This is Part Four of the Monkey Fighting Robots’ Oscar Predictions for the 90th Academy Awards: Best Documentary, Foreign film, and Shorts. You can find Part One,Two, Three and Four here. Make sure to check back after the Oscars to see if you beat Jenkins, our expert prediction system!
Best Score:The Shape of Water
Taking home the BAFTA, Critics’ Choice, and Golden Globe was just cherries on top of a brilliantly scored cake. This is Shape‘s award to win.
Best Song: “Remember Me”, Coco
Remember when you cried? So did the Academy.
Best Sound Mixing and Editing: Dunkirk
Dunkirk took every insider award for sound mixing and editing. If you had the chance to see in IMAX, you’ll understand why.
What are your thoughts on the 90th Academy Awards? Comment below.
This is Part Four of the Monkey Fighting Robots’ Oscar Predictions for the 90th Academy Awards: Best Documentary, Foreign film, and Shorts. You can find Part One,Two and Three here. Make sure to check back after the Oscars to see if you beat Jenkins, our expert prediction system!
Best Visual Effects:War for the Planet of the Apes
Somehow, not a single one of these films has won this category. It baffles everyone. But with a VES and Critics’ Choice award under its belt, War may finally win it, and bring a much-deserved trophy to the modern sci-fi retelling.
Best Production Design:The Shape of Water
It took the Art Directors Guild award, the BAFTA, and Critics’ Choice. You can be sure the beautiful art direction of Shape will take the win.
Best Costume Design:Phantom Thread
Yes, shocking. The movie about designing costumes will win Best Costume Design. What else is there to even say?
Best Makeup and Hairstyling:Darkest Hour
They recreated Winston Churchill to an incredible degree of specificity. More than this, the other candidates are Victoria & Abdul and Wonder, two movies that are so outside the public awareness you probably forgot they existed until just now.
This page will be updated as the winners are announced; enjoy Oscar night, Jimmy Kimmel, the speeches, and the song, and dance.
OSCAR Wins by film
The Shape of Water: 4
Dunkirk: 3
Blade Runner 2049: 2
Coco: 2
Darkest Hour: 2
Three Billboards: 2
Call Me by Your Name: 1
Dear Basketball: 1
A Fantastic Woman: 1
Get Out: 1
Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405: 1
Icarus: 1
I, Tonya: 1
Phantom Thread: 1
The Silent Child: 1
BEST PICTURE
THE SHAPE OF WATER
Guillermo del Toro and J. Miles Dale, Producers
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
FRANCES MCDORMAND
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
GARY OLDMAN
Darkest Hour
DIRECTING
THE SHAPE OF WATER
Guillermo del Toro
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
REMEMBER ME
from Coco; Music and Lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
THE SHAPE OF WATER
Alexandre Desplat
CINEMATOGRAPHY
BLADE RUNNER 2049
Roger A. Deakins
WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
GET OUT
Written by Jordan Peele
WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
Screenplay by James Ivory
SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)
THE SILENT CHILD
Chris Overton and Rachel Shenton
DOCUMENTARY (SHORT SUBJECT)
HEAVEN IS A TRAFFIC JAM ON THE 405
Frank Stiefel
FILM EDITING
DUNKIRK
Lee Smith
VISUAL EFFECTS
BLADE RUNNER 2049
John Nelson, Gerd Nefzer, Paul Lambert and Richard R. Hoover
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
COCO
Lee Unkrich and Darla K. Anderson
SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
DEAR BASKETBALL
Glen Keane and Kobe Bryant
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
ALLISON JANNEY
I, Tonya
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
A FANTASTIC WOMAN
Chile
PRODUCTION DESIGN
THE SHAPE OF WATER
Production Design: Paul Denham Austerberry; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau and Jeff Melvin
SOUND MIXING
DUNKIRK
Mark Weingarten, Gregg Landaker and Gary A. Rizzo
SOUND EDITING
DUNKIRK
Richard King and Alex Gibson
DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE)
ICARUS
Bryan Fogel and Dan Cogan
COSTUME DESIGN
PHANTOM THREAD
Mark Bridges
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
DARKEST HOUR
Kazuhiro Tsuji, David Malinowski and Lucy Sibbick
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
SAM ROCKWELL
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Best Picture
Call Me By Your Name
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
Get Out
Lady Bird
Phantom Thread
The Post
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Actor in a Leading Role
Timothee Chalamet
Daniel Day-Lewis
Daniel Kaluuya
Gary Oldman
Denzel Washington
Actor in a Supporting Role
Willem Dafoe
Woody Harrelson
Richard Jenkins
Christopher Plummer
Sam Rockwell – winner
Actress in a Leading Role
Sally Hawkins
Frances McDormand
Margot Robbie
Saoirse Ronan
Meryl Streep
Actress in a Supporting Role
Mary J Blige
Allison Janney
Lesley Manville
Laurie Metcalf
Octavia Spencer
