Academy Awards 2018 nominees predictions: Best Picture (2nd ROUND)

First of all, I'm sorry for my absence these days, but I've been busy at work. But cinematic subjects keep going and Oscar race is just on fire!

At this point, I don't really know which one is the Best Picture frontrunner: Get Out and Lady Bird have been collecting Best Film prizes from critics associations, The Shape of Water is also doing well between critics and it is the most nominated movie of the Globes and Critics' Choice (including Best Film), Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri also scores high this award season and it benefits from an all-star ensemble while Dunkirk and The Post are the kind of movies that most fit the traditional Best Picture nominee profile. Which leaves 4 more (less obvious) spots to fill.

So, I present you my predictions:

Yeaaaahhh...! I bet The Florida Project is going to be a big surprise when nominations morning comes. It features a social portrait and it's easy to fall in love with...! The Big Sick is Amazon's only serious Oscar player and since this studio managed to get a Best Picture nomination for Manchester by the Sea (and a win for Casey Affleck), I guess Amazon will play its best cards in order to get another Best Picture nominee and audiences love this movie. Dee Rees brings Mudbound and we all love this movie (critics, audiences and Oscar predictions folks), but Hollywood doesn't buy the Netflix signature when it comes to big-screen productions and AMPAS is showing no love for its distribution method.

Now there are other movies who are contending for a spot in the Best Picture nominees shortlist. While they are not as obvious contender as the previous I mentioned above, they might have something to say:

#11: Star Wars: The Last Jedi - The new chapter of the Star Wars saga is getting a lot of critical acclaim and audiences are buying tickets (A LOT OF TICKETS) so it seems it's gonna be both a critical acclaimed movie and a box-office sensation. Tech nominations are likely to happen and some claim this installment is the Star Wars version of The Dark Knight... Will it be the first Star Wars movie nominated for Best Picture? There's a lot of enthusiasm around this one.

#12: Phantom Thread - The AMPAS loves Paul Thomas Anderson and his movies, but only There Will Be Blood was able to get a Best Picture nomination. While Phantom seems to be the kind of movies that's more "respected" than "loved", I've serious doubts about its real chances in Best Picture race, but not enough people have seen the movie. The movie features the reportedly last performance from Daniel Day-Lewis' final performance in film - will Oscar voters go for Phantom this way?

#13: Darkest Hour: A perfect Best Picture contender on paper, but awards aren't buying Joe Wrights latest in the Best Film category. Gary Oldman is too good in this one, so it seems people are honouring the lead's performance only. Wright directed brilliant movies (Pride & Prejudice and Atonement, with Anna Karenina as an amazing visual experience) and Darkest Hour is no lesser cinematic effort - it is going to score a few nominations, but its early Best Picture buzz seems dead.

#14: All the Money in the World - Ridley Scott's movies tend to get polar receptions: some are one of the best movies that year, others are just one more piece of cinematic trash. The Globes showed a lot of love/support for this one and Scott's decision to replace Spacey (because of the sexual harassment issue) and re-shoot his scenes did wonders for him! In the end, Oscar race is more of a popularity contest and its director got a lot of "thumbs up" for recasting Spacey.

#15: Coco - The animated feature of the year, there's no big talk about Coco's down-to-earth Oscar chances in the Best Picture category, but I think it is possible to happen. The favorite contender for Best Animated Feature got huge love from critics and it is a global box-office success. A movie about death and a different culture's perspetive about it, Coco is a sensitive film and it happens adults love it too (which will generate #1 votes)...! The AMPAS seems determined to embrace cultural diversity.

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