This blog started as my movie marathon — watching a movie a day for a whole year — and has continued as a place for me to write reviews about movies, TV, and various other items.
This is still a work in progress as I migrate from my old platform at Tumblr. For now, you can still access the whole backlog of posts there at http://reelmatt.tumblr.com
Okay, I’m keeping this one short. By now you know the drill here; this is the eighth year I’ve been making Academy Award predictions. There hasn’t been a single review on this site since last year’s predictions, but that doesn’t mean I completely missed out on this year’s films. In fact, this was the first year I saw all the Best Picture nominees before the nominees were announced. Not the most exciting tidbit, but I was excited about that.
Anywho, I am not bothering with the header images this year or linking to each individual film — you can just head over to my Letterboxd diary and see all my ratings from the past year; I have seen a lot of movies!
Actual winners listed in bold. Final tally 18/24
| Film |
|---|
| Ford v Ferrari |
| The Irishman |
| Jojo Rabbit |
| Joker |
| Little Women |
| Marriage Story |
| 1917 |
| Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
| Parasite |
Most Deserving: Parasite
Most Likely: Parasite
Why: One of my favorite films of the year was Parasite. The other noms I gave a full five-stars to include Once Upon a Time…, Marriage Story, and Little Women (if I had to pick a snub, I would probably pick the surprisingly amazing Uncut Gems). The consensus seems to be between Parasite and 1917 to win the big award. While I found 1917 to be decent, it wasn’t my favorite movie of the year and wouldn’t even be my choice for top war movie or top “single-take” movie. I’m sure it will win its fair share of awards tonight, and rightly so in many cases — it is a technical achievement. But Parasite is more interesting. While I haven’t seen Okja, or any other of Joon-ho’s films, I was blown away with Snowpiercer and likewise for Parasite. It was gripping, thrilling, and an edge-of-my-seat experience for the whole two-hours.
The safe bet seems to be with 1917, as it has won a lot of the precursor awards and is probably the more Academy-friendly film. But after reading some of the other big predictions, and most people thinking a split between Picture and Director is likely (it has happened in five of the last seven years), I’m switching gears, going bold, and picking Parasite for both Deserving and Likely. And in going with the split, you’ll see my pick for Sam Mendes below for Best Director, which consensus seems to be the more locked-up award (given he won the Director’s Guild prize).
Should be an interesting night, to say the least.
| Director | Film |
|---|---|
| Martin Scorsese | The Irishman |
| Todd Phillips | Joker |
| Sam Mendes | 1917 |
| Quentin Tarantino | Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
| Bong Joon-ho | Parasite |
Most Deserving: Bong Joon-ho
Most Likely: Sam Mendes
| Actor | Film |
|---|---|
| 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 |
Most Deserving: Adam Driver
Most Likely: Joaquin Phoenix
Why: Like 1917, I mostly thought that Joker was a fine, even good, movie. But I dont’ have the same “OMG, wow!” feelings everyone else seems to have about it. Phoenix was indeed probably the best part of the movie, and could be most deserving here. But I’m using my vote to pick Adam Driver from Marriage Story to voice my feelings against Joker. I really enjoyed Driver’s performances in both Marriage Story and Star Wars this year; both made me take another look at the actor and I have a newfound respect for him after casting him aside for the whiny-braty Kylo Ren from The Force Awakens. Adam Driver is so much more than that.