Animated Feature Film
The Boss Baby
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand
Loving Vincent
Directing
Dunkirk
Get Out
Lady Bird
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
Documentary Feature
Abacus
Faces, Places
Icarus
Last Man In Aleppo
Strong Island
Documentary Short Subject
Edith and Eddie
Heaven is a Traffic Jam on the 405
Heron
Knife Skills
Traffic Stop
Foreign Language Film
A Fantastic Woman (Chile)
The Insult (Lebanon)
Loveless (Russia)
On Body And Soul
The Square
Original Song
Mighty River, Mudbound
Mystery of Love, Call Me By Your Name
Remember Me, Coco
Stand Up For Something, Marshall
This Is Me, The Greatest Showman
Adapted Screenplay
Call Me By Your Name
The Disaster Artist
Logan
Molly’s Game
Mudbound
Original Screenplay
The Big Sick
Get Out
Lady Bird
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Cinematography
Blade Runner 2049
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
Mudbound
The Shape of Water
Costume Design
Beauty and the Beast
Darkest Hour
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
Victoria & Abdul
Film Editing
Baby Driver
Dunkirk
I, Tonya
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Makeup and Hairstyling
Darkest Hour
Victoria & Abdul
Wonder
Original Score
Dunkrik
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Production Design
Beauty and the Beast
Blade Runner 2049
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
Animated Short Film
Dear Basketball
Garden Party
Lou
Negative Space
Revolting Rhymes
Live Action Short Film
Dekalb Elementary
The Eleven O’Clock
My Nephew Emmett
Silent Child
Watu Wote (All Of Us)
Sound Editing
Baby Driver
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Sound Mixing
Baby Driver
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Visual Effects
Blade Runner 2049
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Kong: Skull Island
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
War for the Planet of the Apes
During the first few arcs of Rebirth era Suicide Squad, we met the metahuman Hack. Her power allowed her to communicate and control technology, as well as travel through it. During the Squad’s war against the villainous group, The People, she was murdered. A year has passed and Hack has come back as the equivalent of a ghost to attack Belle Reve at its most vulnerable. With the Squad fighting the new hero, Damage, and Amanda Waller out observing a potential Task Force X replacement, this cyber ghost of the past has possessed the Squad’s home base. How will this sin of the past haunt the Squad in the present?
**Some Spoilers Below**
Story:
When the Squad returns home from their fight with Damage, they find the place controlled by Hack. They do their best to fight back, but it’s hard to fight a prison with high-security robots. After they’re captured, Hack explains to them why she has returned. She wants to kill the one who murdered her and will hold them hostage till the culprit is revealed. Hack calls Amanda Waller to try and get her to return to the prison to give her answers. Waller has her own problems at the moment, in the form of The Wall. The government issued hero is sent out on exercises so Amanda Waller can get a good grasp of his abilities.
Hack’s killer is Captain Boomerang. I would apologize that I ruined the killer’s identity, but even the series makes it clear. If you haven’t read the series before this issue, you would still be able to piece it together. Not because Digger Harkness is a bad guy, because you have the killer that Hack flashes back to is wielding a boomerang! You mean to tell me that she can’t access autopsy files on her own body? That the weapon that stabbed her has an odd almost boomerang shape? It’s questions like this that ruins the plot of this story. We have this battle against a digital ghost but it could have all been avoided if someone decides to check the files. Sure, the action is fun, but logic can only be kept away for so long.
Art:
As I said, the action is fun, but that’s only because the art is amazing. Eduardo Pansica’s pencil work is fantastic, especially when it comes to the designs of Hack. The different forms of the cyber ghost are incredibly unique and makes each encounter a ton of fun. Adriano Lucas takes it a step further with his epic colors. He is able to keep it vibrant enough to show the amount of energy powers are using yet keep it grounded enough for some of the more serious moments. If there’s anything steady about this story arc so far, it’s how phenomenal this art team is.
Conclusion:
This was another disappointing chapter in this arc, but not for the same reasons as last time. While the action is fun, thanks in large part to the art team, readers will be able to point out the flaws in the story a mile away. If you’re looking for a senseless, action-filled romp, this might be what you’re looking for. If you are looking for more substance, however, look somewhere else.
