Ricky’s predictions for the 2023 Oscars®
March 7, 2023
BEST ACTRESS:
The Best Actress category has a lot of surprising choices this year. For starters we have Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe in “Blonde.” Andrea Roseborough from “To Leslie” rode a social media push to land her first nomination. Michelle Williams, who plays the matriarch in “The Fabelmans,” is also in the running. Cate Blanchett, who won this award for “Blue Jasmine” in 2013, is back in the race as a troubled orchestra conductor in “Tár.” My money is on Michelle Yeoh for the time jumping, universe switching action-comedy “Everything Everywhere All at Once.”
BEST ACTOR:
The spirit of Elvis Presley is in the Oscar® building with a nomination for Austin Butler as the rock ‘n roll icon in “Elvis.” Colin Farrell for “The Banshees of Inisherin,” Paul Mescal for “Aftersun” and Bill Nighy for “Living” are in the mix. But I’m picking one-time action hero Brendan Fraser for his stellar work in the gripping drama “The Whale” as a grossly overweight English professor enduring a mental crisis after losing a romantic partner.
BEST PICTURE:
All is not quiet on the Best Picture front. It’s a 10-film race that includes the remake of the World War I drama “All Quiet on the Western Front” and Tom Cruise’s high-flying sequel “Top Gun: Maverick.” Despite now ranking as the third-highest grossing film of all time at $2.3 billion worldwide, I don’t think James Cameron’s water-logged adventure-fantasy “Avatar: The Way of Water” will float to the top this year. “The Banshees of Inisherin” could walk away with a golden statuette in another category, but probably not this one. Also in the running are “The Fabelmans,” “Tár,” “Triangle of Sadness,” “Women Talking,” directed by Sarah Polley, and “Elvis.” There’s a lot of competition in this category, but I think “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is going to cap off Oscar® night with a win.
BEST DIRECTOR:
Iconic filmmaker Steven Spielberg put his family history on the line and on the big screen and drew an Oscar® nod for “The Fabelmans.” Todd Field has already amassed acclaim for his five previous Oscar® nominations for his writing. He landed in the Best Director category with Tár, the drama with music starring Blanchett. Ruben Östlund could be considered a dark horse for the comic-drama “Triangle of Sadness.” Martin McDonagh might be a strong challenger with the offbeat, dour drama-with-comic moments “The Banshees of Inisherin.” I don’t think The Two Daniels, co-directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, will win everything everywhere, but I think their manic, multiuniverse style of “Everything Everywhere All at Once” will win this category.
