YOUR OSCAR BALLOT
This comes with expert advice for picking winners.
Best Picture
❏ “Black Panther” ❏ “BlacKkKlansman” ❏ “Bohemian Rhapsody” ❏ “The Favourite” ❏ “Green Book” ❏ “Roma” ❏ “A Star Is Born” ❏ “Vice”
And the winner is: “Roma” picked up 10 noms, including two for acting. That across-the-board strength, plus the preferential ballot, gives it the edge.
Director
❏ Alfonso Cuarón, “Roma” ❏ Yorgos Lanthimos, “The Favourite” ❏ Spike Lee, “BlacKkKlansman” ❏ Adam McKay, “Vice” ❏ Pawel Pawlikowski, “Cold War”
And the winner is: Cuarón won the Directors Guild honor — along with every other prize. There’s no reason to suspect he won’t prevail here too.
Lead Actor
❏ Christian Bale, “Vice” ❏ Bradley Cooper, “A Star Is Born” ❏ Willem Dafoe, “At Eternity’s Gate” ❏ Rami Malek, “Bohemian Rhapsody” ❏ Viggo Mortensen, “Green Book”
And the winner is: Even voters who don’t like “Bohemian Rhapsody” are able to separate their disdain for the film from their appreciation for Malek’s sweatsoaked turn.
Lead Actress
❏ Yalitza Aparicio, “Roma” ❏ Glenn Close, “The Wife” ❏ Olivia Colman, “The Favourite” ❏ Lady Gaga, “A Star Is Born” ❏ Melissa McCarthy, “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
And the winner is: Close locked in the Oscar when she delivered that spectacular speech at the Golden Globes. Plus, she’s great in “The Wife.”
Supporting Actor
❏ Mahershala Ali, “Green Book” ❏ Adam Driver, “BlacKkKlansman” ❏ Sam Elliott, “A Star Is Born” ❏ Richard E. Grant, “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” ❏ Sam Rockwell, “Vice”
And the winner is: The popular Ali takes his second Oscar in three years for a turn that even “Green Book” haters admire.
Supporting Actress
❏ Amy Adams, “Vice” ❏ Marina de Tavira, “Roma” ❏ Regina King, “If Beale Street Could Talk” ❏ Emma Stone, “The Favourite” ❏ Rachel Weisz, “The Favourite”
And the winner is: The well-respected King wins for her work in a film that many feel should have earned more nominations.
Original Screenplay
❏ “The Favourite,” Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara ❏ “First Reformed,” Paul Schrader ❏ “Green Book,” Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly ❏ “Roma,” Alfonso Cuarón ❏ “Vice,” Adam McKay
And the winner is: Witty, wicked and delightfully absurd, “The Favourite” receives its due here.
Adapted Screenplay
❏ “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,” Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
❏ “BlacKkKlansman,” Charlie Wachtel & David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott & Spike Lee ❏ “Can You Ever Forgive Me?,” Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty ❏ “If Beale Street Could Talk,” Barry Jenkins ❏ “A Star Is Born,” Eric Roth and Bradley Cooper & Will Fetters
And the winner is: With Cuarón winning director, this becomes the spot to give Spike Lee his first Oscar for the blistering “BlacKkKlansman.”
Animated Feature
❏ “Incredibles 2” ❏ “Isle of Dogs” ❏ “Mirai” ❏ “Ralph Breaks the Internet” ❏ “Spider-Man: Into the SpiderVerse”
And the winner is: “Spider-Man” has swung through the awards season with ease.
Documentary Feature
❏ “Free Solo” ❏ “Hale County This Morning, This Evening” ❏ “Minding the Gap” ❏ “Of Fathers and Sons” ❏ “RBG”
And the winner is: It’s “RBG,” as much for its subject as its filmmaking.
Foreign-Language Feature
❏ “Capernaum” ❏ “Cold War” ❏ “Never Look Away” ❏ “Roma” ❏ “Shoplifters”
And the winner is: “Roma” wins easy … but this Oscar might also complicate its chances for best picture.
