Matt vs. the Academy

Despite my lack of confidence, my Oscar predictions this year (20 correct out of 23 categories) turned out to be my best ever. (Well, I once correctly picked 21 categories, but that was when there were 24 categories total, so as a percentage, this year was better.) I'd like to say it was all skill, but in the end, it turns out all the favourites and slight favourites came out on top, so there really weren't any major surprises... (I mean, there was obviously one big surprise on the night, but that's not what I meant.) The two main categories that I missed (Picture and Original Screenplay) were also gettable, to be honest, but for whatever reason, I ignored the late rise of CODA and Belfast, respectively, and stuck to my guns with The Power of the Dog and Licorice Pizza. If I'd gone ahead and chosen the slight favourites in those two categories, then Animated Short would have been the sole mistake. Now, here's the final nominee in 1935's Best Picture competition....

My nomination predictions this year didn't turn out to be my best performance. In fact, it was probably one of my worst in recent memory. And to be honest, predicting the winners is going to be just as complicated. There are a lot of categories this year without a clear frontrunner. Many have slight favourites, but many more are up in the air. I'm most confident about Jane Campion becoming the third woman to win Best Director and Will Smith taking home his first Oscar, and maybe there are a couple of other sure things (or close to it), but other than that, I'll just have to hope that my educated guesses are enough. Best Picture, which has often been my Achilles' heel recently, is once again a tough nut to crack. The Power of the Dog seemed like the frontrunner for most of the season, even if it was only a slight advantage, but CODA is now coming home strong, so could pip Dog at the post. I'm genuinely torn between the two, but I've selected The Power of the Dog ...

Here we are once again, awaiting the announcement of the coveted Oscar nominations. It's hard to believe it's been a whole year since the last one, but that's probably because it hasn't been. The elongated 2020 season has accordingly created a slightly abbreviated 2021 season. But there was still plenty of time for filmmakers to release some entertaining and award-worthy movies. I've still got a lot to catch up on, but my favourites so far include Being the Ricardos, CODA and Tick, Tick... Boom, all three of which could quite reasonably see their names on the Best Picture contenders list (and potentially several other categories) come Tuesday. Another film I really enjoyed this season is The Harder They Fall, though I expect that may struggle to get nominated for anything. Its best shot is Best Original Song, but even I haven't predicted it securing that nod. Dune and The Power of the Dog are poised to be the nomination leaders and my predictions reflect that. W...

Happy New Year! Awards season is beginning to ramp up and there are a lot of exciting titles in the running, barely any of which I've seen as yet. I did get the chance to watch Encanto  with my family the other night and thoroughly enjoyed it. No doubt we'll be hearing its name mentioned when the Best Animated Film nominations are announced. And with new films from Oscar-bait directors Anderson, Branagh, Campion, McKay, Scott and Spielberg, among many others, I'm looking forward to potentially adding some new favourites to my all-time list. For now, let's begin the new year with one more of 1935's Best Picture contenders... The Informer Director : John Ford Screenplay : Dudley Nichols (based on the novel by Liam O'Flaherty) Starring : Victor McLaglen, Heather Angel, Preston Foster, Margot Grahame, Wallace Ford, Una O'Connor Academy Awards : 6 nominations 4 wins, including Best Director and Best Actor (McLaglen) It's 1922 in Dublin during the Iris...

The Emmys, television's equivalent to the Oscars, begins voting today to select its nominees. One of the perks of all the (tiny) parts I played  on American TV shows over the last few years is that I got to join the Television Academy, allowing me to vote in the Emmys. And oof, I thought it was difficult finding time to watch movies. The sheer volume of Emmy-eligible content is entirely overwhelming. It would be literally impossible to watch every episode of every show vying for a nomination, so if you have any recommendations of shows that I absolutely shouldn't miss, please help me whittle down my shortlist. Meanwhile, here's another picture in contention for the 1935 Best Picture Oscar... The Lives of a Bengal Lancer Director : Henry Hathaway Screenplay : Waldemar Young, John L. Balderston, Achmed Abdullah, Grover Jones, William Slavens McNutt (suggested by the novel by Francis Yeats-Brown) Starring : Gary Cooper, Franchot Tone, Richard Cromwell, Guy Standing, C. Aub...