The Silver Screen
Surprises of This Year's Oscars
By Chris Sabga
This
year, I'm going to keep it simple and true to the theme of this site.
I will list the nominees
and then examine the "Silver Screen Surprises" for each of
the main categories.
Which
films and performers
was I surprised to see on the list?
Were
there any surprising omissions?
And
the Oscar goes to...
Best Picture
Arrival
Fences
Hacksaw
Ridge
Hell
or High Water
Hidden
Figures
La
La Land
Lion
Manchester
by the Sea
Moonlight
Surprises:
"Arrival" has
gotten rave reviews from critics and audiences alike, but I never
expected an "alien" movie to get nominated for Best
Picture. After all, the Oscars tend to be rather exclusionary and
snooty about such things – at least in the main categories. There
are exceptions, of course – especially in the years since the Best
Picture category has expanded from five movies to a maximum of ten
(there are nine this year) – but it's still a surprise.
"Hacksaw
Ridge" also received strong acclaim, but I'm still surprised to
see it here. This nomination represents Mel Gibson's return to
Hollywood's embrace after a decade of turmoil with himself, others,
and the film industry at large.
"Lion"
also came out of nowhere, but Dev Patel should
be familiar to most audiences from past Best Picture victor "Slumdog
Millionaire."
Nowhere
to be found is the troubled "The Birth of a Nation," which
some predicted as early as last year's Academy Awards to be a lock
for this year's. Mixed critical reception and ugly rape allegations
for its writer, director, and star, Nate Parker, have seemingly
shut it out of the Oscar
race.
Best Actor in a
Leading Role
Casey
Affleck, Manchester by the Sea
Andrew
Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge
Ryan
Gosling, La La Land
Viggo
Mortensen, Captain Fantastic
Denzel
Washington, Fences
Surprises:
Because I wasn't expecting to see "Hacksaw Ridge" nominated
for Best Picture, I also wasn't expecting to see its star, Andrew
Garfield, nominated in this category.
"Captain
Fantastic" didn't have the hype or buzz of some of the other
predicted Oscar front-runners, but I'm happy the Academy is mixing it
up and making it more interesting this year with the inclusion of
Viggo Mortensen.
The
omission of Tom Hanks for "Sully," I suppose, is somewhat
of a surprise.
Best Actress in a
Leading Role
Isablle
Huppert, Elle
Ruth
Negga, Loving
Natalie
Portman, Jackie
Emma
Stone, La La Land
Meryl
Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins
Surprises:
French actress Isabelle Huppert has gotten some of the best reviews
of her career for Paul Verhoeven's "Elle," so I'm not
entirely surprised to see her nominated, but I wouldn't have been
surprised if she wasn't because of the film's controversial subject
matter: A woman who was sexually assaulted doesn't report the crime
to the police but instead seeks out her rapist.
Ruth
Negga has gone from "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." recurring
guest star to Oscar nominee. No surprise, though, for anyone who
knows the quality of her work. She draws people to her. Her soulful
and enigmatic eyes and expressions are impossible to look away from.
While
I wasn't expecting it to happen, I'm downright upset by the snub of
Rachel Weisz for "Denial."
It was an incredible performance and unjustly overlooked.
Silver
Screen Surprises reader Lauri has more than a few problems with the
nomination of Meryl Streep and the omission of another actress.
Warning: Most of her rant was unfit for publication. "*BLEEP*...
Meryl *BLEEP* Streep over Amy Adams in
Arrival????????????????????" she screamed. "Who the *BLEEP*
is she *BLEEP*-ing with this year? Amy Adams was so robbed.
GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! *BLEEP*"
Best Actor in a
Supporting Role
Mahershala
Ali, Moonlight
Jeff
Bridges, Hell or High Water
Lucas
Hedges, Manchester by the Sea
Dev
Patel, Lion
Michael
Shannon, Nocturnal Animals
Surprises:
Chris Pine garnered the best reviews of his career for "Hell or
High Water" but Oscar mainstay Jeff Bridges received the
nomination instead – his 7th since 1972. It's hard to argue with
that level of quality.
The
inclusion of Dev Patel surprises me the same way "Lion"
surprised me in the Best Picture category.
While
Meryl Streep was recognized for "Florence Foster Jenkins,"
Hugh Grant was completely
shut out of both the Leading and Supporting Actor categories. That's
especially surprising considering that he has received the best
reviews of his career for this
film.
