And the 2016 Oscar Goes To...

Another year, another Oscars blog post. This has been a controversial year for the Academy, with widespread anger about the lack of diversity among the Oscar nominees. They've put measures in place to remedy this, and it will be interesting to see if 2017 yields a more inclusive set of nominations. But for now, here are my picks for who should walk away with a statue in 2016.

Best Picture & Best Director: It looks like The Revenant and Alejandro G. Inarritu are going to claim the prize. Which is infuriating, because I would prefer giving the Oscar to almost any other nominee in the Best Picture category. What with Birdman besting Boyhood last year, Inarritu is becoming adept at winning awards for making technically brilliant but emotionally insipid movies. My personal favorite of the year has to be the wondrous Brooklyn, which is almost tied with Room. Both feature heart-wringing performances from strong female leads and emotionally resonant stories that are told beautifully. But of course, they will be bested by a movie about men in the wilderness, because such is the way of the Oscars. For Best Director, I acknowledge Inarritu's filmmaking skill, but a win for George Miller's direction of the utterly captivating Mad Max: Fury Road would be brilliant.

Best Actor in a Leading Role: Leonardo DiCaprio is winning for The Revenant. And I can't begrudge him the award. The man was certainly put through his paces for this movie; if he's that desperate for an Oscar, it's time to give him one. In any other year, Eddie Redmayne would be guaranteed to win for The Danish Girl, but he already won one last year. All five nominees turned in solid work, and a win for any of them would be thoroughly justified, but this is Leo's year.

Best Actress in a Leading Role: Brie Larson deserves to get called up on stage for her searing performance in Room. I would love for it to be a tie with Saoirse Ronan for her phenomenal work in Brooklyn, but that would be greedy. The other nominees turned in splendid work, but Larson's performance was the one to beat this year.

Best Supporting Actor & Actress: Both categories feature exceptional performances that are a true testament to the power of a supporting role. It looks like Sylvester Stallone is the sentimental favorite for his role in Creed, though my personal favorite would be Mark Ruffalo for his quiet and then explosive work in Spotlight. For Actress, I will gladly give the award to Alicia Vikander, though she is in the wrong category. Hers was a leading role in The Danish Girl, but through typical Oscar machinations, she will be awarded as a Supporting Actress. She should have been nominated in this category anyway for her role in Ex Machina, so I'll pretend that's what she's winning an Oscar for. Of the nominated actresses who did have supporting roles, I am torn between Kate Winslet, who was genuinely wonderful in Steve Jobs but already has an Oscar, and Rachel McAdams, who is wonderful in Spotlight and deserves to be recognized for her body of work.

Best Adapted Screenplay: The Big Short seems poised to win, which is fair. Adam McKay and Charles Randolph did tremendous work by condensing the entire financial crisis into an educational and entertaining movie - not an easy task. Drew Goddard's work with The Martian is also similarly deft, packing NASA jargon and scientific ingenuity into an utterly compelling film for the masses. But again, a little corner of my heart would explode with delight with a win for Brooklyn or Room.

Best Original Screenplay: Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer are the favorites for Spotlight, well-deserved for a thoughtful movie that ordinarily would have all the Oscar buzz in a year that didn't include The Revenant. But my picks would be Pete Docter for Inside Out or Alex Garland for Ex Machina. Both movies featured mind-bending creativity and a new way of looking at the world that held me in thrall. Like last year's Her, these films exposed the ability of cinema to expand your horizons and empathize with a whole new perspective. As long as writers keep writing scripts like these, I will never stop loving the movies.

Those are all the categories I care about - a win for Inside Out as Best Animated Feature seems inevitable and necessary (caveat: I haven't seen any of the other nominees) and a win for Amy as the Best Documentary - Feature would be spectacular. A couple of technical awards for Mad Max: Fury Road would be particularly shiny and chrome, as would some Star Wars love. But overall, as I look at the list of nominees, apart from The Revenant, I truly enjoyed watching all of these films. Lack of diversity aside, there is a great range of drama, comedy, and action, and most of the wins will be thoroughly well-deserved. And our host for the evening will be Chris Rock. That alone should make it a night to remember.