The nominations for the 2025 Academy Awards came out on Thursday, Jan. 23, and any year where four of my top film picks get nominated for Best Picture and Director, I can’t complain. Out of the 10 nominees for Best Picture, I’ve seen eight, and seven of those I’ve reviewed for The Mountain Times since I arrived in September of last year. I hope to see “Nickel Boys” and “I’m Still Here” in the coming weeks—if any theater in striking distance shows them. Otherwise, I’ll have to wait until streaming. I hear they are both excellent films.
So, what’s my pick for Best Picture? I’d have to go with “The Brutalist.” No film this year comes close in terms of ambition, emotional impact, and power. This film is making the rounds in theaters somewhat close to Vermont, so if you can catch this film in the theater, do so. “Anora” was another standout for me, but that film also has its detractors. I think its best chance for an Oscar win this year would be its lead performance from actress Mikey Madison, a first-time nominee here for her stunning work as Anora, a sex worker from Brooklyn who goes on a crazy odyssey when she meets the son of a wealthy oligarch.
I’m a champion of “The Substance,” and I’m excited for the love shown by The Academy for this darkly comic social satire horror film that would never in a million years have been recognized in previous years. Demi Moore received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress in a role she owns, and I’m happy she made the cut. The Best Actress category was competitive this year, and there were a good dozen or so worthy performances. That poses a problem when there are only five slots available. Someone was going to end up unhappy on Thursday morning. The word “snub” gets tossed around by entertainment outlets. Still, that’s an obnoxious term intimating there was some conspiratorial bias on The Academy’s part for someone not making it into the five. Even worse, it demeans those who did get in.
The Best Actor race
The Best Actor award likely comes down to Adrian Brody or Timothée Chalamet. That’s a tough call. My choices is Brody because what he does in “The Brutalist” is phenomenal. However, Chalamet had to look, act, sound, and sing like Bob Dylan and not come off like a caricature in “A Complete Unknown.” You don’t have a movie if Chalamet doesn’t pull it off. This category is too tough to call.
Best Director
I’m confident in picking Brady Corbet as the Best Director for “The Brutalist.” I don’t know if “The Brutalist” will also win Best Picture this year, but Corbet’s direction was inspiring, and I think what he pulls off on a limited budget will be commended and awarded by The Academy. I’m glad The Academy recognized Coralie Fargeat for her direction of “The Substance.” Fargeat’s original vision, while paying homage to several other directors, makes this film rewatchable for those who don’t mind their films taking things to the extreme.
Actor in a Supporting Role
I’ve seen all the nominated performances in this category, and there isn’t a bad pick in the bunch. I think Kieran Culkin’s got this one locked, and he’d probably get my vote too. My runner-up pick would be Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn in “The Apprentice.” If Culkin hadn’t come along with “A Real Pain,” Strong would probably be the favorite here, but sometimes a performance is so good, there isn’t any way they won’t win, and that is where things are heading this year in terms of Supporting Actor.
Actress in a Supporting Role
If I were to pick a shocking surprise win this year at the Oscars, I’d zero in on this category. Zoe Saldaña, in “Emilia Pérez,” will likely win, and she’d be my choice too, but don’t discount Ariana Grande in “Wicked.” The Academy likes to spread their votes around and reward several films. Aside from maybe a technical award, Grande’s performance could be “Wicked’s” best shot at a big prize in March.
