“1917” will walk away the nights biggest winner. Brad Pitt will win his first Oscar. Joaquin Phoenix will also win his first Oscar. “The Irishman” will walk way with no wins, as we will still be left bewildered as Tarantino has never won an Oscar for best director. So, yes, anticipate a night of agreement and uproar. Here are my final Oscar predictions in all 24 categories, including, what could prevail.

 

Photo Credit: François Duhamel—© 2019 Universal Pictures and Storyteller Distribution Co., LLC. All Rights Reserved.

 

BEST PICTURE

“Ford v Ferrari”
“The Irishman”
“Jojo Rabbit”
“Joker”
“Little Women”
“Marriage Story”
“1917″
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
“Parasite”

Winner: “1917″
Could win: “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

 

Bewilderment hangs over best picture this year, with almost all the pundits predicting “1917”  or “Parasite”–unless the award goes to “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” which isn’t out of the question since the Academy loves to award self-referential films about the movie industry (The Artist won at the 2012 Oscars, Birdman won at the 2015 Oscars). The critical adoration for Bong Jong-ho’s thrilling, expertly crafted, universally appealing dark comedic thriller, “Parasite”, is that un-Oscar type of film (not a period piece, not a biopic, and it’s a foreign language film) is the most critically acclaimed film of the year. Yet the critics’ choice films often do not win, take for instance “Roma” last year, or “Boyhood” in 2015. There have been exceptions to the rule–with “Moonlight” winning over “La La Land” in 2017 for instance.

 

“1917”, meanwhile”, seems to be the safe Oscar prediction. It is technically ambitious with it’s formal visual techniques, it’s a war movie, and it’s a commercial and critical success. Whatever ends up happening on Sunday night, it is coming down to a three-way dance between “1917”, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, and “Parasite”. And don’t count a dark horse film like “Joker”, which holds the most nominations, which also made over $1 billion worldwide. If you’re at an Oscar party and betting on some money, pick “1917”. Or “Parasite”. Or “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”. Who really knows at this point? Ultimately,”1917″ seems to be the safe prediction at this point after its huge triumphant top prize victories at the BAFTA’s, the Golden Globes, and Producers Guild of America wins. In the last decade, all but two PGA winners also won the Best Picture Oscar, so the safe bet would be “1917”.

 

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DIRECTOR

Martin Scorsese, “The Irishman”
Todd Phillips, “Joker”
Sam Mendes, “1917″
Quentin Tarantino, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Bong Joon Ho, “Parasite”

Winner: Sam Mendes, 1917 
Could win: Tarantino or Bong

 

Sam Mendes took the top prize at the Directors Guild Awards, and history shows that 64 of 71 of the DGA’s winners went onto to take the Oscar. But there could be a split just which happened five times in the last decade. There is a strong chance that Tarantino can finally win his long overdue best directing Oscar, but that is more than likely going to happen in his 10th and “final” feature film. There’s also a strong chance that “Parasite’s” popular director Bong Joon-ho could win too. My gut is telling me Mendes takes home his second Oscar in this category, which he won his first one exactly 20 years ago at this time for “American Beauty”.

 

Joaquin Phoenix in Todd Phillips’ 'Joker.'

 

LEAD ACTOR

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”

Winner:  Joaquin Phoenix, Joker 

 

No surprises or snubs in this category will occur, this category is a secure lock. The biggest surprise will be Phoenix’s acceptance speech, which will more than likely be about social issues, injustices, and environmental concerns. His speeches have been very humble and graceful this awards season, it is obvious he will make his Oscar speech a very memorable one.

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LEAD ACTRESS

Cynthia Erivo, “Harriet”
Scarlett Johansson, “Marriage Story”
Saoirse Ronan, “Little Women”
Charlize Theron, “Bombshell”
Renée Zellweger, “Judy”

Winner: Renee Zellweger, Judy 

Like Phoenix, this is a lock with no upsets in site. No actresses in this category even pose a threat at this point. Renee Zellweger has won the Golden Globe, the SAG, and numerous other award circle groups. It also continues the Oscar formula of actors transforming themselves into real people in biopics.

