Between the snow and the fact that the Audi Dublin International Film Festival is still ongoing, I am again late with my predictions… Oh well!

As with the last few years, I’m doing the 21 predictions again this year. I had thought I’d hit a ceiling of 71% correct. Then I dropped down to 66% last year. I had given La La Land too much credit apparently. I’m not making that mistake twice, so I really hope the Academy doesn’t decide to give everything to Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri!

2010 – 10 out of 14 (71%)
2011 – 8 out of 14 (57%)
2012 – 11 out of 18 (61%)
2013 – 13 out of 19 (68%)
2014 – 15 out of 21 (71%)
2015 – 15 out of 21 (71%)
2016 – 15 out of 21 (71%)
2017 – 14 out of 21 (66%)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Blade Runner 2049
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Kong: Skull Island
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
War for the Planet of the Apes

Oh no! All of these films have great effects. Hmm…

Predicted winner: War for the Planet of the Apes

BEST SOUND MIXING

Baby Driver
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi

I’m feeling Dunkirk, because it was one film where the sound actually felt like it was another character in the movie. If you know what I mean.

Predicted winner: Dunkirk

BEST SOUND EDITING

Baby Driver
Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Same as above really, especially given that we have the same nominees in both.

Predicted winner: Dunkirk

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Mighty River” from Mudbound
Music and Lyrics by Mary J. Blige, Raphael Saadiq and Taura Stinson

“Mystery of Love” from Call Me by Your Name
Music and Lyrics by Sufjan Stevens

“Remember Me” from Coco
Music and Lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez

“Stand Up for Something” from Marshall
Music by Diane Warren; Lyrics by Common and Diane Warren

“This Is Me” from The Greatest Showman
Music and Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

Remember back in December when people thought The Greatest Showman was a flop, just because it only opened at $13m. Well screw you folks! Here’s hoping it will shortly become an Oscar winner!

Predicted winner: “This Is Me” from The Greatest Showman

BEST SCORE

Dunkirk
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Hmm… I want to go to the guy from Radiohead. But then again, maybe it’s Hans Zimmer’s time (again)??

Predicted winner: Phantom Thread

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Beauty and the Beast
Blade Runner 2049
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water

So Blade Runner 2049 looked beautiful, but I feel like that’s the cinematography rather than the production design. The Shape of Water was also beautiful and it had that whole water thing going on so…

Predicted winner: The Shape of Water

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Beauty and the Beast
Darkest Hour
Phantom Thread
The Shape of Water
Victoria and Abdul

A lot of great costumes this year to be honest. I’d usually go for the flashiest period piece, but in this case there’s more than one of those. So I’ll go for Phantom Thread, because it was hilarious, and it was also actually about costume design.

Predicted winner: Phantom Thread

BEST HAIR AND MAKE-UP

Darkest Hour
Victoria and Abdul
Wonder

I have to admit, I didn’t actually see Victoria and Abdul or Wonder however for the sheer transformation of Gary Oldman, I think Darkest Hour has it anyway.

Predicted winner: Darkest Hour

BEST FILM EDITING

Baby Driver
Dunkirk
I, Tonya
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri

I don’t really know which way to go here. I feel like Dunkirk has a strong chance in all the technical categories… so… Dunkirk?

Predicted winner: Dunkirk

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Blade Runner 2049 – Roger Deakins
Darkest Hour – Bruno Delbonnel
Dunkirk – Hoyte van Hoytema
Mudbound – Rachel Morrison
The Shape of Water – Dan Laustsen

Come on. You have to give it Roger Deakins this time. It’s ridiculous. I’ve said this before though.

Predicted winner: Blade Runner 2049

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

A Fantastic Woman (Chile) in Spanish – Directed by Sebastián Lelio
The Insult (Lebanon) in Arabic – Directed by Ziad Doueiri
Loveless (Russia) in Russian – Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev
On Body and Soul (Hungary) in Hungarian – Directed by Ildikó Enyedi
The Square (Sweden) in Swedish – Directed by Ruben Östlund

I’ve missed all of these nominees so that sucks. I’m going to say A Fantastic Woman, because I see a lot of ads for it. Not the best way to judge, but I suppose if I’m in the same position as Academy voters, it makes sense. I am a big fan of Ruben Östlund though, so I’d love to see him get it either.

Predicted winner: A Fantastic Woman

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Abacus: Small Enough to Jail
Faces Places
Icarus
Last Men in Aleppo
Strong Island

I haven’t see any of these either. Awks.

Predicted winner: Icarus

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

The Boss Baby
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand
Loving Vincent

I wouldn’t bet against Pixar.

Predicted winner: Coco

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Call Me By Your Name
The Disaster Artist
Logan
Molly’s Game
Mudbound

I would love Logan to win. It was my number 2 film of last year, after the fantastic Your Name. But alas, it’s not to be.

Predicted winner: Call Me By Your Name

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

The Big Sick
Get Out
Lady Bird
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

I think it would be CRAZY if Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri wins. CRAZY. So I really hope it doesn’t, which makes this a difficult pick. So…

Predicted winner: Get Out

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Mary J. Blige – Mudbound as Florence Jackson
Allison Janney – I, Tonya as LaVona Golden
Lesley Manville – Phantom Thread as Cyril Woodcock
Laurie Metcalf – Lady Bird as Marion McPherson
Octavia Spencer – The Shape of Water as Zelda Delilah Fuller

Allison Janney has this locked up right?

