Academy Awards 2018: Best Adapted Screenplay & Best Animated Feature Nominees


Hollywood's biggest night is just hours away now and so myself and a few other film bloggers are all taking a category or two each and providing a deeper analysis into each film's chances at success. I've taken Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Animated Feature so see below what films are most likely to win some gold this evening.

You can see my own full list of predictions here and the rest of the teams categories linked below the post.

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Best Adapted Screenplay


Call Me By Your Name - James Ivory
The Disaster Artist - Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber
Logan - Scott Frank, James Mangold and Michael Green
Molly's Game - Aaron Sorkin
Mudbound - Virgil Williams and Dee Rees

In one of the evening's easiest races to call (and possibly the weakest line-up in a few years), James Ivory's Call Me By Your Name adapted screenplay looks set to be the sun-kissed romances' only chance of a win on Oscar night. Ivory has collected the award at the BAFTAs two weeks ago and numerous critic associations and guilds have bestowed him with the honour too, meaning support for his work is coming in at every angle and from every voting branch. It is the only film nominated in the category to receive a Best Picture nomination too, fortifying its chances further. A win is pretty much nailed on -- but does anyone else stand a chance at an upset?

Mudbound is the only other film nominated here to receive nominations elsewhere and was supposedly well in the running for a Best Picture nod at one stage in time. While it is very difficult to see Virgil Williams and Dee Rees' period drama pulling through with a win - arguably hindered by its Netflix association, who Hollywood still haven't come to accept all too willingly - I would suggest that it is the film most likely to cause a surprise in this category.

Molly's Game's Aaron Sorkin has previously won with The Social Network in 2010 and he is one of the most acclaimed and celebrated screenwriters in Hollywood today -- but the film, based on the memoirs of Molly Bloom, doesn't really have the support elsewhere to propel the film towards a Best Adapted Screenplay victory. Similarly, The Disaster Artist wasn't the major contender people pegged it to be early on into the season, having fallen by the wayside rather quickly. Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber are very unlikely to take the podium tonight. 

That leaves us with Logan, whose nomination is in itself a major victory; it is the first live-action superhero film to be nominated in the category and while it won't win, it should take solace in achieving what even Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight failed to manage back in 2008.

I'm always hesitant in locking in a victory for the film I personally want to win -- but I'd be flabbergasted if Call Me By Your Name doesn't take this one. 

WILL WIN: Call Me By Your Name
SHOULD WIN: Call Me By Your Name

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Best Animated Feature


The Boss Baby
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand
Loving Vincent

There's not too much to be said here that hasn't already been said.

Having won pretty much every award going, Coco will win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, making it Pixar's ninth win in the category, joining the likes of Finding Nemo, Toy Story 3, Up and Inside Out. It'd put a lot of money on it winning as a matter of fact -- if it was worth doing so. It is easily one of the biggest certainties of the night.

I'd say the beautiful Loving Vincent is the only nominee capable of pulling off a shock win -- but I'd be more surprised with that actually happening than if Harvey Weinstein turned up to present Best Picture. The Breadwinner's probably not too far behind Loving Vincent in the ranking and it has its supporters but again, there's no chance of it reigning victorious.

Ferdinand and particularly The Boss Baby stand even less of a chance, and their position in the line-up alone tells you what an incredibly poor year it was for animation in 2017 -- let's hope 2018 is stronger!

WILL WIN: Coco
SHOULD WIN: Loving Vincent

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Other categories for your perusal:

Best Picture - Quickfire
Best Actor - Angus
Best Actress - Maddy
Best Supporting Actor - Tom
Best Supporting Actress - Maddy
Best Cinematography - Martin