Oscar Talk: Best Director
Best Director -
Guillermo Del Toro - The Shape of Water
Christopher Nolan - Dunkirk
Greta Gerwig - Lady Bird
Jordan Peele - Get Out
Paul Thomas Anderson - Phantom Thread
My three picks for Best Director fall in line with my top choices in the Best Original Screenplay category. Guillermo Del Toro, Greta Gerwig and Jordan Peele are all responsible for creating extraordinary stories that represent many types of people, and that is why they all landed in my top 10 of the year, as well. Christopher Nolan was a shoe-in back in July when Dunkirk premiered, and many people, including myself, thought he had a fair shot at winning. If it was a different year, I think he would easily take the win. Dunkirk is the most technically achieving film of the bunch, and Nolan's voice shines through clearly, whereas Gerwig and Peele are so new to the game, there is no way to pinpoint their specific styles just yet. That is what works in Nolan's favor, here, along with Del Toro and Paul Thomas Anderson. These are directors that have a fanbase eager to support any project they release, and almost always garner awards acclaim with each endeavor. As for Anderson, Phantom Thread is one of his less flashy pictures, but his chemistry with Daniel Day Lewis and the environments he creates make it easy to see why he ended up in the final five directors of the year. Gerwig and Peele are indeed the newcomers, but their films showcasing uniquely female and black perspectives bump them to the forefront of everyone's predictions this year. If I had to wager, however, Guillermo Del Toro is long overdue for a career Oscar, and it seems as if The Shape of Water is the exact vessel to give him this. I would be satisfied with any three out of the latter mentioned, but I personally am holding out hope for Peele to win and set a new precedent for acclaimed horror.
Who will win: Guillermo Del Toro
Who should win: Guillermo Del Toro or Jordan Peele
