OSCAR NOMS WILL BE?....

TOM FORD FANS

On a lighter note - Lord we need one - 2016 was a great year for cinema, popular, commercial, foreign and domestic, art-house and comic-book. As I was reminded recently, the last time a film took all top 5 Oscars (Best film, director, producer, actor and actress) was 1991 for horror classic Silence of the Lambs (one would have thought Titanic, but Winslett did not win that year). 26 years later, this could happen again with La La Land - or not, so stiff is the competition. If they use all ten places, here are the ten films Eyewear thinks the Academy will nominate for Best Picture, based on other prizes, and critical reception.

1. La La Land - the sentimental favourite, and one to beat, for its self-reflexive rescue of the musical;
2. Moonlight - a powerful contender, examining a young boy's life as a black gay person in Miami;
3. Manchester by the Sea - probably shoe in for Affleck as best actor;
4. Jackie - again, Portman would win for best actor here;
5. Fences - another brilliant African-American film, with extraordinary central performances from Davis and Washington;
6. Hacksaw Ridge - Mel Gibson's redemption is probably complete with this anti-war film;
7. Arrival - many critics felt this was the film of the year;
8. Deadpool - an outsider maybe, but it was a master-class in comedy-action beloved by many.
9. Loving - a film about interracial marriage and prejudice in America;
10. Hell or High Water - at one time, seen as a front-runner, a powerful Texas-set crime drama critique of red-neck American values.

There are other films that could just slip in here, such as Tom Ford's bleak existential actioner, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Nocturnal Animals, or Lion, based on a moving true-life story; or Scorsese's Silence, or the comedy Florence Foster Jenkins (especially as it is a Streep Vehicle) - or 20th century Women, or Hidden Figures. Surprise inclusions could include: Love & Friendship, a popular stylish romantic satire; admired horror film The Witch; Linklater comedy Everybody Wants Some!! which has some critical love. A further nice twist might be including one or more art-house faves: Irish comedy Sing Street, Cannes-winning I, Daniel Blake, or American Honey, The Lobster, or Paterson, by Jaramusch. Captain America: Civil War would make sense, in terms of its critical reception, except comic book movies don't usually get nominated.

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E Y E W E A R, THE BLOG - FREEDOM MEANS BEING UNAFRAID TO WRITE WHAT YOU THINK

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