The Oscars – Who Will Win, Who Ought To Win and Those Who Were Simply Screwed – Part 2: Who Should Win

Okay, we've covered which films are the most likely to take home Oscar gold. But which movies are actually deserving? Who SHOULD win?

Best Picture – "BlacKkKlansman"

Spike Lee's "BlacKkKlansman" may not be a sweeping epic (have you ever wondered why film critics use the word "sweeping" so much? Meh. When in Rome) like "Roma," the frontrunner this year, but it's the only film, with bigger balls than both "Black Panther" and the dark sex comedy "The Favourite."

I would really like to see Spike Lee honored at last.

Best Director – Pawel Pawlikowski

This one is easy. My pick doesn't have a chance in hell, but he sure deserves it. The cards are stacked against him, but putting away showbusiness politics and other factors, if there were any justice in the universe, the Oscar would unquestioningly go to Pawel Pawlikowski for "Cold War," a gift from God to the world.

Best Cinematography – Lukasz Zal

If God would intervene here, this honor would go to Lukasz Zal's "Cold War. It's one of those few films in which you could disregard story and characters and just watch at beautiful images as they are shown. Every frame of this work of art is a masterpiece.

Best Supporting Actor – Adam Driver

"BlacKkKlansman" has so much going for it that it's hard to give one performance too much credit. But Driver brings something special to the table. He turns what could've been just a standard cop role into an introspective detective who is wonderful to watch as he brings just the right amount of machismo to the table.

Best Actress –  Olivia Colman

None of these actresses stand a chance against Glenn Close this year. I think pretty much everybody has accepted that.

However, if I had my druthers, Olivia Colman would win for her turn as Queen Anne in the hilarious and dark comedy, "The Favourite." The film is so damn clever and subversive. Colman shines as the object of two different women's obsession. She's lovers with them both and seems to delight in egging on their cruel rivalry. She's not above "I like it when she puts her tongue in me." 

Best Actor – Willem Dafoe

If you saw "Eternity's Gate" you may already agree with me that Willem Dafoe deserves the trophy for his wonderful portrayal of Vincent Van Gough. The Academy has honored him before with plenty of nominations, but no gold this year. He's made so much of contribution to cinema, building up a reputation for choosing films that nobody else could've made their own like "Antichrist," "eXistenZ," "Shadow of the Vampire" and of course, "The Last Temptation of Christ."

His depiction here of Van Gough is as lovely as it is dark. He reminds us of the profound beauty of an artist in the context of his life, his neurosis and his crippling (and ultimately fatal) depression. 

How a man who saw the world as oppressive and hostile and still find beauty everywhere, giving us the most gorgeous painting in world history, is unspeakably moving.

Tomorrow, we'll talk about the movies that got screwed out of any nominations whatsoever. I'll leave you will a bit of evidence as to why Adam Driver should win the prize for Best Supporting Actor.

The Oscars – Who Will Win, Who Ought To Win and Those Who Were Simply Screwed – Part 1: Who WILL Win

Well, it's that time of the year when we obscure film bloggers pretentiously pretend not to give a damn about the Academy Awards. 

Who cares about the establishment, about the man? They're just too mainstream, aren't they? Well, I have to confess that I actually follow most award shows, and none as closely as the Oscars.

So here I am weighing in on the madness nevertheless.

First, a couple of disclaimers – One, I have not seen every film in the running. I've missed "A Star is Born," and "Vice." I have seen each of the other films up for Best Picture.

Second, I'm not going to weigh in on each and every category. That would just be effing exhausting. Just the few I have a strong opinion on.

So let's start out with which films will take home the trophies this year.

Best Picture – BlacKkKlansman

This year, it's trickier than usual to predict what movie will be proclaimed the greatest film of the year. By Hollywood terms, if you look at their history, it's a race between two. Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma" which is quite a beautiful, personal but grandeur look into the life of a young woman as her country struggles its way through The Mexican Institutional Civil War in the '70s.

The other film with as many nominations is Yorgos Lanthimos' "The Favourite," an unsettling and surprisingly wicked dark comedy.