Predicted winner: Allison Janney

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Willem Dafoe – The Florida Project as Bobby Hicks
Woody Harrelson – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri as Chief Bill Willoughby
Richard Jenkins – The Shape of Water as Giles
Christopher Plummer – All the Money in the World as J. Paul Getty
Sam Rockwell – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri as Officer Jason Dixon

I like Sam Rockwell. I don’t like the character, or the movie he’s in, but I like him. Also, he’s the favourite right?

Predicted winner: Sam Rockwell

BEST ACTRESS

Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water as Elisa Esposito
Frances McDormand – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri as Mildred Hayes
Margot Robbie – I, Tonya as Tonya Harding
Saoirse Ronan – Lady Bird as Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson
Meryl Streep – The Post as Katharine Graham

It’s a tough year, all of these were award winning performances. I’ve long thought Sally Hawkins should be honoured and Saoirse Ronan I think is basically the new Meryl Streep. However I have to go with the favourite. No matter how much I disliked the movie. Also, she is a great actress.

Predicted winner: Frances McDormand

BEST ACTOR

Timothée Chalamet – Call Me by Your Name as Elio Perlman
Daniel Day-Lewis – Phantom Thread as Reynolds Woodcock
Daniel Kaluuya – Get Out as Chris Washington
Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour as Winston Churchill
Denzel Washington – Roman J. Israel, Esq. as Roman J. Israel

I thought Gary Oldman was outstanding in Darkest Hour.

Predicted winner: Gary Oldman

Best Director

Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
Jordan Peele – Get Out
Greta Gerwig – Lady Bird
Paul Thomas Anderson – Phantom Thread
Guillermo del Toro – The Shape of Water

The buzz this season has been around Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and The Shape of Water and the former isn’t in this category so…

Predicted winner: Guillermo del Toro

BEST PICTURE

Call Me By Your Name
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
Get Out
Lady Bird
Phantom Thread
The Post
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

I didn’t see Call Me By Your Name. My favourites were probably The Post, Lady Bird, Dunkirk and Get Out… but none of them are going to win. My least favourite was Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, and that IS the favourite so… I’m going to pick that. But I still hold out a little bit of hope for The Shape of Water.

Predicted winner: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

That’s it. Let’s see what happens!

The 9th Japanese Film Festival kicks off in Dublin tonight at the Light House cinema and as always it’s coming to you with a great selection of Japanese films, many of which you won’t get another chance to see in the cinemas of Ireland. This year the touring festival is taking in Dundalk, Cork, Galway, Maynooth, Sligo, Limerick, Dublin and Waterford.

If you’re not familiar with the festival, each year the Embassy of Japan and access>CINEMA, with support from the Ireland Japan Association and the Japan Foundation, bring us a great range of both animated and live action drama and comedy. It’s been 9 years now, and long may it continue!

You can find the full programme here, but below I’m highlighting my top picks for the festival.

Nicola’s picks for the Japanese Film Festival 2017

We Are X is screening in Dublin and Galway.

02 April 2017 | 21:00 – EYE Cinema, Wellpark Retail Park, Galway
05 April 2017 | 21:15 – Light House Cinema, Market Square, Smithfield, Dublin 7

X JAPAN (formerly X) might not be a household name in the West, but they’re one of the most successful and iconic heavy metal bands of all time… through ups and down X JAPAN have come back and this film follows the surviving members as they prepare for a major performance in New York’s Madison Square Garden.

Why am I recommending it? I’m thinking this is going to be like Anvil: The Story of Anvil, which was an excellent film packed with curious characters with a side of wistfulness.

Destruction Babies is screening in Cork and Dublin.

04 April 2017 | 18:15 – Triskel Arts Centre, Tobin St., Cork City
07 April 2017 | 22:45 – Light House Cinema, Market Square, Smithfield, Dublin 7

Taira is a quiet but frustrated and angry young man who one day decides to leave his seaside hometown. He soon moves to a new town where he embarks on a path of mindless destruction

Why am I recommending it? I’m purely going on the title here. It’s described as a drama / thriller / comedy on IMDb, so may not be one for the faint-hearted!

Her Love Boils Bathwater is screening in Cork, Dublin and Waterford.

06 April 2017 | 18:30 – Gate Cinema, North Main Street, Cork
09 April 2017 | 20:15 – Light House Cinema, Market Square, Smithfield, Dublin 7
11 April 2017 | 19:30 – Garter Lane Arts Centre, Waterford, Co. Waterford

When Futaba is diagnosed with terminal cancer, giving her only months to live, she decides she is going to make the most of her remaining time by reuniting her family and reopening the closed bathhouse.

Why am I recommending it? Nominee for Best Film at the Academy Awards of Japan and winner of Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress, Her Love Boils Bathware looks to be one of the strongest films in the festival.

Nagasaki: Memories of My Son is screening in Dublin only.

