simple. easy. awesome. xfinity, the future of awesome. aid trucks set on fire as violent clashes break out at the colombian border. opposition facing a huge setback in delivering much needed humanitarian aid. we head to rome where pope francis is addressing clergy members at the vatican's summit for sexual abuse calling abusers the, quote, tools of satan. also ahead this hour, sparking conversations of diversity at the oscars. "roma's lead actress" the first indigenous mexican woman to be nominated for a top award. live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, welcome to our viewers here in the united states and all around the world. i'm george howell.

the "cnn newsroom" starts right now. 5:00 a.m. on the u.s. east coast. venezuela's sitting president nicolas maduro dealt a huge blow in his struggle to maintain power. more than 60 members of his security forces defected to colombia on saturday. this during massive protests demanding humanitarian aid be let into the country. officials say that five people were killed and nearly 300 others wounded in the opposition-led demonstrations that took place. at least two trucks carrying supplies from colombia were set on fire at the border crossing. and this. some protesters tried to save the supplies from the burning trucks. you can see how they desperately tried to remove that aid. opposition leader juan guaido indicated nicolas maduro was

responsible for the fires. he urged troops not to support the regime. >> translator: members of the armed forces, to someone who burns food in front of the hungry. we saw a man burn medicine in front of the sick. how many of you soldiers have sick mothers, how many of you have children in school without food? you don't owe any type of obedience to those who sadistically because there is no other expression for it celebrate that aid doesn't enter a country that needs it. you don't owe any type of loyalty. >> and in the meantime, the united states is, again, blasting mr. maduro's aid blockade, in a tweet the secretary of state mike pompeo called the president a, quote, tyrant, and said the images of burning trucks were sickening. the u.s. has also announced a meeting between vice president mike pence and juan guaido. it is is set to take place

monday in colombia. officials closed some of the border crossings between venezuela and colombia in order to evaluate the damage from the protests. nick paton walsh was there at the scene as chaos unfolded and filed this report. >> reporter: it had been billed as a new dawn, when the opposition planned waves of venezuelan refugees would simply take aid back into their homeland, across the busiest border bridge with colombia. but it was closed. blocked physically by venezuelan riot police. and behind them, violent pro-government gangs. the young police taunted or begged into changing sides. i'm venezuelan, she says, holding up her i.d. and my father was a sergeant. how will you stop me crossing? but they were venezuelans too and also here hunger, heat and

thirst. the water you're drinking, she says, it is colombian, because your president doesn't give you any. bring him out here to us. i eat or drink soda whenever i want here, he says, but the hardest pain is how my grandfather died because he didn't have medicine. for a brief moment, the anger dissipated. the police lowered their shields, talked calmly. but down the road, the promised aid convoy arrived and a huge crowd, intent on pushing through. tension mounting here, the shields have gone back up again and the protesters are recommending people start to move back. this is why. a slow march of opposition protesters. peaceful in as far as they would not take no for an answer. it fast collapsed into tear gas.

the day's lofty goals soon lost in a routine exchange of hatred. rocks, rubber bullets and rocks thrown back. did you expect to have blood on your shirt today? did you expect that to happen today? >> it is about freedom. >> reporter: as they lost out on the bridge, the protesters took their fight underneath. they are many, but maduro's police are mightier. they have only whatever they could make. none of this chaos got any aid across here, but it showed the uncompromising ferocity of the maduro government. and it led throughout the day to venezuelan soldiers giving themselves up. one here carried out, the mobs both cursing and cheering.

