The Stats

The Revenant, Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s acclaimed masterpiece inspired by the experiences of  fur trapper Hugh Glass, leads this year’s Oscar nominations with a huge total of twelve. Mad Max: Fury Road, the most critically acclaimed film of the year according to Rotten Tomatoes, comes in a close second with ten nominations. Current favourite Spotlight took six nominations, with The Martian, The Big Short, Bridge of Spies, Room and British darling Brooklyn making up the 8 Best Picture nominees. Box Office smash Star Wars: The Force Awakens took 5 nominations and Fifty Shades of Grey is officially an Oscar nominee with a nod for Best Original Song.

 

The Surprises

The nominations this year were generally as expected. The biggest surprise will come with the sheer amount of nominations for The Revenant. While it was always expected to do well, I doubt anyone could have predicted its eventual 12 nomination haul. Room, based on Emma Donoghue’s bestselling novel, also did far better than predicted, picking up Best Picture and Best Director nominations. While the acting nominations didn’t include too many shocks, British acting legend Charlotte Rampling pulled off a surprise, and may I say deserved, Best Actress nomination for 45 Years, her first nomination from the Academy, despite being snubbed by BAFTA only a week ago. 

 

The Snubs

The film snubbed this year was Carol, Todd Haynes beautiful lesbian love story, which failed to pick up nominations for Best Director or Best Picture. While it picked up 6 nominations, including ones for its brilliant leads Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, you can’t help feel that Carol has been thoroughly robbed. While many predicting his nomination, Ridley Scott was snubbed for his direction of The Martian, and despite being the most dialogue heavy script of the year, Aaron Sorkin’s screenplay for Steve Jobs failed to make the mark.

 

The Analysis

Once again the Academy is having problems with its diversity. Out of 20 acting nominees, all are white, with possible Best Supporting Actor nominee Idris Elba being left off the list. And as we have come to expect, all Best Picture nominees were directed by men. However there is a good split in the Best Picture category between films centered on male and female protagonists, compared to last year’s nominees whose main characters were all men. There is also a lot of female representation in the writing categories, with Meg LeFauve (Inside Out), Emma Donoghue (Room), and Phyllis Nagy (Carol) all picking up nominations for their screenplays.

 

The Predictions

With regards to the acting categories, there’s not much competition for the frontrunners. After four previous losses, Leonardo DiCaprio seems certain to take the Best Actor crown for The Revenant. Let’s just say that if he doesn’t win, Twitter may break down. In the Best Actress category Brie Larson is a firm favourite for her performance in Room and Best Supporting Actress looks set for Carol’s Rooney Mara, with her fantastic performance and lengthy screen time being the perfect combination. The Best Supporting Actor race is a lot closer. The favourite and my pick is Mark Rylance for Bridge of Spies, but Golden Globe winner Sylvester Stallone, reprising his iconic role as Rocky Balboa in Creed, is a serious threat.

When it comes to Director and Picture, things start to get interesting. Spotlight seemed the clear favourite a week ago, yet a lack of BAFTA nomination for director Tom McCarthy and the Golden Globe for Best Drama going to The Revenant last Sunday has weakened its chances. I still think Spotlight will triumph in February, however Best Director is likely to go elsewhere. My pick in normal circumstances would be Alejandro G. Iñárritu for The Revenant, however the fact that he won in the same category just last year for Birdman may put voters off. I’d be tempted to punt for George Miller for Mad Max: Fury Road, a visual delight that pleased audiences and critics alike. However these two races still could go anywhere and although this is said every year, this year is genuinely one of the closest Oscar races in recent years.

The Oscars take place on 28th February.