With what has been a particularly strong year for film behind us, it won’t be long before we’re plunged into awards season once again, where the best of the best in the world of cinema will fight it out.
Although a number of the 2019 Oscars front-runners are yet to be released here in the UK, of the films that debuted in the last 12 months, these are the ones that we’re predicting big things from when the Academy Awards roll around...
‘A Star Is Born’
Released: 3 October 2018
Summary: Lady Gaga meets Bradley Cooper, dyes her hair ginger and becomes a star.
Why is it one to watch?: Ever since ‘A Star Is Born’ was released, we were, frankly, alarmed at just how many of the glowing reviews named it as a possible Oscar contender. While we’re not sure it’s quite worthy of such prestige, we do agree that it could well appeal to Academy members.
It’s inevitable that either ‘I’ll Never Love Again’ or ‘Shallow’ (or both!) will be up for Best Original Song, and there’s a lot of chat around Lady Gaga bagging her first acting nod too. We can’t say we’d be too surprised to see Bradley Cooper up for Best Actor - or even Best Director - either.
‘Black Panther’
Released: 13 February 2018
Summary: WAKANDA FOREVER, basically.
Why is it one to watch?: One of the most unignorably enormous film moments of 2018, ‘Black Panther’ was not only a smash at the box office, but received huge critical acclaim, and it would positively criminal for the Academy not to recognise that.
While it was the film’s female stars that most caught our eye, there were probably too many strong performances to narrow down, so we’d say the acting nods will probably go to Michael B Jordan and Chadwick Boseman for Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor. Superhero films have never gone down well with the Academy, but if any was going to grab a Best Picture nod, it’d be this one.
Plus, don’t forget the technical categories (those special effects didn’t just appear from nowhere, you know?), while it’d be a shame for Kendrick Lamar and SZA to miss out on a Best Original Song nomination for ‘All The Stars’ too.
‘BlackKklansman’
Released: 24 August 2018
Summary: Based on a true story, an African-American detective attempts to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan, with the help of a white colleague.
Why is it one to watch?: Critics singled out the performances of leading man John David Washington and Adam Driver, both of whom could be about to land their first ever Oscar nominations for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively.
Spike Lee’s direction is also likely to bag a Best Director nomination, and while the themes of racism and oppression feel depressingly pertinent in the current climate, we’d love to see it recognised in the Best Picture category too.
‘Bohemian Rhapsody’
Released: 24 October 2018
Summary: Freddie Mercury’s journey from the early days of Queen through to mega-stardom, ending with the band’s iconic set at Live Aid in July 1985.
Why is it one to watch?: Critics were fairly divided over ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, but one thing they could all agree on was leading man Rami Malek’s performance as Freddie Mercury, which it’s been suggested by some film commentators could translate into his first-ever Best Actor Oscar nomination.
‘Fifty Shades Freed’
Released: 9 February 2018
Summary: A happy(-ish) ending for everyone’s favourite S&M-laden romance.
Why is it one to watch?: Yeah, OK, we know what you’re thinking, and you’re right, this film was absolutely rubbish. Apart from one element that is... the soundtrack. And given that the Rita Ora and Liam Payne duet ‘For You’ missed the window for a 2018 nomination (admit it, that song is great), we’d be happy to see it nominated in the coming awards season.
Incidentally, this would be the second time Rita is up for an Oscar, having previously sung on ‘Grateful’, from ‘Beyond The Lights’. She also stars in ‘Fifty Shades Freed’ as Christian Grey’s sister, but we wouldn’t expect any acting nods to come from that performance...
‘First Man’
Released: 12 October
Summary: Man walks on the moon for the first time. Or, if you believe certain conspiracy theorist, he doesn’t.
Why is it one to watch?: In many ways, ‘First Man’ is this year’s ‘Battle Of The Sexes’, in that there’d been a lot of Oscar buzz in the lead-up to its release, but when it was finally unveiled, it pretty much went by without making much of a splash.
Still, Oscar buzz there was, and with this serving as a reunion of La La Land’s Damien Chazelle and Ryan Gosling, it’s easy to imagine either of them being nominated for Best Director or Best Actor respectively. We’d even go as far as to name it as a contender for a Best Picture nomination, depending on how many films eventually receive nods this year.
‘Hereditary’
Released: 15 June 2018
Summary: A frankly traumatising horror film exploring family relations that will make you grateful all you got passed down from your grandmother was green eyes and pointy ears.
Why is it one to watch?: The journey we see Toni Colette go on in ‘Hereditary’, starting as a slightly unsettled and exasperated matriarch ending up at... well... we won’t spoil it for you, but it’s not a film with a happy ending (unless you’re rooting for Satan’s minion, Paimon, of course), and her performance is absolutely stellar.
We found ‘Hereditary’ so effective that we’d happily see it receive a Best Picture nod too, while Alex Wolff’s performance as Peter is also deserving of Best Supporting Actor recognition, but we appreciate that horror has always been a hard sell at the Oscars, so we’re not holding our breath.
‘The Incredibles 2’
Released: 13 July 2018
Summary: Mr Incredible adjusts to not being the star of the show when it’s decided his wife, Elastigirl, is more palatable as the new face of superheroism.
Why is it one to watch?: Pixar’s big offering of 2018, it’s inevitable that this will be up for Best Animated Feature.
‘Isle Of Dogs’
Released: 30 March
Summary: A dog-flu outbreak prompts all canines to be exiled to Trash Island, leading one young boy to track down his former furry friend.
