Oscar Picks 2017

Just for the hell of it, here are my picks for who/what should win at the Oscars tonight. La La Land leads all nominations with 14. Is it naive of me to hope that Oscars will share the love between a handful of films, as opposed to awarding everything to just one movie? Maybe, but a girl can dream.

BEST PICTURE

• Arrival
• Fences
• Hacksaw Ridge
• Hell or High Water
• Hidden Figures
• La La Land
• Lion
• Manchester By the Sea
• Moonlight

LA LA LAND! I know some people who didn’t like it and thought it was cheesy. That doesn’t change the fact that *I* love it and I love how it makes me feel. It’s the presumed frontrunner and I completely agree. That’s not to say that I didn’t love any of the other films nominated. In fact, I think this is one of the stronger years, with each film making a solid case for itself. [Sidenote: I watched all but one, Hacksaw Ridge, because I really did not care to watch it] I loved Arrival and Moonlight, both of which I saw at TIFF last September, and still stuck with me. Lion, which I didn’t get a chance to see at TIFF, hit me in a way that I totally didn’t expect (in a good way). Hidden Figures was so enjoyable and inspiring. Fences was a great all-around film. Manchester By the Sea was a little slow for me, but I can still see why people liked it because it was a real character study. I’m not normally one for Western-type films, but Hell or High Water surprised me.

BEST ACTRESS

• Isabelle Huppert, Elle
• Natalie Portman, Jackie
• Ruth Negga, Loving
• Emma Stone, La La Land
• Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins

I’m still shocked that Amy Adams didn’t get nominated for Arrival. She was spectacular in that movie (not that she isn’t always awesome) and gave such a nuanced performance, I honestly would’ve put her as my pick to win. But since she’s not nominated, naturally my second choice is Emma Stone. Emma brought a lot of facets to her character Mia, and La La Land is really Emma’s movie. I have to be honest though and say that the only other performance I saw was Natalie Portman in Jackie. I thought Natalie did great work as Jackie Kennedy, but something about the movie just didn’t work for me. You know who else I wish got nominated here? Taraji P. Henson for Hidden Figures.

BEST ACTOR

• Casey Affleck, Manchester By the Sea
• Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge
• Ryan Gosling, La La Land
• Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic
• Denzel Washington, Fences

I love me some Ryan Gosling, but surprisingly enough, he’s not my pick to win. For a while, it looked like Casey Affleck was running away with the award, but Denzel is coming in strong and making a play for his third Oscar. I think Denzel is going to eke out the win, but I personally would love to see Viggo Mortensen win. I feel like he doesn’t get as much recognition as he deserves, and his Captain Fantastic character feels so different for him.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Viola Davis, Fences
• Naomie Harris, Moonlight
• Nicole Kidman, Lion
• Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures
• Michelle Williams, Manchester By the Sea

In a case of category fraud that surpasses Alicia Vikander’s own nom and win last year, Viola Davis is somehow nominated as Supporting. Nope, she’s just as much a lead as Denzel in Fences. Granted, both the Actress categories are so stacked, it’s ridiculously awesome and frustrating at the same time. Because if it wasn’t for Viola being nominated here, my pick would most certainly be Naomie Harris. So amazing for what she did in THREE days filming Moonlight.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
• Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water
• Lucas Hedges, Manchester By the Sea
• Dev Patel, Lion
• Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals

Mahershala Ali was my pick to win from the moment I saw Moonlight and I still stand by it. He gave such a subtle but strong performance, and even though he’s only in the first third of the film, he left an impression. Before I even saw Lion, it puzzled me to no end why Dev Patel was being categorized as Supporting, seeing as how ads for the film use his face, but after watching it, I finally got it. I just hope this leads to more opportunities for Dev to really show off his skills as an actor.

