TV CLOSE-UP
THE 91ST ACADEMY AWARDS AIR FEB. 24 ON ABC
<b>THE 91ST ACADEMY AWARDS AIR FEB. 24 ON ABC</b>
AND THE OSCAR GOES TO...CHECK OUT THE 91st ACADEMY AWARDS FEB. 24 AT 8 P.M. (ET/PT) on ABC.
By: Lana K. Wilson-Combs
N2Entertainment.net

For many movie lovers the Oscars are still the cr?me-de-la-cr?me of awards shows.

With all its glitz and glamour, the Academy Awards personify Hollywood. They are the biggest awards show of them all and have been around the longest. The first Academy Awards ceremony was held in Hollywood at the Roosevelt Hotel on May 16, 1929.

And even for tried and true movie critics like yours truly, who have been fortunate to attend and cover a number of Oscars ceremonies over the years, the excitement and buildup to acknowledge some of the best in cinema during Hollywood?s biggest night, never gets old.

Despite the hiccups and controversies surrounding this year?s Oscars, the show will go on.

And once again, N2Entertainment.net is honored to cover this year?s 91st Academy Awards at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood on Feb. 24. The star-studded event will air on ABC TV at 8 P.M. (ET/PT).

Can ?Black Panther,? which is the first superhero movie ever to be nominated for ?Best Picture,? make history and win the Oscar?

Will the Academy do the right thing and award 61-year-old Spike Lee the Oscar for ?Best Director? or ?Best Picture? for ?Black KkKlansman??

Can Lady Gaga win ?Best Actress? for ?A Star is Born??

We?ll have to wait and see how it all plays out Sunday.

Remember, N2Entertainment.net will bring you the scoop on all the events throughout the evening and notable quotes from the Oscar winners.

So, break out a nice bottle of bubbly?maybe even two?since these shows often run a bit long. Even so, it still should be a fun and entertaining night.

In the meantime, here?s a look at whom N2Entertainment.net believes should take home the coveted Oscar.

BEST PICTURE:
?Black Panther? This movie wowed me the first time I saw it and my appreciation for it hasn?t waned after three subsequent viewings. ?Black Panther? was hands down the best movie of 2018.
?BlacKkKlansman?
?Bohemian Rhapsody?
?The Favourite?
?Green Book?
?Roma?
?A Star Is Born?
?Vice?

LEAD ACTOR:
Christian Bale, ?Vice?
Bradley Cooper, ?A Star Is Born? This category is also stacked and a tough one for sure, but Cooper?s raw, mesmerizing and poignant performance was just a cut above.
Willem Dafoe, ?At Eternity?s Gate?
Rami Malek, ?Bohemian Rhapsody?
Viggo Mortensen, ?Green Book?

LEAD ACTRESS:
Yalitza Aparicio, ?Roma?
Glenn Close, ?The Wife?
Olivia Colman, ?The Favourite?
Melissa McCarthy, ?Can You Ever Forgive Me??
Lady Gaga, ?A Star Is Born? The strongest performances in this category are from Lady Gaga and Melissa McCarthy. I know there are no ties here. I was deeply moved by both but will give the edge to Lady Gaga.
Melissa McCarthy, ?Can You Ever Forgive Me??

SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Mahershala Ali, ?Green Book? While I wasn?t a huge fan of the movie, Mahershala Ali?s performance is just too superb to ignore.
Adam Driver, ?BlacKkKlansman?
Sam Elliott, ?A Star Is Born?
Richard E. Grant, ?Can You Ever Forgive Me??
Sam Rockwell, ?Vice?

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Amy Adams, ?Vice?
Marina de Tavira, ?Roma?
Regina King, ?If Beale Street Could Talk? Regina King really lights up the screen and pours her heart and soul into this striking performance. It's Oscar gold.
Emma Stone, ?The Favourite?
Rachel Weisz, ?The Favourite?

DIRECTOR:
Spike Lee, ?Blackkklansman? I still believe Ryan Coogler should have had a seat at this table, but it is what it is. Spike has been in the game for many years. With ?Black KkKlansman? he has directed a timely and powerful movie that stands tall among this crowd.
Pawel Pawlikowski, ?Cold War?
Yorgos Lanthimos, ?The Favourite?
Alfonso Cuar?n, ?Roma?
Adam Mckay, ?Vice?

ANIMATED FEATURE:
?Incredibles 2,? Brad Bird
?Isle of Dogs,? Wes Anderson
?Mirai,? Mamoru Hosoda
?Ralph Breaks the Internet,? Rich Moore, Phil Johnston
?Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,? Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman A truly remarkable animated feature that astounds on every level. My Spidey Sense is telling me it will walk away victorious.