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SUPPORTING ACTOR

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”

Winner: Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 

Brad Pitt has never won an Oscar, he has been nominated four times at this point—but that will surely change come Sunday. Pitt is the only actor in this category that has never won an Oscar and his performance here as stuntman Cliff Booth is already an iconic role that merges great charm with sharp comedy, along with a memorable climax that is carried well by Pitt. He has been victorious in all the other awards, as he now appears to be doing funny stand-up routines, it’s safe to say he will finally get his first Oscar and we will get more laughter.

 

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SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Kathy Bates, “Richard Jewell”
Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”
Scarlett Johansson, “Jojo Rabbit”
Florence Pugh, “Little Women”
Margot Robbie, “Bombshell”

 

Winner:  Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”

 

It’s hard to get overly enthusiastic for this category considering the fact Jennifer Lopez was completely snubbed for her first-rate performance in “Hustlers”, which would have made this category even more exciting since the Oscar ceremony is exactly one week from the aftermath of her mesmerizing and equally controversial performance during the Super Bowl halftime show. After this infamous snub, it is now inevitable that Dern will more than likely win her first Oscar as well for her  performance as a cunning divorce lawyer in “Marriage Story”, which is also a great performance, but it will always be remembered as the year it should have gone to Jlo.

 

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CINEMATOGRAPHY

“The Irishman,” Rodrigo Prieto
“Joker,” Lawrence Sher
“The Lighthouse,” Jarin Blaschke
“1917,” Roger Deakins
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Robert Richardson

Winner: Roger Deakins, 1917

After losing 13 times in a row, Roger Deakins finally won his long overdue Oscar in 2017 for Blade Runner 2049. Deakins now he will win his second Oscar in a row for “1917”, a technically impressive film that uses the unbroken/long-take scene quite extraordinarily as it takes its characters in and out of trenches that gives the viewer a visceral and harrowing experience on the battlefront of World War I. It’s a visually and technically impressive feat that I wish would go to Robert Richardson for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” instead.

 

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ANIMATED FEATURE

“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World”
“I Lost My Body”
“Klaus”
“Missing Link”
“Toy Story 4″

Winner: “Toy Story 4″
Could win: “Klaus”

Netflix’s animated Christmas film, “Klaus,” won the top prize at the BAFTAs and the Annie Awards, which are industry events for animators. However, history proves that the Oscar voters reward the bigger studio movies here, and the voters often prefer the big Pixar films, indicating “Toy Story 4” will be the triumphant winner in what should be the final installment for “Toy Story”.

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DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

“American Factory”
“The Cave”
“The Edge of Democracy”
“For Sama”
“Honeyland”

Winner: “Honeyland”
Could win: “American Factory”

“American Factory,” the first film released by Barack and Michelle Obama’s production company appears to be everyone’s front-runner at this point, out of all the nominees it the most widely seen and it taps into upcoming election topics and the Obama’s are loved by the entertainment industry. “Honeyland,”, though, on the other hand was also nominated here and in the international feature category, and is the far more engaging documentary framework.

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INTERNATIONAL FEATURE

“Corpus Christi”
“Honeyland”
“Les Misérables”
“Pain and Glory”
“Parasite”

Winner: “Parasite”

Just another victory lap for Bong Joon-ho, hopefully he will have another memorable moment as he did at the Golden Globes, in which he gave a speech on getting over subtitles and embracing foreign language movies.

