Best Makeup and Hairstyling:

Like Best Sound or any other technical category, Best Makeup and Hairstyling is often about which movie has the most noticeable makeup and hairstyling. Cruella, House of Gucci, and Coming 2 America certainly fit that bill. Dune and The Eyes of Tammy Faye are a bit confounding because for the former, makeup and hairstyling are not the features that stand out in that film and for the latter, it seems as if the makeup for the two leads is working overtime to have it qualify for this category. Even for House of Gucci and Coming 2 America, it’s really about the work done on Jared Leto’s character to make him look like a decrepit lothario for the former and for the scene where Eddie Murphy plays multiple characters for the latter. Nonetheless, Cruella stands a strong chance because of the sheer scale of the film and how much money was lavished on costuming and production design.

Prediction: The Eyes of Tammy Faye

Best Costume Design:

The nominees for Best Costume Design have a very wide range this year: everything from science-fiction to noir and every nominee proves to be a strong competitor. Jenny Beavan’s costume design in Cruella is marvelous as the story of Cruella de Vil is extraordinarily fitted. Not only does the infamous dog-hating character deserve to be dressed to the nines but her story of growing up poor and becoming a fashion designer is executed wonderfully through the choices of costume. The same exquisiteness can be found in Jacqueline Durran and Massimo Cantini Parrini’s work in Cyrano. Joe Wright’s adaptation of this classic piece of literature has a lot to owe to costume design, as the grandiose and meticulous costumes play into establishing the time period of the story.

Luis Sequeira’s costume design in Nightmare Alley is an absolute masterclass of genre-based design. The carnival noir is dressed up excellently by Sequeira, as characters range from suit-and-tie to outlandish apparel and his work really shines in making these characters stand out from one another. Paul Tazewell’s work in West Side Story is absolutely stunning as well, as he imbues a wild color range into the story through his costuming work. The slums of New York are truly brought to life and brought to the screen by his design which really helps the characters pop. Every piece of fabric in every different costume is thought out meticulously and this theatrical take on costume design also adds to the film’s authenticity.

Dune is the final nominee for Best Costume Design, as Jacqueline West and Bob Morgan bring their A-game in crafting futuristic wear for all of the characters. Throughout the film, the different classes of people and different environmental elements all factor into the costume design. West and Morgan do an outstanding job of dressing these characters in a way that truly makes sense for the fantasy world they are living in while staying faithful to Frank Herbert’s expansive story.

Prediction: West Side Story

Best Production Design:

The look and aesthetic of a movie are largely defined by its production design and 2021 has seen some of the most articulately-crafted sets in quite some time. A multitude of different time periods and environments are represented this year, all the way from science-fiction to historical and beyond. Grant Major and Amber Richards‘ work on Jane Campion‘s The Power of the Dog is a Western dreamscape and perfectly captures that feeling within all of its story’s most dramatic and pleasant moments. Western environments can often feel very similar but the production design in the film is executed in such a marvelous way that truly make these characters live in worlds of their own. Adam Stockhausen and Rena DeAngelo‘s production design in Spielberg‘s modern remake of West Side Story makes the classic tale feel freshly full-of-life. The poverty-ridden streets of Manhattan are filled with life due to the production design and this truly helps Spielberg to sing and dance his way through the iconic story.

Some of the more extravagantly imaginative production designs this year belong to the classical and fantasy genres. Patrice Vermette and Zsuzsi Sipos‘ work on the sci-fi epic Dune proves to be a marvel to behold as the audience is immediately absorbed into the atmosphere of the planet Arrakis. The plot moves beautifully from gaudy palaces to barren wastelands and the world-building that takes place because of the production design is extraordinary. The fantastical elements of Guillermo del Toro‘s Nightmare Alley are brought to life by the design of Tamara Deverell and Shane Vieau. The eerily noir atmosphere that absorbs the story is mesmerizing to watch and the design of everything from the circus tents to the wealthy mansions was incredible. One of the most interesting production design nominees this year is Joel Coen‘s The Tragedy of Macbeth. Stefan Dechant and Nancy Haigh‘s minimalistic choices throughout this movie make the story truly take hold of the audience. The lack of extravagancy throughout the titular character’s castle and the simplistic environments the characters tread through really assist in making the black-and-white cinematography so beautiful and help to put the emphasis on the drama of the Shakespearean language.

Prediction: Dune