Cinematography
❏ “Cold War” ❏ “The Favourite” ❏ “Never Look Away” ❏ “Roma” ❏ “A Star Is Born”
And the winner is: Another Oscar for Cuarón, the first time a director has won for serving as his own director of photography.
Film Editing
❏ “BlacKkKlansman” ❏ “Bohemian Rhapsody” ❏ “The Favourite” ❏ “Green Book” ❏ “Vice”
And the winner is: I’d like to think “BlacKkKlansman,” but I have a bad feeling the hyperactive “Bohemian Rhapsody” will win.
Costume Design
❏ “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” ❏ “Black Panther” ❏ “The Favourite” ❏ “Mary Poppins Returns” ❏ “Mary Queen of Scots”
And the winner is: It feels counterintuitive to bet against three-time winner Sandy Powell for a costume drama (“The Favourite”), but Ruth E. Carter is overdue, and her work on “Black Panther” is terrific.
Makeup and Hairstyling
❏ “Border” ❏ “Mary Queen of Scots” ❏ “Vice”
And the winner is: Transforming Christian Bale into Dick Cheney makes this a no-brainer.
Production Design
❏ “Black Panther” ❏ “The Favourite” ❏ “First Man” ❏ “Mary Poppins Returns” ❏ “Roma” And the winner is: “Black Panther” and “The Favourite” both won prizes from the Art Directors Guild. Give the slight edge to the Marvel film in this true tossup.
Score
❏ “Black Panther” ❏ “BlacKkKlansman” ❏ “If Beale Street Could Talk” ❏ “Isle of Dogs” ❏ “Mary Poppins Returns”
And the winner is: Nicholas Britell’s rapturous, jazz-informed score was one of “Beale Street’s” most memorable elements.
Song
❏ “All the Stars” ❏ “I’ll Fight” ❏ “The Place Where Lost Things Go” ❏ “Shallow” ❏ “When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings” And the winner is: “Shallow.” One last time: “Haaaaaa-ahhhh-ahhh-ohhhhahhaaaaaa-ahhhh-ahhh-ohhhh-ah!!!”
Sound Editing
❏ “Black Panther” ❏ “Bohemian Rhapsody” ❏ “First Man” ❏ “A Quiet Place” ❏ “Roma”
And the winner is: Each of the nominees has a plausible path to victory. I’ll go with “First Man,” as space movies have a history of taking flight here.
Sound Mixing
❏ “Black Panther” ❏ “Bohemian Rhapsody” ❏ “First Man” ❏ “Roma” ❏ “A Star Is Born”
And the winner is: Music is always a plus in this category, so I’m leaning ever so slightly toward “A Star Is Born,” because at least it’s a decent movie.
Visual Effects
❏ “Avengers: Infinity War” ❏ “Christopher Robin” ❏ “First Man” ❏ “Ready Player One” ❏ “Solo: A Star Wars Story”
And the winner is: Marvel has never won this category. That changes this year with “Avengers.”
Animated Short
❏ “Animal Behaviour” ❏ “Bao” ❏ “Late Afternoon” ❏ “One Small Step” ❏ “Weekends”
And the winner is: “Bao,” Pixar’s tearjerker, is the favorite, but the surreal “Weekends” could be poised for an upset.
Documentary Short
❏ “Black Sheep” ❏ “End Game” ❏ “Lifeboat” ❏ “A Night at the Garden” ❏ “Period. End of Sentence”
And the winner is: “Period. End of Sentence” is an inspiring look at rural Indian women combating cultural taboos. Add an Oscar to the pile of awards it has already won.
Live-Action Short
❏ “Detainment” ❏ “Fauve” ❏ “Marguerite” ❏ “Mother” ❏ “Skin”
And the winner is: “Marguerite” and “Fauve” are the best of the nominees. I’ll give the edge to the tender “Marguerite” for its melancholy look at an elderly woman contemplating an old romance.