Award Show season is coming to an end, as the 87th Oscars will be held tonight (2/22) at 8pm. Though here at Her Campus, we love picking our own best and worst dressed stars as they strut down the red carpet in heavily beaded bodices, tulle skirts, and skintight black dresses, I’m going to take some time to go through what truly matters- the films. Here are my picks for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.
Best Picture:
Nominees: American Sniper, The Imitation Game, Selma, The Theory of Everything, Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Whiplash
Though most predictions circulating around the media are rooting for Birdman, I have to choose my personal favorite, Boyhood, to receive the Oscar for Best Picture. It’s about a young boy and his sister growing up in Texas with divorced parents, as they go through every stage of innocence, rebellion, disappointment, fear, and love. A rather unconventional film for a stereotypical Hollywood blockbuster, the acting and writing of this film were so simple and real, which made it so perfect. Regardless of the drama or tragedy one experienced growing up, I’ve never seen a more relatable film and it tore at every single one of my heart strings.
Best Director:
Nominees: Wes Anderson for The Grand Budapest Hotel, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for Birdman, Richard Linklater for Boyhood, Bennett Miller for Foxcatcher, Morten Tyldum for The Imitation Game
Given the fact that Birdman was designed to appear as if it was filmed in a single shot and that Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu has already won the Director’s Guild of America Award, I think it’s safe to say that Birdman is the standout film for this category. A story about a former cinema start who is looking to start a new career on the Broadway stage, Birdman is everything you want in a movie- suspenseful, emotionally moving, and powerful. While Birdman and Boyhood go head to head in both the Best Picture and Best Director categories, the filmmakers in Birdman took the extra step to truly wow their viewer.
Best Original Screenplay:
Nominees: Birdman, Boyhood, Foxcatcher, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Nightcrawler
I have to go with Wes Anderson for The Grand Budapest Hotel on this one. Though not necessarily considered to be the standout film of the year, Anderson always produces quirky yet touching films. Set in the 1930s, the film takes place in an impressive European ski resort and explores the lives of the concierge service after one of its guests- a former lover Gustave, the head of concierge- dies mysteriously and leaves Gustave with a valuable painting. Considered to be one of Anderson’s strongest and most popular works yet, The Grand Budapest Hotel could finally bring Anderson the Academy Award he deserves.