Best Actress in a
Supporting Role
Viola
Davis, Fences
Naomie
Harris, Moonlight
Nicole
Kidman, Lion
Octavia
Spencer, Hidden Figures
Michelle
Williams, Manchester by the Sea
Surprises:
The parts played by Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer struck me as
leading roles, not supporting, but the Academy has a history of
playing fast and loose with this designation if it gives the actor a
better chance of winning.
There
is no sign of Spencer's co-stars, Taraji P. Henson and Janelle Monáe,
in either of the Acting categories. That's surprising to me.
Could
this be Viola Davis's year? I would have mixed feelings about that.
She's so incredible as an actress than anything less than a Leading
Role Oscar seems like almost a snub.
I'll
also take this opportunity to sound the trumpet again about Rachel
Weisz, who should have been nominated for "Denial." That
was definitely a leading role, but what the hell, I would have
accepted her here too.
Best Directing
Denis
Villeneuve, Arrival
Mel
Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge
Damien
Chazelle, La La Land
Kenneth
Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea
Barry
Jenkins, Moonlight
Surprises:
Whether accurate or not, it is commonly believed that the movies
recognized in the Best Directing
category are the five "true"
Best Picture nominees – a
throwback to when only five films were considered for the Academy's
top award. If that's truly
the case, "Arrival"
being on this prestigious list is definitely unexpected.
Best Animated
Feature
Kubo
and the Two Strings
Moana
My
Life as a Zucchini
The
Red Turtle
Zootopia
Surprises:
No "Batman:
Return of the Caped Crusaders"? Okay, I wasn't really
expecting it, but it's some of the most fun I've had all year.
Best Adapted
Screenplay
Arrival
Fences
Hidden
Figures
Lion
Moonlight
Surprises: It
would be silly to be surprised by "Arrival" at this point
after all of its other nominations, but if you had asked me
yesterday, I wouldn't have predicted its inclusion in this category –
simply based on past Oscar history.
Best Original
Screenplay
Hell
or High Water
La
La Land
The
Lobster
Manchester
by the Sea
20th
Century Women
Surprises:
"The Lobster" receives its one and only nomination in this
category.
Best Foreign
Language Film
Land
of Mine (Denmark)
A
Man Called Ove (Sweden)
The
Salesman (Iran)
Tanna
(Australia)
Toni
Erdmann (Germany)
Surprises:
After Isablle Huppert's
somewhat surprising Best Actress nomination for "Elle," I
almost expected the film to show up here too. Alas, it didn't.
_____
Other thoughts:
"La La Land" has scored a record 14 Oscar nominations, a
feat achieved by only "All About Eve" and "Titanic."
If it wins all or most of the Academy Awards, that would make for a
very dull and predictable show. The Oscars have become better about
that in recent years, so we'll see. This does appear to make "La
La" a front-runner for Best Picture though.
_____
The
rest of the categories and nominees are:
Best Documentary
Feature
Fire
at Sea
I
Am Not Your Negro
Life,
Animated
O.J.:
Made in America
13th
Best Original
Song
“Audition
(The Fools Who Dream),” La La Land
“Can’t
Stop the Feeling,” Trolls
“City
of Stars,” La La Land
“The
Empty Chair,” Jim: the James Foley Story
“How
Far I’ll Go,” Moana
Best Original
Score
Jackie
La
La Land
Lion
Moonlight
Passengers
Best
Cinematography
Arrival
La
La Land
Lion
Moonlight
Silence
Film Editing
Arrival
Hacksaw
Ridge
Hell
or High Water
La
La Land
Moonlight
Costume Design
Allied
Fantastic
Beasts and Where to Find Them
Florence
Foster Jenkins
Jackie
La
La Land
Makeup and
Hairstyling
A
Man Called Ove
Star
Trek Beyond
Suicide
Squad
Production Design
Arrival
Fantastic
Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hail,
Caesar!
La
La Land
Passengers
Sound Editing
Arrival
Deepwater
Horizon
Hacksaw
Ridge
La
La Land
Sully
Sound Mixing
Arrival
Hacksaw
Ridge
La
La Land
Rogue
One: A Star Wars Story
13
Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
Visual Effects
Deepwater
Horizon
Doctor
Strange
The
Jungle Book
Kubo
and the Two Strings
Rogue
One: A Star Wars Story
Best Documentary
Short
Extremis
4.1
Miles
Joe’s
Violin
Watani:
My Homeland
The
White Helmets
Best Animated
Short
Blind
Vaysha
Borrowed
Time
Pear
Cider and Cigarettes
Pearl
Piper
Best Live Action
Short
Ennemis
Intériuers
La
Femme et le TGV
Silent
Nights
Sing
Timecode
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.