Adèle Haenel and Noémie Merlant in “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” Aisling Franciosi in “The Nightingale” and Taylor Russell in “Waves.” Courtesy of NEON, IFC Films and A24.
With the unveiling of Oscar nominations just weeks away, I am offering my annual picks for what I would like to see nominated in each major category. There were so many great performances in 2019 that I’ve expanded the categories to include nominees for Best Actor Under 18, Best Cameo and—for the first time ever—Best Breakthrough Actor. In light of Merriam-Webster selecting “they” as the word of the year, these three categories point to an imminent future in which the spotlighting of non-binary talent will further necessitate the dissolution of such gendered groupings. Also, don’t bother to look for the Best Animated Film category, since one picture easily topped all other contenders, and can be found among the fifteen special mentions—honoring singular achievements existing outside this list—revealed at the bottom of the page.
It’s no surprise that my favorite film of the year, Céline Sciamma’s ravishing romance, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” earned the most nods—a total of nine—followed closely by Jennifer Kent’s galvanizing thriller, “The Nightingale,” Trey Edward Shults’ visceral character study, “Waves” and Quentin Tarantino’s bittersweet Tinseltown valentine, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood,” each garnering eight apiece. Noah Baumbach’s searing, career-best relationship drama, “Marriage Story,” and Alex Thompson’s richly endearing debut feature, “Saint Frances,” both received six nods, while Aaron Schimberg’s marvelously audacious satire, “Chained for Life,” scored five nods.
And the nominees are…
BEST PICTURE
Chained for Life
Marriage Story
The Nightingale
Saint Frances
Waves
BEST FOREIGN FILM
The Load
Pain and Glory
Parasite
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
A Thief’s Daughter
BEST DOCUMENTARY
The Distant Barking of Dogs
Hail Satan?
The Kingmaker
Memory: The Origins of Alien
One Child Nation
BEST DIRECTOR
Noah Baumbach, “Marriage Story”
Jennifer Kent, “The Nightingale”
Céline Sciamma, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
Trey Edward Shults, “Waves”
Alex Thompson, “Saint Frances”
BEST ACTOR
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Adam Driver, “Marriage Story”
Adam Pearson, “Chained for Life”
Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker”
Brad Pitt, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
BEST ACTRESS
Aisling Franciosi, “The Nightingale”
Isabelle Fuhrman, “Tape”
Adèle Haenel, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
Kelly O’Sullivan, “Saint Frances”
Alfre Woodard, “Clemency”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kelvin Harrison Jr., “Waves”
Aldis Hodge, “Clemency”
Charlie Korsmo, “Chained for Life”
Kyle MacLachlan, “Giant Little Ones”
Al Pacino, “The Irishman”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”
Thomasin McKenzie, “Jojo Rabbit”
Margaret Qualley, “Native Son”
Taylor Russell, “Waves”
Zhao Shuzhen, “The Farewell”
BEST BREAKTHROUGH ACTOR
Rhianne Barreto, “Share”
Greta Fernández, “A Thief’s Daughter”
Molly Hewitt, “Holy Trinity”
Bobbi Salvör Menuez, “Adam”
Tom Mercier, “Synonyms”
BEST ACTOR UNDER 18
Julia Butters, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Roman Griffin Davis, “Jojo Rabbit”
Shahadi Wright Joseph, “Us”
Noah Jupe, “Honey Boy”
Ramona Edith Williams, “Saint Frances”
BEST CAMEO
Michael Cera, “Gloria Bell”
Harmony Korine, “Waves”
Mike Moh, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Frank Oz, “Knives Out”
REDACTED, “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Noah Baumbach, “Marriage Story”
Kent Jones, “Diane”
Kelly O’Sullivan, “Saint Frances”
Aaron Schimberg, “Chained for Life”
Céline Sciamma, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Matthew Michael Carnahan & Mario Correa, “Dark Waters”
Greta Gerwig, “Little Women”
Anthony McCarten, “The Two Popes”
Ariel Schrag, “Adam”
Steven Zaillian, “The Irishman”
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Drew Daniels, “Waves”
Roger Deakins, “1917”
Radek Ladczuk, “The Nightingale”
Claire Mathon, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
Adam J. Minnick, “Chained for Life”
BEST EDITING
Jennifer Lame, “Marriage Story”
Simon Njoo, “The Nightingale”
Dennis Pasveer & Luuke Poels, “Mind My Mind”
Fred Raskin, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Alex Thompson, “Saint Frances”
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Ruth E. Carter, “Dolemite Is My Name”
Kate Grube, “Knives and Skin”
Dorothée Guiraud, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
Arianne Phillips, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Grace Snell, “The Souvenir”
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
David Crank, “Knives Out”
Dennis Gassner, “1917”
Antxón Gómez, “Pain and Glory”
Barbara Ling, “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
Michael Perry, “Under the Silver Lake”
BEST SCORE
Michael Abels, “Us”
Jean-Baptiste de Laubier & Arthur Simonini, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
Hildur Guðnadóttir, “Joker”
Jed Kurzel, “The Nightingale”
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, “Waves”
BEST SONG
“The Buddi Song” from “Child’s Play”
“Glasgow” from “Wild Rose”
“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away” from “Toy Story 4”
“La Jeune Fille en Feu” from “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
“Take That Step” from “Bathtubs Over Broadway”
BEST SOUND
The Lighthouse
The Nightingale
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Waves
BEST MAKEUP
Bombshell
Doctor Sleep
Midsommar
The Nightingale
The Painted Bird
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Alita: Battle Angel
Captain Marvel
John Wick: Chapter 3—Parabellum
1917
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Fifteen Special Mentions
BEST ANIMATED FILM (period)
“Mind My Mind”
BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT
“Singh”
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
“St. Louis Superman”
BEST FANTASY EPIC
“The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance”
BEST NON-HENSON USE OF PUPPETRY
Baby Yoda in “The Mandalorian”
BEST TRUE CRIME EPIC
“Unbelievable”
BEST DISCOVERY
“Mercy’s Girl”
BEST MIND-BENDER
“Fantastic Fungi”
BEST REVELATORY TURN
Anne Hathaway, “Modern Love”
BEST TRAILBLAZER
Hunter Schafer, “Euphoria”
BEST SOUNDTRACK
“Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood”
BEST USE OF 3-D
“Long Day’s Journey Into Night”
BEST COLLABORATIVE COSTUME DESIGN
“Holy Trinity”
BEST PROOF WE’RE ALL POISONED
“Dark Waters”
WORST FILM OF THE YEAR
“The Lion King”
Indie Outlook 