Continuing our series “IF THE OSCARS WERE TOMORROW,” let’s see how many films we can possibly count on to make a dent in the category of Original Score. It’s always a little tricky to predict which films may register with this branch.
Ground rules to keep in mind. For the best possible accuracy, we’ll be considering not just every film that’s opened theatrically to date, but also every film SCREENED thus far that has both secured distribution and is already dated for release. These screenings may include any of the big festivals from the first half of the year or earlier. Films exclusively screened privately for the industry or press will not count. *
Original Score
1 – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
2 – F1 (Apple/Warner Bros.)
3 – Lilo & Stitch (Disney)
4 – Materialists (A24)
5 – Train Dreams (Netflix)
Ludwig Göransson is a lock here for “Sinners,” his most recent collaboration with Ryan Coogler. Göransson is coming off a big win for scoring “Oppenheimer” in 2023, and with “Sinners” threatening to dominate below-the-line at the Oscars, he will at the very least come dangerously close to a third statue!
Hans Zimmer, a perennial favorite at the Oscars, would likely be nominated for “F1” if nominations were handed out tomorrow, although the legend has had some trouble as of late getting recognition for work outside his storied collaborations with Christopher Nolan. That said, his most recent nod for “Dune, Part 1” culminated in his second win (finally!!). Zimmer was also part of the composing team on Kosinski’s “Top Gun: Maverick” in 2022. That film was disqualified from the category after the Academy ruled that it did not contain enough original music. This time around he carries sole composing responsibilities on the Kosinski blockbuster – which can only help his campaign.
There are a lot of titles so far this year that are not typically the branch’s cup of tea – notable work on both summer superhero flicks “Superman” and “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” are at a disadvantage due to genre bias. If there were any justice, we’d see some love for the Scottish group Young Fathers whose inspired, percussive music in “28 Years Later” was almost half the experience. Alexandre Desplat is a staple here, but even he has trouble squeezing in for a Wes Anderson project. John Powell is back with the live-action “How to Train Your Dragon” after having been nominated for the original, but my impression is his new work does not distinguish itself enough for voters to feel compelled to include it.
Instead, this could be an ideal place to recognize another live-action remake and the biggest film of the year, Disney’s “Lilo & Stitch.” Animated films have seen an uptick here as of late after a prolonged dry spell from 2012-2017. Recent nominees include “Soul,” “Encanto,” and last year’s “The Wild Robot.” It feels as though Dan Romer has been waiting for an opportunity to breakthrough with Oscar voters after his work on Best Picture nominee “Beasts of the Southern Wild” caught everyone by surprise. This movie may just be big enough to make that happen.
Speaking of breaking through, this may be the ideal circumstance to finally invite Daniel Pemberton into the nominee’s circle. Already a nominee in the song category, it seems that Pemberton has become a staple of the branch’s semi-finalist list for scoring, appearing among those 15 titles almost annually. Yet, he cannot get beyond that round with voters. You can’t help but wonder if it’s starting to feel personal to the composer. This summer he collaborated on the subversive and meditative music for Celine Song’s reinterpretation of the romantic-comedy “Materialists,” a sleeper hit at the U.S. box-office. It’s surprising, unsentimental work that helps shape the tone of the film and should rank among Pemberton’s best.
Finally, the fifth slot could go to another overlooked musician. Bryce Dessner has quietly evolved into one of the most prolific composers working in the industry, often tackling multiple projects a year. A longtime collaborator of Bently and Kwedar, Dessner most recently made the shortlist for their collaboration on “Sing Sing.” If competition remains low, we could see him finally land a nomination for his subtle work on “Train Dreams” To his benefit, for a composer as well-respected and as talented as Bryce, it really is only a question of when.