the opposition had promised defectors amnesty. but this will only get uglier, seeing the mobbing of pro-maduro militia here, battered by the crowd, and spared only by colombian police. and if the symbolic bid to get aid in peacefully failed, then these scenes are what venezuela is left with. nick paton walsh, cnn, colombia. let's talk more about this now with esa cusack, with the london school of economics. good to have you with us. >> my pleasure. >> esa, two trucks did carry humanitarian aid into venezuela from brazil and at least 60 members of venezuela as military defected. what does that mean for juan guaido? what does it mean for nicolas maduro? >> well, i think the defections are significant, but perhaps not

in the way that you might think immediately. you have to think about the fact these are 60 fairly low ranked members of the armed forces and the armed forces are made up of hundreds of thousands of people. really if anything it shows how close the military remains to maduro. and so that creates a new problem for guaido, since this is really the second time he's essentially rolled the dice on some kind of side switching by the military and in neither case have we seen any major defections. you need some much higher ranking officials to do that. at the moment, it is not necessarily in their interests to do that, and there has been no real indication that's about to happen. so it does leave guaido with a problem for what he's going to do next. >> despite the violent scene on saturday, the images seen of burning trucks, guaido urged people to continue, trying to get aid into venezuela. how long do you see this

continuing? >> well, at the moment, there is no clear way without any change in that military support, there is no clear route out of this. my worry really at the moment just from the statements that guaido has made and that marco rubio has also made is that there is a move towards considering military intervention, which i think would be a disaster really both for venezuela and for the wider region. there are all kinds of different armed groups that are active in venezuela. you could have military splits, some people supporting maduro, some supporting guaido. just a really toxic combination at the moment. it could be a kind of serial or libya type situation if it began and escalated and spiraled out of hand, then you could have a really disastrous situation. so really i think the best thing would be to try and push for and negotiate a solution as the international contact group of european union countries and some latin american countries has tried to do. >> you touched on this, but throughout the region, watching

how relations change, given that nicolas maduro broke diplomatic relations with colombia saturday, what effect will that have on all of this? >> well, the relations with colombia have been incredibly fraught really throughout the past two decades. chavez had very, very bad relations with uribe and the two countries almost came to war really around 2010. and president duke is seen as really uribe's candidate in the previous election. so there is no real surprise there. and i think the real problem is that it just closes down another kind of possible channel to speak rath are ther than going more violent route. again, i think that the negotiated option is the best one and there is a way to kind of do that, particularly with the economic sanctions, that there were negotiations a year ago that almost managed to reach

agreement on conditions for free elections. they fell apart at the last minute. but in that situation, maduro did give ground based on sanctions being relaxed. so from my point of view, that's what i would like to see attempted again. >> all right, clearly the pressure is ratcheting up. the u.s. vice president mike pence plans to meet with juan guaido in colombia in support of the opposition, keeping in mind mr. maduro has also threatened military action against the united states. both sides pushing hard here. how do you see things playing out in the days and the weeks ahead? >> well, i think for a while the idea of military intervention from the u.s. seemed slightly far fetched, but i don't really see that it is anymore. if you look at some of the statements from trump, we saw in the recently released book of mccabe, the former deputy director of the fbi, that trump was saying that basically why are we not going to war with venezuela? it has all this oil and it is on

our doorstep. and then you have the kind of people who are involved on this on the u.s. side, extreme hawks like john bolton and also mike pence, and especially maybe elliott abrams who was involved in some of the worst atrocities in central america in the 1980s. so, you know, these kind of people will be pushing for that option. and i really hope that the opposition doesn't play along with that. >> esa cusack from our london bureau, thank you for the insight. that much anticipated sentencing memo against paul manafort was unsealed saturday. many people hoped that it would reveal crucial missing details about the russia investigation. that didn't happen. but the 800 page memo did lay out what prosecutors called bold crimes committed by the former chairman manafort. robert mueller's team slammed paul manafort for lying to almost everyone around him, the list includes dozens of people

including the trump administration. manafort pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the united states and conspiracy to obstruct justice. his attorneys are expected to file a sentencing memo on monday. mueller's filing on manafort is one event of several setting up a big week for president trump. it could be a significant week that will have a big impact on his presidency. first, on tuesday, the house of representatives will vote on mr. trump's national emergency declaration. it could be a crucial test to see where republican lawmakers stand in that debate and whether they support the president on the border wall. the president's long time fixer michael cohen is set to testify publicly before congress on wednesday. mr. trump says he is not concerned with what cohen will have to say. and on that same day, president trump will be in hanoi for a two-day summit with the leader of north korea, kim jong-un, marking the second meeting between the two leaders. in the meantime, kim jong-un is

