Top 10 at Oscars 2017

Like 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016, I'm sharing with you a list of ten movies watching which in the next few weeks will help you follow the Academy Awards well. The ceremony will be held on 26th February (the morning of 27th February for us in India) and hence we have about one month to watch these movies.

• 'Arrival' by Denis Villeneuve (8 nominations, including Best Director): Despite missing out on Best Actress and Best Original Score, 'Arrival' has secured nominations for Best Picture, Director, Screenplay and five technical categories. The film has played in India but I hope to watch it again if it re-releases.
• 'Fences' by Denzel Washington (4 nominations): With his third film as director, Washington earns his seventh acting and first producing nomination. Viola Davis has already won the Supporting Actress Golden Globes and is a strong contender here. And author August Wilson has won a Screenplay nomination, more than ten years after his death, for adapting his Pulitzer-winning novel.
• 'Hacksaw Ridge' by Mel Gibson (6 nominations, including Best Director): Gibson's first film in ten years as a director has won him a directing nomination. It will also be competing for Picture, Actor, Film Editing, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing.
• 'Hell or High Water' by David Mackenzie (4 nominations): With a Supporting Actor nomination for Jeff Bridges, this film will also be running for Picture, Screenplay and Film Editing. Although I have watched the film already, I wish it releases in India as I would absolutely love to watch it again. And I would love to watch the rest of the films directed by Mackenzie.
• 'Hidden Figures' by Theodore Melfi (3 nominations): For his second film as a director, Melfi has won nominations for Picture and Screenplay. The film also has earned Octavia Spencer a Supporting Actress nomination. The PVR India website says this film will release in India on 24th Feb.
• 'Jackie' by Pablo Larrain (3 nominations): The director of 'No' and 'Neruda' makes his English-language debut with this film that has earned Natalie Portman a Best Actress nomination. It is also nominated for Best Original Score and Best Costume Design.
• 'La La Land' by Damien Chazelle (14 nominations, including Best Director): Only the third film in history to earn as many as fourteen nominations, it is also only the 8th film in last 35 years to bag the Big Five nominations: Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay. If the Golden Globes it won are serious indicator, 'La La Land' may end up winning all five and become only the fourth film in history to achieve this rare feat, the first since 'Silence of the Lambs'. That it will be the most awarded movie this Oscar night is almost a certainty anyway.
• 'Lion' by Garth Davis (6 nominations): The first film by director Davis, 'Lion' gives Nicole Kidman her fourth acting nomination. Also nominated for Picture, Screenplay, Supporting Actor for Dev Patel, Cinematography and Original Score, the film is scheduled to release in India on 24th Feb.
• 'Manchester by the Sea' by Kenneth Lonergan (6 nominations, including Best Director): Despite making his Sundance-winning debut in 2000, and co-writing the screenplay of 'Gangs of New York' (2002), Lonergan has written and directed only two films since. But by earning both writing and directing nominations for 'Manchester by the Sea', it appears it has worked well for him. The film is also nominated for Picture and three of its actors, with Casey Affleck being a strong contender for Best Actor trophy. I missed the film at Mumbai Film Festival last October and will now have to wait for its India release.
• 'Moonlight' by Barry Jenkins (8 nominations, including Best Director): Only the second film by its 37-year old director, 'Moonlight' is being considered a contender for the top prize. It is also nominated for two acting awards, Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing and Original Score.