The Contenders: Academy Awards 2017 - Part 1

1. 20th CENTURY WOMEN

Written and directed by Mike Mills who have already brought us the tiny perfect Beginners, Mills seems to have presented something really special at NYFF: 20th Century Women. Raves for the acting, specially for Bening's mesmerizing acting turn (called a mix between American Beauty and The Kids Are All Right), and for the personal tone. AMPAS will go for the movie's acting for sure - and might use it as a perfect excuse to finally award Benin - and don't exclude the screenplay or those 70's clothes!. Best Picture? I don't know... it's only a "maybe".

"As much as the music, the sheer likability of these lived-in characters is a powerful magnet, thanks to insightful writing and a note-perfect ensemble anchored by a never-better Annette Bening, playing a woman both wise and quizzical, poised right down to her frayed edges. If Beginners was Mills' love letter to his late father, then 20th Century Women, despite being less tethered to autobiography, is an equally heartfelt tribute to his mother and the other women who helped coax him toward maturity during a time of cultural transition." - David Rooney in Hollywood Reporter

Contending for:

• Best Actress - Annette Bening
• Best Supporting Actress - Elle Fanning
• Best Supporting Actress - Greta Gerwig
• Best Original Screenplay
• Best Costume Design

2. LA LA LAND

The actual front-runner in the Oscar race in a dozen categories, this original musical promises to please both audiences and award voters, since critics are already seduced by Whiplash's director latest feature. The Academy will love it for sure and La La Land is a serious contender in many categories it can easily end up as the most Oscar nominated movie of this year. Venice fell in love and so will everyone else.

"All the same, for Chazelle to be able to pull this off the way he has is something close to remarkable. The director's feel for a classic but, for all intents and purposes, discarded genre format is instinctive and intense; he really knows how to stage and frame dance and lyrical movement, to transition smoothly from conventional to musical scenes, to turn naturalistic settings into alluring fantasy backdrops for set pieces and to breathe new life into what many would consider cobwebbed cliches." - Todd McCarthy in Hollywood Reporter

Contending for:

• Best Picture
• Best Director - Damien Chazelle
• Best Actor - Ryan Gosling
• Best Actress - Emma Stone
• Best Original Screenplay
• Best Editing
• Best Cinematography
• Best Production Design
• Best Original Score
• Best Original Song - "City of Stars"
• Best Original Song - "Here's to the Hearts"
• Best Sound Mixing

3. JACKIE

Portman's show, Jackie is also a showcase for its director's talent (Pablo Larraín). A singular take on the life of the most iconic First Lady of USA after the assassination of John F. Kennedy (and some flashes of her sunny days back in the days her husband was alive). Jackie was described as a unique biopic and while most of the lights went to Natalie Portman, there's no way to deny others details that made critics calling Jackie one of the best movies of the year so far. I bet the AMPAS will bite this one: it's Portman + Jackie Kennedy, there's no way to resist.

"Despite Jackie’s autumn festival placement (it world premiered at Venice, and is currently screening in Toronto), typically reserved for Oscar hopefuls, Larraín’s character study doesn’t play into that narrative. It’s a singular vision from an uncompromising director that happens to be about one of the most famous women in American history. Jackie is not Oscar bait – it’s great cinema." - Nigel M. Smith in Guardian

Contending for:

• Best Picture
• Best Director - Pablo Larraín
• Best Actress - Natalie Portman
• Best Supporting Actor - Peter Sarsgaard
• Best Original Screenplay
• Best Editing
• Best Cinematography
• Best Costume Design

4. THE JUNGLE BOOK

A visual wonder, with some jaw-dropping visual effects and sequences that remind us of the power of technology after you finish a experience that makes you go like "was all that real?". Jon Favreau live-action adaptation of The Jungle Book was one of the biggest (best) surprises of the year turning into both a critical darling and a box-office sensation, grossing over 950.000.000,00$ worldwide. While I believe it won't get that much needed #1 votes in older AMPAS' members Best Picture's lineup, I still believe it might manage to appeal to same people who went for Life of Pi, Avatar or even Hugo (it all depends on how Disney will promote this one in awards race). Visuals will be rewarded for sure and sound department are serious contenders to get also some recognition too.

"Walt Disney Studios’ splendid new version of The Jungle Book is utterly charming, absolutely gorgeous and perhaps too terrifying for the youngest and most impressionable children." - Bruce Kirkland in Toronto Sun

Contending for:

• Best Picture
• Best Cinematography
• Best Production Design
• Best Original Score
• Best Sound Editing
• Best Sound Mixing
• Best Visual Effects

5. CAFÉ SOCIETY

You can count how many remarkable movies Woody Allen has made in the 21st century without getting tired (Match Point, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Midnight in Paris and Blue Jasmine), but now you can add Café Society. While not "outstanding" piece of cinema, Café Society has the nostalgia and it is visually gorgeous, while it benefits from winning acting turns from Eisenberg and Stewart. The AMPAS loves Woody and this one might be one more excuse to nominate him in the Best Original Screenplay field, but it's the other high points of the movie that really deserve to contend for Oscar recognition: Stewart, cinematography and the production design team. It's a beautiful movie, in the true sense of the word "beautiful".

"In Café Society, Woody Allen returns to his favorite setting—the past—and emerges triumphant. He does that a lot, squeezing fabulous music, breathtaking scenery and nostalgic charm out of Paris, Rome, London, Barcelona and even Queens. But Hollywood is uncharted territory—a place that has always eluded, disoriented, challenged and intimidated him. Until now. Romantic, bittersweet and funny as hell, Café Society turns Hollywood inside out, rooting through the superficial tinsel to find the real tinsel. You go away gobsmacked, beaming and happy to be both." - Rex Reed in New York Observer

Contending for:

• Best Supporting Actress - Kristen Stewart
• Best Original Screenplay
• Best Cinematography
• Best Production Design

6. NOCTURNAL ANIMALS

Tom Ford took years to bring us the follow-up to A Single Man, but according to film festival reactions, it was worth the wait and it managed to take home the Grand Jury Prize of Venice Film Festival. While it might not be a Best Picture player, Nocturnal Animals is, by far, considered one of the most vibrant pieces of cinema of the year so far, an accomplishment in both visual and narrative, with exquisite performances (highlights for Taylor-Johnson and Shannon's acting turns here, but Adams and Gyllenhaal are said to be excellent leads). No matter what, Ford's latest will make an impression between AMPAS members, for sure.

"Here, as in “A Single Man,” Ford’s staging is staid and classical, elegant and at times a touch overdeliberate, although he’s ambitious without being pretentious. Ford is a true moviemaker — a social observer who’s a junkie for sensation and narrative. He has structured “Nocturnal Animals” beautifully, so that the past truly feeds into the present, and fiction into reality." - Owen Gleiberman in Variety

Contending for:

• Best Director - Tom Ford
• Best Supporting Actor - Aaron Taylor-Johnson
• Best Supporting Actor - Michael Shannon 
• Best Adapted Screenplay
• Best Editing
• Best Cinematography
• Best Original Score

7. The sole contender - THE NEON DEMON
Contending for:

• Best Cinematography