AND THE WINNER IS... Which of this week's Oscar-nominated films have you caught – and what's now on your watch list?
THERE's something magical about going into a film you know absolutely nothing about and taking a deep breath as the lights fade, ready to share something with fellow cinema-goers who have made the same choice that evening.
You're going to be transported somewhere for a couple of hours – you're just not sure where.
That's exactly how I went into a screening of Yorgos Lanthimos' Poor Things at Eden Court earlier this week, blissfully unaware of the massive impression it was about to make on the year's Oscar nominations' list.
In truth, I wasn't even aware the Academy Award list was coming out this week. It's amazing what can go over your head, or under your radar, when life gets busy. Things to do, people to see, bills to pay. You know the drill.
I'd managed to miss Poor Things at the always excellent Inverness Film Festival hosted by the same venue, but had seen an arresting image of one of its stars, Emma Stone, on the front cover of the program.
Isn't it the case that at any festival there's always one that gets away – the band (or film) everyone is talking about that you missed out on due to scheduling issues and tough choices?
For me, this year, that film may, in fact be Greta Gerwig's Barbie, also multi-award tipped (though not for director or lead actress, Margot Robbie).
(If you're now mad keen to see Poor Things, by the way, it's on at Eden Court until Thursday. It's up for 11 Oscars.)
How many of this year's Oscar-nominated films have have you been able to see – and which are now firmly on your watch list?
Did you feel a burning sense of indignation at a favourite overlooked – or nod sagely as you ran an eye down the list, concurring with the opinions of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, smug in the knowledge that you've also seen it and loved it too?
Ever since I was taken to see The French Lieutenant's Woman at the same venue decades ago by my mum as an impressionable teenager (again knowing nothing whatsoever about it), I've enjoyed falling under the spell of the transformative magic of cinema. Don't get me wrong, I've also literally fallen asleep at more than a handful of clunkers which failed to grab me or were being watched whilst too tired and in too comfortable a seat...
I remember loving the zippy script of the first ten minutes of Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction so much that I was already making plans and anticipating the pleasure of a second viewing. At that moment I had no idea it would sweep the boards in the 1995 awards' season, just that I was experiencing something special.
Looking at this year's Oscar awards' list, I'm even more delighted to see the appearance of The Holdovers and its star Paul Giamatti, also seen at this year's Inverness Film Festival, where -– for me – it was by far the best thing I saw. Vindicated!
Likewise the tour de force that is Anatomy of a Fall. I saw Oppenheimer (13 nominations) at the same venue but reckon it was overlong and overrated. You? Just me, then.
Maestro (Bradley Cooper, up for best picture and actor) was a complete chance encounter on Netflix at the weekend. Result!
I'm no expert and am not going to spoil Poor Things – or any other film – for you. (Summary: It's the incredible tale about the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) based on the novel by Scottish writer Alasdair Gray.)
But given that the Oscars happens to coincide with my birthday this year, I may well be staying up late to catch the drama, the slushy speeches and the fixed grins of the also-rans watching their rivals take the plaudits.
And I've still got Hayao Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli fantasy The Boy and the Heron to see this week (up for best animated feature, as it turns out). That's on at Eden Court too, by the way. A privilege to have access to international and independent cinema – along with all the latest blockbusters – so close to hand. And further flung Screen Machine fans will doubtless feel the same.
As the countdown to the escapist delights of Oscars' night continues, enjoy your filmgoing whatever's your cup of tea...
Best picture
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Past Lives
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
Best actor
Bradley Cooper - Maestro
Colman Domingo - Rustin
Paul Giamatti - The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy - Oppenheimer
Jeffrey Wright - American Fiction
Best actress
Annette Bening - Nyad
Lily Gladstone - Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Huller - Anatomy of a Fall
Carey Mulligan - Maestro
Emma Stone - Poor Things
Best supporting actress
Emily Blunt - Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks - The Color Purple
America Ferrera - Barbie
Jodie Foster - Nyad
Da'Vine Joy Randolph - The Holdovers
Best supporting actor
Sterling K Brown - American Fiction
Robert De Niro - Killers of the Flower Moon
Robert Downey Jr - Oppenheimer
Ryan Gosling - Barbie
Mark Ruffalo - Poor Things
Best director
Anatomy of a Fall - Justine Triet
Killers of the Flower Moon - Martin Scorsese
Oppenheimer - Christopher Nolan
Poor Things - Yorgos Lanthimos
The Zone of Interest - Jonathan Glazer
Best adapted screenplay
American Fiction
Barbie
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
Best original screenplay
Anatomy of a Fall
The Holdovers
Maestro
May December
Past Lives
Best original song
The Fire Inside - Flamin' Hot (Diane Warren)
I'm Just Ken - Barbie (Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt)
It Never Went Away - American Symphony (Jon Batiste, Dan Wilson)
Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People) - Killers of the Flower Moon (Scott George)
What Was I Made For? - Barbie (Billie Eilish, Finneas O'Connell)
Best original score
American Fiction
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best international feature
Io Capitano
Perfect Days
Society of the Snow
The Teachers' Lounge
The Zone of Interest
Best animated feature
The Boy and the Heron
Elemental
Nimona
Robot Dreams
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Best documentary feature
Bobi Wine: The People's President
The Eternal Memory
Four Daughters
To Kill a Tiger
20 Days in Mariupol
Best costume design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best make-up and hairstyling
Golda
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Society of the Snow
Best production design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best sound
The Creator
Maestro
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
The Zone of Interest
Best film editing
Anatomy of a Fall
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best cinematography
El Conde
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best visual effects
The Creator
Godzilla Minus One
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Napoleon
Best live action short
The After
Invincible
Knight of Fortune
Red, White and Blue
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Best animated short
Letter to a Pig
Ninety-Five Senses
Our Uniform
Pachyderme
War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko
Best documentary short
The ABCs of Book Banning
The Barber of Little Rock
Island In Between
The Last Repair Shop
Nǎi Nai and Wài Pó
