We’ve put too much stock on the winners of the ASC prize in past years, like when we thought that Łukasz Żal’s cinematography for Cold War would persevere over Alfonso Cuarón’s for Roma on Oscar night. That particular pick was further justified by Paweł Pawlikowski’s nomination for his direction, as there’s a strong link between films winning in this category and their being nominated for directing and, especially, best picture.
Which is my way of saying that the only thing that was going to possibly prevent us from calling this race for Lol Crawley’s cinematography for The Brutalist was if the ASC went for Greig Fraser’s for Dune: Part Two, especially considering that Fraser won an Oscar for his work on the first Dune. But the ASC’s very ASC winner this year was Ed Lachman’s work on Maria, a result that not only has us sticking to our game plan but also has us now worried that Dune: Part Two may be on shakier ground in the other tech categories than we think.
Will Win: The Brutalist
Could Win: Nosferatu
Should Win: Maria
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