BEST DIRECTOR

• Damien Chazelle, La La Land
• Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge
• Barry Jenkins, Moonlight
• Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By the Sea
• Denis Villeneuve, Arrival

I think Chazelle will win, making him the youngest winner in the category. As a fan of Villeneuve, I’d love to see him win. But ultimately, my pick is for Jenkins, who did such incredible work on such an incredible film.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

• “Audition (The Fools Who Dream),” La La Land
• “Can’t Stop the Feeling!,” Trolls
• “City of Stars,” La La Land
• “How Far I’ll Go,” Moana
• “The Empty Chair,” Jim: The James Foley Story

It almost happened. At the start of the awards season, I thought to myself: “What if all the songs nominated were not only songs I knew, but also loved?” The Critics Choice Awards was my first glimmer of hope, with 5 out of 6 nominees being songs I indeed loved (including one from my preciously overlooked Sing Street), and I dreamed and hoped those five would make it to Oscars. Alas, it didn’t happen, though I’m still left with FOUR songs I love and adore being nominated. So who do I pick to win? Are you kidding me? I CAN’T CHOOSE!! We have songs from La La Land! Lin-Manuel Miranda is nominated!! JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE IS NOMINATED!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME???!!!! Am I, JT superfan, seriously not picking JT to win? But, LA LA LAND!! But, EGOT for Lin-Manuel! COME ON!!!

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

• Jackie – Mica Levi
• La La Land – Justin Hurwitz
• Lion – Dustin O’Halloran, Hauschka
• Moonlight – Nicholas Britell
• Passengers – Thomas Newman

Despite my love of music, I’m not typically a score person. I know the importance of a great score, but I don’t usually pay attention to it. And honestly, this is the first year since Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ nomination and win for The Social Network score, that I’ve cared. That’s because like the movie it belongs to, I fell in love with Justin Hurwitz’s score for La La Land. I have to say though that I’m surprised Pharrell didn’t get nominated for the Hidden Figures score because I think he did a great job overall with all the music in that film as well.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• Arrival – Eric Heisserer
• Fences – August Wilson
• Hidden Figures – Allison Schroeder, Theodore Melfi
• Lion – Luke Davies
• Moonlight – Barry Jenkins, Tarell Alvin McCraney

In an attempt to share the love, my ideal choice to win is Eric Heisserer’s screenplay for Arrival, though I think Barry Jenkins will win, and that’s not a bad thing at all! Actually, any of the nominees here could win and it would be okay.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• Hell or High Water – Taylor Sheridan
• La La Land – Damien Chazelle
• The Lobster – Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou
• Manchester By the Sea – Kenneth Lonergan
• 20th Century Women – Mike Mills

For all the La La Land love, I’m not sure I’d want it to win here. Not to say it’s not deserving because Chazelle did such a spectacular job creating a new and original musical, which is such a hard sell these days. My pick to win is Kenneth Lonergan’s screenplay for Manchester By the Sea, and I have a feeling voters may go this route as well.

BEST ANIMATED MOVIE

• Kubo and the Two Strings
• Moana
• My Life as a Zucchini
• The Red Turtle
• Zootopia

Keeping in mind that it’s not all about mainstream hits here, I never heard of My Life as a Zucchini. I’m surprised Finding Dory didn’t get nominated. A little less surprised that Trolls wasn’t nominated, even though I love that movie and am clearly biased about it. Want me to pick between my two other Disney favourites, Moana or Zootopia? It’s difficult, but I think I may have to pick Zootopia.

I’m not great with some of these technical categories, but I’m going to give it a shot anyways (picks in BOLD).

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

• Arrival
• La La Land
• Lion
• Moonlight
• Silence

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

• Allied
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
• Florence Foster Jenkins
• Jackie
• La La Land

BEST FILM EDITING

• Arrival
• Hacksaw Ridge
• Hell or High Water
• La La Land
• Moonlight

BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING

• A Man Called Ove
• Star Trek Beyond
• Suicide Squad

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

• Arrival
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
• Hail, Caesar!
• La La Land
• Passengers

BEST SOUND EDITING

• Arrival
• Deepwater Horizon
• Hacksaw Ridge
• La La Land
• Sully

BEST SOUND MIXING

• Arrival
• Hacksaw Ridge
• La La Land
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
• 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

• Deepwater Horizon
• Doctor Strange
• The Jungle Book
• Kubo and the Two Strings
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

As for the Documentary (Feature and Short), Foreign Language, and Short Film (Animated and Live Action) nominees – unfortunately, I haven’t watched any of them, so I can’t really comment.