This is Part Three of the Monkey Fighting Robots’ Oscar Predictions for the 90th Academy Awards: Best Documentary, Foreign film, and Shorts. You can find Part One and Two here. Make sure to check back after the Oscars to see if you beat Jenkins, our expert prediction system!
Best Documentary:Last Men in Aleppo
Honestly who the hell knows with this category. Every predictive award gave it to Jane, which wasn’t nominated. There is no way to safely say what’s going to take the stage.
But, given that the directors for this one were denied a visa under the current administration, that might swing enough protest votes to give Last Men the lead.
Best Foreign Language Film:A Fantastic Woman
Once again, there was not any data with which to predict. Every predictive award went elsewhere in an already difficult category. That being said, A Fantastic Woman has had a ton of buzz over the past year, and that could be enough to sustain a lead.
Best Documentary Short: Heroin(e)
The Shorts categories are nearly impossible to predict – there simply aren’t enough awards given to build any kind of model. So there are based on more subjective qualities.
Netflix has found their groove in this category. They continue to push well-made and timely docs, and it’s paying off. Heroin(e) has both in spades, so expect to see it on the big stage.
Best Live Action Short: DeKalb Elementary
Another unfortunately timely short. At a time when discussions about guns in schools are the headline, this based-on-a-true-story of a foiled school shooting is a guaranteed win.
Best Animated Short: Dear Basketball
An autobiographical story from Kobe Bryant and the animator behind The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast,Aladdin, and Pocahontas. You don’t need an algorithmic prediction model to know that this will win.
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The Sorcerer Supreme has liftoff in an all-new series via the creative team of Mark Waid and Jesus Saiz.
Doctor Strange will take a galaxy quest clear across the universe in his new series this summer. The trip, prompted by the Eye of Agamotto being closed, causes Stephen Strange to lose his connection to the Earth’s arcane power, as literal nightmares press against the seams of our reality. Thanks to the suggestion of one Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, Strange takes on astronautical travel to fix the problem. The series will see new spells, allies and enemies – some old, some new – as secrets of the Marvel Universe are unlocked.
“I’ve been a Strange fan forever,” Said Waid. “But I’ve never been lucky enough to write an extended run featuring the good doctor. Along with editor Nick Lowe, we’ve come up with some new and very unexpected places to take Stephen Strange in the Marvel Universe—starting with the stars. When Strange’s magic suddenly exhausts itself, he’ll have to travel off-earth to recharge his batteries. Let’s hope he survives the trip!”
This new series continuesMarvel‘s ‘new beginnings’ or ‘fresh start’ movement in revamping, reloading and, in some cases, overhauling its characters, including with new creative teams.
Keep an eye out for Doctor Strange #1 to land on shelves on June 6. A full list of all incoming ‘Fresh Start’ series for 2018 can be foundHERE, while you can check out the official release from Marvel HERE.
It will be a homecoming this summer for Carol Danvers as both Margaret Stohl and Carlos Pacheco will spearhead a new series for the character.
Just a girl from Boston, Danvers, loved science and the Red Sox, until a chance encounter with a Kree hero gave her incredible super powers. Now, she’s a leader in the Avengers and the commander of Alpha Flight. Though, during fights, crippling anxiety attacks stir up memories of a life she thought she left behind. You can’t outrun where you’re from and sometimes, you have to return home. This is the true story of Captain Marvel and what she discovers will change her entire world.
This new series continuesMarvel‘s ‘new beginnings’ or ‘fresh start’ movement in revamping, reloading and, in some cases, overhauling its characters, including with new creative teams.
Look for Life of Captain Marvel #1 to land on shelves on July 4. A full list of all incoming ‘Fresh Start’ series for 2018 can be foundHERE, while you can check out the official release from MarvelHERE.
DC Comics announced Thursday the creation of The Sandman Universe, a new Vertigo line of comic books curated by Neil Gaiman. The Sandman Universe begins with four new ongoing series, existing in a shared universe, building upon Gaiman’s series.
Emerald City Comic Con will feature a Vertigo panel on Saturday, March 3.
Gaiman addreses fans directly in the video below:
“The Sandman Universe has always been very close and personal to me and I am thrilled to open up the world once again to an extremely talented group of writers and artists. I get to see the joy in these brilliant people whom I’ve selected, as they get their chance to play in this world,” said Gaiman.
