Oscars 2016 Predictions: Is 'The Revenant' the New Front-runner After Golden Globe Win?
The Golden Globes handed out their annual awards and showed once again that the race is far from over.
It is important to remember that the Globes have no industry voters and have diverged from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and sciences many times. The awards serve to raise awareness for films and increase buzz. However, the awards do not directly influence the Academy.
In recent years the Globes have picked many films that do not end up winning the Oscar. For example last year "Birdman" lost to "The Grand Budapest Hotel" while in 2010 "The Social Network" beat out "The King's Speech." "Avatar" also beat "The Hurt Locker" and in 2007 "Atonement" surprised beating out "No Country For Old Men." In 2006 the Globes went for "Babel" instead of "The Departed" and in 2005 "Brokeback Mountain" won and the Oscar winner "Crash" was not even nominated.
This year's winners were a mix of predictable and unpredictable and showed the lack of consensus.
Best Picture
"The Martian" may have won the Best Comedy category but it was "The Revenant" that surprised as it won the Best Picture Drama. The film went into the awards with no expectations. However, it beat out front-runner "Spotlight," which was completely shut out. It should be noted that this was the second Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu film that won Best Picture at the Globes. In 2006 Inarritu's film "Babel" won. However, "The Revenant" had a stronger showing with three wins.
If the Globes were about to clear up the race and strengthen "Spotlight's" lead, the organization opted to go against the presumed front-runner. This was the second blow for the film as "Spotlight" also performed poorly at the BAFTAs this past weekend, obtaining only three nominations. The Guild awards have embraced it but the question most want answered is how will the Academy embrace it.
Best Director
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu took home the Best Director award for "The Revenant," taking out George Miller for "Mad Max: Fury Road" and Tom McCarthy for "Spotlight." With the BAFTAs having snubbed both Miller and McCarthy, it seems like Inarritu could become the new front-runner and possibly win the award two years in a row at the Oscars.
However, it is important to note that Inarritu lost both the BAFTA and the Globe last year and this could easily be a make up for it. This category will have to be looked at more closely when the Academy Award nominations and Directors Guild nominations are revealed in the coming week.
Best Actor
Matt Damon won the Best actor in a comedy for "The Martian" but his win was more of a buzz boost for an Oscar nomination. The actor is unlikely to repeat at the Oscars.
Leonardo DiCaprio on the other hand cemented his status as the front-runner. He won the Best Actor in a Drama award for his work on "The Revenant." It is now DiCaprio's race to lose for the Academy Awards.
Best Actress
Jennifer Lawrence won her third Golden Globe for her work in "Joy." However, it is still a question mark as to whether or not she will be nominated for the Oscar. "Joy" has not been embraced by most of the Guilds and was shut out from the BAFTAs. The Best Actress in a comedy winner does not always translate to the Oscars and Lawrence does not seem to have the same buzz she had for her last two award winning performances. On the other hand Brie Larson continued her status as the front-runner as she won Best Actress in a Drama for her performance in "Room." Larson must now win the SAG, BAFTA and Critics' Choice to secure her Oscar.
Best Supporting Actress
The Best Supporting Actress category continues to be a question mark as Kate Winslet won the award unexpectedly for "Steve Jobs." Most suspected that Alicia Vikander would go home with the award especially since she was nominated for two awards. However, it seems that there is no consensus in the category. Pundits will now have to take a look at the SAG awards for a better understanding of which actress could actually win the Oscar. The race can easily go to Winslet especially if voters are inclined to put Alicia Vikander or Rooney Mara in lead at the Oscars.
Best Supporting Actor
Sylvester Stallone unexpectedly won for his work on "Creed" making yet another upset. Most expected the win to go to Mark Rylance for "Bridge of Spies" but Stallone was always a possibility. Stallone could become the front-runner if he repeats at the Critics' Choice but a lack of a SAG nomination could always hurt his bid for the Oscar. How this race ends will also be a photo finish especially with Stallone not being nominated for SAG and the BAFTA.
Other Categories
The Globes were also willing to surprise in many categories including Best Screenplay as they gave "Steve Jobs" the award. Even though the film was not nominated for Best Picture, Aaron Sorkin was able to take out films like "Spotlight" and "The Big Short."
Ennio Moriccone ("The Hateful Eight") also beat out Carter Burwell for "Carol" in the Best Score category. Sam Smith also surprised as he won the Best Song for "Spectre." Most had expected the award to go to Brian Wilson for "Love & Mercy." He also beat out David Lang for his work on "Youth."
The most predictable category was Best Foreign Film as "Son of Saul" won. The film looks headed to win the Oscar and most pundits predict it will be nominated in more than one category when Oscar nominations are handed out on Thursday.
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