All of the nominees for the 2025 Academy Awards
Best Picture
“Anora”
“The Brutalist”
“A Complete Unknown”
“Conclave”
“Dune: Part Two”
“Emilia Pérez”
“I’m Still Here”
“Nickel Boys”
“The Substance”
“Wicked”
Directing
Jacques Audiard, “Emilia Pérez”
Sean Baker, “Anora”
Brady Corbet, “The Brutalist”
Coralie Fargeat, “The Substance”
James Mangold, “A Complete Unknown”
Actor in a Leading Role
Adrien Brody, “The Brutalist”
Timothée Chalamet, “A Complete Unknown”
Colman Domingo, “Sing Sing”
Ralph Fiennes, “Conclave”
Sebastian Stan, “The Apprentice”
Actress in a Leading Role
Cynthia Erivo, “Wicked”
Karla Sofía Gascón, “Emilia Pérez”
Mikey Madison, “Anora”
Demi Moore, “The Substance”
Fernanda Torres, “I’m Still Here”
Actor in a Supporting Role
Yura Borisov, “Anora”
Kieran Culkin, “A Real Pain”
Edward Norton, “A Complete Unknown”
Guy Pearce, “The Brutalist”
Jeremy Strong, “The Apprentice”
Actress in a Supporting Role
Monica Barbaro, “A Complete Unknown”
Ariana Grande, “Wicked”
Felicity Jones, “The Brutalist”
Isabella Rossellini, “Conclave”
Zoe Saldaña, “Emilia Pérez”
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
“A Complete Unknown” (Screenplay by James Mangold and Jay Cocks)
“Conclave” (Screenplay by Peter Straughan)
“Emilia Pérez” (Screenplay by Jacques Audiard; In collaboration with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius, and Nicolas Livecchi)
“Nickel Boys” (Screenplay by RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes)
“Sing Sing” (Screenplay by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar; Story by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield)
Writing (Original Screenplay)
“Anora” (Written by Sean Baker)
“The Brutalist” (Written by Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold)
“A Real Pain” (Written by Jesse Eisenberg)
“September 5” (Written by Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum; Co-Written by Alex David)
“The Substance” (Written by Coralie Fargeat)
Animated Feature Film
“Flow”
“Inside Out 2”
“Memoir of a Snail”
“Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl”
“The Wild Robot”
Animated Short Film
“Beautiful Men”
“In the Shadow of the Cypress”
“Magic Candies”
“Wander to Wonder”
“Yuck!”
Cinematography
“The Brutalist” (Lol Crawley)
“Dune: Part Two” (Greig Fraser)
“Emilia Pérez” (Paul Guilhaume)
“Maria” (Ed Lachman)
“Nosferatu” (Jarin Blaschke)
Costume Design
“A Complete Unknown”
“Conclave”
“Gladiator II”
“Nosferatu”
“Wicked”
Film Editing
“Anora”
“The Brutalist”
“Conclave”
“Emilia Pérez”
“Wicked”
Makeup and Hairstyling
“A Different Man”
“Emilia Pérez”
“Nosferatu”
“The Substance”
“Wicked”
Live-Action Short Film
“A Lien”
“Anuja”
“I’m Not a Robot”
“The Last Ranger”
“The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent”
Music (Original Score)
“The Brutalist” (Daniel Blumberg)
“Conclave” (Volker Bertelmann)
“Emilia Pérez” (Clément Ducol and Camille)
“Wicked” (John Powell and Stephen Schwartz)
“The Wild Robot” (Kris Bowers)
Music (Original Song)
“El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez” (Music by Clément Ducol and Camille; Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard)
“The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight” (Music and Lyric by Diane Warren)
“Like a Bird” from “Sing Sing” (Music and Lyric by Abraham Alexander and Adrian Quesada)
“Mi Camino” from “Emilia Pérez” (Music and Lyric by Camille and Clément Ducol)
“Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late” (Music and Lyric by Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Andrew Watt and Bernie Taupin)
Documentary Feature Film
“Black Box Diaries”
“No Other Land”
“Porcelain War”
“Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat”
“Sugarcane”
Documentary Short Film
“Death by Numbers”
“I Am Ready, Warden”
“Incident”
“Instruments of a Beating Heart”
“The Only Girl in the Orchestra”
International Feature Film
“I’m Still Here” (Brazil)
“The Girl With the Needle” (Denmark)
“Emilia Pérez” (France)
“The Seed of the Sacred Fig” (Germany)
“Flow” (Latvia)
Production Design
“The Brutalist”
“Conclave”
“Dune: Part Two”
“Nosferatu”
“Wicked”
Sound
“A Complete Unknown”
“Dune: Part Two”
“Emilia Pérez”
“Wicked”
“The Wild Robot”
Visual Effects
“Alien: Romulus”
“Better Man”
“Dune: Part Two”
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”
“Wicked”