| Actress | Film |
|---|---|
| Cynthia Erivo | Harriet |
| Scarlett Johansson | Marriage Story |
| Saoirse Ronan | Little Women |
| Charlize Theron | Bombshell |
| Renée Zellweger | Judy |
Most Deserving: Saoirse Ronan
Most Likely: Renée Zellweger
| Actor | Film |
|---|---|
| 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 |
Most Deserving: Brad Pitt
Most Likely: Brad Pitt
| Actress | Movie |
|---|---|
| Kathy Bates | Richard Jewell |
| Laura Dern | Marriage Story |
| Scarlett Johansson | Jojo Rabbit |
| Florence Pugh | Little Women |
| Margot Robbit | Bombshell |
Most Deserving: Florence Pugh
Most Likely: Laura Dern
| Film | Writer(s) |
|---|---|
| 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 and Han Jin-won |
Most Deserving: Knives Out
Most Likely: Parasite
| Film | Writer(s) |
|---|---|
| The Irishman | Steven Zaillian based on the book I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt |
| Jojo Rabbit | Taika Waititi based on the novel Caging Skies by Christine Leunens |
| Joker | Todd Phillips and Scott Silver based on characters created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson |
| Little Women | Greta Gerwig based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott |
| The Two Popes | Anthony McCarten based on his play The Pope |
Most Deserving: Jojo Rabbit
Most Likely: Jojo Rabbit
| Film |
|---|
| How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World |
| I Lost My Body |
| Klaus |
| Missing Link |
| Toy Story 4 |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: Klaus
| Film | Country |
|---|---|
| Corpus Christi | Poland |
| Honeyland | North Macedonia |
| Les Misérables | France |
| Pain and Glory | Spain |
| Parasite | South Korea |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: Parasite
| Film |
|---|
| American Factory |
| The Cave |
| The Edge of Democracy |
| For Sama |
| Honeyland |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: Honeyland
| Film |
|---|
| “In the Absence” |
| “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)” |
| “Life Overtakes Me” |
| “St. Louis Superman” |
| “Walk Run Cha-Chai” |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
| Film |
|---|
| “Brotherhood” |
| “Mefta Football Club” |
| “The Neighbors’ Window” |
| “Saria” |
| “A Sister” |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: “The Neighbors’ Window”
| Film |
|---|
| “Dcera (Daughter)” |
| “Hair Love” |
| “Kitbull” |
| “Memorable” |
| “Sister” |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: “Hair Love”
| Film | Composer |
|---|---|
| Joker | Hildur Guðnadóttir |
| Little Women | Alexandre Desplat |
| Marriage Story | Randy Newman |
| 1917 | Thomas Newman |
| Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker | John Williams |
Most Deserving: Joker
Most Likely: Joker
| Song | Film | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| “I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away” | Toy Story 4 | Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman |
| “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” | Rocketman | Music by Elton John; Lyrics by Bernie Taupin |
| “I’m Standing with You” | Breakthrough | Music and Lyrics by Diane Warren |
| “Into the Unknown” | Frozen II | Music and Lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez |
| “Stand Up” | Harriet | Music and Lyrics by Joshuah Brian Campbell and Cynthia Erivo |
Most Deserving: N/A
Most Likely: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again”
| Film |
|---|
| Ford v Ferrari |
| Joker |
| 1917 |
| Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
| Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |
Most Deserving: Ford v Ferrari
Most Likely: 1917
| Film |
|---|
| Ad Astra |
| Ford v Ferrari |
| Joker |
| 1917 |
| Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
Most Deserving: 1917
Most Likely: 1917
| Film |
|---|
| The Irishman |
| Jojo Rabbit |
| 1917 |
| Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
| Parasite |
Most Deserving: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Most Likely: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
| Film |
|---|
| The Irishman |
| Joker |
| The Lighthouse |
| 1917 |
| Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
Most Deserving: 1917
Most Likely: 1917
| Film |
|---|
| Bombshell |
| Joker |
| Judy |
| Maleficent: Mistress of Evil |
| 1917 |
Most Deserving: Bombshell
Most Likely: Bombshell
| Film |
|---|
| The Irishman |
| Jojo Rabbit |
| Joker |
| Little Women |
| Once Upon a Time in Hollywood |
Most Deserving: Little Women
Most Likely: Little Women
| Film |
|---|
| Ford v Ferrari |
| The Irishman |
| Jojo Rabbit |
| Joker |
| Parasite |
Most Deserving: Parasite
Most Likely: Parasite
| Film |
|---|
| Avengers: Endgame |
| The Irishman |
| The Lion King |
| 1917 |
| Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |
Most Deserving: The Lion King
Most Likely: The Lion King