06 April 2017 | 18:00 – Light House Cinema, Market Square, Smithfield, Dublin 7

Years after her son’s death in the atomic bomb attack in 1945, his mother Nobuko is unexpectedly visited by his ghost.

Why am I recommending it? This was Japan’s nomination for the Oscars and comes to us from the writer of The Twilight Samurai

For the last 5 years I’ve had the honour of being part of the Dublin Film Critics’ Circle awards jury for the Audi Dublin International Film Festival.

Each year myself and my colleagues, led by DFCC President Tara Brady from the Irish Times, watch as many movies as possible to bubble up the best of the best at DIFF – believe me when I say 100s of hours of movies are watched between us in the few short weeks before the festival.

The jury this year was comprised of Donald Clarke (The Irish Times), Gavin Burke (entertainment.ie), Paul Whittington (The Irish Independent), David Turpin (No More Workhorse), Brogen Hayes (Movies.ie), Jury President Tara Brady (The Irish Times) and err… Me. Nicola Timmins.

With this we’re proud to announce our choices this year, with thanks to ADIFF and Limelight Communications.

The DFCC Awards at the Audi Dublin Film Festival 2017

Best Film – Aquarius
Best Actress – Florence Pugh, Lady Macbeth
Best Actor – Sherwan Haji, The Other Side of Hope
Best Director – Lav Diaz, The Woman Who Left
Best Cinematography – M. David Mullen, The Love Witch
Best Screenplay – Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov, Glory
Best Irish Feature – Handsome Devil
Best Irish Documentary – The Farthest
Best Documentary – I Am Not Your Negro
Jury Prize – Kristopher Avedisian, Donald Cried
Jury Prize – Daouda Coulibaly, Wùlu
Jury Prize – My Life as a Courgette
Jury Prize – The Transfiguration

George Byrne Maverick Award – Emer Reynolds

Michael Dwyer Discovery Award – Blue Teapot cast – Sanctuary

Many thanks to all involved, especially Grainne Humphreys, print transport manager Mary Burke, festival press officer Patrick Stewart and the sponsor of The DFCC Awards, Limelight Communications.

Here’s to doing it all again next year!

Last year I was about 12 hours before, this year I’ve slipped again – it’s mere hours before the ceremony, not to mention almost a year since I’ve posted. I was thinking about not doing the post, but then I though hey, why not?

I had a pick an image for this post and this year, instead of going for the film that I think is going to win Best Picture, I decided to go for what I felt was the best scene from all the Best Picture nominees that I’ve seen. Sadly I haven’t caught Fences and Hidden Figures in time for this because of my duties on the Dublin Film Critics Circle jury for the Audi Dublin International Film Festival, but soon!

I’m doing the 21 predictions again this year. Hopefully I can improve. Last year I hit the ceiling of 71% again – maybe this year I can break it… It’s possible, right? Here’s my record for the last 6 years…

2010 – 10 out of 14 (71%)
2011 – 8 out of 14 (57%)
2012 – 11 out of 18 (61%)
2013 – 13 out of 19 (68%)
2014 – 15 out of 21 (71%)
2015 – 15 out of 21 (71%)
2016 – 15 out of 21 (71%)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Deepwater Horizon
Doctor Strange
The Jungle Book
Kubo and the Two Strings
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Hmm… I would love to see Kubo win an award but I doubt enough people even saw it for it to pick up anything. Sad. Word on the street is that everyone was very impressed with The Jungle Book and who am I to argue.

Predicted winner: The Jungle Book

BEST SOUND MIXING

Arrival
Hacksaw Ridge
La La Land
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

I’m thinking a certain film is going to sweep the sound awards. Even though I’d like to see Hacksaw Ridge pick one up… because, you know, war is cacophonous and the team did a great job.

Predicted winner: La La Land

BEST SOUND EDITING

Arrival
Deepwater Horizon
Hacksaw Ridge
La La Land
Sully

Prove me wrong Academy voters… don’t give these both to the same film…

Predicted winner: La La Land

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from La La Land
Music by Justin Hurwitz, Lyric by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

“Can’t Stop the Feeling!” from Trolls
Music and Lyric by Justin Timberlake, Max Martin, and Karl Johan Schuster (Shellback)

“City of Stars” from La La Land
Music by Justin Hurwitz, Lyric by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

“The Empty Chair” from Jim: The James Foley Story
Music and Lyric by J. Ralph and Sting

“How Far I’ll Go” from Moana
Music and Lyric by Lin-Manuel Miranda

I LOVED “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana. I listened to it for weeks afterwards, I still listen to it. What a tune. In fact, I’m going to listen to it now.

Unhappily though, there’s no way the big musical is not going to win Best Original Song. The tide seems to be behind “Audition”, which personally I think is a shame – because all I could think when watching it was “This is no Cabaret and you are not Liza Minnelli”.

But hey.

Predicted winner: “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from La La Land

BEST SCORE

Jackie
La La Land
Lion
Moonlight
Passengers

I don’t actually dislike La La Land, I just don’t think it’s worthy of the buzz and the hype it’s getting in the run up to the Oscars. That said, it does deserve this one. With my predictions record though, it’ll probably be the one category I get wrong!

