It's the most wonderful time of the year for movie fans. As 2015 draws to a close, devoted film buffs and average viewers alike will tally up the year's best cinematic efforts in time for annual award ceremonies. Various critics choice award nominations and winners have been announced during the past few weeks, but it was the recent reveal of this year's Golden Globe nominations that has officially signaled the beginning of the 2016 movie awards season that will celebrate this year's most prestigious achievements in filmmaking.
Of course, no other awards ceremony generates as much buzz as the Oscars. As the announcement of the 88th Annual Academy Award nominees approaches, the talk of who will take home the gold will only grow. Unfortunately for me, I have not seen most of the year's biggest contenders. Even though most of these films mark the return of some of the best directors in Hollywood, such as Steven Spielberg, Danny Boyle and Ridley Scott, they haven't really peaked my interest. This is mainly due to the fact that I always see the same types of movies released every awards season. There's the well-acted biopic ("Steve Jobs"), the historical epic ("Bridge of Spies"), the beautiful British period piece ("The Danish Girl") and something starring either Meryl Streep or Jennifer Lawrence ("Suffragette" and "Joy").
2015 hasn't seen a great deal of truly moving and mind-blowing films, but there have been a small number of gems which either surpassed or defied all expectations. Regardless of this year's apparent lack of originality in filmmaking, I am still pretty pumped to see who and what will be recognized during the Oscars in February. So, in anticipation for the big event, I have made a list of films I believe will (and should) be nominated for a number of Oscars.
Note: Most of this list is based on the amount of recognition from other ceremonies as well my own personal opinion.
"The Big Short"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor (Christian Bale), Best Actor (Steve Carell), Best Adapted Screenplay
"Brooklyn"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (John Crowley), Best Actress (Saoirse Ronan), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design
"Carol"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Todd Haynes), Best Actress (Cate Blanchett), Best Actress (Rooney Mara), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design
"Creed"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Ryan Coogler), Best Actor (Michael B. Jordan), Best Supporting Actor (Sylvester Stallone)
"The Danish Girl"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor (Eddie Redmayne), Best Actress (Alicia Vikander), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design
"The Hateful Eight"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Quentin Tarantino), Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup & Hairstyling
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (George Miller), Best Actress (Charlize Theron), Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup & Hairstyling, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Visual Effects
"The Martian"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Ridley Scott), Best Actor (Matt Damon), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Visual Effects
"The Revenant"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Alejandro González Iñárritu), Best Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio), Best Supporting Actor (Tom Hardy), Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, Best Makeup & Hairstyling, Best Sound Mixing
"Room"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress (Brie Larson), Best Supporting Actor (Jacob Tremblay), Best Adapted Screenplay
"Sicario"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Denis Villeneuve), Best Actress (Emily Blunt), Best Supporting Actor (Benicio Del Toro), Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Mixing
"Spotlight"
Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Tom McCarthy), Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing
" Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens"
Possible Nominations: Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup & Hairstyling, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Visual Effects
Finally, here are some other notable films worthy of more than one nomination:
"Bridge of Spies"
"Concussion"
"Crimson Peak"
"Ex Machina"
"Inside Out"
"Joy"
"Love & Mercy"
"Macbeth"
"Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation"
"Spectre"
"Steve Jobs"
"Suffragette"
"Trumbo"
