On 28th February, the most prestigious evening in the movie calendar gets underway: the 88th Academy Awards. Hosted by Chris Rock, this year The Revenant dominates with 12 nods, followed closely by Mad Max: Fury Road with 10 (hooray!) and The Martian with seven.

Here's our essential breakdown to this year's key categories.

Best Picture

First up, let's address the really important entry, which is Mad Max: Fury Road's nomination as one of the year's best films. Defying the usual Oscar snobbery towards action movies, Fury Road's inclusion is a testament to the extraordinary craft and excitement of George Miller's relentless extravaganza.

More predictable entries include The Revenant, which was pretty much a dead cert given its three Golden Globe wins (including Best Film), Room featuring a devastatingly effective performance from Brie Larson, and Ridley Scott's rip-roaringly entertaining The Martian. Meanwhile, critically adored Catholic abuse expose Spotlight also managed to creep in despite being largely shut out of both the Golden Globes and BAFTA nominations (a sure sign that neither is an indicator of potential Oscar success).

The pleasant surprises are the engrossing and emotional Irish emigration drama Brooklyn, a deserved nominee due to its sensitivity, warmth and lack of sentimentality. Steven Spielberg's Cold War drama Bridge of Spies is also in there, riding high after a wave of plaudits that saw it hailed as one of Spielberg's best movies in years.

So what about the dark horse? That's got to be the irreverent, darkly comic The Big Short, a lively account of the recent global financial crisis starring Steve Carell, Christian Bale, Brad Pitt and Ryan Gosling. Will it steal the thunder from its heavyweight brethren? The movie certainly has its work cut out.

On a slightly aggrieved note: seriously, where is Inside Out? We were hoping this would be one of the very few years where the Academy recognised an animated movie in its most prestigious category, and it hasn't happened. For shame.

Best Director

Finally landing the nomination that he so richly deserves, Fury Road's George Miller capitalises on the acclaim that's greeted his latest Mad Max movie. Not only did the apocalyptically awesome thrill-ride wow the critics and audiences across the world; it also generated serious respect from industry professionals who were slack-jawed in wonder at Miller's emphasis on practical effects and stunts as opposed to CGI. Will Miller be charging towards that elusive Oscar win?

He faces stiff competition from the likes of Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for The Revenant, a shoo-in but one with genuine clout given he won Best Director last year for Birdman. It's really heartening to note Lenny Abrahamson's inclusion for Room: much of the attention has gone on Brie Larson so praise to the Academy for recognising Abrahamson's vital role in drawing such a strong performance out of her.

Elsewhere, Tom McCarthy has been recognised for Spotlight, hailed for his meticulous attention to detail in reconstructing the 2001 Boston Globe investigation into child abuse. The Oscars love a filmmaker who can spin a true story into genuinely gripping drama so McCarthy has a strong chance here.

And to round everything off, we have an unexpected inclusion for Adam McKay and The Big Short. Now, McKay will no longer just be seen as the director of cult comedy Anchorman but an accomplished filmmaker with an Oscar nomination to his name.

We are however very surprised by the exclusion of Ridley Scott for The Martian. We thought he was a lock, especially given the movie is his most coherent and enthralling in nearly a decade. Chalk this up as one of the Academy's less-than-pleasant curveballs.

Best Actor

Unsurprisingly Leonardo DiCaprio has been recognised for The Revenant, payoff for his already infamous method performance that saw him sleeping in animal carcasses and eating raw bison liver. The actor is the bruised, beating heart of Inarritu's gruelling wilderness odyssey – will this finally be Leo's year to scoop that Oscar? We can't help but feel we've been here before...

Frankly we think another of this year's nominees, Michael Fassbender, will be running DiCaprio very close with his role in Steve Jobs. Fassbender's mercurial and not-always-sympathetic turn as the Apple visionary is a masterclass in body language and delivery, the actor spitting out writer Aaron Sorkin's dialogue with relish.