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ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

“The Irishman,” Steven Zaillian
“Jojo Rabbit,” Taika Waititi
“Joker,” Todd Phillips, Scott Silver
“Little Women,” Greta Gerwig
“The Two Popes,” Anthony McCarten

Winner: “Little Women”
Could win: “JoJo Rabbit”

When “The Irishman” was originally released it appeared Steven Zaillian was a strong contender to win the Oscar here. Then “Little Women” was released, and Gerwig won the USC Scripter award. Then Taika Waititi triumphed as the Writers Guild awards and the BAFTAs for his anti-hate satirical adaptation of Christine Leunens’ book “Caging Skies”. Data and results prove “JoJo Rabbit” is the front-runner here, but my gut is telling me Gerwig will pull off an upset as she will become the first woman since Diablo Cody for “Juno” to win a screenplay Oscar.

 

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ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

“Knives Out,” Rian Johnson
“Marriage Story,” Noah Baumbach
“1917,” Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson-Cairns
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Quentin Tarantino
“Parasite,” Bong Joon Ho, Han Jin Won

Just last week while I was on a podcast I predicted that Tarantino was going to win his third screenplay Oscar. But then, just as what happened to “Jojo Rabbit”, “Parasite” won the Writers Guild and the BAFTAS. With “Parasite” being so acclaimed by critics and universally loved by audiences, it feels like Bong, along with his co-writer Han Jin-won will be winning this category.

Winner: “Parasite”
Could win: “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

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ORIGINAL SCORE

“Joker,” Hildur Guðnadóttir
“Little Women,” Alexandre Desplat
“Marriage Story,” Randy Newman
“1917,” Thomas Newman
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” John Williams

The Icelandic Guðnadóttir’s memorable score seems to the talk of the industry, she will also be the first female to win this category since 1998.

Winner: “Joker”
Could win: “1917″

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FILM EDITING

“Ford v Ferrari,” Michael McCusker, Andrew Buckland
“The Irishman,” Thelma Schoonmaker
“Jojo Rabbit,” Tom Eagles
“Joker,” Jeff Groth
“Parasite,” Jinmo Yang

Winner: “Ford v Ferrari”
Could Win: “Parasite”

This is going to come down to two films, but the voters will go with the bigger industry move here. I’m going with “Ford v Ferrari,” it has the technical cuts going with the impressive car chase sequences that are the highlight of the movie.

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ORIGINAL SONG

“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away,” from “Toy Story 4″; music and lyric by Randy Newman
“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” from “Rocketman”; music by Elton John, lyric by Bernie Taupin
“I’m Standing With You,” from “Breakthrough”; music and lyric by Diane Warren
“Into the Unknown,” from “Frozen 2”; music and lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
“Stand Up,” from “Harriet”; music and lyric by Joshuah Brian Campbell and Cynthia Erivo

Winner:  “Stand Up”
Could surprise: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again

It’s possible that John Elton can win 25 years after “The Lion King”, but the momentum is on Cynthia Erivo’s as she could join the EGOT winners-artists who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony-and her great talent certainly shows.

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COSTUME DESIGN

“The Irishman,” Sandy Powell, Christopher Peterson
“Jojo Rabbit,” Mayes C. Rubeo
“Joker,” Mark Bridges
“Little Women,” Jacqueline Durran
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Arianne Phillips

Winner: “Little Women”
Could surprise: “Once Upon a Time  in Hollywood”

19th century period film trumps the 60s counter-culture period film any day.

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MAKEUP & HAIR STYLING

“Bombshell,” Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan and Vivian Baker
“Joker,” Nicki Ledermann and Kay Georgiou
“Judy,” Jeremy Woodhead
“Maleficent: Mistress of Evil,” Paul Gooch, Arjen Tuiten and David White
“1917,” Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis and Rebecca Cole

Winner: “Bombshell”

At times you thought it really was Megyn Kelly as Charlize Theron disguises herself in the astonishing makeup and hair effects.

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PRODUCTION DESIGN

“The Irishman,” Bob Shaw and Regina Graves
“Jojo Rabbit,” Ra Vincent and Nora Sopková
“1917,” Dennis Gassner and Lee Sandales
“Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,” Barbara Ling and Nancy Haigh
“Parasite,” Lee Ha Jun and Cho Won Woo

Winner: “Once Upon a Time  in Hollywood”
Could win: “1917″

“1917” can pose a threat with those trenches, but I still think the hometown look of 60s Tinseltown has the slight edge.

