‘Everything Everywhere’ and Oscars

Hollywood, United States: "Everything Everywhere All at Once," a wacky sci-fi film featuring multiple universes enters Sunday´s Oscars ceremony as the highly unorthodox frontrunner for best picture.

Academy bosses hope audiences will tune in to see whether the zany $100 million-grossing hit can claim Hollywood´s most coveted prize -- and draw a line under Will Smith´s infamous slap at last year´s gala.

"Everything Everywhere" -- which leads the overall nominations count at 11 -- follows a Chinese immigrant laundromat owner locked in battle with an inter-dimensional supervillain who happens to also be her own daughter.

The film has dominated nearly every awards show in Hollywood, with its charismatic, predominantly Asian stars becoming the feel-good story of the season.

"It´s a group of very likable people behind the movie who it´s impossible to not be happy for," Hollywood Reporter awards columnist Scott Feinberg told AFP.

But although the quirky film is widely expected to dominate Oscars night, it could hit a stumbling block for best picture.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences uses a special "preferential" voting system for that award, in which members rank films from best to worst.

The approach punishes polarizing films.

One Oscars voter who asked not to be identified told AFP that some members -- particularly among the Academy´s older ranks -- are "more divided about ´Everything Everywhere All at Once.´"

"It was very bold and unique, but not a traditional movie... it could be further down the ballot for a lot of people," the voter said.

If any rival can benefit, it is likely "All Quiet on the Western Front," Netflix´s German-language World War I movie that dominated Britain´s BAFTAs.

Another potential beneficiary is "Top Gun: Maverick," the long-awaited sequel from Tom Cruise -- no less a figure than Steven Spielberg recently said the actor and his film "might have saved the entire theatrical industry" from the pandemic.

"It was that movie that brought audiences back to movie theaters," said the anonymous Oscars voter. (AFP)