Read this post and pop the popcorn...

I did it! I did watch all nine of the Oscar Best Picture nominees this year. I love watching Oscar ceremony and it is far more enjoyable when you have an idea about the movies competing for the awards.
Here are some thoughts on each of them.

Magic mushroom high!
Phantom Thread
There is a renowned dressmaker in 1950’s London… I can’t say more without giving a spoiler because I can’t describe the relationship flourished afterwards as love. If it is love, it is a strange and twisted one. Somehow romantic but definitely deranged, but then, every love is a bit deranged in its own way!
It could be said that Phanton Thread is a psychological thriller. Psychological aspect is not “phantom” at all –mother issues, a strange attachment between siblings, obsession, mood swings…
Despite all these -or because of all these- it is also darkly funny and wrenching, sometimes within the same scene. Not to mention the perversely funny logic used to regain the upper hand in love or whatever it is.

Okay, let’s say love. After all, Paul Thomas Anderson is The Master of telling complicated love stories. As once he put it, The Master is also all about “a love story between guys” in a cult. And I love him since Magnolia.
Anderson deserves a nomination for the sake of recognition at least, and *Phantom Thread” is not disappointing unless your expectations are too high. Besides, any film that features the final performance of Daniel Day Lewis is certainly worth one’s time.
Has a chance to win?
Yeah, sure, but not much.
My opinion?
The movie itself is not my favorite, though I have no objection to Paul Thomas Anderson.
(P.S.: I don’t like the cloths.)

Through the wormhole into the war zone
Dunkirk
I watch anything written and directed by Christopher Nolan. Is he overrated? Maybe. I don’t care. Inception, Interstellar, Insomnia, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, Batman and of course, my preciousMemento. He never let me down. So when I heard that he was working on a war movie, I was like, “Come on, Kit (private joke between us,) why on earth you wanna do this?”
But even then I know that if he sets out to make a World War II movie, no doubt that it will be special. And it is special.
If you haven’t seen it yet, I strongly recommend that you look over the Wikipedia page of Battle of Dunkirk (it could be useful for The Darkest Hour also.) Then sit back and enjoy the Nolan’s tricks with time -this time not an interstellar travel but certainly a time travel!
Has a chance to win?
A solid one.
My opinion?
I have no objection to the film and I’ll be happy for Kit, but I have other candidates.

Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home
Lady Bird
Greta Gerwig is so cute. Don’t you think so? She was shining in Frances Ha, and even though I wasn’t fond of Mistress America, it was not a total waste of time.
Gerwig’s directorial debut Lady Bird, on the other hand, is a kind of movie I could watch over and over.
Frances Ha was about a young woman chasing her dreams – Lady Bird is a coming of age story. I must warn you though: don’t expect anything different in the foreground. Boys, fat bestie, the usual love-hate relationship between mom and daughter… But everything seems to fall effortlessly into place.
Has a chance to win?
Hope so.
My opinion?
I’ve just told you! I can only hope.

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner rebooting
Get Out
Wow, this is different! I watched it months ago and had no idea what to expect. So I was totally blindsided. Call me stupid if you want, but I didn’t take the hint even from the first scene and continued to think it should be some modern version of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, one of the famous movies of 60s.
It is a fantastically twisted horror thriller with a hint of comedy.
I don’t watch horrors – so if I had known it is a horror movie, I wouldn’t watch it. Ignorance is bliss, at least in this case. Besides, it is not that frightening but startling. And amazing.
Has a chance to win?
Would be a big surprise.
My opinion?
Would be a nice surprise. I love it, but even I believe that the nomination is enough.

I can’t hear you whisper
The Shape of Water
It is about a romance between a mute cleaning lady and a creature that is being held in a hidden government laboratory…
I think there are very few filmmakers who could have found money for a film with this plot. But if you have seen Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, you already know what to expect and you will not be disappointed. Yes, another magical fairy-tale in an all-too-real world, and it is fantastic in all senses!
And it has a solid shot at winning Best Picture.
The only problem is the lawsuit claiming that The Shape of Water was plagiarized from Paul Zindel's 1969 play Let Me Hear You Whisper. And it seems like there are some undeniable similarities unfortunately.
Has a chance to win?
Still and all, yeah, it is one of the frontrunners.
My opinion?
I love the movie, and Guillermo del Toro definitely deserves one. “Best Director” will more than suffice though.

Call Me by Your Name
It is a love story. First love, summer love… Like Lady Bird, it is also a coming of age story. And again, everything seems to fall effortlessly into place. It makes you laugh, it makes you sad and above all, it reminds you your first love.
Call Me by Your Name is about self-discovery, and yeah, a gay romance, but everybody more or less goes through that. Even with an opposite sex! That is what for first loves are!
But I think it would be nice –and politically correct- if our boy Elio had been 18 year old instead 17. Then it is not a big deal, after all, he has his parents’ consent.
One more note: Dance scene went viral and peach scene is iconic. At the ceremony, peach jokes are inevitable.
Has a chance to win?
Would be a surprise.
My opinion?
Contrary to some’s opinions, I think its nomination is fair and square, but it would be a big surprise to me too.

The history written by the winners!
The Post
The Washington Post races to catch up with The New York Post to expose a cover-up of government secrets…
If Steven Spielberg had made The Post ten years ago with the same scenario and the cast, the power of the press and the powerful woman in the movie could make me overflow with excitement. But after watching Spotlight from the same writer, Josh Singer, it pales in comparison. Besides, now, being at age I am, I know that history is written by the winners and this film tells that history.
Well, it meets the standards its director and actors promise, but that is all. No passion, no surprise, no thrill at all.
Has a chance to win?
Far more than anticipated, I think.
My opinion?
No, god, please, no!

Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything – Winston Churchill
Darkest Hour
This is a sort of movie that appeals to me the least among the Best Picture candidates. It is a decent historical drama by Joe Wright, and that is all. During the early days of World War II, Winston Churchill was appointed British Prime Minister and has to decide whether or not negotiate with Adolf Hitler…
But watching Gary Oldman has turned out to be a marvel to behold. No doubt, he will take home the Best Actor Oscar.
Has a chance to win?
No, sorry.
My opinion?
No, sorry.

Hey fuckheads, you goddamn assholes, can’t you speak without swearing every five seconds!
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
A mom whose daughter raped and murdered decides to challenge the local authorities when they fail to catch the culprit and rents three billboards for rubbing their noses in it…
First, I will say what this movie is not about. It is not about the pain of a mourning mom. It is about anger. It is about cruel people in a cruel town. In fact, this too much cruelty made me think that this town couldn’t exist and as a matter of fact it doesn’t. Then, does it reflect Missouri? I asked a friend who lives in New York for years, and “Yeah,” she said, “Middle America is just like that.” I don’t know… The town still feels like a caricature.
And I think the characters also could have easily turned into caricatures unless Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell put on astonishing performances. There is no doubt that they deserve to take home the Oscars.
So Three Billboards borders on exaggeration but succeeds as a harshly realistic drama. It is brutal but funny. I burst out laughing several times, but then I have read a critic and felt terrible. So you may want to pass over a few laughters.
Has a chance to win?
Yes, it is the frontrunner.
My opinion?

_{*I’m here -on Steemit- to improve my English. Please don’t hesitate to point out my mistakes.}