 

September Recap, Part 2: TIFF 2016

Earlier this summer, I was planning on skipping TIFF altogether because my sister was expecting around the same time, and I knew it was just going to be a really crazy time. And then they started rolling out film announcements. The first wave they announced was already full of films I really wanted to see and just couldn’t pass on the opportunity to see them early. So I made the conscious decision to still go to TIFF, but not in the same way that I’ve been doing it the past few years. What I normally did was buy the TIFF Choice Premium Package, which had the TIFF programmers pick 3 premiere movies for me to attend. Sometimes I’d get lucky and got a movie I actually wanted to see; most times I’d get movies that weren’t necessarily high on my list, and sometimes they were at really odd times. Anyways, so instead of going that route, I opted to buy the 10-pack Flex Package, which meant forgoing the Premieres for tickets to regular screenings. The upside to the Flex Pack was getting to choose my films before the single tickets went on sale, which was a blessing because the new system TIFF implemented to get tickets was really confusing.

So between my Flex Package, my friend handling single ticket sales, and checking the websites for additional tickets at 7 AM, I ended up getting tickets to 11 movies. That’s right. ELEVEN. In all my years of going to TIFF, this was a record for me, especially considering my time/travel constraints. But that’s what happened and I don’t regret it at all, because I got to see some really good movies.

Colossal was a weird movie. Good, but weird. Written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo, the movie stars Anne Hathaway as a woman who moves back to her hometown to get her life back together, and suddenly figures out she somehow controls a monster in Japan. Like I said, weird. Yet somehow it works.

For the second screening of COLOSSAL, there was no appearance from stars Anne Hathaway or Jason Sudeikis. But we got writer/director Nacho Vigalondo and supporting actor Austin Stowell.

ARQ is a sci-fi movie, that’s just totally right up my alley. Even though I knew it was going to be on Netflix, literally the week after I saw the movie, I still wanted to see it on the big screen. Also I was really hoping to see Robbie Amell again, despite the fact that it was a second screening; lucky for me, he was there! The movie was written and directed by Tony Elliott, who is also a writer on Orphan Black, which is a plus right there. Robbie Amell and Rachael Taylor star as a couple who find themselves in a time loop. That’s the very simplified version of it, but it really is such a well-crafted script that puts a nice twist to the already complex idea of a time loop. Definitely one of my favourites from the fest. Like I said, already on Netflix, check it out!

ARQ writer/director Tony Elliott, and of course, star Robbie Amell

Moonlight is such an understated but powerful movie, chronicling the life of a man at three points in his life: as a kid, a teenager, and an adult. The movie deals with what it means to be a gay African-American male in Miami, struggling with definitions of masculinity and identity. It was just so well done, on so many levels. This is the type of movie that needs to be seen and talked about. A bit heavy for a 9 AM screening (as I had done) but completely worth it. I fully expect Oscar nods for writer/director Barry Jenkins, and some of the cast. With the main character being played by three different actors, categorization gets a little complicated, but Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris need to be nominated in Supporting. The movie is slowly getting released in theatres, so go watch it when you have a chance!

I was truly not expecting to see the cast during this second screening and at 9 A.M! But it was certainly a welcome surprise.
L-R: Trevante Rhodes, Andre Holland, Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, Ashton Sanders, Alex Hibbert, writer/director Barry Jenkins

Queen of Katwe (which is already out in theatres) centers around the true life story of a Ugandan chess prodigy named Phiona. I honestly don’t understand chess. The movie though is truly inspiring, with great performances from newcomer Madina Nalwanga, who certainly holds her own opposite Lupita Nyong’o and David Oyelowo. Not gonna lie, I teared up towards the end.

I honest to goodness was going to wait until SING! came out in theatres (around Christmas time), so I could take my nieces to go see it. But when you find out the all-star voice cast of the movie, including the likes of Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, and Scarlett Johansson, are going to be in town to attend the premiere, you go! And that’s exactly what happened! The movie itself, which is about a theatre owner putting together a singing competition to help revive his theatre, was pretty darn adorable. Bonus was getting a short set from Tori Kelly and Jennifer Hudson after the screening, performing a few songs from the movie.

SING! Premiere! Look at all those beautiful people!
L-R: Jennifer Hudson, Nick Kroll, Tori Kelly, Taron Egerton, Scarlett Johansson, Reese Witherspoon, Matthew McConaughey

OH. MY. GOD. LA LA LAND! I heard the hype and praise. I obviously wanted to see it because Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in a musical was enough to sell me on it. I was bummed when the premiere and subsequent screenings were during the week. But then, TIFF did me a solid and added more screenings, one of which was on a Saturday, meaning I immediately swapped one of my other movies for it. And man, it was just SOOOOO GOOOOOOOD!!! I left the screening singing “City of Stars” and just the biggest smile on my face, despite the rain that day. I can’t wait until December to go see it again, not to mention get my hands on that soundtrack!