Predicted winner: La La Land

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Arrival
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hail, Caesar!
La La Land
Passengers

Maybe Arrival will sneak in somewhere? Probably not.

Predicted winner: La La Land

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Allied
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Florence Foster Jenkins
Jackie
La La Land

If there’s anywhere I think another film will slip in, it’s here.

Predicted winner: Jackie

BEST HAIR AND MAKE-UP

A Man Called Ove
Star Trek Beyond
Suicide Squad

And of course, La La Land isn’t nominated here so someone else will definitely make it in here. I’m saying it’ll be the aliens.

Predicted winner: Star Trek Beyond

BEST FILM EDITING

Arrival
Hacksaw Ridge
Hell or High Water
La La Land
Moonlight

I dunno. Everyone is predicting a sweep for La La Land. I’d like to see Moonlight get a few, but it seems unlikely.

Predicted winner: La La Land

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Arrival – Bradford Young
La La Land – Linus Sandgren
Lion – Greig Fraser
Moonlight – James Laxton
Silence – Rodrigo Prieto

No Lubezki or Deakins this year! I won’t begrudge La La Land this one. Though, Lion I feel deserves something somewhere… but not this.

Predicted winner: La La Land

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Land of Mine (Denmark) in Danish – Martin Zandvliet
A Man Called Ove (Sweden) in Swedish – Hannes Holm
The Salesman (Iran) in Persian – Asghar Farhadi
Tanna (Australia) in Nauvhal – Martin Butler and Bentley Dean
Toni Erdmann (Germany) in German – Maren Ade

I’ve seen a couple of these, had to miss Tanna in ADIFF and Toni Erdmann because of ADIFF. I quite like Land of Mine, more than I liked The Salesman but I reckon Asghar Farhadi has it anyway. It’s definitely more Oscar-y than Land of Mine.

Predicted winner: The Salesman

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Fire at Sea
I Am Not Your Negro
Life Animated
O.J.: Made in America
13th

Shamefully I haven’t seen any of these, so I’ll have to defer to the other pundits here.

Predicted winner: O.J.: Made In America

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
My Life as a Zucchini
The Red Turtle
Zootopia

Zucchini? I think you mean Courgette. And don’t you mean Zootropolis?

I actually gave My Life as a Courgette an award today from the Dublin Film Critics Circle. Though the others weren’t eligible. Kubo was a fantastic achievement and I loved the songs in Moana but Zootopia was outstanding. Up there with Inside Out last year and should have also been nominated for Best Picture. Long may the quality of animated features stay this high.

Predicted winner: Zootopia

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Arrival
Fences
Hidden Figures
Lion
Moonlight

No La La Land here (because it’s in Original screenplay) so…

Predicted winner: Moonlight

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Hell or High Water
La La Land
The Lobster
Manchester by the Sea
20th Century Women

Honestly, I really don’t think you can reward La La Land’s screenplay. Come on. There are better screenplays here.

Predicted winner: Manchester By The Sea

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Viola Davis – Fences
Naomie Harris – Moonlight
Nicole Kidman – Lion
Octavia Spencer – Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea

I know Michelle Williams was in Manchester By The Sea for like 5 mins, but that was just such a great scene (see the pic above). However, Viola Davis is a force of nature and, while I haven’t seen it, I gather she’s brilliant in Fences

Predicted winner: Viola Davis

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
Jeff Bridges – Hell or High Water
Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea
Dev Patel – Lion
Michael Shannon – Nocturnal Animals

I’ve been following Mahershala Ali career ever since he played Richard Tyler in The 4400 in 2004. He’s brilliant and hope he gets this one. He’s such a diverse actor and I always look forward to what he does next.

Mind you, I do like Michael Shannon, he’s always fun. And what’s with Dev Patel as supporting actor? If he’s not a lead in Lion, who is?

Predicted winner: Mahershalalhashbaz Ali

BEST ACTRESS

Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Ruth Negga – Loving
Natalie Portman – Jackie
Emma Stone – La La Land
Meryl Streep – Florence Foster Jenkins

I know it’s mean, but I just don’t think Emma Stone deserves this. I’ve never seen her in anything where I’ve thought “Wow”. I mean, I don’t like Jennifer Lawrence either but she was great in “Winter’s Bone”. What has Emma Stone ever done? Ok, I know some of you are going to say, uhhh – La La Land, but I disagree. Anyway, what I think doesn’t matter so…

Predicted winner: Emma Stone

BEST ACTOR

Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
Andrew Garfield – Hacksaw Ridge
Ryan Gosling – La La Land
Viggo Mortensen – Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington – Fences

Having missed Denzel Washington in Fences, I’ll have to go with Casey Affleck. I cried a river watching Manchester By The Sea and that was down to him.

Predicted winner: Casey Affleck

Best Director

Denis Villeneuve – Arrival
Mel Gibson – Hacksaw Ridge
Damien Chazelle – La La Land
Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea
Barry Jenkins – Moonlight

I’m ok with Damien Chazelle picking this up. I really liked Whiplash

Predicted winner: Damien Chazelle

BEST PICTURE

Arrival
Fences
Hacksaw Ridge
Hell or High Water
Hidden Figures
La La Land
Lion
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

As much as I begrudge La La Land, there isn’t another film that I’d see as a obvious alternative. Maybe Moonlight. Lion and Manchester By The Sea were probably my favourites (Hidden Figures and Fences aside because I missed them) but that’s pure sentimentality, I am a sap.