Meanwhile on a more crowd-pleasing note, Matt Damon has been given a nod for his terrifically rousing role in The Martian. As astronaut Mark Watney, he embodies a character who is relentlessly upbeat and charismatic in the face of overwhelming odds, almost certainly the most sympathetic and likeable performance of any on the Best Actor list. But will this be enough to sway the Academy?

Elsewhere, Eddie Redmayne follows up last year's The Theory of Everything Oscar win with his nomination for The Danish Girl. Redmayne's transformative role as Lili Elbe has received strong reviews but many have criticised the movie for being too tasteful and polite. Is Eddie simply not edgy enough when compared to his heavy-duty competition?

Perhaps this is Bryan Cranston's year: he's been given the nod for factual Hollywood drama Trumbo, one that explores the life of notoriously blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo. Ever since Breaking Bad we've been waiting to see Cranston give another truly knockout performance and even though he's likely the underdog on this list, we shouldn't underestimate his chances.

Best Actress

This is likely the most predictable set of nominations: predictable in as much as all of the nominees are deserving of the prize, and none of them are especially surprising entries – with the exception of one...

First up, the ones we expected: Cate Blanchett is recognised for her elusive and haunting title role in Carol. The celebrated 1950s romantic drama hinges on the exquisitely believable chemistry between Blanchett and co-star Rooney Mara and there's every chance Blanchett could get her second Oscar following 2013's Blue Jasmine.

Brie Larson capitalises on her Golden Globe triumph by landing a nomination for Room. Much has been written about Larson's raw and powerful performance as a young mother raising her son in extraordinary circumstances; the brilliant thing is Larson lives up the hype and then some. There's every chance this award could be hers.

That is, if Jennifer Lawrence doesn't nab it for Joy, although given she's already won for previous David O. Russell collaboration Silver Linings Playbook, Lawrence would appear to be the outsider (for a change).

The one we're really pleased about is Saoirse Ronan's inclusion for Brooklyn. The actress's role as young Irish emigrant Eilis radiates quiet integrity and strength, the beating heart of one of the year's best movies. We're rooting for you, Saoirse. 

And now, the surprise entry: Charlotte Rampling for 45 Years. Now, we're not surprised that she's been included; quite the opposite, we were hoping against hope that the actress would get her very first Oscar nod (amazingly) for her devastatingly emotive role as a woman contemplating the future of her marriage. But it's unexpected given British veteran Rampling was ignored in both the Golden Globes and (even more shamefully) the BAFTAs. Given the Academy loves to recognise veteran actors with a rich legacy of credits to their name, it's highly likely Rampling could walk away with the prize.

What else do you need to know?

Well, Sylvester Stallone's nomination for Creed is a knockout, marking the actor's first bit of awards attention since the first Rocky way back in 1976. However we're sure it's not just nostalgia that guided the Academy: Stallone's performance is genuinely brilliant and very moving. We'd be happy to see him pull a classic underdog move and grab the Oscar from under everyone's noses.

Also in the Supporting Actor category: Tom Hardy for The Revenant, a pleasant surprise given all the campaigning has gone mad over Leonardo DiCaprio's central role. Hardy's grizzled, bearded performance as villain John Fitzgerald caps off what has been an incredible year, also comprising Mad Max, London Road and Legend. Will this be Hardy's time to shine? We'll have to wait and see.

Elsewhere, it's great to see Straight Outta Compton busting movies in the Best Original Screenplay category, Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight and Rachel McAdams' first ever nomination for Spotlight. Meanwhile, we're punching the air over Alex Garland's Best Original Screenplay nod for Ex Machina, one of the most provocative and engrossing scripts of any movie last year. Click here for a full list of the Oscar nominations for 2016.

What are you happy/unhappy with? Has a favourite movie of yours been shut out? And what will walk away with the coveted Best Picture? Tweet your thoughts @Cineworld.