Why is it one to watch?: Director Wes Anderson has six Oscar nominations already so, like ‘Incredibles 2’, it’s tough to imagine this one slipping through the Best Animated Feature cracks. The film itself was so imaginative we could envisage Wes Anderson scooping a Best Director nomination too, but only depending on how stiff the competition ends up being.
‘Mary Poppins Returns’
Released: 21 December 2018
Summary: As the title literally says, Mary Poppins returns to the Banks family, who now have children of their own.
Why is it one to watch?: A Disney sequel might seem like an unusual inclusion, but don’t forget that the original ‘Mary Poppins’ film was not only nominated for Best Picture, but earned Julie Andrews her first ever Oscar.
While we can’t say we’re sure that ‘Mary Poppins Returns’ will do the same, or pull off the same feat for Emily Blunt, what we are sure of is that Marc Shaiman’s new tunes should bag at least one Best Original Song nomination.
‘The Miseducation Of Cameron Post’
Released: 7 September 2018
Summary: Cameron Post is shipped off to conversion therapy camp where she has more fun than you might imagine, but still not very much fun.
Why is it one to watch?: This might just be wishful thinking on our part, but we loved this film, and think it deserves some recognition for tackling such an important, but oft-overlooked subject matter.
Admittedly, it’s a particularly competitive year for acting nods, but we’d love to see it bag a Best Picture nomination, though we appreciate it would probably be the underdog of the list.
‘The Old Man And The Gun’
Released: 7 December 2018
Summary: Based on the true story of Forrest Tucker, played by Robert Redford in his last-ever film role, an elderly career criminal escapes from San Quentin prison.
Why is it one to watch?: With former recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Oscar announcing his retirement from the acting world, it’s a fair bet the Academy won’t let this film pass without giving him one last nomination, particularly given the poignancy of his character’s “one last heist” story arc.
The film itself has also been well-received, so a Best Picture nom could be on the cards too.
‘Ready Player One’
Released: 28 March 2018
Summary: One teenager’s quest to solve a puzzle set within a virtual reality world that all of humanity has become obsessed with.
Why is it one to watch?: A shoo-in for Best Screenplay.
No, we’re obviously kidding, but while ‘Ready Player One’ was not a well-received film in 2018, there’s no denying that those special effects were impressive, with the film perfectly pulling off that impossibly-futuristic-yet-somehow-nostalgic aesthetic. Definitely one to watch in the technical categories, but we wouldn’t hold out much hope elsewhere.
‘Roma’
Released: 30 November 2018
Summary: The story of a middle-class family in 1970s Mexico City, and their live-in housekeeper. It’s also entirely in black and white, so you know it’s arty.
Why is it one to watch?: ‘Roma’ scooped the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 2018, which is certainly a promising sign, as the last recipient just happened to be the most recent Best Picture winner, ‘The Shape Of Water’.
At this point, it’s pretty much got a guaranteed Best Foreign Language Film nomination, but Best Picture is a definite possibility too, and with a lot of buzz around leading lady Yalitza Aparicio, we’d love to see her get some recognition in the Best Actress category.
‘Suspiria’
Released: 16 November 2018
Summary: ‘Black Swan’ meets ‘American Horror Story: Coven’ via ‘mother!’ in this all-dancing, two-and-a-half-hour horror film, with Tilda Swinton in basically every role.
Why is it one to watch?: As we mentioned earlier, horror films don’t tend to go down all too well with the Academy, and with ‘Hereditary’ already on the radar, we could imagine ‘Suspiria’ not getting the recognition it deserves as a result.
That being said, while we’re not sure Dakota Johnson quite stretches herself enough in ‘Suspiria’ to warrant a Best Actress nomination, Tilda Swinton is unmistakably fantastic (she does play roughly 500 roles, after all), so it’d be a shame for her to miss out on a Best Supporting Actress nod.
Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke put a lot into the soundtrack too, so we’d say he’s a safe bet in the Best Original Song category, while Luca Guadagnino might just manage to land one for Best Director two years in a row.
‘Widows’
Released: 6 November 2018
Summary: Viola Davis leads a group of widows, whose husbands were killed on a job, in a dangerous heist for millions of dollars, all while trying not to let an adorable dog steal focus.
Why is it one to watch?: Like Meryl Streep, it’s a privilege just to be able to watch Viola Davis act, and even if ‘Widows’ isn’t the most Oscar-worthy film she’s ever been in, she’s still head and shoulders above her peers, and deserves a Best Actress nod for her work in the film.
Steve McQueen might well want to prepare himself for a Best Director nomination, too. It’s just a shame there’s no Oscar for Best Scene-Stealing Dog, because Olivia would have that in the bag (no offence to Bradley Cooper’s dog in ‘A Star Is Born’, obv).
‘The Wife’
Released: 28 September 2018
Summary: A woman decides she’s done living in the shadow of her husband of 40 years, who is also a celebrated critic.
Why is it one to watch?: Glenn Close’s performance as the titular ‘Wife’ received unanimously glowing reviews from critics.
She’s also the living actor with the most Oscar nods without a win, and while we’re pretty sure she’ll be at least adding another nomination to the list, it could be a case of seventh time lucky for Glenn, who already has three Tonys, two Golden Globes and three Emmys to her name.
‘You Were Never Really Here’
Released: 9 March 2018
Summary: A grisly and disturbing story of hired gunmen, human trafficking and corruption that really gets in your head.
Why is it one to watch?: There’s every chance that after getting its wide release in March, ‘You Were Never Really Here’ was probably released too far away to be in Academy members’ minds when they’re casting their votes.
That being said, Joaquin Phoenix gave a performance memorable enough that it might land him a Best Actor nomination, having already won the title for the same film at the Cannes Film Festival in 2017, where it first debuted.