It’s that time of year again! The red carpet is prepped, extravagant gowns and suits are sewn, the films have been watched, and audience and creators alike are actively anticipating March 27th. That’s right. It’s the 94th Academy Awards honoring the movies released in the chaos of 2021.
I used to be really good about watching each nominated film before the show aired. I made it a point to sit through hours and hours of content in the theater, noting which stories and performances I enjoyed and which ones fell short. I figured it forced me to be a well-rounded connoisseur of moving art. It certainly didn’t, but I did enjoy feeling like I knew the ins and outs of Hollywood when the Oscars came on television.
When COVID barreled through the world and the movie industry, when our living rooms became our theaters, when all we watched for months was the Marvel Cinematic Universe (in chronological order and release order, naturally), I stopped keeping up with the larger movie scene. But, for old time’s sake, I thought it would be fun to predict the winners of some of the Oscar categories for 2022 with essentially zero knowledge of most of the films. I’m going totally on vibes. (P.S. I’m just going to list the award name and who or what I think will win. For the full list of nominees and categories, click here.)
Action!
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Andrew Garfield in tick, tick…BOOM! takes this one for me. Spider-Man can sing!
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
I’ll go with Troy Kotsur in CODA because I really wanted to watch that movie but never did. Here’s to the high possibility his performance would have made me cry.
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
To Kristen Stewart in Spencer because I just saw The Batman and now Twilight is on my mind. To Edward and Bella!
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Ariana Debose in West Side Story crushes this for me. The movie was a 10/10, her acting was an easy 11/10. Loved it.
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Luca or Encanto? Luca or Encanto? Luca or Encanto? Luca or Encanto? Luca or Encanto…
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Do I have to pick between Dune and West Side Story? How? One is a science fiction masterpiece, one is a musical miracle. Gut gives it to Dune, heart grants it to West Side Story.
COSTUME DESIGN
Look, I know Cruella was all about fashion and transforming dresses and wild designs, but the symbolism and color of the costumes in West Side Story have a hold on me. Plus, Cruella is the obvious choice and I feel like switching it up.
DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE)
Writing with Fire. Best title. No idea what it’s about.
FILM EDITING
I’ll give it to Don’t Look Up. It was creative and choppy, reflecting the panicked tone of the film. It was unique and engaging.
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
Encanto, obviously. Even people living under rocks know every word to “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”.
BEST PICTURE
Dune, probably.
SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
“The Windshield Wiper”. I’m intrigued.
VISUAL EFFECTS
Spider-Man: No Way Home. No one outdoes Marvel’s visual effects.
WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
Dune again because I love a good book-to-movie adaptation.
WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
Licorice Pizza. I’m more intrigued.
*Be sure to actually watch the awards show as my predictions are purely for fun and have no actual credibility to them.*