Finishing the OscarsDeathRace, and my personal “ballot”

Taking a look at the Oscars, one week out

There’s an entertaining subreddit called Oscars Death Race, in which participants try to see every film nominated for the Oscars in every category while helping each other find hard-to-find films. This is much easier for some films (Oppenheimer, Barbie) than for others, which don’t have any easy, free streaming availability (most of the shorts, plus Robot Dreams, which NEON is not putting in theaters until May.)

This is harder for some people than others, especially if they live in another country or even a rural part of the United States. I know Reddit doesn’t always have the best reputation, but Oscars Death Race represents an example of The Good Reddit.

As a professional critic, it’s a bit easier for me. I see movies all year round, get screeners, and everything else. But even I had a few films I hadn’t gotten to see until last week, including one each in the foreign and documentary feature categories, as well as the majority of the shorts. 

I’ve now completed the “race,” with a week to spare, having watched all those films over the weekend. A couple of years ago, I finished my watch by catching Best International Film nominee Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom on the afternoon of the ceremony. However, this time, I gave myself more of a cushion. 

I’m also long on record stating that the Oscars are not the be-all and end-all of all movies. I don’t believe in speculating about the Oscars all year long, and you’ll rarely see me talking in individual reviews about whether something might win some award. 

That said, I enjoy watching the Oscars themselves, and I figured, hey, it’s Oscars week, so why not share my own Oscar picks? For each category, I’ll share my prediction and vote (if I had one.)