So… hey, you may as well give it to La La Land.

Predicted winner: La La Land

So that’s it for another year, I’m cutting it very close this time, I think the red carpet has actually started…

By the way, when’s the next Mad Max out?

I’ve slipped again! Last year I managed to get the predictions in 2 days before the ceremony… this year it’s only a little more than 12 hours before. Oh well. The point is that it’s before…

I’ll be doing 21 predictions again this year and if you’re wondering… I’m not really very good at this. Here’s my stats from the last few years. I seem to be topping out at 71%, and I’m not too hopeful for this year… so let’s see what happens.

2010 – 10 out of 14 (71%)
2011 – 8 out of 14 (57%)
2012 – 11 out of 18 (61%)
2013 – 13 out of 19 (68%)
2014 – 15 out of 21 (71%)
2015 – 15 out of 21 (71%)

Need a ballot form to do your own predictions? Here’s a handy one for you right now. Here.

BEST DIGITAL EFFECTS

Ex Machina
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

The last few weeks has made it look like The Revenant could pull off a sweep these Oscars but I want to feel like there’s a bit of nostalgia left in Oscar voters. Plus, I kinda thought that bear looked crap.

Predicted winner: Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST SOUND MIXING

Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Even though I understand the concept of sound editing and sound mixing, I fail to quite understand how they translate to the winners of recent years… I kinda feel like a got a free pass with Whiplash last year, but this year…

Predicted winner: The Revenant

BEST SOUND EDITING

Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

I didn’t want to believe in American Sniper last year and I was wrong so this year I thought I’d look directly to the Motion Picture Sound Editors awards, the Golden Reels, to see who they picked. It was a tie.

I already gave The Revenant my choice in sound mixing… so I’ll go with…

Predicted winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Earned It” from Fifty Shades of Grey
Music and Lyric by Ahamad Balshe (Belly), Stephan Moccio, Jason “Daheala” Quenneville, Abel Tesfaye (The Weeknd)

“Manta Ray” from Racing Extinction
Music by J. Ralph, Lyric by Antony Hegarty

“Simple Song #3” from Youth
Music and Lyric by David Lang

“Til It Happen to You” from The Hunting Ground
Music and Lyric by Lady Gaga and Diane Warren

“Writing’s on the Wall” from Spectre
Music and Lyric by Jimmy Napes and Sam Smith

Ordinarily I’d think the Bond song would be a contender… and of course it is a contender, but I really didn’t like it. I’m feeling a lot of buzz around Lady Gaga and I like her so…

Predicted winner: “Til It Happen to You” from The Hunting Ground

BEST SCORE

Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Ennio Morricone could be on to a winner here for despite the widespread snub for The Hateful Eight.

Predicted winner: The Hateful Eight

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Bridge of Spies
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant

The Art Director’s guild saw fit to honour The Martian, The Revenant and Mad Max: Fury Road but if it were all decided by me, Mad Max: Fury Road would be walking away with awards tonight so…

Predicted winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant

Tough one this year, Cinderella has the big gowns but Carol and The Danish Girl both had excellent period dress. The costuming in Mad Max was integral and The Revenant is just the overall favourite I think. Probably its weakest category though.

Predicted winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST HAIR AND MAKE-UP

Mad Max: Fury Road
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared
The Revenant

I think this is one of those categories where everyone in the Academy gets to vote, so even though The Revenant had no showing in the guild awards, it could pick it up here.

But I just can’t go for that. All the awards for Mad Max: Fury Road!

Predicted winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST FILM EDITING

The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Out of the three faves, I’d actually like to see The Big Short pick up Best Picture, it has a bit of panache. However I think it’s pretty unlikely, so maybe it can get Best Film Editing instead.

Predicted winner: The Big Short

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Carol – Ed Lachman
The Hateful Eight – Robert Richardson
Mad Max: Fury Road – John Seale
The Revenant – Emmanuel Lubezki
Sicario – Roger Deakins

Can anyone touch Lubezki? Poor ol’ Deakins, just never gonna win. So sad.

Predicted winner: The Revenant

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Embrace of the Serpent – Spanish, Colombia
Mustang – Turkish, France
Son of Saul – Hungarian, Hungary
Theeb – Arabic, Jordan
A War – Danish, Denmark

I’ve seen 3 of these this year, so pretty good. Theeb I don’t rate. Mustang is my fave but all the talk is around Son of Saul so…

Predicted winner: Son of Saul

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

I’ve only seen Amy here but again, that’s where all the buzz is.

Predicted winner: Amy

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Anomalisa
Boy and the World
Inside Out
Shaun the Sheep Movie
When Marnie Was There

Inside Out!

Predicted winner: Inside Out

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
The Martian
Room

I loved Brooklyn and I wouldn’t be upset if any of these won but I’m going to go with the big gun here.

Predicted winner: The Big Short

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
Inside Out
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton

The other big gun?

