Oscar Predictions: 2017

The Oscars are tomorrow and here are my predictions, i will be listing my Think and Wants with a brief explanation on why i chose them. Now this year's Oscars are not the greatest and some of the nominations are pretty awful but here are the predictions.

BEST PICTURE

Think - Manchester by the Sea
This is the type of film that the Oscars love, its more about the performances than the film itself and it comes across as a "walking movie" it would not surprise me if this one best picture.

Want - Fences
Fences is the other realistic choice for best picture. Its a period piece and Denzel is no stranger to the Oscars.

Now i believe that if Manchester wins Denzel will win best actor. If Fences wins Casey will win best actor. If i were to go with what really should win then the answer will be Arrival.

BEST ACTOR

Think - Casey Affleck
This is the type of performance that all actors wins awards for. Casey is a good actor and does deserve praise but this comes across as typical Oscar bait

Want- Denzel Washington
Denzel is a great actor and consistently puts in decent performances and out of all the actors nominated he should win.

BEST ACTRESS

Think - Emma Stone
Now this is where my cynicism starts, she was not great in this film and should not win, but she will.
P.S I may be posting a blog about how i hate La La Land tomorrow.

Want - Natalie Portman
I can't explain why i want her to win but it just feels right.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Think - Mahershala Ali
Moonlight needs at least one win and this will be the one.

Want - Michael Shannon
Why not, i think is a fine actor, it will be novel.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Think - Viola Davis
People are raving about her performance and I believe she will win.

Want - Nicole Kidman
Again this is just one i feel will win.

BEST DIRECTION

Think - La La Land
Of course this will win, I personally don't see why it deserves any nominations but here we are.

Want - Arrival
I want this to win because I have faith in Blade Runner 2049.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Think and Want - Kubo and the Two Strings
This is one that deserves to win just because of the art style.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Think - La La Land
Again it will win for some reason.

Want - Silence
This film looks beautiful. Thats It.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Think - Jackie
Its a period piece in the 60's.

Want - Fantastic Beasts
The costumes looked very good shame about the overall quality of the film.

BEST EDITING

Think - La La Land
All the technicals will go to La La Land, if it gets one it gets them all.

Want - Hacksaw Ridge
War films usually win for editing.

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIR

Think and Want - Star Trek

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Think and Want - La La Land

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Think - Can't Stop the Feeling

Want - City of Stars

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Think - Hail Caesar!

Want - Arrival

BEST SOUND EDITING

Think - Arrival

Want - Hacksaw Ridge

BEST SOUND MIXING

Think and Want - 13 Hours

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Think and Want - Jungle Book

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Think and Want - Fences

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Think and Want - Manchester by the Sea

Overall the Oscars are not important in the grand scheme of things and we will forget what wins in a couple of months. Look forward to my La La Land rant tomorrow.

Written By
Ashley Harvey

The Lego Batman Movie - Review

I want to start this off by saying that there may be minor spoilers.

I enjoyed this film its a shock to me but i did enjoy it. It keeps a good pace and is thoroughly entertaining for both children and adults. Is this film without flaws? no it does have some minor problems but that doesn't take away from the overall sense of fun that this film has.

The story is good, very good i should say showing a side to Batman that a children's film probably would not have under different circumstances but after watching the Lego Movie i can understand how they can mask that element of the film behind a bigger plot involving Batman having to learn to work with others to defeat a multitude of villains, not restricted to Batman's Rogues Gallery. The themes of acceptance and parenthood are strong in the film and perfectly blended with the established Batman universe. The film has a feel good factor so taking a child to see this film would be a success and they should enjoy themselves.

The animation is amazing, on par with that of the Lego Movie. Vibrant is a good way to describe this film, very bright and colorful which lends itself perfectly to the Lego license. I find it strange that it was easier to connect with the characters in this than the "characters" shown in Suicide Squad and BVS. The humor is another part of this film which is done very well at times and can fall flat. The call backs to the Batman movies and Batman as a whole i found rather clever and the self acknowledgement to how poor the recent DC films are i found very fresh. Although there are some moments that just don't hit with me personally but i found my self not taken out of the film.

The dynamic between Batman and Robin is very good and the father-son themes the film touched on were rather heavy for a kids film but i felt it worked to the films advantage.

The soundtrack was also a surprise, the score itself was very good and could have been mistaken for a typical DC score. The soundtrack did have some pop songs which i personally find a little distracting and could date the film in a couple of years but they were few and far between.

Performances as a whole were very good, the characters felt at home within this universe and Will Arnett is brilliant at playing a self referential Batman, also Michael Cera as Robin was amazing bringing innocence to the orphan,

Overall i would have to say that The Lego Batman Movie was a decent film and is worth watching as both a Lego movie and a Batman movie, although it does not quite hit the heights of The Lego Movie it does come rather close and is different enough to feel fresh.

7.5/10

Written By
Ashley Harvey