Each writer was hand-selected by Gaiman:
THE DREAMING by Si Spurrier
HOUSE OF WHISPERS by Nalo Hopkinson
LUCIFER by Dan Watters
BOOKS OF MAGIC by Kat Howard
The line will begin August 8, with THE SANDMAN UNIVERSE #1, a one-shot story plotted by Gaiman and co-written by the four series writers. The issue will reintroduce the Sandman Universe and its characters. THE DREAMING and HOUSE OF WHISPERS will debut in September with LUCIFER and BOOKS OF MAGIC hitting shelves in October.
THE SANDMAN UNIVERSE:
About THE SANDMAN UNIVERSE #1
The story is plotted by Gaiman and written by Spurrier, Hopkinson, Watters and Howard, featuring art by Bilquis Evely with cover art by Jae Lee.
Daniel, the lord of Dreams, has gone missing and it causes chaos in the kingdom of dreams…A rift between worlds has opened, revealing a space beyond the Dreaming. Meanwhile, a book from Lucien’s library of all the unwritten books ever dreamed is discovered by a group of children in the waking world. Simultaneously, a new House appears—the House of Whispers—joining the Houses of Secret and Mystery in the Dreaming. Its proprietor is a fortune teller called Erzulie, whom the inhabitants of the Dreaming suspect may be responsible for all the strange goings on. Elsewhere, Lucifer has fallen again, only this time he might be in a Hell of his own design. And in London, a young boy named Timothy Hunter sleeps, in his dreams he becomes the world’s most powerful magician, but in his nightmares, he becomes the world’s worst villain, which future will become reality?
From the mind of Neil Gaiman, a new world filled with dreams and nightmares, all of his wonderful characters living together in a shared universe for a story unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
About THE DREAMING
There is a place where gods are born and stories are spun. But twenty-three years after he was anointed as its master, Dream of the Endless has inexplicably abandoned the Dreaming. His absence triggers a series of crimes and calamities which consume the lives of those already tangled in his fate, among them Lucien the librarian, Matthew the Raven, and Dora, a monstress without memories. But while they struggle to restore the King to his throne, they face intrigues from within and conquest from without. As usurpers circle the defenceless domain and an impossible shadow awaits its own birth beside a rip in reality, the denizens of the Dreaming play out their stories of loss and love, resignation and resistance.
About HOUSE OF WHISPERS
Latoya is in a coma. Her girlfriend enlists the help of Latoya’s two younger sisters. Using the Book of Whispers, they mistakenly steal the essence of Erzulie, a deity of voodoo mythology. The psychic blowback of the spell causes her house to crash into the Dreaming, beside the Houses of Secrets and Mystery and their custodians, Cain and Abel.
In the real world, the awakened young woman suffers a mystical form of Cotard’s Delusion—she believes she is already dead, and she’s transmitting her belief to others, causing them to become guardians of the Gap that has appeared in the Dreaming.
About LUCIFER
A few years ago, the devil vanished. Some people say he died or simply ran away, while others believe he never existed at all. But we aren’t some people. No. This is the one true story of what happened to the Prince of Lies, the Bringer of Light—Lucifer, the blind, destitute old man, who lives in a small boarding house in a quiet little town, where nothing is quite what it seems and no one can leave. He’s trapped, you see? Trapped in a bizarre prison with no memory of how he got there or why. Meanwhile in Los Angeles, a dying policeman believes his suffering may be a call to a divine mission—one that draws him towards revelations regarding the devil himself.
BOOKS OF MAGIC
Timothy Hunter may be destined to become the most powerful magician in the universe, but he’s still a London teenager and having magical abilities complicates things more than it helps. It’s not like he can use magic to pass his exams, stop being bullied, or convince his cute friend to date him. And while Tim’s trying to live his life, there are cultists who want to kill him, believing his power will eventually corrupt him, and turn him into a merciless mage. Oh, and those are the good guys. Luckily, his new substitute teacher is more than she appears, and may be able to help Tim discover the mystery behind the Books of Magic…
Krysten Ritter gets the second season of Jessica Jones off to a roaring start and reminds fans why she is one of the best casting decisions Marvel has ever made. Ritter has this uncanny ability to project such rage on camera while still maintaining how messed up she is. The writers don’t lose sight of Ritter’s character journey, and that positively impacts how this new season unfolds. Remember, this is someone who doesn’t want to be a hero but was forced into it and was brutalized by a man (Kilgrave) who she ends up killing in the end.