already on his way to hanoi right now. he's traveling by private train across china. north korean state media only confirmed that the upcoming summit with kim was preparing to leave north korea. let's talk about this now with inderjeet par mar joining us from our london bureau. good to have you. >> thank you. nice to be here. >> the u.s. president leaving all of these things behind for a moment in preparation for a meeting with kim jong-un. the last time it was more about optics than actual substance. concrete measures to denuclearize the korean peninsula. what are your expectations this go round? >> i think it is going to be optics again. we have an immoveable object against an irresistible force if you like and i don't think that the north korean regime is anywhere near denuclearizing or

giving up its own nuclear weapons. the level of tension has clearly come down, but to some extent president trump himself had contributed to the raising of that tension in the first place. and used the previous summit in singapore to say that now the tensions were reduced and there was a prospect of peace and so on. but in practice, yes, there are no u.s. military exercises, there have been no ballistic missile tests, no nuclear tests either. but on the other hand, the nuclear programs of the north korean regime have continued as they kind of call security for their own administration. >> back in washington, president trump's former attorney michael cohen will be making the rounds this week, testifying on capitol hill. we know that he's unlikely to talk about russia. but may offer some insight into other investigations where he has spoken to prosecutors. the president, said he's not worried about what cohen might say but should he be worried?

>> well, he is worried. everything we read about people who, people who left the administration, have written books or given interviews, we know that president trump has -- is very, very angry, furious about what is coming out. it has a cumulative impact if this is going to add further to that particular kind of spiral is difficult to tell. what we can tell in the most abstract sense is when we look at michael cohen and look at the convictions he's facing, paul manafort and others, the president trump has gathered around himself some of the people who have no ethics, they appear to have no respect for the rule of law, and they basically have very few principles by which they actually operate in public life. and i think more information may come out on that, but i suspect in terms of political impact, most people are now almost immune to anything that comes

out about this administration. they almost have been numbed by the amount of wrongdoing, which is kind of come out. so, yes, there will be new evidence for people who watch these things very closely. if it does any political damage, it will have to be very, very big, put president trump right in the room when criminal wrongdoing was done. >> the house of representatives set to vote on the president's emergency declaration, it is sure to pass the house. what happens in the senate will be interesting regardless the president has already said he will veto this plan. so what impact do you think it will have on republicans who will have to decide where they stand? >> absolutely. if you look at republicans in terms of the theory of american government, they are upholders of the constitution. they argue that for the kind of 1787 framers of the constitution

wanted, the original idea. the original idea was separation of powers, and the containment of the power of the executive and its balancing by the judiciary and by the legislature. what president trump is doing is separating that on a domestic question, this is unprecedented. what we have to look for on tuesday in vote, if you like, is that the gop has 197 seats in the house. if there is not 197 supporters, sorry, voters for president trump, that is for the emergency, and anything significantly less, i think there will be a lot of damage. it goes over to the senate. but in the end, i suspect there is going to go to the supreme court. >> thank you. >> thank you. still ahead, years of allegations and accusations may have caught up with singer r. kelly. up next, we outline what is next for the troubled star and take a closer look at the accusations. plus, pope francis is wrapping up the vatican summit on sex abuse by the clrnlgergy.

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on car insurance? did the little piggy cry wee wee wee all the way home? weeeeeeeee! we we weeeee! weeeeeeee! weeeeeeee! weeeeeeee! max. maxwell! yeah? you're home. oh, cool. thanks mrs. a. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. we take you to the vatican where the pope says priests who abuse children become tools of satan. the pope presiding over the final day of the extraordinary summit on clergy sex abuse. the catholic church openly addressing the problems of priests sexually exploiting children. the four-day event marked first time the church acknowledged it

destroyed evidence of abuse, a practice that went back many decades. delia gallagher is live in rome and delia, stand by for a moment, because we are hearing, we heard what the pope said just a short time ago. let's play this and then i'd like to get your comments on what else he had to say. >> translator: while greatly affecting our societies as a whole, this evil is no way less monstrous when it takes place in the church. the brutality of this worldwide phenomenon becomes all the more grave and scandalous in the church. for it is utterly incompatible with our moral authority and ethical credibility. consecrated persons chosen by god to guide to salvation, let themselves be dominated by their human frailty or sickness and

