by Joshua Vaughan

2015 was a target year for producers to but their biggest films on the map. With the franchises of Star Wars and Mad Max returning to the big screen, as well as the new and original spectacles from Inside Out to The Revenant keeping us entertained, there was no shortage of films to be enjoyed. Therefore, with the Oscars arriving on the 28th of February, let’s look forward to the potential winners and graceful losers of 2015.

Best Picture

The films in the spotlight (pun not intended) this year are The Big Short, Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant, Room and Spotlight. All seems well here, and if any snubs should be considered (perhaps Inside Out and The Gift), which film would be replaced? To this writers mind, each place in this category is deserved.

Actor in a Leading Role

The category riddled with controversy. This year’s nominees are Bryan Cranston for Trumbo, Matt Damon for The Martian, Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant, Michael Fassbender for Steve Jobs and Eddie Redmayne for The Danish Girl. No black nominees, Leo’s year, and back-to-back wins for Redmayne. For starters, each place here is irreplaceable. If the Academy were to enforce a rule in which a nominee must be from minority

descent, that would surely raise more racial issues than how many it would solve. As for the “Leo’s year” nonsense, he is still a very young actor. Just because the audience loves to see a man suffer a CGI bear attack for an Oscar, doesn’t mean the other performances should be overlooked. As for Redmayne: a man who can win a male-centric category by dressing like a woman is quite the irony; perhaps Leo should try that too. Leo, however, is the runaway favorite for this one.

Actress in a Leading Role

Much less controversy is surrounding the nominees for this category. The nominees include Cate Blanchett for Carol, Brie Larson for Room, Jennifer Lawrence for Joy, Charlotte Rampling for 45 Years and Saoirse Ronan for Brooklyn. Should Lawrence win over Larson, expect a “popularity over performance” riot, as Larson is the odds-on winner right now.

Actor in a Supporting Role

Again, lots of talent here. The nominees are Christian Bale for The Big Short, Tom Hardy for The Revenant, Mark Ruffalo for Spotlight, Mark Rylance for Bridge of Spies and Sylvester Stallone for Creed. Ruffalo’s performance was good enough to be a contender for lead actor, but apparently his air-time was in the lacking department.

Nevertheless, he will face tough competition against Sly Stallone, as his tear-jerking return in Creed was enough to win over this editor.

Actress in a Supporting Role

Once again we find an overlooked category with underappreciated talents. Our hopefuls come in the form of Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight, Rooney Mara for Carol, Rachel McAdams for Spotlight, Alicia Vikander for The Danish Girl and Kate Winslet for Steve Jobs. Vikander and Mara appear to be close favorites, with Winslet following closely behind. It is not at all strange that Jennifer Jason Leigh should be nominated, as she was a bright spark in an otherwise underwhelming and overhyped film. When a film can stand on the legs of its actors, rather than the quality of its writing, it is a credit to the actor, rather than the filmmaker.

Problems with Selections

It is a conundrum how Art House films are often accredited with greatness, while Sci-Fi and animated films often are not. Inside Out is a masterpiece of cinema, which appeals to adults and its core audience alike. Nevertheless, it misses out on Best Picture, but thankfully gets its recognition in the Original Screenplay category.

A problematic nomination goes to The Hateful Eight for Original Score, however. Original? Really? Ennio Morricone’s score is just as appealing (although out of the blue) as any of the other nominees, but the word “original” is not how it should be described. The film features pieces from Morricone’s soundtrack on The Thing, and Reagan’s Theme from The Exorcist II (which is very misplaced, although fondly memorable). Another oddity is found in Ex Machina which, other than its nominations in the Original Screenplay and Visual Effects categories, is rather underappreciated. Likewise, there is a similar issue surrounding The Gift, a film beautifully written, directed and acted out, which received no nominations at the Academy Awards.

Oh, well. At least it would give one a better reason to boycott this year’s Oscars than Jada Pinkett Smith’s pathetic racial outcry. It’s not so much a racial bias here, Jada, but rather a familial bias.

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