Did the Oscars get it right? Who won vs who SHOULD have won
In the perfect world of an Academy Awards ceremony based on merit alone, here's who our film critic thinks should have taken home the accolades in key categories in 2019:
BEST PICTURE
Nominees:
- Black Panther
- BlacKkKlansman
- Bohemian Rhapsody
- The Favourite
- Green Book
- Roma
- A Star Is Born
- Vice
Which film won: Green Book
Peter Farrelly's comfortably pat race-relations tale is the kind of easy, palatable film that the Academy often tends to choose in years when other contenders prove a little too challenging. It was a safe choice.
Which film SHOULD have won: The Favourite
Yorgos Lanthimos' beautifully directed period tale is darkly humorous and features a trio of powerful female performances. It was the the sharpest, wittiest and most interesting of this year's nominees.
BEST ACTOR
Nominees:
- Christian Bale for Vice
- Bradley Cooper for A Star Is Born
- Willem Dafoe for At Eternity's Gate
- Rami Malek for Bohemian Rhapsody
- Viggo Mortensen for Green Book
Who won: Rami Malek
The actor's performance as Freddie Mercury has seen him scoop several awards this season — including his first Oscar. The young actor's transformation into the Queen frontman has wowed critics and fans alike and Bohemian Rhapsody continues to storm the box office.
Who SHOULD have won: Christian Bale
Vice may have sharply divided critics with its black humour and off-the-wall approach to the story of the life and times of Dick Cheney but everyone agrees that the method actor's almost unrecognisable transformation for the role is an exceptional feat.
BEST ACTRESS
Nominees:
- Yalitza Aparicio for Roma
- Glenn Close for The Wife
- Olivia Colman for The Favourite
- Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born
- Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Olivia Colman was a WORTHY winner
The Brit deserves her Oscar for her brilliant, empathetic and darkly funny portrayal of the baby-like, manipulative Queen Anne.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Nominees:
- Mahershala Ali for Green Book
- Adam Driver for BlacKkKlansman
- Sam Elliott for A Star Is Born
- Richard E Grant for Can You Ever Forgive Me?
- Sam Rockwell for Vice
Mahershala Ali was a WORTHY winner
Ali's performance as the conflicted, brilliant and determined popular pianist Don Shirley has seen him sweep most of the awards this season. It won him a well-deserved second Oscar following his win in this same category for Moonlight in 2017.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Nominees:
- Amy Adams for Vice
- Marina de Tavira for Roma
- Regina King for If Beale Street Could Talk
- Emma Stone for The Favourite
- Rachel Weisz for The Favourite
Who won: Regina King
This was King's first nomination and while she didn't earn a nod from the Screen Actor's Guild for her fiery performance in Barry Jenkins' If Beale Street Could Talk, she's scooped every other award out there.
Who SHOULD have won: Emma Stone
Stone gives a career-best performance as a seemingly charming, ruthlessly ambitious social climber in a film filled with excellent performances from its three leads.
BEST DIRECTOR
Nominees:
- Spike Lee for BlacKkKlansman
- Pawel Pawlikowski for Cold War
- Yorgos Lanthimos for The Favourite
- Alfonso Cuarón for Roma
- Adam McKay for Vice
Who won: Alfonso Cuarón
Cuarón's Roma has been cleaning up and the film is certainly a beautiful and carefully executed piece of work, shot by Cuarón himself in gorgeous black and white and delicately telling its empathetic and often heartbreaking personal tale.
Who SHOULD have won: Spike Lee
America's angriest and most in-your-face director has won a lifetime achievement award from the Academy and been nominated for writing and documentary previously. However, in his 40-year career he's never earned a directing nod and this should have been his year to win for a film that's hard-hitting and speaks about uncomfortable issues that need addressing and recognition in the age of the rise of the alt-right.
• This article is adapted from one originally published in the Sunday Times Lifestyle magazine.