Oscar 2017 before G hour: Which candidate will win?

The 89th Academy Awards 2017 will be held on the night of February 26 (local time, or the morning of February 27 Vietnam time). Ahead of the biggest film event on the planet, critics are still making predictions: Who will win and who can create the biggest surprise at this year's awards ceremony.

Previously, the Oscar nomination categoriesBest Moviewas limited to five films. However, since 2009, the Academy has doubled the number of films nominated to allow for more popular films.

Best Movie

Critics said that the list of films nominated for Oscars this year was too thin and only 5 films deserved to be on the list. However, they chose 9 films to be nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture: Arrival, La La Land, Fences, Hacksaw Ridge, Hell Or High Water, Hidden Figures, Lion, Manchester By The Sea and Moonlight.

Of the nominees, La La Land is the film that is likely to win the most votes. La La Land has dominated this year's awards season, winning the BAFTA for Best Picture and the Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy in addition to its 14 Oscar nominations, a record that is on par with blockbusters Titanic and All About Eve.

Images from the films nominated for “Best Picture”.

Critics say that among the nominated films, only Moonlight can "beat" La La Land. Moonlight is a film about the growth of an African-American man in the Miami ghetto, his struggle with drugs, as well as the pain of life and love while struggling with his sexuality.

Moonlight was critically acclaimed as a multi-ethnic masterpiece and won numerous awards, including the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Picture.

Best Director

Nominees for this year's category include Damien Chazelle (La La Land), Mel Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge), Barry Jenkins (Moonlight), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester By The Sea) and Denis Villeneuve (Arrival), but among them, Mel Gibson is the director who deserves to win the top prize because he has made an impressive and successful comeback after a long time of being involved in a love scandal and racism.

Best Director category, from right to left: Damien Chazelle, Denis Villeneuve, Barry Jenkins, Kenneth Lonergan and Mel Gibson.

Denis Villeneuve is arguably the biggest filmmaker among the nominees, but many critics feel he doesn't deserve to win this year, having made some better films than Arrival (like Sicario, Prisoners).

Meanwhile, Kenneth Lonergan, the playwright turned director, is also a critical darling with his film Manchester By The Sea.

However, Barry Jenkins is likely to win the award for Moonlight because, in addition to the film's persuasiveness, Jenkins is in the "crosshairs" of Academy members in the context that this film institution wants to "correct its mistakes" after being heavily criticized for being too "respectful" of white artists.

Best Actress

This year's nominees include Isabelle Huppert, Ruth Negga, Natalie Portman, Emma Stone, and Meryl Streep. However, veteran French actress Isabelle Huppert is likely to win as she continues to surprise with her character Elle in director Paul Verhoeven's rape drama.

“Best Actress” category, from left: Isabelle Huppert, Meryl Streep, Ruth Negga, Natalie Portman and Emma Stone

Meanwhile, Hollywood veteran Meryl Streep also impressed with her role in the biopic Florence Foster Jenkins, about an opera singer with one of the worst voices in history. Streep's performance was considered witty and sophisticated, but this was not a role that could bring her a third Golden Statue, after she won two Oscars for Best Actress for Sophie's Choice and The Iron Lady.

Natalie Portman is also being praised for her excellent portrayal of Jackie Kennedy in the film about the days after President Kennedy's assassination. But perhaps the most likely winner is Emma Stone for La La Land, for which Stone won the Screen Actors Guild and BAFTA for Best Actress.

Best Actor

Nominees for this category this year include Casey Affleck, Andrew Garfield, Ryan Gosling, Viggo Mortensen, and Denzel Washington, but Casey Affleck and Denzel Washington are considered the "heaviest" contenders.

“Best Actor” category, from left: Viggo Mortensen, Ryan Gosling, Andrew Garfield, Denzel Washington and Casey Affleck.

Denzel Washington portrays a fearless character in Fences, a film about the racial struggles of an African-American father named Troy for his family.

In the film, Troy did everything he could to help his family escape racial discrimination in America in the 1950s. In addition to Washington's convincing performance, the audience was also captivated by his monologues in the film.

Critics also pinned their hopes on Casey Affleck for his portrayal of a grieving father in Manchester By The Sea. Affleck's performance is full of depth and sophistication.

According to TT&VH