Oscars 2016: Is 'The Revenant' Now the Clear Favourite for Best Picture?
Last night in London, The Revenant stood proudly atop the British film industry as it picked up five prizes at the BAFTA Awards. Before Sunday night, many still couldn't separate the Best Picture nominees for this years Oscars, with many having fully-formed arguments as to why films like Spotlight, The Big Short and Mad Max: Fury Road should end the 88th Academy Awards as Best Picture winners. But now, a new landscape has formed which may give The Revenant that much needed march on its competitors.
Alejandro González Iñárritu and The Revenant are firmly in pole position to take the nights biggest prize come February 28. The film has won Best Motion Picture Drama at the Golden Globes and added Best Film at the BAFTAS — those are two huge indications that it could complete a hat-trick. Not only that, Leonardo DiCaprio is also on for the same hat-trick as he bagged Best Actor last night to go along with his Golden Globe. Leo must be tasting that first Oscar. Not to mention Iñárritu has won every incarnation of Best Director this award season, along with cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki winning Best Cinematography at the BAFTAS and completing an unprecedented three-peat at the ASC Awards. If this isn't a clear signal that The Revenant is heading toward an Oscar sweep, I don't know what is?
To add to its already strong chances of winning big at the Oscars, the movie has turned into a sizeable hit at the box office and boasts the most nominations (12), which is an indication that it has Academy-wide support. Having the most nominations doesn't always guarantee success, it does, however, give The Revenant huge confidence that it's much loved amongst Academy voters going into Hollywood's biggest night.
There's No GIMMIES IN HOLLYWOOD
For all its success so far, they do not secure anything for The Revenant.
BAFTA have in the past disagreed with the Academy on their pick of Best Film. Remember last year? BAFTA gave Boyhood the gong for Best Film whilst the Oscars gave Birdman the honour. Granted, this disagreement in taste has only happened once in the past six years, but it's proof that nothing is guaranteed.
Last year, BAFTA seemed to be reading from a different page of the script when they gave Boyhood the honour. Birdman had waltzed its way through the DGA, SAG Cast Award and PGA but missed a step in London. History would eventually show that this snub from BAFTA was a mere bump in the road for Birdman. Yet, can the same thing happen to The Revenant this year? Only this time, that bump in the road may come at the Oscars?
The race is most certainly not over. Voting for Best Picture began last Friday and concludes February 23. Like the PGA, the Academy use a preferential system in picking Best Picture, unlike the DGA and BAFTA. With that mindset, The Big Short can feel like it still has a shot. The Big Short was the big winner at the PGA winning the consensus game that a preferential system encourages. Voters need to keep in mind that their number two pick is just as important as their number one.
The Revenant will be getting a lot of number one votes, but there is suggestions that some Academy voters may put it further down their ballot paper. They like it, but don't love it. Bare this in mind: those online screeners that many people illegally download, those are what is sent out to Academy voters. The Revenant is an epic feat of filmmaking and epics don't exactly play out too well on a screener. Spotlight and The Big Short are certainly still in the race. They're compelling, contemporary narratives with strong ensembles. Although the feeling is they may have to settle for Best Adapted and Original Screenplays, respectively. Does this mean Mad Max: Fury Road is a genuine challenger? Certainly. Many of the voting members probably saw Mad Max on a big screen at their local cinema. Remember, that movie came out long before screeners were sent out, so the epic scale of Fury Road likely left a lasting impression. Fury Road will likely clean up in the technical categories and has every chance of matching The Revenant's award haul come the end of the night, but its lack of acting nominees and no screenplay nod may go against it.
Whatever way you want to look at it, The Revenant is most definitely the leader of the pack. It's racked up an impressive number of awards to date and it doesn't look like it's going to slow down any time soon. To say it's a shoo-in to win the Best Picture is a little premature, but it's current form suggests it'll get to the finish line first.
