This Sunday, the 89th Academy Awards will take the stage in Los Angeles. The night is sure to be full of memorable red carpet moments, musical performances, acceptance speeches, and surprises in terms of who goes home with one or more of those shiny gold statuettes.
For film fans, it's a night for Oscar parties, commentary on red-carpet fashion, and perhaps most importantly, predictions.
Will "La La Land" dominate the night again, as it did at the Golden Globes? Or will the Academy have some surprises in store?
Here are some predictions for the major awards of the night. If you wish to make your own predictions and keep score versus these selections, print out the list of categories and nominees at the bottom of this post.
JUMP TO: ▼
- Actress in a Supporting Role
- Actor in a Supporting Role
- Directing
- Actress in a Leading Role
- Actor in a Leading Role
- Best Picture
- Printable list of Oscar nominations
Actress in a Supporting Role: Viola Davis, Fences
Should she win, it won't be the first time Davis wins big for portraying August Wilson's faithful Rose Maxon in Fences. In 2010, she won a Tony for performing the role on stage alongside Denzel Washington, who took the helm to direct the film version. Davis is a fearless performer who brings gravity and palpable emotion to everything she takes on. She makes great films unforgettable, and can even shine in mediocre fare such as last year's "Suicide Squad." Her work in "Fences" is emblematic of what audiences have come to expect from Davis at her best: raw, riveting and ultimately transcendent.
Actor in a Supporting Role - Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Ali is quickly becoming a familiar face in both film and television. He has prominent roles in two Best Picture-nominated films — "Moonlight" and "Hidden Figures" — while also delivering memorable turns in Netflix's "House of Cards" and "Luke Cage." His screen time in "Moonlight" as Miami drug dealer Juan is relatively brief, but it leaves an unmistakable mark on the film's tone and execution. While it's a tough field in this category, as tough as any on this particular Oscar night, the Supporting Actor award is Ali's to lose.
Directing - Damien Chazelle, La La Land
There's simply no overstating what Damien Chazelle has managed to achieve in his relatively short career as a writer/director. His second feature, "Whiplash," earned five Oscar nominations in 2014, including Best Picture, and went home with three wins. With "La La Land," he's surpassed even that success, scoring seven nominations, including his first for Best Director. This win is perhaps the easiest to predict, as Chazelle's effort to magically transport audiences back and forth between grounded romantic drama and Golden Age Hollywood flights of musical fancy is nothing short of breathtaking. As much hype as it has generated, "La La Land" is worth every bit, and that's due in great part to Chazelle.
Actress in a Leading Role - Emma Stone, La La Land
In comparison with the Best Director award, predicting the Best Actress winner is perhaps the most difficult of the night. French actress Isabelle Huppert took home the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama last month while competing against most of her fellow Best Actress Oscar nominees, and she may well win again on Sunday night. Natalie Portman's tranformative performance in "Jackie" has also been lauded in many critical circles as the finest of her career, no small praise considering her impressive resumé.
But I'm going with Emma Stone, whose singing, dancing and emotion provide the bulk of "La La Land's" on-screen charisma and charm. She has the strength of her performance plus the film's overall momentum behind her, and she's due for her first Oscar win.
Actor in a Leading Role - Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic
Yes, all indicators point to this award going to Casey Affleck for his acclaimed turn in "Manchester by the Sea." Should he win, it will be entirely deserved; say what you want about alleged past transgressions, but those have no bearing on just how good he was in this film, a film he wasn't even originally slated to star in.
But Viggo Mortensen — yes, that Viggo Mortensen, from "The Lord of the Rings" films, "Eastern Promises" and "A History of Violence" — is just as deserving. His turn as a devoted but possibly misguided father who educates his children away from civilization in "Captain Fantastic" is as compelling as any delivered this year, and the most memorable thing about a beautiful film more people should have seen in 2016.
Best Picture - La La Land
In the final analysis, despite the relative strength of all nine of this year's nominees, this race really comes down to three films: "Manchester by the Sea," which had all the early awards buzz and earned six Oscar nominations; "Moonlight," which took home the Best Motion Picture - Drama award at the Golden Globes last month and earned seven other Oscar nominations; and "La La Land," which won the Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy Golden Globe award, along with all six other Golden Globes it was nominated for.
Of those three, only one stands out as a truly revolutionary film, one that arguably pushes the boundaries of filmmaking and sets a new standard for the genres it fits into, including romantic drama and musical. It honors Hollywood's glorious past while showcasing some of its brightest young stars as they usher in the future. In addition, its director is a shoe-in for the Best Director award.
The winner of the night's biggest prize will be "La La Land," and if it isn't, it will be the night's biggest surprise.
Or, I could be completely wrong on all of these. Let's find out together, shall we?
For a printable version of the Oscars nominee list, click HERE.