David Edelstein's Oscar picks
What to look for at tonight's Academy Awards? Cue David Edelstein!
Well, here we are again -- but where are we? On the brink of what's going to be a weird Oscar night.
The outrage over the all-white slate of major nominees will be the evening's subtext, and probably its regular text, too. Now, I sympathize with the Academy's top brass. They have an African-American president. They gave an honorary award to Spike Lee. They picked Chris Rock to host. It was their mostly white, male, over-50-year-old voters who let them down.
That's right, a lot of them look like me.
Except I'd have voted to nominate "Creed," star Michael B. Jordan, and director Ryan Coogler, instead of just the white guy in that movie, Sylvester Stallone.
And I'd have voted for Idris Elba in "Beasts of No Nation," among others.
- Oscars 2016: Black actors snubbed, #OscarsSoWhite picks up again
- Oscar snubs: The Force is not with "Star Wars"
- Complete list of 2016 nominees | Download pdf Oscar ballot
- Video: 45 films snubbed by Oscar (CBS News)
- Gallery: 10 greatest Best Picture snubs of all time
So who is in contention?
Leonardo DiCaprio: Nominated many times, no wins, always comes back harder. In "The Revenant," he hauls his broken body, snuffling and grunting, over miles of frozen tundra. Give him his Oscar, already!
- Oscars 2016: Take our Best Actor poll
- Leonardo DiCaprio on challenges of filming "The Revenant" ("CBS This Morning")
- David Edelstein reviews "The Revenant"
And I hear "The Revenant" will win, too, and many people love it. I found director Alejandro Inarritu's mix of show-off, macho technique and bogus Native American spirituality downright icky. "The Big Short," "Spotlight," and "Room" -- all robbed.
- Oscars 2016: Take our Best Picture poll
- David Edelstein reviews "Spotlight"
- David Edelstein reviews "The Big Short," "Room"
See "Room," if for no other reason than Brie Larson, who's, by the way, a lock for Best Actress.
- Oscars 2016: Take our Best Actress poll
- Brie Larson on earning it ("Sunday Morning")
- David Edelstein reviews "Room"
Alicia Vikander is the Supporting Actress front-runner for the transgender weeper "The Danish Girl," though I'm rooting for Jennifer Jason Leigh and her fiendish smile through broken teeth in "The Hateful Eight."
- Oscars 2016: Take our Best Supporting Actress poll
- Jennifer Jason Leigh looks ahead ("Sunday Morning")
- David Edelstein reviews "The Hateful Eight"
- Actress Alicia Vikander on rise to stardom ("CBS This Morning")
Finally, I hear Stallone will win for the aged Rocky Balboa in "Creed," which is kind of nice. He was nominated for the original "Rocky," but though the movie won, he lost Best Actor to Peter Finch for "Network." Rocky should win in this arena, too.
- Oscars 2016: Take our Best Supporting Actor poll
- Sylvester Stallone steps back into the ring ("Sunday Morning")
- David Edelstein reviews "Creed"
Making up for past omissions -- that's what the Academy does well.
Given the omissions this year, they'd better get busy!