 

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SOUND EDITING

“Ford v Ferrari,” Don Sylvester
“Joker,” Alan Robert Murray
“1917,” Oliver Tarney, Rachel Tate
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Wylie Stateman
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Matthew Wood, David Acord

Winner: “Ford v Ferrari”
Could win: “1917″

The sound category will come down to car races and war. Giving this one to the vroom-vroom here.

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SOUND MIXING

“Ad Astra,” Gary Rydstrom, Tom Johnson and Mark Ulano
“Ford v Ferrari,” Paul Massey, David Giammarco and Steven A. Morrow
“Joker,” Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic and Tod Maitland
“1917,” Mark Taylor and Stuart Wilson
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Michael Minkler, Christian P. Minkler and Mark Ulano

Winner: “1917″
Could win: “Ford v Ferrari”

There is just a lot more chaotic sounds going on with the sound in this film.

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VISUAL EFFECTS

“Avengers: Endgame,” Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken and Dan Sudick
“The Irishman,” Pablo Helman, Leandro Estebecorena, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser and Stephane Grabli
“The Lion King,” Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones and Elliot Newman
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Roger Guyett, Neal Scanlan, Patrick Tubach and Dominic Tuohy
“1917,” Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler and Dominic Tuohy

Winner: “1917″
Could win: “Avengers: Endgame”

Going with “1917” since the Oscar voters love awarding the best picture winner the most Oscars that they can. It will be a technical night for “1917”, besides that plane scene is so vivid and harrowing.

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ANIMATED SHORT

“Dcera (Daughter)”
“Hair Love”
“Kitbull”
“Memorable”
“Sister”

Winner: “Hair Love”
Could win:  “Kitbull” or “Memorable”

“Hair Love,” the story of a father doing his best to style his young daughter’s natural hair while their mom is away, is very sincere and moving, though Pixar’s “Kitbull” has a powerful and essential message on animal abuse. It is going to come down to these two unless “Memorable” sneaks in.

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DOCUMENTARY SHORT

“In the Absence”
“Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
“Life Overtakes Me”
“St. Louis Superman”
“Walk Run Cha-Cha”

Winner: “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
Could win: “St. Louis Superman”

Winner: Smash the patriarchy seems to be what’s in style since this documentary short about a Kabul school teaching girls to skateboard and challenge the cultural norms just won the BAFTAs. This is a very essential documentary short since it’s about women fighting back against a system in which they become prisoners in their own country.

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LIVE ACTION SHORT

“Brotherhood”
“Nefta Football Club”
“The Neighbors’ Window”
“Saria”
“A Sister”

Winner: “Brotherhood”
Could surprise: “The Neighbors’ Window”

A huge hit on the film festival circuit, a short film about a Tunisian family being ripped apart on their ideological divisions, is one of the most talked about and biggest award-winning short films of last year.

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Join us this Saturday at  The Motion Picture Institute’s first annual Oscar Party in Troy, MI as we aim to bring moviegoers, filmmakers and critics together to honor the top films of 2019 inside a real movie studio.

The Oscar Party will take place on February 9 at the Motion Picture Institute (MPI) Studios located at 2040 Crooks Rd. Suite B, Troy, MI 48084.

Tickets are going fast! Secure yours by Thursday (2/6) for the early bird price of $10. After that, online registration will close and tickets will be available at the door for $15.

Join the film community, moviegoers, MPI students and alumni for Hollywood’s biggest night–right here at the Motion Picture Institute.

– Dress up if you want to be in the Oscars spirit
– Prizes will be awarded throughout the night
– Special guests will host Facebook Live commercial breaks
– Free for current MPI students with discount codes.
– Film community, alumni, guests and fans of movies are all invited
for $10
– Snacks provided

For more information and tickets visit

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/oscar-party-at-mpi-tickets-89919891817