Well, the Oscar nominations are out, and for a change, I don't have too much to complain about, so let's start with the good stuff:
Praises:
Black Panther: Finally, Marvel has done it! An MCU movie has been nominated for Best Picture! This is deserving of the nomination, because great characters, a compelling story, and a good message about multiculturalism make this truly one of the best movies of the year (for me, at least). I have some complaints below, however.
Roma: From a directing and visual perspective, this is a beautiful film, filmed in black and white. Film students will be analyzing this for years. However, the characters and story break no new ground. Director/co-writer/cinematographer Alfonso Cuaron said it was his most personal story, but regardless, it should be more compelling. Good, but not great, and not worthy of a Best Picture nomination. Will probably take cinematography, and could take directing, and is a shoo-in for best foreign language film.
BlacKkKlansman: This movie, based on a true story, is about an African-American undercover detective who is investigating the KKK. Adam Driver received a nomination for Supporting Actor, which he deserved, and Spike Lee was nominated for this "joint." A great film with great performances and a great story that has a lot of relevance today.
Acting/directing nominations: Once again, we have a diverse field of actors up for the Acting categories. Also, Spike Lee was nominated for "BlacKkKlansman," which, in his usually angry tone said never would have happened if not for the #OscarsSoWhite movement.
Bohemian Rhapsody: This movie tends to play a little fast and loose with actual events, often falling back on bio-pic tropes. However, it is Queen's awesome music and Rami Malek's portrayal of Freddie Mercury that drive this film.
A Star is Born: My wife wasn't too keen on this movie, because she wasn't sure what the point was. I perceived the movie as a look at the true power of music, and how the main point of making music is having something to say that other people want to hear. Also, the acting was great all around, and the soundtrack was nothing short of awesome.
Amy Adams watch: Adams is becoming the next Leo DiCaprio, now with 6 nominations and 0 wins. This year, she picked up a supporting nod for "Vice" as Dick Cheney's wife. Her competition is stiff this year.
Greatest Achievement by an Old Fart: Surprisingly, The acting nominees are mostly on the young side, but 71-year-old Glenn Close earned a seventh nod for her role in "The Wife." Surprisingly, Close has yet to win a trophy.
Best Original Song: We have a couple of strong entries this year, like Kendrick Lamar and SZA's "All The Stars" from Black Panther, but nothing will beat "Shallow" from "A Star is Born." When this is on the radio, my wife and I love to ask the kids "Do you hear Rocket Raccoon singing?"
Can you say snub?
Okay, now the fun part.
Won't You Be My Neighbor: This documentary about one of the world's kindest people, Fred (Mister) Rogers, was not nominated for documentary feature! This doc gave a comprehensive look at Rogers' life and his reason for doing what he did. I will admit that it had me choked up at times. This is simply unacceptable.
Black Panther: As happy as I was to see this film nominated for Best Picture, I was equally as angry to see this film shut out for any directing, writing, or acting nominations (Michael B. Jordan!). The rest of the nominations are for below-the-line stuff like sound, costumes, etc.
Bradley Cooper, the director: "A Star is Born,"which was nominated for Picture, Actor (Cooper), Actress (Lady Gaga), and Supporting Actor (Sam Elliott). However, Cooper was snubbed for director. Some critics say it was because the film did not have a social agenda like many of the others.
John David Washington: This actor, Denzel's son, gave a great lead performance in "BlacKkKlansman" and received no recognition for it. Fight the Power!
Emily Blunt: After two supposedly great performances in "Mary Poppins Returns" and "A Quiet Place," She is also left out of the nominee pool. As most people know, Julie Andrews won Best Actress for the original "Poppins" many years ago.
Artsy-Fartsy Stuff: Even though Harvey Weinstein is gone, there are still the usual Oscar Baiters out there like "Roma" and "The Favourite." My favorite is, no pun intended, "The Favourite."
Crazy Rich Asians: I don't think this is worthy of a Best Picture nomination, but nothing? I would at least have looked into acting and screenplay nods for this one.
First Man: Damien Chazelle's film about Neil Armstrong was only nominated for Visual Effects. Not quite worthy of Best Picture, but how about directing, acting, and Justin Hurwitz for scoring the movie?
Mary Poppins Returns: (See Emily Blunt above) I agree with my brother that this was a great movie. I do believe this was worthy of a Best Picture nomination, and Emily Blunt as the title character should have been nominated. It probably would have won for Original Song, if it wasn't for a familiar little tune called "Shallow."
Mary Poppins Returns: (See Emily Blunt above) I agree with my brother that this was a great movie. I do believe this was worthy of a Best Picture nomination, and Emily Blunt as the title character should have been nominated. It probably would have won for Original Song, if it wasn't for a familiar little tune called "Shallow."
What/Who will win and who should win:
Best Picture
What will win: A Star is Born- This has all the ingredients- great acting, great music, a very good (albeit depressing) story, and moviegoers loved it. This will be a year a popular film wins Best Picture because of the award show's ratings, and that film will not be Black Panther.
What should win: BlacKkKlansman- Spike Lee is making a really good point about racism in America, how little has changed since the 1970s and what a long way we have to go. The ending, which brought up the riots in Charlottesville last year, was very poignant and effective.
Best Director
Who will win: Alfonso Cuaron, Roma- Like I said, this movie is kind of an Oscar baiter, and this was a visually stunning movie, even though it was kind of boring.
Who should win: Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman- He has always been a good director, and this film is no exception. Hopefully, his first nomination will be a win.
Best Actor
Who will win/who should win: Bradley Cooper, A Star is Born- Cooper provides a great character arc for this performance, demonstrating a full range of emotions. He also has a good voice.
Best Actress
Who will win: Glenn Close, The Wife- I am going with my brother here that they will award this veteran actor for her body of work, like they did with Pacino and "Scent of a Woman," although he had many better performances.
Who should win: Lady Gaga, A Star is Born- Her performance of the movie's final song is what sealed this for me. If Oscar decides to award popular movies this year, she could win this one.
Best Supporting Actor
Who will win/who should win: Sam Elliott, A Star is Born- Yet another emotional performance from this movie as the brother of Bradley Cooper's character. He is basically the sane anchor of this film.
Best Supporting Actress
No pick: The only performance I saw here was Yaritza Apricio in "Roma," so I don't think I can make a qualified pick here.
Best Animated Feature
Spider Man: Into the Spider-Verse- Awesome. The best Spider-Man movie to date, which was brilliantly written and animated, and was very loyal to its comic-book roots. The two other movies I have seen here were The Incredibles 2 and Ralph Breaks the Internet, both of which were good, but not great.
Best Original Song
What will win/what should win: "Shallow," from A Star is Born- No explanation needed. Just listen to the song.
That's it for now. I will update this as I see more movies.
No comments:
Post a Comment