And just as we thought we had all the runners and riders in the 2019-2020 Oscar race, Sam Mendes and Universal drop one which could actually win the whole damn thing.
Reactions from the first press screening have been exceptionally good for Sam Mendes first non-Bond film for over a decade, with the WW1-set feature looking like it could be the dominant picture in this years awards race and the perfect antidote to Netflix’s bombardment of the awards circuit.
“1917” will likely generate a great deal of attention in several below-the-line categories. The cinematography from Roger Deakins, a 14-time nominee and recent winner for his work in “Blade Runner 2049,” will almost certainly be nominated. It could even snag Deakins a second Oscar. At a Manhattan screening, Deakins’ name on the screen seemed to generate the loudest applause. Likewise, “1917’s” production design, sound mixing and editing, and score from Thomas Newman could all score nominations. Lee Smith’s editing may also get some love unless voters penalise the movie’s editing for its one-shot gambit, something that happened to “Birdman’s” editing team of Douglas Crise and Stephen Mirrione.
As for acting, despite the praise for George MacKay, it looks increasingly difficult to enter the tight Best Actor race with powerhouse names such as Christian Bale, Adam Driver, Leonardo DiCaprio, Joaquin Phoenix, Jonathan Pryce, Brad Pitt and more.
For the Best Picture race, a nomination is all but guaranteed for Mendes, an Academy Award-winner twenty years ago for his work on ‘American Beauty’, and whilst the directing nod is less clear-cut, he is an appealing option, however he has competition such as Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, Bong Joon Ho, Fernando Meirelles, Greta Gerwig, Marielle Heller, Terrence Malick, James Mangold and somehow more.
A Original Screenplay nomination will be a toughy considering the competition, but history is on the side of ‘1917’.
War films have been favourites of the Academy over the course of its history. Just two years ago, Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dunkirk’ took eight nominations and three wins whilst ‘Darkest Hour’ took six nods and two wins itself.
We mustn’t forget other flicks like Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘The Hurt Locker’ and Steven Spielberg’s ‘Saving Private Ryan’, both winning eleven Oscars between those two films alone, and it becomes sixteen when we add ‘Darkest Hour’ and ‘Dunkirk’.
The point is is that the film is likely to be a monster in below-the-line categories, so we shouldn’t really worry if Mendes doesn’t get a Director or Screenplay nomination.
Here are my predicted nominations for ‘1917’, with the categories highlighted in italics currently predicted to win.
- Best Picture
- Best Director
- Best Production Design
- Best Cinematography
- Best Original Score
- Best Film Editing
- Best Sound Editing
- Best Sound Mixing
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