thus become tools of satan. >> the pope taking this issue head on, delia. what else did he have to say? >> well, george, the pope did have some strong lines in the speech, he said no abuse should be covered up and that he sees the hand of evil in the abuse of children. but frankly, george, it was a speech that was sort of placing the church sex abuse in the context of wider society. and some of the things that he said about the church sex abuse are things that we have heard before. the pope himself going into this summit said he was looking for concrete steps. so in that sense his speech did not address the concrete steps that might come out of this summit. he did speak about forming priests better in the seminary and about bishops having guidelines, but we knew that. so in sum i think we're still waiting for the concrete steps about what came out of this

meeting, the discussions seemed to indicate that there might be movement on, for example, lifting the pontifical secret on these cases. that's when victims report their cases, brought to trial at the vatican, but don't hear anything more, sometimes for months and years. there is no transparency with victims about what is going on in the vaen investigation. it is what we have heard from people participating in the summit that they might like to lift. that's one point, one concrete step, but we haven't heard that from the pope today. we'll see if in the days coming some announcement comes out of the vatican about really specific steps because, george, that is what the pope himself and the survivors have been asking for. >> all right, delia gallagher following the story for us live in rome. thank you, delia. in chicago, a judge has set a $1 million bond for singer r. kelly, who turned himself in on

friday. this after being charged with ten counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. our sara sidner has this story. >> a judge set r. kelly's bond for $1 million, $250,000 in each of the four alleged victims' cases. now, r. kelly would only have to pay $100,000 of that after he had been charged with ten counts of criminal sexual abuse. the prosecution laying out some very sexually explicit details in this case to the judge, including sexual and physical abuse of several of the women that are now alleged victims in this particular case. there was an indictment from a grand jury first, and then the prosecution filed charges against r. kelly. the details include physical and sexual abuse against women who are now of age, but were minors at the time. under the age of 17, but older than 13 is how the prosecution

put it. we also heard from r. kelly's attorney steve greenburg. he came out, he said initially when r. kelly was arrested and we saw him go into be booked last night, he said that all the women are liars and called them liars very starkly and clearly. today he backed down a little bit from that, but said, you know, you can't believe everything you hear. that he should be given, like any other defendant, the presumption of innocence, he also mentioned the 2008 trial where r. kelly was put on trial for 14 counts of pornography, child pornography, and he was acquitted in that trial. he says people should give him the same kind of presumption of innocence as other defendants. he did recognize that there is a lot of media attention here. he recognized that there were some women who were in the courtroom here today listening and emotional. we can tell you that one of the victims, the alleged victims in this case, was inside the courtroom. she was emotional herself. this has been a very difficult

time for the women who have come out and accused r. kelly of sexually abusing them when they were minors. where do we go from here? well, steve greenburg, r. kelly's attorney, says he does not think that r. kelly has $100,000 just hanging around, so the question is will he be able to get that money and get out of jail before his next hearing which will be monday. sara sidner, cnn, chicago. >> sara, thank you. still ahead, north korea's leader is on his way to vietnam for his second summit with president trump. we'll have more on that story ahead. plus, brexit is on the beach. that's what the british prime minister theresa may wants as she looks for a deal there. stay with us. the latest innovation from xfinity

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welcome back to our viewers here in the united states and all around the world, you're watching "cnn newsroom" live from atlanta. i'm george howell with the headlines we're following for you this hour. the white house says the u.s. vice president mike pence will meet with the venezuelan opposition leader juan guaido in colombia on monday. the announcement comes after violence erupted near venezuela's borders on saturday. officials say the five people were killed saturday in clashes over attempted aid deliveries. pope francis is wrapping up the vatican's extraordinary summit on clergy sex abuse. the four-day summit marked the first time the church has acknowledged it destroyed evidence to protect predatory priests. the practice that went back many decades. investigators believe three people died in a cargo plane crash, this in the state of texas. police say they have been able