ANIMATED SHORT:
?Animal Behaviour,? Alison Snowden, David Fine
?Bao,? Domee Shi This one is cute and clever beyond belief and is about a Chinese mom experiencing empty nest syndrome. This short was written and directed by Domee Shi and she?s the first woman to helm a Pixar short. It?s a real winner or should be anyway.
?Late Afternoon,? Louise Bagnall
?One Small Step,? Andrew Chesworth, Bobby Pontillas
?Weekends,? Trevor Jimenez

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
?The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,? Joel Coen , Ethan Coen
?BlacKkKlansman,? Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, Spike Lee
?Can You Ever Forgive Me?? Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty
?If Beale Street Could Talk,? Barry Jenkins.
?A Star Is Born,? Eric Roth, Bradley Cooper, Will Fetters

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
?The Favourite,? Deborah Davis, Tony McNamara
?First Reformed,? Paul Schrader
?Green Book,? Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly
?Roma,? Alfonso Cuar?n
?Vice,? Adam McKay

CINEMATOGRAPHY:
?Cold War,? Lukasz Zal
?The Favourite,? Robbie Ryan
?Never Look Away,? Caleb Deschanel
?Roma,? Alfonso Cuar?n
?A Star Is Born,? Matthew Libatique

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:
?Free Solo,? Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi
?Hale County This Morning, This Evening,? RaMell Ross
?Minding the Gap,? Bing Liu
?Of Fathers and Sons,? Talal Derki
?RBG,? Betsy West, Julie Cohen

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT:
?Black Sheep,? Ed Perkins
?End Game,? Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
?Lifeboat,? Skye Fitzgerald
?A Night at the Garden,? Marshall Curry
?Period. End of Sentence.,? Rayka Zehtabchi

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM:
?Detainment,? Vincent Lambe
?Fauve,? Jeremy Comte
?Marguerite,? Marianne Farley
?Mother,? Rodrigo Sorogoyen
?Skin,? Guy Nattiv

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
?Capernaum? (Lebanon)
?Cold War? (Poland)
?Never Look Away? (Germany)
?Roma? (Mexico)
?Shoplifters? (Japan)

FILM EDITING:
?BlacKkKlansman,? Barry Alexander Brown
?Bohemian Rhapsody,? John Ottman
?Green Book,? Patrick J. Don Vito
?The Favourite,? Yorgos Mavropsaridis
?Vice,? Hank Corwin

SOUND EDITING:
?Black Panther,? Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve Boeddeker
?Bohemian Rhapsody,? John Warhurst
?First Man,? Ai-Ling Lee, Mildred Iatrou Morgan
?A Quiet Place,? Ethan Van der Ryn, Erik Aadahl
?Roma,? Sergio Diaz, Skip Lievsay

SOUND MIXING:
?Black Panther?
?Bohemian Rhapsody?
?First Man?
?Roma?
?A Star Is Born?

PRODUCTION DESIGN:
?Black Panther,? Hannah Beachler
?First Man,? Nathan Crowley, Kathy Lucas
?The Favourite,? Fiona Crombie, Alice Felton
?Mary Poppins Returns,? John Myhre, Gordon Sim
?Roma,? Eugenio Caballero, B?rbara Enrı́quez

ORIGINAL SCORE:
?BlacKkKlansman,? Terence Blanchard
?Black Panther,? Ludwig Goransson
?If Beale Street Could Talk,? Nicholas Britell
?Isle of Dogs,? Alexandre Desplat
?Mary Poppins Returns,? Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman

ORIGINAL SONG:
?All The Stars? from ?Black Panther? by Kendrick Lamar, SZA
?I?ll Fight? from ?RBG? by Diane Warren, Jennifer Hudson
?The Place Where Lost Things Go? from ?Mary Poppins Returns? by Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman
?Shallow? from ?A Star Is Born? by Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando, Andrew Wyatt and Benjamin Rice As much as I love "I?ll Fight? from Jennifer Hudson, ?Shallow? just pierces the soul.
?When A Cowboy Trades His Spurs For Wings? from ?The Ballad of Buster Scruggs? by David Rawlings and Gillian Welch

MAKEUP AND HAIR:
?Border?
?Mary Queen of Scots?
?Vice? Christian Bale?s transformation as former vice president Dick Cheney is simply stunning.

COSTUME DESIGN:
?The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,? Mary Zophres
?Black Panther,? Ruth E. Carter There should be no questions here.
?The Favourite,? Sandy Powell
?Mary Poppins Returns,? Sandy Powell
?Mary Queen of Scots,? Alexandra Byrne

VISUAL EFFECTS:
?Avengers: Infinity War?
?Christopher Robin?
?First Man?
?Ready Player One?
?Solo: A Star Wars Story.?

Editor?s Note: Don?t miss the 91st Academy Awards Feb. 24 on ABC TV at 9/8c.