Our Picks For The Oscars 2022

Costume Design

Jacqueline West and Robert Morgan, Dune 

Nailing the costume design in Dune was a cosmic challenge. Famously butchered by the great David Lynch in the 1980s (in a film he later disowned), Frank Herbet’s epic six-book series has long been considered unfilmable. Luckily for us, Denis Villeneuve and his superhuman team of costume designers Jacqueline West and Robert Morgan were able to step up to the plate, crafting a look that spanned multiple planets and grandiose, extra-terrestrial cultures. 

Creating nearly 2000 costumes in total, the jaw-dropping body of work deserves all the praise in the universe, the duo stitching together vast aesthetic references – from the classic catalogues of Balenciaga, to the sands of Jordan, to artists like Goya, Giotto and Caravaggio. 

Any costume department that can realistically render the year 10,191 is an Oscar winner in our opinion! 

Best Actress

Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter 

An adaptation of Elena Ferrante's seminal 2006 novel of the same, The Lost Daughter is a deeply unsettling psychological drama starring Olivia Colman in arguably her most arresting performance yet. Written and directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, the film sees Colman deftly portray the struggles of motherhood and the interweaving narratives that wreak havoc on her mental state. (Notably, Ferrante would only approve the big screen adaptation if it was directed by a woman.)

Set in a small coastal town in Greece and featuring a solid supporting cast including Dakota Johnson and Jessie Buckley, The Lost Daughter will stay with you long after the credits roll. 

Best Actor

Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog

Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance in Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog will knock the air right out of your lungs. Wrestling with his volatile masculine identity in 1920s rural Montana, Cumberbatch plays the alpha dog in a cantankerous pack of cowboys that routinely berate and manipulate those around them. 

The first film by New Zealand-born director Campion in over a decade, The Power of the Dog showcases Cumberbatch at the height of his powers – the cold, calculating and ultimately charming provocateur somehow dominating the stunning wide-open vistas of Maniototo Plain of Central Otago, New Zealand, where the film was shot. 

Cumberbatch is the favourite to win best actor this year, and rightfully so. 

Best Original Screenplay

Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza

A nostalgic snapshot of the mythological San Fernando Valley in the 1970s, Paul Thomas Anderson again returns to his roots in his latest masterpiece, Licorice Pizza. Incredibly enlisting the help of two complete acting virgins (Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman) Anderson’s amorous, textural ode to California is a film that demands multiple viewings.

Subtly paying homage to his literary forefathers (Thomas Pynchon’s freewheeling, post-modern prose have long enamoured Anderson), Licorice Pizza is a slice so good you need to catch it on the big screen (there’s still a few cinemas showing the film, but you’ll need to be quick!). 

Actress in a Supporting Role 

Ariana DeBose, West Side Story 

Cutting her teeth on the competition So You Think You Can Dance, the multi-talented Ariana DeBose recently appeared in Hamilton and Netflix’s musical-comedy The Prom. But DeBose’s performance in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story is without a doubt her most scintillating yet. 

The first Afro-Latina to be nominated for an Oscar (DeBose is of Puerto Rican descent), the 31-year-old actress is tipped to make history on March 28. Directed by the legendary Spielberg, West Side Story somehow lives up to the vaulting ambitions of its 1961 predecessor, the film nominated for several Oscars (including Best Picture).