But I think an unexpected left hook just might be the thing. That's where Spike Lee's visionary film "BlacKkKlansman" comes into play.  I think everybody will be shocked to see the top honor of the night go to "BlacKkKlansman." 

A buddy-cop movie in which a black detective pretends to be a white supremacist to take down David Duke may not sound like an Oscar movie on its face, but look at what's happening around us. White Supremacy and White Nationalism going unchecked, uncriticized. Even after white nationalists murdered a woman at a protest, the president himself said that the people there, the neo-nazis, white nationalists and the Klan were "very fine people." Spike Lee decimates these times with a jack-hammer and he'll be rewarded for it.

"Black Panther" is in the running, for sure. It's changed the way comic book films will be made from here on out. I'd be glad to see it win, it really was fantastic, but it's a long-shot.

Best Director – Spike Lee

But I really do believe this time that the Academy will have the grace to finally recognize this giant in the industry. This guy is one of the greatest directors of our generation and until now, he's not been up for Director or Picture. If there were any justice in the universe, he would already have matching ones for "Do the Right Thing" and "Malcolm X."

Best Cinematography – Alfonso Cuaron

I'd really like to believe that the Academy could get behind, simply the loveliest looking film of the year, "Cold War." Lukasz Zal forces us to stop to watch every image he puts in front of us. And each of them is almost hypnotic, from the most beautiful shots nature has to offer, to the truly ugliest filth. And Zal isn't afraid to show us these characters up close, from the plainest plebian right up to the most important and the glorious.

But there's no way "Roma" will go home completely empty-handed. Consider this one Cuaron's consolation prize.

Best Original Screenplay – Alfonso Cuaron

Like Best Cinematography, I think it's pretty safe to assume Cuaron will win for his powerful screenplay for "Roma." The Acadamy really like this guy and apart from that, he gave us quite the timeless masterpiece this year that will be relevant for quite some time.

Best Actress – Glenn Close

Glenn Close has always been a bridesmaid, never a bride. This will be her seventh Oscar nomination. Unfortunately, I haven't seen this film so I can't tell you whether or not I think she ought to win, but I expect that Close will take home Best Actress.  It's one of the few locks this year.

Best Actor – Rami Malek

Rami Malek will undoubtedly take home a statue for his turn as Freddy Mercury in Brian Singer's "Bohemian Rhapsody." Everybody likes to see an actor nail the essence of an historical figure. And Malek's performance is so true it seems implausible that he wouldn't walk home with the trophy. He channels Mercury so effectively, you'll get chills even if you're not a Queen fan.

Best Supporting Actress – Tie Between Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone

"And the Oscar goes to – The really malicious bitch from "The Favourite." Wait. Dammit. Do I mean Rachael Weisz or Emma Stone? How are we supposed to choose between the two? Coin toss! No? Let's just say it'll go to Weize just 'cause I love brunettes.  Weize's and Stone's performances in "The Favourite" rival each other into a one-upmanship of who can sell their soul for some nasty meat first. Their malevolence takes on its own form, creating one fascinating, cruel, power and sex-crazed creature.

Best Supporting Actor – Sam Elliot

I think they're going to finally recognize Sam Elliot this year, I really think they will. We've all loved this guy for so long, we all want to see him take home one Oscar while he's still young. Hell, he deserves a lifetime achievement award just for narrating "The Big Lebowski."

Coming up next – Who SHOULD win This Year's Honors

And here's a peek at the movie I keep raving about but you probably haven't seen – "Cold War."

The Ten Best Films of 2017

Now that the Oscars are behind us, we can stop focusing on what the Academy thinks and discuss a wider scope of 2017's movies. It's a relief after weeks of tunnel vision.

They've awarded who they thought were the best films, performances, etc. But what were actually the best films of 2017?

The internet is now a gluttonous strawberry-patch for anyone who posts and blogs on the subject, so without further ado:

Resident Film Snob's list of the top 10 films of 2017.