Predicted winner: Spotlight

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Jennifer Jason Leigh – The Hateful Eight
Rooney Mara – Carol
Rachel McAdams – Spotlight
Alicia Vikander – The Danish Girl
Kate Winslet – Steve Jobs

I’m very hopeful for Alicia Vikander here, she’s impressed me in everything I’ve seen her in so far and I think she has a long career ahead of her. Plus, as much as I love Kate Winslet, I didn’t think she was great in Steve Jobs. She was better in Triple 9

Predicted winner: Alicia Vikander

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christian Bale – The Big Short
Tom Hardy – The Revenant
Mark Ruffalo – Spotlight
Mark Rylance – Bridge of Spies
Sylvester Stallone – Creed

I would LOVE Mark Rylance to get this. Because I genuinely think it was the best performance out of these 5…

… But it looks like it’s going to be Sylvester Stallone. Which, in a way, I’m ok with, because I really believe Creed deserved a Best Actor and a Best Picture nod as well. So if it picks up a win from its only nomination then ok.

Predicted winner: Sylvester Stallone

BEST ACTRESS

Cate Blanchett – Carol
Brie Larson – Room
Jennifer Lawrence – Joy
Charlotte Rampling – 45 Years
Saoirse Ronan – Brooklyn

Seems like Brie Larson has this in the bag.

Predicted winner: Brie Larson

BEST ACTOR

Bryan Cranston – Trumbo
Matt Damon – The Martian
Leonardo DiCaprio – The Revenant
Michael Fassbender – Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne – The Danish Girl

There will be war if DiCaprio doesn’t pick this up.

Predicted winner: Leonardo DiCaprio

Best Director

Adam McKay – The Big Short
George Miller – Mad Max: Fury Road
Alejandro González Iñárritu – The Revenant
Lenny Abrahamson – Room
Tom McCarthy – Spotlight

Tough one. Will they give Iñárritu Best Picture and Best Director 2 years in a row. I think they might.

My choice of course though, is George Miller. Come on Mad Max: Fury Road!

Predicted winner: Alejandro González Iñárritu

BEST PICTURE

The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

If you’d asked me a month ago I’d have said Spotlight, and out of the 3 faves (The Big Short, Spotlight and The Revenant) I’d be choosing The Big Short, but it really feels like the tide has turned in The Revenant’s favour these last few weeks… so…

Predicted winner: The Revenant

Which is a little strange to say because I actually didn’t like The Revenant that much. It was a fantastic production but I didn’t connect with it on an emotional level. I was invested in DiCaprio’s performance for sure, but the film itself… not so much.

I would love Mad Max: Fury Road to win, and I’d be equally happy for Spotlight or The Big Short or Brooklyn for that matter…

… then again, the tales of The Revenant’s shoot and of DiCaprio’s dedication are immense, plus it is an great looking film so… who’s to say that that isn’t enough of an achievement to win Best Picture?

We’ll see tonight!

Oscar nominations anyone? If you need an A4 printable Oscar predictions ballot form… here it is!

For the full list visit the official site here.

The ballot has 21 categories and a couple of tie-breaker questions so definitely the way to prove you know your movies. Well, ok… I do leave out some of the smaller categories as I do feel like they turn a friendly competition into one of luck – after all there is a very low likelihood that most people will have see the short film categories.

Anyway, I am ALWAYS curious to know what other people’s predictions are. You can e-mail your ballot form to nicola at averagefilmreviews dot com and if anyone gets all 21 right, I might even have give out a prize.

To download the prediction ballot click the links below. I’ve done a pdf version as well.

DOWNLOAD THE WORD DOCUMENT HERE

DOWNLOAD THE PDF HERE

I had intended to do a Top 10 films of 2015 list, but it’s taking too long for me to decide the other 3 and their order so… It’s a top 7 films list. I feel like this is acceptable. I’ve also failed to do many reviews this year. Or much on the site at all. Which I feel bad about. Here’s hoping I’ll get time to do more on 2016.

I always think it’s worth mentioning approximately how many films I’ve seen, just to give some context. This year I’ve been down a bit so I’ve probably only seen maybe 150 or so new films. So if there’s a film you’re expecting to see on the list that isn’t there well… I might not have seen it, but it’s equally likely that I just didn’t rate it.

There were, however, definitely some contenders I missed. Films I missed that I think I might have liked include A Most Violent Year, Tangerine, Wild Tales and 45 Years. If I do get around to seeing them then I’ll try to get reviews up. Also, since I’m in Ireland, films like Creed, Room and Spotlight don’t fall into 2015 releases, while older films like Whiplash and Birdman do.

Anyway… here are my top films for 2015. In reverse order.

Australian director of Snowtown, Justin Kurzel, takes on one of the bard’s most well-known works.

Starring Michael Fassbender in the first of two of his films on this list, Macbeth was truly a sight to behold. If I’m being honest… the language was difficult. No doubt like many, I hadn’t read or heard any Shakespearean English in, oh, 20 years or so. Plus I’ve never read, studied or seen any productions of Macbeth before, so there were a couple of times where I had to trust that my reactions were suitable. But hey, that’s true of any film right?