The second season starts with Jessica attempting to come to terms what has happened. Did Kilgrave deserve it or is she a murderer? She spends her time working easy cases just to make enough money to cover her bar tab. Luke Cage (Mike Colter) is out of the picture, and it seems things are spiraling out of control. Instead of confronting her demons, she drowns her sorrow in booze and one night stands. A client arrives at the office that actually might have a connection to Jessica thus forcing her to face what she’s locked away for so long. How does a young girl who was in a car accident disappear for 20 days only to reappear in a hospital bed with no memory? Was she just in a coma? Did a group have something to do with her powers?
The most prominent highlight surrounding the first episode is its writing. Instead of rushing through the demons that surround Ritter’s character, they allow the story to build creating a sense of anticipation. Showrunner Melissa Rosenberg, Raelle Tucker, and Jim Chory all have a great sense of pacing enabling the audience to enjoy the journey. While the first season is about Jessica’s confrontation with Kilgrave, season two focuses on her battle within. Will she ever find peace?
Krysten Ritter is fantastic in the lead role and leaves no doubt that serious consideration should be given to bringing her character into the Marvel cinematic universe. Rachel Taylor returns as Trish and serves as sort of conscience for Jessica. Carrie-Anne Moss returns and is solid on screen. If anything, this should show Marvel television that casting a strong supporting cast is essential. Let’s just hope they apply that to Iron Fist.
Manuel Billeter’s cinematography enhances the struggle Jessica goes through. In the first episode, he uses different light to symbolize her conflict. Everyone will undoubtedly appreciate the close-ups during the flight sequences. Billeter also makes ample use of a gray color palette in her office creating an ominous feel.
Overall, Jessica Jones has a universal appeal which will bring in fans of all ages. Whether someone is a comic-book fan or not, the bottom line is this a good television show undoubtedly worth binge-watching the moment it’s released.
This is Part Two of the Monkey Fighting Robots’ Oscar Predictions for the 90th Academy Awards: Best Original and Adapted Screenplay, Editing, Cinematography, and Animated feature film. Make sure to check back after the Oscars to see if you beat Jenkins, our expert prediction system!
Best Original Screenplay:Get Out
Unlikely: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
This should not come as a surprise to anyone. It’s one of the most celebrated films of the year, particularly for its unique and genre-establishing story. The Critic’s Choice and WGA awards were just cherries on top; this is Get Out‘s award to lose.
Best Adapted Screenplay:Call Me by Your Name
This has to the be one of the easiest awards to predict for this Oscar season. While its competition is nothing to shake a stick at, Call Me by Your Name is the only Oscar powerhouse name in the bunch.
More importantly, though, it has taken every insider and outsider award that matters. Expect this to be Call Me by Your Name‘s one win on Sunday.
Best Cinematography:Blade Runner 2049
Unlikely: The Shape of Water
Very unlikely: Dunkirk
Was there a more visually striking movie in 2017 than Blade Runner 2049? Or, put another way: was there any cinematographer as celebrated-yet-awardless as Roger Deakins behind the camera?
Deakins has been nominated for Best Cinematography fourteen times in his career, for movies like The Shawshank Redemption, Fargo, A Beautiful Mind, Skyfall, and Sicario. Yet he has never won.
If the Academy likes to do anything, its award a body of work. Frankly, few deserve that more than Deakins. But in case that did not convince you, he’s also won every insider award, and most of the outsiders, that matter.
Best Editing:Dunkirk
Impossible maybe: Baby Driver
This is, without a doubt, the strangest category to predict this year.
Baby Driver is the predicted choice. It makes sense; only one film has ever won the BAFTA and the Critics’ Choice – Mad Max: Fury Road. It went on to win the Oscar. So, Baby Driver seems like the sure bet.
Except, Baby Driver wasn’t alone in winning the Critics’ Choice award; Dunkirk shared that prize. And it also won an Eddie (the award given by the editor’s guild). Only one film has ever won the Critics’ Choice and an Eddie Drama – Mad Max: Fury Road.
You can see why this is infuriating.
In the end, it comes down to nominations. Every film that has won the Oscar in the past ten years was nominated for an Eddie Drama, and Baby Driver was not.
Despite its statistical shortfall, Dunkirk will take the stage.
Best Animated Feature:Coco
No animated film wins an Oscar if it was not already nominated for an Annie, the award given by the International Animated Film Association.
This means that Loving Vincent, Ferdinand, and The Breadwinner are all out.
This leaves The Boss Baby and Coco.
All give you a minute to stop laughing – yes, obviously Coco will win. It has taken every single award that matters, it as a critically beloved movie, and its competition is, once again, The Boss Baby.
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Want to see more predictions? Check out the Big Six predictions here!
What are your thoughts on the 90th Academy Awards? Comment below.
