell) & Best Supporting Actor (Mark Ruffalo)

Click image to view trailer

Steve Carrell is mostly associated with comedies of varying success, from the US version of the TV Series The Office, to multiple crowd pleasing films, including Crazy Stupid Love (2011), The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005) and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004). It was not until his performance as the gay, suicidal intellectual Frank Ginsberg in academy award winning film Little Miss Sunshine (2006) that we began to glimpse another side of him, and now his prowess as a dramatic actor is out to impress again in Foxcatcher.

Based on a true events, the story follows Olympic wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) who is invited by multimillionaire John Du Pont (Steve Carrell) to help form a team to train for the upcoming 1988 games in Seoul. Schultz snaps up the opportunity in hope that he will finally be able to step out of the shadow of his brother, fellow wrestler David Schultz (Mark Ruffalo). An unlikely bond develops between the three, but this quickly descends into psychological warfare, as they each threaten to emotionally destroy one another in their quest for victory.

This film may be a groundbreaking milestone in Steve Carrell’s career, however, I am doubtful that he or Ruffalo will take out the top prize for either of their categories.

3. The Imitation Game
Director: Morten Tyldum
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Charles Dance and Mark Strong
Release Date: January 01 2015
Other Nominations: Best Actor In Drama (Benedict Cumberbatch), Best Supporting Actress (Keira Knightley), Best Screenplay & Best Score

Click image to view trailer

In 2010 audiences began to notice this rather eccentric British actor with a long winded name that fails to roll easily off the tongue. He was the latest to reprise the role of Sherlock Holmes in the British television series Sherlock, and since then, Benedict Cumberbatch has risen to an unlikely stardom. There is something very likeable about him, from his awkward ways, and unusual appearance, to his endearing personality, and it seems many have developed an affection for him, making him the perfect actor to play Alan Turing in The Imitation Game.

During the second World War, the German military communicated to its troops via coded messages that were encrypted by a formula called Enigma. A group of English mathematicians were hired to find a way to decode these messages, and among them was the brilliant, but socially awkward Alan Turing, who is credited with the invention of the first computer. Turing clashes with his fellow mathematicians who fail to appreciate his ideas, or his prickly personality, until the freshly recruited, and sharply intelligent Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley) manages to allay the tension between them. Without giving too much more away, this is a fascinating true story that has previously been covered up throughout history due to the need to protect sensitive information in relation to the war, therefore making this film a front runner for Best Screenplay. I’m also putting my money on Cumberbatch to take home Best Actor In Drama, as his portrayal of Turing is absolutely sensational.

4. Selma
Director: Ava Duvernay
Starring: David Oyelowo, Tim Roth, Tom Wilkinson, Oprah Winfrey, Carmen Ejogo and Martin Sheen
Release Date: February 2015
Other Nominations: Best Director, Best Actor In Drama (David Oyelowo), Best Original Song

Click image to view trailer

Whenever an Australian film features Indigenous characters, it is almost guaranteed that it will receive high praise from critics, and that it will manage to find its way into almost every significant film festival. The same seems to occur in American films that explore racism and subjugation; from The Help (2011), to 12 Years A Slave (2014), these films always dominate the awards season, and Selma is yet another example of this.

To be honest, I am extremely tired of Hollywood privileging these films. Yes, slavery in America is a tragic and shameful part of history. Yes, it is disgusting that even today racism still exists in the United States. But if I have to see one more film about it, I might actually scream. The oppression of African Americans is not the only awful event to have ever happened in the history of the entire world.

Selma is named after the city in Alabama in which Martin Luther King (David Oyelowo) led multiple, powerful civil rights marches that finally made people sit up and listen to what he had to say. It’s awesome to see a female director behind this film, and also up for a Best Director nomination, but I find it unlikely that she would win.

5. The Theory of Everything
Director: James Marsh
Starring: Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones
Release Date: January 29 2015
Other Nominations: Best Actress In Drama (Felicity Jones), Best Actor In Drama (Eddie Redmayne) & Best Score

Click image to view trailer

If anyone has a chance of knocking Benedict Cumberbatch out of the way for Best Actor In Drama, its Eddie Redmayne in his performance as Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything. I’m so excited by the fact that two British actors are vying for the prize, and it will definitely be a close race, as both performances are quite similar in the portrayal of intellectual geniuses that each become undone by their own personal struggles, whether that be emotional or physical.

Unlike Cumberbatch, it seems as though Redmayne has blossomed out of nowhere. It wasn’t until his performance as the shy and innocent Colin Clark in My Week With Marilyn (2011) that he truly came onto the scene, and his only other major feature film credit is Les Miserables (2012).

This romantic drama explores the relationship between renowned physicist Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne) and his wife Jane (Felicity Jones), and I believe that it has an excellent chance of winning Best Picture – Drama. It’s most fierce competitor would have to be Boyhood, and I think it will also come very close to taking out Best Score as well.