I’ve put it on the list because, despite that difficulty, strong cinematography has a huge impact on me and I really felt that Macbeth was one of the most stunning films I’d seen in years. This coupled with the excellent performances from Fassbender, Cotillard and Harris made this one of the stand out films of 2015.

Adapted by Nick Hornby from a Colm Tóibín novel and directed by John Crowley, Brooklyn stars Saoirse Ronan as a young Irish girl in the 1950s, torn between two loves and two worlds.

Look, honestly, I thought Brooklyn would be terrible. I’m not into period romance and I know the synopsis above is glib, but it really is all the film is about. Yet Brooklyn, as simple and clichéd as it is, manages to be more than you’d expect. It’s a fantastic example of doing something simple well.

Like, on Great British Bake Off – you can make a carrot cake as your showstopper, but it better be the best damn carrot cake the judges have ever tasted. I thought I didn’t like carrot cake, but it turns out I just haven’t been eating top quality carrot cake.

It was probably the most surprising film I saw this year.

In a year which included a film in Ukrainian sign language with no subtitles.

Alicia Vikander, my personal breakout star of 2015, features as our machina in this thoughtful sci-fi thriller. Ex Machina also features Domhnall Gleeson and our other breakthrough star of the moment, Oscar Isaac.

If you’ve read much of this site you’ll know that I’m a huge sci-fi fan… so… it’s not really surprising that the best sci-fi film of 2015 makes my top 5 for the year.

Hmm… I probably should mention, I’m pretty strict on sci-fi. Like, I wouldn’t count Star Wars: The Force Awakens or Avengers: Age of Ultron as sci-fi. I would count The Martian and it gets an honourable mention but for me, Ex Machina had that element of thinking bigger that I love about the genre.

Michael Fassbender appears in his second film on the list as the titular character in this much anticipated biopic, written by Aaron Sorkin and helmed by Danny Boyle.

Set behind the scenes at 3 pivotal product launches for Steve Jobs, the film is, I suppose, non-traditional. I’m a long time fan of Aaron Sorkin so this one was always going to be a bit of a slam dunk for me. The conceit is a little unbelievable, that everyone important in Jobs life would appear 5 mins before a product launch to tell him what they think of him, but just to dial up the meta Sorkin mentions this… so that’s ok right?

Ultimately, Steve Jobs is at #4 because I found it… beguiling. This was the word I settled on while watching it. There was something charming and compelling about it, even though there was also something completely unrealistic and almost ridiculous about it. It kept me hooked. I wanted to watch it again straight away, even though I couldn’t put my finger on why.

Pixar’s first release of 2015 sends us on an adventure inside the mind of a young girl.

In the tradition of Toy Story, Pixar treated us to another piercingly insightful look at what it means to grow up.

I actually don’t feel like there’s much more to say about Inside Out. It’s a beautiful piece of emotionally nuanced film-making. It’s only a shame that Pixar’s second film of the year, The Good Dinosaur didn’t manage to reach the same heights.

Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, Michael Keaton stars as a washed up faded movie star, remembered for his cult hero film Birdman.

I actually did review this one so you can read more about it here: Birdman review

At the time I gave it an 8/10, and I still would, but there was something that stood out about it for me. That’s why it’s #2, even though I saw it back in January.

The legendary director of Mad Max, Happy Feet and Babe: Pig in the City returns to his roots, 30 years after his last Mad Max foray.

George Miller may be 70 years old but he’s directed the freshest, most exciting blockbuster of the year.

Going into it though, my expectations weren’t that high for Mad Max: Fury Road. I’d only seen the first two Mad Max films a few weeks before and I wasn’t overly impressed. I liked them well enough, but I’d seen the trailers for Fury Road and the previous films indicated a different kettle of fish. Perhaps if I’d taken the time to watch Beyond the Thunderdome I’d have felt a bit more positive but unfortunately that wasn’t part of the cinema re-release that I went to.

Fortunately, but maybe not entirely unexpectedly, the trailer was a pretty accurate representation of what to expect from the film. Mad Max: Fury Road is frantic, garish and unashamedly over the top. In other words, everything the trailer promised. Turns out that’s rarer than you’d think.

Check out the trailer below and let me know in the comments – what were your favourite films of 2015?

In the end, I feel like there probably aren’t really any surprises here – In fact I’m seeing a lot of consensus in the top films lists. Even where lists have been almost completely different from mine I can see where they’re coming from with most of them.

Except for A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence. That one’s a strong No from me. No.

Here’s a few honourable mentions:
The Martian – Lovely film.
The Gift – Joel Edgerton’s feature film directorial debut turns out to be a nifty psychological thriller.
Kingsman: The Secret Service – Bonkers.
John Wick – Stylish.
Spy – Funny. The only film I’ve watched twice this year so far.
Unfriended – Sure, it might have been a gimmick but as far as I’m concerned the dedication made it work. I’ve seen that story 100 times and it was great to see a different take on it.

By the way, if you’re ever wondering what I do think of a film, you can go follow me on Twitter (@avgfilmreviews) and ask me. I’ve probably seen it. I just haven’t written about it.

With the year end creeping up on us, the Dublin Film Critics Circle have announced their top films and performances for 2015.

