The race for best picture is going to be one of the toughest categories to call, as each of the films nominated was met with merit by audiences and critics alike. Initially I had this being a battle between Marriage Story and 1917. In recent weeks though, Parasite slowly crept in. Going off the technical achievements and the historical elements my mom is one 1917. However Parasite could win an upset.
Best Director is another strong race with all five directors worthy of the nomination. Sam Mendes, Martin Scorsese, and Quentin Tarantino are all returning nominees while Todd Philips and Bong Joon Ho are first-timers.
2020’s Best Actor race is clearly the year of Joaquin Phoenix. After viewing Marriage Story, I thought Adam Driver might perform an upset. However, Phoenix is long overdue for a win.
Similar to Best Actor, this isn’t that strong of a race. Renée Zellweger became Judy Garland and the Academy loves a film centered on Hollywood.
Next to Best Picture, this is the toughest category to call. From the moment we saw a promotional photo of Tom Hanks dressed as Fred Rogers, the assumption was he would win an Oscar. However, this past summer, Brad Pitt made some serious noise with his performance as stunt man in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Since his breakthrough in 1991, Pitt has yet to receive an acting Oscar, so he’s well overdue.
Sterling K. Brown for Waves, Jamie Foxx, and Rob Morgan for Just Mercy.
Similar to Best Actress, this category is another no brainer. Portraying a tough as nails lawyer, Dern has no real competition.
Vince Vaughn brings his everyman charm to the biopic genre for director Stephen Chbosky in “Nonnas” from Netflix. Liz Maccie pens the film’s screenplay, which is inspired by the life story of Jody Scaravella.
After an eight-year hiatus, cult director Eli Craig returns to the horror-comedy genre with his latest film, “Clown in a Cornfield,” from RLJE Films.
Growing up in the nineties, movies aimed at a melanin audience often featured soundtracks that had to be just as flavorful as the films themselves. This week, for Slow Jam Saturday, I want to take a trip back to 1993 and highlight one of the slow jams from the soundtrack of “Menace II Society”.
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