For our fourth Rundown article, we look at the folk who put it all together. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Film Editing as well as general commentary about the race. Wednesday, we’ll cover the only category that has never featured a Best Picture winner as a nominee.

Best Film Editing

Winner Predictions

• Baby Driver (PP R) [New]
• Dunkirk (WL O) (TB O) (TL O)
• I, Tonya
• The Shape of Water
• Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Runner-Up Predictions

• Dunkirk (PP R) [New]
• The Shape of Water (WL R) [New] (TB O) (TL O)

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Wesley Lovell: Before the American Cinema Editors (ACE) rejected Baby Driver in favor of I, Tonya, I thought it was a strong contender to beat Dunkirk, which also won an ACE award. Now, I think it may be ignored. Dunkirk has been the frontrunner almost all year, so I doubt it has much of a chance to lose, but Oscar Best Picture nominee The Shape of Water might have the best claim to the prize, thanks to the myriad elements that go into the film. Three Billboards could benefit from the late-breaking surge the film has seen, or I, Tonya might shock everyone for a victor (It is an ACE winner after all). That said, Dunkirk probably has this one sewn up.
Peter J. Patrick: The film with the most dazzling editing is the one that generally impresses Academy voters the most. This year that description most appropriately fits Baby Driver. If it doesn’t go to the film with the most dazzling editing, then it will go to the one with the most scenes that are seamlessly strung together. This year that means Dunkirk.
Tripp Burton: The American Cinema Editors gave their prizes to Dunkirk and I, Tonya, and I expect that Dunkirk will also win here. Like most of the technical categories this year, it will probably come down between Dunkirk and The Shape of Water, but this category has always favored war films, and when they are Best Picture nominees even more so — I didn’t predict Hacksaw Ridge last year and got snookered, and I don’t want it to happen again.
Thomas La Tourrette: This award could go a few ways as well. The likely winner is Dunkirk as the film is full of fancy editing, perhaps overly so. War films normally do well in this category, and this should be no exception. With fighting going on and the film jumping between different time periods, the editor was busy. And winning the ACE lately for dramatic film editing cements it as the one to beat. Baby Driver seemed like it would be giving Dunkirk some major competition, as it is the other overtly edited film in the mix. If the guild had given their comedy award to Baby Driver, there might have been quite a battle between the films. Since that did not happen, I would doubt that Baby Driver will have much of a chance at winning here. I, Tonya won the comedy award, and they did exceptional work in editing it and making Margot Robbie look like she was doing all the figure skating, but I do not really picture it as a serious contender. The movie that stands the best chance of an upset would be The Shape of water as it is the likely winner of Best Picture as well. This award often goes to the eventual Best Picture winner, but I think they will more likely be split this year, unless voters just mark The Shape of Water on everything on their ballot. Three Billboards has the least likely chance of winning, and still seems a somewhat surprising choice. Dunkirk wins unless voters give everything to The Shape of Water.

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