10) Rian Johnson's "Star Wars: The Last Jedi"

If you're familiar with this blog, you'll have noticed that for the most part, I like to talk about artsy types of movies. You generally won't find me talking much about big blockbusters or franchises. But "The Last Jedi" is one of the most impressive entries in this series I've loved all my life. I saw "Jedi" four times and am waiting until I can watch it again. And again, and again...

9) Greta Gerwig's "Lady Bird"

My God, how much do I adore Greta Gerwig? She's been expanding her storytelling kills for years and now she brings us "Lady Bird," a coming-of-age film like no other. Her greatest achievement to date had been her co-writing credit with Noah Baumbach on Baumbach's 2012 film "Frances Ha." I've said before that leading lady Saoirse Ronan is this generation's Molly Ringwald, but it's not that simple. Ringwald and Ronan have different pallets. They show us their range of emotions very distinctly.

8) Sebastián Lelio's "A Fantastic Woman"

"A Fantastic Woman" bites off a lot, but not so much that it can't chew. It argues with anti-Trans sentiment with no subtlety, but it's just not that kind of film. It stands its ground and does so impressively.

7) Armando Iannucci's "The Death of Stalin"

"The Death of Stalin" is an historical movie about death camps, summary executions, and casual assassinations. And it's the single funniest film of the year. It belongs right up at the top with the greatest dark comedies of all time ( a.k.a. Stanley Kubrick's "Dr. Strangelove," Danny Boyle's "Trainspotting" or the Cohen Brothers' "Fargo").

6) Dee Rees' "Mudbound"

From the vast scope of WWII to a smaller story about a simple friendship, "Mudbound" is an epic that strongly sweeps through the story of racism in America. Two families, one black and one white, live on the same stretch of land. The way they settle their disagreements is a picture of the pre-civil-rights era in Mississippi and how far we've come. But most importantly, how far we have to go.

5) Darren Aronofsky's "mother!"

Spiritually speaking, "mother!" is one of the most important films of all time. The allegory, by turns sweet and brutal, is a start of a conversation long overdue about the nature of God. People worship Him, others discard Him, but in the end, what does our devotion matter to the universe?

4) Guillermo del Toro's "The Shape of Water"

All of the wonderful things I have to say about "The Shape of Water," you've already heard from others. It's an adult fairy tale. More than that, it's one of the most intimate love stories to come out in a while.

3) Joachim Trier's "Thelma"

"Thelma" is not just a film about true love. It's also about first attraction, first lust. It centers around a young woman from a very conservative family. Trier handles the social discussions of the film with subtlety and treats all of his characters with respect. 

2) William Olroyd's "Lady Macbeth"

"Lady Macbeth" takes on the style of storytelling Shakespeare was famous for and nails it. We follow a woman forced to live with an abusive husband and father and how she forces a change of power. She turns toward the darkness as she liberates herself from persecution.

1) Jordan Peele's "Get Out"

I've said so damn much about "Get Out" on this blog, there's nothing really left to discuss. It's the single most terrifying film in years. It's important. It's a vigorous response to the institutionalized racism from US leaders.

Honorable Mentions:

"Atomic Blonde" brings us back to the days when sex and violence ruled in the action-movie genre. We've suffered for years under the oppression of lame, PG-13 mediocre films. This film feels like home. God effing bless Charlize Theron.

Ildikó Enyedi's "On Body on Soul" is a lovely, charming film about how love manifests itself both in reality and in our minds. It reminds us that just because something is in our minds doesn't mean it's not real.

George Clooney's "Suburbicon" will have you laughing until you burst or cry or pee. It's so dark and gruesome, but there is so much physical humor, slapstick if you like, that it doesn't leave itself down in the sludge, but soars happily through the dark sky.

Todd Haynes' "Wonderstruck" bonds two characters so close to each other, you may find yourself envying them. Though they don't cross paths because they're divided by decades, still they find each other.

Miguel Arteta's "Beatriz at Dinner" is a beautiful ode to those who oppose our current leaders. It surely isn't subtle, but it's nice to see John Lithgow hamming it up as a real estate mogul, cynical and high on the food-chain. And Selma Hayek is charming as hell, representing our disgust, our dismay, and our resistance. Not nearly enough people saw this film and that's a shame.