to recover the body of one of the victims. the other two are still missing. dive teams are searching the crash site, which is almost three miles long or five kilometers. the north korean leader kim jong-un is traveling right now by private train across china. he's on his way to meet with the u.s. president donald trump in vietnam later this week. state media finally confirmed the summit with president trump as kim was preparing to leave pyongyang. anytime kim jong-un leaves north korea, there is always risk he could be deposed. so kim periodically purges anyone he considers to be a potential threat. we do warn you going into this story the details of those executions can be especially gruesome. our brian todd has this. >> reporter: kim jong-un, the man president trump will shake hands with again at a summit next week, who he now calls

chairman kim. >> i asked chairman kim would it be possible to do that? >> reporter: and who the president is counting on to get rid of his nuclear weapons, now faces new allegations of especially grotesque brutality against his own people. stories of executions and torture, detailed by those who once lived under the regime before fleeing. this person says he defected after spending ten years in a concentration camp. he says witnesses told him that at one execution in 2013, two men closely tied to kim jong-un's uncle who the deck tate e dictator distrusted were brought in front of a firing squad, the men had lumps of iron stuffed in their mouths. he said kim's uncle was forced to watch his colleagues murdered. >> translator: these two people just instantly disappeared and all the blood, it poured into his face who was forced to witness them and he fainted. >> reporter: kim's uncle would

be executed later that year, also allegedly with an antiaircraft gun. the accounts come as part of a new report just released by the north korea strategy sin tercene group includes defectors spotlights human rights issues. the group says it interviewed many officials. kang said his group was told about the execution of a top police official, also close to kim's uncle. >> translator: kim jong-un especially hated him, so-so kim jong-un personally ordered him to be executed by using a flame thrower. so he was burned alive without even using the machine guns. and then after he was burned alive, the tanks around him kind of crushed him. >> reporter: the reason for pulverizing heir bodies, human rights observers say kim believed they weren't good enough to be buried on north korean soil. >> these senior officials were executed by gun or flame thrower

are denied the fundamental right of leaving behind a body for the family. >> reporter: kang says another official and his mistress were executed by being stripped naked and mauled by a pack of dogs. this all came, this group says, on the personal orders of a man who president trump has consistently expressed admiration for. >> and then we fell in love, okay? really. >> reporter: should president trump be shaking kim jong-un's hand, calling him chairman kim, meeting with him, professing his love for him when all indications show that this is still a murderous dictator? >> translator: president trump, don't take this bloody man's hands. meeting him in vietnam, saying good things, he's a murderer. it sends a very low signal to the world. >> reporter: the kim regime has repeatedly denied allegations of committing human rights atrocities inside north korea. is president trump going to discuss these alleged executions with kim jong-un when he meets with him in vietnam? we reached out to the white house, the state department and u.s. intelligence, none of them

would comment on that or respond to this latest report. brian todd, cnn, washington. >> brian, thank you. forget brussel, forget downing street. the brexit spotlight is on egypt for the next few days. that country hosting a summit for eu and arab leaders in sharm el sheikh. the british tprime minister wil be there and she may be looking for a way to push brexit forward with eu leaders, a much needed you could say deal in the desert. let's go live to our international diplomatic editor nic robertson live in sharm el sheikh following this story. and it is interesting to sea she plans to do there because eu leaders have been clear, it is the deal, the only deal. >> it is. and it is very interesting that this summit alone comes at this time and this is the first ever arab lead or league of arab states eu summit, 49 different nations will be represented

here, 21 from the arab league, and 28 from the european union. and when you try to sort of look at it and say why now, why this timing, one of the fundamental issues and on the big item on the agenda here, of course, will be migration and terrorism. and when you look at that issue of brexit and the way that the european union has dealt with the issue of migration coming from the arab region, spilling over from the war in syria, which has had that big disruptive force on europe, which was one of the key factors that led to that referendum and the vote in the referendum in the united kingdom for -- to trigger brexit, in many ways a whole summit, though it will be about climate, it will be about economy, and it will be about security, in many ways this summit itself is a recognition of the types of issues of brexit that europe is facing at the