Another film based on a true story, Brain on Fire centers on Susannah Cahalan, a New York Post journalist who suffered through a month of various health issues that went misdiagnosed by various doctors, before she was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease. It’s certainly a challenging feat to not only do right by Cahalan’s real life story, but also present the medical side of things without making it seem like an episode of House. Director Gerard Barrett struck the right balance in adapting Cahalan’s book, and Chloe Grace Moretz, who played Cahalan, found herself in one of her best roles to date. It was informative and eye-opening, but also a bit scary to think of the struggles that Cahalan and her family went through in that time period.

I had been waiting so anxiously to see Justin Timberlake + The Tennessee Kids, the concert documentary from renowned director Jonathan Demme, shot during the last two dates of The 20/20 Experience Tour in Las Vegas. When they had initially filmed, I just thought it was going to be released on DVD just like other concert movies. When they announced it as screening at TIFF, I was surprised but then figured it was probably more documentary than concert. When I saw it, I realized it was pretty much the concert I had seen in person, minus one hour, and it was still WONDERFUL! Of course, what the film really showcased was not just JT, but also all the dancers, band members, back-up singers (aka The Tennessee Kids), and even the crew members who worked so hard to literally put the show together. And watching it again on the big screen, with the surround sound? It felt like I was there again, and all I wanted to do was get up, dance and sing along.

Burn Your Maps centers on an 8-year-old boy named Wes (played by the ever adorable Jacob Tremblay), who is convinced that he was born in the wrong place and is supposed to be a Mongolian goat-herder. His tenacity and beliefs pushes him and his mother (played by Vera Farmiga) to go on a journey to Mongolia and find themselves. It’s a unique story to say the least, and I certainly found myself enjoying the film quite a bit.

Blue Jay turned out to be a movie that was both something I normally wouldn’t have chosen to go see in theatres, but also something that I have been drawn to lately. It stars Sarah Paulson and Mark Duplass as ex-high school sweethearts, who run into each other when they return to their old hometown. The movie plays out with them reconnecting, with a sense of nostalgia. Shown in black and white, it gives off a feeling of an old home movie and you’re not sure what’s going to happen with these two (while you also wonder when they’ll reveal why they broke up 20 years ago). It felt almost too personal, like you’re intruding on this reunion, but even if you haven’t gone through it yourself, it made you connect with them.

My last movie of the festival was Arrival. I love Amy Adams, like Jeremy Renner, and have become quite the fan of Denis Villeneuve’s work that I really wanted to see this before it gets released in November. Adams plays Louise, a linguist, who along with Renner’s scientist Ian, is tasked with helping the army to communicate with a group of creatures that have appeared in spacecrafts in 12 places around the world. I don’t want to even attempt to explain more, in fear that I might spoil it. Trust me though, it’s a smart sci-fi drama, and definitely worth your time.

So all in all, it was yet another great year at TIFF. Was I a little bummed that I didn’t get to do my premiere screenings like I normally do? A little bit. But honestly, it became a nice reminder of why I liked going to TIFF – the movies…and of course, getting to be among the some of the first people to see a movie. The movies are what it’s all about though.

September Recap, Part 1: Volunteering at Fan Expo

Fan Expo occurred over the Labour Day weekend, and for the third year in a row, I came back as a volunteer. Being how busy my weeks are, I once again could only commit to working Saturday/Sunday. As a volunteer, it’s mandatory that we do four shifts during the Con, so I ended up pulling double shifts for the weekend. For the past two years I got assigned to work Volunteer Registration, which in the end really meant that I was a Floater and worked wherever I was needed. I didn’t mind it, honestly, and I was fully expecting to be there again this year. But then assignments came and I found out I got moved to Autographs! I was f**king excited! I mean I knew I was gonna be dead tired by the end of it, but didn’t matter. Because despite having to work all weekend, I still got to see most of the celebrity guests, and got to work with some of them. Well, work with the celebs, really means working with the handlers/agents who work with them. But still, close proximity!

I got to work Gillian Anderson’s line on Saturday. When she left, I got to work Katie Cassidy’s line, which was in between Danielle Panabaker and John Barrowman, so I got to see all three of them. On Sunday, I worked the lines for Jewel Staite, who brought her husband and adorable baby boy as well. Getting to work Jewel’s line was pretty awesome, because her and her handler were just so great to work with. But also, on the one side of Jewel’s booth was Alan Tudyk, Morena Baccarin, and Ben McKenzie; on the other side, Mark Hamill. Like I said, AWESOME.