I have to be honest, it’s a scramble in the holiday season to pull together my votes for the annual awards. Despite the scramble though, it’s something that I very much enjoy doing. It’s great to take a little time during the holidays to reflect and review what I really thought about the many films I’ve been lucky enough to see in the last 12 months.

I’ll be posting up my top films of the year soon but before that here are the films and performances that myself and the other members of the Dublin Film Critics Circle deemed the tops of the year.

Probably worth mentioning that we go on the Irish release dates, which is why you’ll see the likes of Birdman in our 2015 list.

BEST FILM

1.   Inside Out
2.   Mad Max Fury Road
3.   Carol
4.   The Tribe
5.   Birdman
      A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
      Ex Machina
      Star Wars: The Force Awakens
      Tangerine

BEST IRISH FEATURE

1.   Queen of Ireland
      Brooklyn
2.   Song of the Sea
3.   Older than Ireland
4.   I Used to Live Here
5.   The Lobster

BEST DOCUMENTARY

1.   Queen of Ireland
2.   Amy
3.   Red Army
4.   Best of Enemies
5.   The Wolfpack
      The Look of Silence

BEST ACTRESS

1.   Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
2.   Rooney Mara (Carol)
3.   Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn)
4.   Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road)
      Emily Blunt (Sicario)
      Lily Tomlin (Grandma)
5.   Nina Hoss (Phoenix)

BEST ACTOR

1.   Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs)
2.   Oscar Isaacs (A Most Violent Year)
3.   Steve Carrell (Foxcatcher)
4.   Matt Damon (The Martian)
      Paul Dano (Love and Mercy)
      Tom Courtenay (45 Years)
      Michael Keaton (Birdman)
5.   Viggo Mortensen (Jauja)
      J K Simmons (Whiplash)
      Colin Farrell (The Lobster)

BEST DIRECTOR

1.   Alejandro González Iñárritu (Birdman)
2.   Todd Haynes (Carol)
3.   Myroslav Slaboshpitsky (The Tribe)
      Peter Strickland (Duke of Burgundy)
4.   Sean Baker (Tangerine)
5.   John Crowley (Brooklyn)
      J.J. Abrams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens)

BREAKTHROUGH INTERNATIONAL

Daisy Ridley (Star Wars: The Force Awakens)
Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor (Tangerine)

BREAKTHROUGH IRISH

Jordanne Jones (I Used to Live Here)

Here’s to another great year of film in 2016!

Try to imagine all life as you know it stopping instantaneously and every molecule in your body exploding at the speed of light

– this is what will happen to those who miss out on the double Jameson Cult Film Club screening of the iconic supernatural comedy, Ghostbusters. The double screening is taking place in a secret venue in Dublin on Tuesday November 4th and Wednesday 5th, rumoured to have its own paranormal activity.

These free events are much more than just your typical screening, as characters from the movie, live theatre and special effects timed perfectly with on-screen action help to create an electric atmosphere throughout the screening. Expect to see Venkman and Spengler batting ghouls along with an appearance by the film’s real stars ‘Slimer’ and Stay-Puft Marshmellow Man

So if you and a friend want to be part of a crack team of supernatural elimination agents, then don’t wait another minute, grab your jumpsuits, proton packs and answer the below question to win tickets to the screening on Thursday November 5th:

Ghostbusters is set is which city?

A. Dublin
B. New York City
C. London

Please note, this competition is open to entrants from the Republic of Ireland only and, due to the nature of the film and the event, you must be over 18.

To enter, e-mail your name, phone number and the answer to competitions at averagefilmreviews dot com, with the subject line “Jameson Cult Film Club Competition – Ghostbusters“.

The closing date is Sunday 1st November 2015 at midnight.

All entrants must be over 18, ID must be presented if requested. Enjoy Jameson Sensibly. Visit Drinkaware.ie.

Tickets to this exclusive screening are free, so for another chance to win register now at www.jamesoncultfilmclub.ie #JamesonCultFilmClub

afr’s general competition terms and conditions apply.

© 1984 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Good news folks! The Jameson Cult Film Club is back for a 2015 autumn edition. This November, just shortly after Halloween, the brave men and women of the cult film club are turning the hand to that spooky(ish) and iconic classic…. Ghostbusters!

So far, Jameson Cult Film Club have screened Friday the 13th Part Two in an abandoned camp site, Silence of the Lambs in a psychiatric hospital and Predator in a dense rainforest. They even engineered an exploding shark in the murky confines of a closed theatre space for the recent JAWS screening. I reckon personal favourite though – of the ones I’ve been lucky enough to go to – was Die Hard, replete with Christmas party, they even had a Christmas Tree.

On Nov 4th and 5th their mystery Dublin location will be transformed into the streets of New York City. Be prepared to see the characters and event brought to life in tandem with their unveiling on the screen… who knows, we might even get a glimpse of Slimer and the Stay-Puft Marshmallow man…

Oh, did I forget to mention the best part? The Jameson Cult Film Club experience is FREE!

If you’d love to head along on the Wednesday or Thursday night, visit jamesoncultfilmclub.ie and register to become a member and get your chance to win.

You must be over 18 to register.