moment because the arab league has been calling for this type of summit for about 20 years now. it is finally happening now. but theresa may will be using it to meet on the margins, specifically with the european council president donald tusk who is the co-host here, or the co-chair, if you will, along with president el sisi, the egyptian president. so theresa may's meeting with donald tusk is is the one where she may hope that she can make a difference where she and a negotiator haven't been able to make a difference in brussels over the past few week on her demand at the moment to get from the eu, guarantees legally binding guarantees about the back stop, that part of the withdrawal agreement, which there is so much angst in britain at the moment. >> nic robertson following the story, we'll stay in touch with

you. thank you. they have abandoned the last isis enclave in syria, but they have not abandoned the terrorist ideology. we'll hear what some true believers of isis have to say. stay with us. tremfya® is for adults with remoderate. to severe plaque psoriasis. with tremfya®, you can get clearer. and stay clearer. in fact, most patients who saw 90% clearer skin at 28 weeks stayed clearer through 48 weeks. tremfya® works better than humira® at providing clearer skin and more patients were symptom free with tremfya®. tremfya® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection

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>> reporter: it is a struggle to find space on the trucks taking them to camps further north. they're the latest, perhaps the last, to leave the half mile square camp, all that is left of the islamic state. but these are not the ones who claim to be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. these are the true believers. >> translator: mahmoud, just 15 years old, has absorbed isis ideology. he asks me, don't you know the verses of the koran that say the islamic state will experience hardship and then god will give it victory? one of the favorite slowingegan the islamic state is the islamic state is remaining and spreading. surprisingly enough, now that that islamic state is a speck on the map, in remain convinced of that idea.

this woman who identifies herself only as umbasen tells me her loyalty still lie with isis. frankly, we still believe in it, she says. we just wanted to live in peace and wear our islamic clothing, not to go out, not to see men, and be ruled by the law of the almighty. at 25, she is already the mother of four children. and they didn't flee because of the bombing or the shortage of food. they were told to leave. we received orders from abu bakr she says. syrian democratic forces commanders say they do not believe baghdadi is inside. not a word of regret did we hear, nor any contrition over beheadings, terror attacks or the mass murder and enslavement

of yazidis. even its demise makes sense. god is testing us, this woman says, the unworthy will leave and the righteous will remain. perhaps we are unworthy or perhaps just deluded. isis may be about to lose its land, but not its believers. ben wedeman, cnn, in eastern syria. ahead, the academy awards, no matter what happens there, one indigenous actress is showing the world her star power and combatting racism at the same time. when heartburn hits, fight back fast with tums smoothies. it neutralizes stomach acid at the source. ♪tum tum tum tum smoothies. also available tums sugar-free.

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those are the scenes from "roma," one of the films expected to snag an oscar this sunday. that movie's lead actress has an incredible story and it is inspiring people around the world, especially in her home

country of mexico. rafael romo has this report. >> reporter: on the red carpet, in covers of fashion magazines, 25-year-old yalitza aparicio is not only making waves in hollywood, but making history as well. her performance in the acclaimed film "roma" led her to become the first indigenous mexican woman to be oscar nominated for best actress in a leading role. it also happened to be her first acting role. news of the nomination left her in tears, overcome with emotion, she leaves out an unprecedented success story. three years ago, aparicio was living here, a small rural home in mexico's southern state of oaxaca, a schoolteacher with no acting aspirations, until she was discovered almost by accident when she accompanied her sister to an audition.

>> translator: it is good i took the risk of doing the casting, though at the beginning i didn't want to do it, i did well saying yes to it. this has been an intense journey and an amazing experience that i will remember forever. >> reporter: in "roma," she portrays an indigenous housekeeper and nanny who lives in mexico city. it is a tale based on the director's own childhood there in the 1970s and touches on race, class and anti-indigenous prejudice in mexico. >> i'm very happy about the representation of a character who is a domestic worker and the background and this character has been embraced in a very strong, emotional way from audiences all around the world. so that for me is the most significant thing about, you know, the journey of "roma" to this moment. >> reporter: with ten oscar nominations and numerous awards, "roma's" success has brought celebration and pride in mexico,