Despite all the craziness and busyness of the weekend, volunteers were still allowed to enjoy their time. That meant if there was a photo-op or autograph we wanted to get, or even a panel we wanted to go to that fell during our shift, our Team Leaders/Coordinators were very accommodating. Working in Autographs, it was easy to get them, as long as we paid for them like everybody else. We were told not to straight up ask the celebs for a free autograph, ESPECIALLY while we’re on shift, because it makes the volunteers look bad and we’re all (including the celebs) there to work. And honestly, it’s understandable. So with that being said, even with double shifts, I managed to do a photo-op with Hayley Atwell, and got autographs from Ben McKenzie and Charlie Cox.

I had never done a photo-op at a Con before, but I’ve always known that it goes really quickly. So it barely even registered that I met Hayley. Walked into the photo-op area, quick “Hi!” to Hayley, took the picture, and out. It was barely 10 seconds. Enough time for a not great picture (there’s a reason I hadn’t done photo-ops, I just generally don’t like taking pictures), but not enough time for me to get awkward.

During a bit of a lull while on shift and kind of close to the end of the show, I went over to get Ben McKenzie’s autograph. And guys, I totally forgot how much of a crush I had on Ryan Atwood! I mean every time he walked over to his booth, I’d have a stupid smile on my face. Then when I actually went up to get his autograph, I couldn’t even get anything O.C.-related to come out of my mouth. It was the standard pleasantries: “Hi, how are you? Are you enjoying your time here in Toronto?” I was just total fangirling! Ben, for what’s it worth, was just so nice and thanked me as a volunteer for the hard work we put in over the weekend.

By 4:30 Sunday, the majority of the celebs were done and gone, and it was then just a matter of cleaning up the booths. So after cleaning up and such, I was pretty much done my shift before the Con was even over. I looked over and saw Charlie Cox was still signing autographs, and he stayed there until the very end. I was just hanging around at that point, and impulsively decided to get Charlie’s autograph. End of the day, not much of a line, whatever. Anyways, when I got up to meet Charlie, he read and mispronounced my name, which happens all the time, so I just waved it off and said “It’s T.” Charlie being adorable was like, “Oh, sorry! T? I love tea! I drink it all the time. Because you know, I’m English.” It was cute, especially with the accent; I fangirled, obviously. And then, even after he got through signing for everybody that was left, I don’t know for sure how it was instigated, but he was about to leave and then came back to take a group picture with a few fans (and us volunteers that were still hanging around lol). I am still looking for that picture.

It was such a busy weekend, but my third year volunteering turned out to be the best year so far. Working the autograph lines was such a fun experience, tiring as it was, though so completely worth it. My only hope is that I get to do it again next year!

Fall TV 2016: What I’m Watching

The new TV season is officially upon us! Now, at the beginning of the year, the Canadian TV companies officially converted everything over to digital, so I’ve basically been without cable all year. No cable meant me watching everything online, after the fact. Also, with my busy schedule that’s going to keep on for some time, I don’t have the time that I used to to watch everything. So basically with this new TV season, I am trying to be super picky about what shows I’m devoting my time to. So what returning shows am I still sticking with this fall? And which new shows are on my list to check out?

MONDAYS

• Supergirl
• Jane the Virgin
• Conviction [NEW]

Despite Supergirl‘s move to the CW, my Monday nights stay firmly in tact. Hayley Atwell’s American accent might take some getting used to, but I’m all in for Conviction. I also intend on watching DWTS, but that’s been relegated to YouTube video status – I don’t have the time to watch the full telecast.

TUESDAYS

• Fresh Off the Boat
• Agents of SHIELD
• The Flash
• Brooklyn Nine-Nine
• No Tomorrow [NEW]*
• This Is Us [NEW]*
• The Mindy Project

Tuesdays, still full. I’m not so sure how much I’ll like No Tomorrow or This Is Us, but I’m very much willing to give it a chance. Everything else is just returning shows.

