Surprise, stunner, upset — those are three words you probably won’t hear much at this year’s Oscars. Here are three words you’ll probably hear a lot: “La La Land.”
Since its premiere at the Venice Film Festival last August, “La La Land” has been hailed as a shoo-in for the Academy Award for best picture. Starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling as two starry-eyed Los Angelinos, “La La Land” went on to become a critical smash, a $290 million success worldwide and an awards-season juggernaut, earning a record-breaking seven Golden Globes in January. It goes into the Oscars with an impressive 14 nominations — one of only three films ever to do so.
All right, but what about the other movies? There are nine best picture contenders, you know, and many other acting nominees besides Gosling and Stone. “Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins’ film about a gay African-American man growing up in Miami, has an impressive eight nominations, as does “Arrival,” a science-fiction drama starring Amy Adams as a translator for an alien species. “Jackie,” starring Natalie Portman as Jacqueline Kennedy, and “Manchester by the Sea,” starring Casey Affleck as a troubled loner, could each steal an Oscar from “La La Land.” There’s also some unusual excitement in the foreign language category, where the Iranian drama “The Salesman” has become a political football. Its director, Asghar Farhadi, is boycotting the Oscars to protest America’s recent travel ban against his country and others.
Here’s our list of this year’s likely winners, along with shout-outs to the ones who may not get the gold they deserve. It’s “La La Land’s” world — we just live in it.