it earned praise from the country's recently elected leader. thousands gathered to watch it as a first movie shown at the former presidential palace and her fairy tale story has been described as an inspiration. sadly, however, her fame has also met with some racist backlash from other actors and on social media. but in the face of offensive commentary, she's focusing on empowering others with her new found platform. >> translator: this nomination is not only mine, it belongs to others who see themselves reflected on the screen that can actually aspire to do something like what i've done, regardless of their economic status or their skin color. >> reporter: at the academy awards ceremony sunday, the first timer is up against some well known stars for best actress including glenn close and lady gaga. but she says after her whirlwind experience, she feels she has already won. rafael romo, cnn.

>> thank you. we are just hours away from the academy awards. people have been placing bets on who will win big at the oscars and according to multiple betting markets, "roma" is the clear favorite for best picture followed by "green book" for best actor. rami malek who starred as queen front man eddie mercury in "bohemian rhapsody" and glenn close for best actress in her role as "the wife." let's get the perspective of a person who knows really well on how this could play out. richard fitzwilliams here with a review, a film commentate, joining us from london. pleasure to have you on the show, richard. >> well, it will be a fascinating evening and you had a wonderful report of "roma" and yalitza aparicio, who is a glorious actress, wonderful performance in it. i suspect everybody thinks "roma" is going to win and that will make history, first foreign language film ever to win best

picture, there have been ten nominated, nominated ten times in different categories. and also, of course, it will make history as being a netflix movie. netflix has spent some $30 million promoting it. so all of this is completely unprecedented, but it would be well deserved. >> let's talk more about this. your read on best picture, though, it seems to be a tossup given the guilds all awarded their best picture prize to different films. "roma" is a front-runner. the contenders are also strong. >> there is a possibility that "green book" might win. this is a story about don shirley, a black concert pian t pianist. there is no doubt that that's a possible, but also been mired in some controversy and hasn't got

the uniqueness of "roma." the favorite, it is a wonderful film, that's the british hope, but it does seem unlikely. as for "a star is born," i'm afraid it shuunk below the rada. there is commentaries online as to why a movie that was likely the favorite of the winner originally, oscars don't tend to like remakes, it doesn't seem to be a hope. so with the "bohemian rhapsody" as a vague hope, it does look like "roma." >> "roma" you say it is. contenders for best actress, glenn close nominated seven times already. but lady gaga, could there be a surprise in the mix? >> i have to say that there probably won't be, because glenn close with seven nominations looks certain to get it. she shouldn't. i do have to make my view clear

here, she gives a very good performance in "the wife," but the film is mediocre. lady gaga is marvelous, the way she acts so sensitively and with such vulnerability and panache in "a star is born," olivia colman, very, very funny as well as touching as queen ann. and the favorite, yalitza aparicio, all of those in my opinion are more worthy. and melissa mccarthy good as well in a drama. >> best actor, who do you see taking it, christian bale or rami malek. >> rami malek without any doubt for "bohemian rhapsody". >> and also a show with no host, there will be no host. what do you think? >> well, i think absolutely bizarre, the saga with kevin hart has brought the academy into disrepute as is the intent they made to have a best picture

category which was a popular film which has now been withdrawn and also this idea that the ceremony can only be three hours long and they can hide four categories during advertising breaks and then show truncated versions of them, which caught fury in the academy. this has been a disastrous year for the oscars. let's see what tonight's ceremony is like, because it is the greatest show on earth, it is the oldest and the most prestigious showcase for cinema. >> and we'll be watching. live from london, we appreciate your time. we thank you for watching "cnn newsroom." i'm george howell at the cnn center in atlanta. the news continues here on cnn right after the break.

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tension mounting. shields have gone back up again and the protesters are recommending people start to move back. >> a bid to get aid in peacefully failed for what venezuelans are left with. >> prosecutors from special counsel robert mueller's office effectively throwing the book to paul manafort and told a judge he should says up to 25 years behind bars. >> a judge bed the bond for $1 million. will he able to get that money and get out of jail before his next hearing which will be monday?