WEDNESDAYS

• Survivor
• Arrow
• Black-ish
• Empire*
• Designated Survivor [NEW]
• Speechless [NEW]*
• Frequency [NEW]*
• Salem
• You’re the Worst

How did Wednesdays become so full? I feel like I say that all the time, but it’s still true. Salem‘s not back until November, and You’re the Worst might be done by then, but I’m still not incredibly happy that Salem is adding to my Wednesday load. Season 2 of Empire was not great, so it’s on my list for now, in hopes that it gets back to what made it great in S1. Not sure about Speechless or Frequency, but willing to give it a shot.

THURSDAYS

• Legends of Tomorrow*
• Notorious [NEW]*
• Pitch [NEW]
• Superstore
• The Good Place [NEW]
• How to Get Away With Murder*

Pitch and The Good Place look really good. Haven’t heard great things about Notorious, but for Piper Perabo and Daniel Sunjata, I’m giving it a chance. Legends of Tomorrow was off and on for me last season; I’m hoping it gets into a consistent creative flow in S2. As for How to Get Away With Murder? I feel like it went off the rails in S2, that I’m not even entirely sure I want to watch S3. If the first episode gives me a compelling reason to watch, then I’ll stick to it; otherwise, it’s getting the axe from me.

FRIDAYS

Ummm, with the final season of Grimm being relegated to midseason, I’ve got nothing. Catch-up day it is.

SUNDAYS

• Last Man on Earth
• Quantico*
• Westworld [NEW]*

Quantico started off so well, and yet somewhere along the way, it became a soap opera mess. I desperately want it to do better in S2, but if it becomes ridiculous, it’s getting cut too. I don’t know much about Westworld, though it does look interesting, so give it a chance I will.

Starting off the season with 28 shows. How many will stay on my watch list by midseason? I guess we’ll just wait and see.

2016 Emmy Picks

The Emmys are tonight! Now, in recent years, I haven’t watched 75% of the shows that are nominated, which makes watching the awards kinda pointless. Unlike the Tony Awards, wherein I’ve never seen any of the Broadway shows, at least I have the amazing performances from those shows to make the telecast entertaining. I still like watching the Emmys nonetheless. I may not be the best barometer for what’s the best on TV, because we really are in a period of “Peak TV” and so many options. But I know what I watch, what I like, and what I think is deserving of some Emmy love. With that being said, here are my predictions/personal picks for who I think will come out on top.

OUTSTANDING COMEDY

• Black-ish
• Master of None
• Modern Family
• Silicon Valley
• Transparent
• Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
• Veep

Should Win: Black-ish
Will Win: Veep

Of the 7 nominees, I actually watched 4 of them. (Yay!) My personal pick to win is Black-ish, because it has been so consistently funny, all the while tackling African-American issues/subject matters that is still relatable. I’ll admit to not having watched Veep, but I hear it’s good, and it did win the category last year. If I had my way though, the nominees would’ve included Jane the Virgin, Fresh Off the Boat, and You’re the Worst; but alas, it just wasn’t meant to be.

OUTSTANDING DRAMA

• The Americans
• Better Call Saul
• Downton Abbey
• Game of Thrones
• Homeland
• House of Cards
• Mr. Robot

Should Win: The Americans
Will Win: Game of Thrones

Again, if I had my way, I would’ve liked to see 12 Monkeys, Outlander, and Suits nominated. However, we live in a world where three of the nominees are just safe repeats. But hey! At least, The Americans FINALLY got nominated!! And also good on Mr. Robot for getting a nomination (even though I couldn’t get into it.) I feel like the predictable choice to win is Game of Thrones, if only for the Emmys to say, “Hey! Last year was no fluke! We like genre shows!…(…But only if they’re on HBO)”

LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY

• Ellie Kemper, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
• Laurie Metcalf, Getting On
• Tracee Ellis Ross, black-ish
• Amy Schumer, Inside Amy Schumer
• Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie
  

Should Win: Tracee Ellis Ross
Will Win: Julia Louis-Dreyfus

JLD will almost certainly continue to reign in this category. I mean, if Amy Poehler can’t pull off a win for playing Leslie Knope, I’m not sure how anybody else can beat JLD. The best chance is with Ross, who completely owns her role as Bow, and doesn’t play a stereotypical mom. The only other true contender I think would be Kemper, who definitely added layers to her bright-eyed Kimmy in season 2. You have no idea however, how mad I was to see the likes of Gina Rodriguez, Constance Wu, and Aya Cash not get nominated for their work (Jane the Virgin, Fresh Off the Boat, You’re the Worst – respectively).

LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY

• Anthony Anderson, black-ish
• Aziz Ansari, Master of None
• Will Forte, The Last Man on Earth
• William H Macy, Shameless
• Thomas Middleditch, Silicon Valley
• Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

Should Win: Anthony Anderson
Will Win: Jeffrey Tambor

Again, the odds on favourite to win is Tambor, much like JLD. I however would like to see Anderson sneak in a win. Anderson has finally found a role that works for him. As Dre, Anderson is equal parts loving husband and father, but also a goofball dad.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY

• Anna Chlumsky, Veep
• Gaby Hoffmann, Transparent
• Allison Janney, Mom
• Judith Light, Transparent
• Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
• Niecy Nash, Getting On
  

Should Win: Kate McKinnon
Will Win: Allison Janney

Oh look, 6 nominees and the only show I actually watch is SNL, and even that I don’t watch all the time. But we all know McKinnon is an absolute treasure, committing to all the characters/skits that get thrown her way on the show. That being said, the Emmys love Allison Janney (I don’t blame them) so I expect her to repeat win. Her next closest competitor I feel is Judith Light. I don’t know what it is, but I have the sense that she could potentially beat Janney.

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY

• Louie Anderson, Baskets
• Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
• Titus Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
• Ty Burrell, Modern Family
• Tony Hale, Veep
• Keegan-Michael Key, Key & Peele
  
• Matt Walsh, Veep

Should Win: Andre Braugher
Will Win: Tony Hale

I don’t understand how Braugher has yet to win in this category, for playing the best straight man/gay cop ever on a comedy series. Burrell’s time has come and gone (Modern Family just isn’t what it used to be). If Veep continues its streak, Hale will probably win once again

LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA

• Clare Danes, Homeland
• Viola Davis, How to Get Away With Murder
• Taraji P. Henson, Empire
• Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
• Keri Russell, The Americans
• Robin Wright, House of Cards
  

Should Win: Tatiana Maslany
Will Win: ????

This is a stacked category. These may be the nominees, but you could arguably come up with a whole other list with the likes of Shiri Appleby, Hayley Atwell, Caitriona Balfe, Krysten Ritter, Amanda Schull, and Kerry Washington, and they’d be just as deserving. I think Maslany should win, hands down, because hello?! She plays how many clones? Each of them are completely different from one another; so different in fact that you forget that they’re all played by Maslany. And if for some reason Maslany doesn’t win, the only next logical option is Russell, because this nomination was just way overdue. Ultimately, who will win? I don’t know. Davis might repeat, or Henson could take it, so the Emmys don’t get put through the wringer about minority wins. But how can you deny Maslany and her many clones??!!

LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA

• Kyle Chandler, Bloodline
• Rami Malek, Mr. Robot
• Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
• Matthew Rhys, The Americans
• Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
• Kevin Spacey, House of Cards

Should Win: Matthew Rhys
Will Win: ???

Once again, another question mark as to who will win. Last year’s winner, Jon Hamm, is obviously not in the mix anymore, leaving the race pretty wide open. Might voters recognize Spacey’s work, despite many calling season 3 to be incredibly weak? Could new nominee Matthew Rhys (who is finally getting recognized) pull off a win?! I sure hope so!

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA

• Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones
• Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
• Dame Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey
• Maura Tierney, The Affair
• Maisie Williams, Game of Thrones
• Constance Zimmer, UnREAL

Should Win: Maura Tierney
Will Win: Maura Tierney

I think the three GoT actresses will split the vote, and Dame Maggie Smith has already won multiple times, so (for me at least), it comes down to Tierney and Zimmer. First of all, so happy to see these two nominated. I personally think that Tierney stands a better chance at winning for her tough and layered role on The Affair. In all honesty, she (along with Joshua Jackson) really made season 2; the additional viewpoints from their characters were quite beneficial to the show. That’s not to say that Zimmer isn’t deserving, because she completely is. Zimmer’s Quinn can be a total bitch, but you can sometimes see the cracks in her facade.

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA

• Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul
• Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
• Kit Harrington, Game of Thrones
• Michael Kelly, House of Cards
• Ben Mendelsohn, Bloodline
• Jon Voight, Ray Donovan

Should Win: ???
Will Win: ???

I watch none of these shows. I also didn’t get a single one of my dream nominees (James D’Arcy, Jesse L. Martin, Joshua Jackson, Jonathan Tucker) on the final list. So who should and will win? I really couldn’t tell you.