No Greta Lee or Greta Gerwig nominations. 🤷♀️ Alexander Payne director nom for The Holdovers? Carey Mulligan’s performance is worthy from Maestro but not the film itself. Ironic that the films nominated for best editing include two of the ones that I felt needed an editor with a firm hand, Killers of the Flower Moon and Poor Things. I read the “Killers” book, but I didn’t agree with all of the casting and felt the movie was far too long. In poor things, Emma Stone was a revelation, and Mark Ruffalo was hilarious, but the brothel scenes should’ve been cut WAY back. There was no need for it to be like a 30-minute segment. (Or was it longer? It felt like the movie was never going to move on from that segment.) I saw all the films with best actress noms and as much as I liked Nyad or Killers (Lily Gladstone) or Anatomy of a Fall (Hüller), I would have prioritized Greta Lee’s performance in Past Lives. I still plan to see The Taste of Things, Zone of Interest (when I can find these at a theater near me) and American Fiction. @Ty any other comments?
How does the Diane Warren thing work? Do producers of these obscure movies reach out to her for a song or is it the other way around? I'm imagining her manager researching films in production..."Ah, here's one about the fictitious development of the Flamin' Hot Cheetoh. No one will see this. It's perfect for you, Diane. Get crackin' on a song for it!"
Wait, is it really true that France didn’t submit Anatomy of a Fall because Hüller criticized Macron?! I heard speculation that it was because so much of the movie was in English that might either not qualify or would be disfavored by potential voters.
Great assessment, Ty! I'm still surprised Poor Things (which I loved for many reasons) didn't generate much controversy over its sex-positive approach (or at least not enough to deny it several nominations). Emma Stone's performance was over-the-top brave and quirky (in a good way), and as much as I admired Lily Gladstone in Killers, I think Stone's the one to beat. Bummer about Charles Melton (someone I was unfamiliar with). He the heart of May-December, so I hope this opens up new opportunities for him.
I avidly track the Oscars and also take it to heart that they are not a “best of.” My epiphany came after seeing Fruitvale Station several months after the ceremony.
And I think Gerwig will really win if her dream of consistently directing mainstream, big studio movies that are actually good happens. Oscars be damned. Spielberg’s best part of his career was Jaws, ET, Close Encounters, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park.
Nice to see the score for Killers of the Flower Moon by the The Band's Robbie Robertson get nominated. His mother’s family is Mohawk, a member of the Six Nations and he traveled to Oklahoma to get better acquainted with Osage culture. Also nominated is the film's song Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People) by an Osage composer.
In recent years, my feeling is the voters are victims of Groupthink rather than using their own brains in choosing the best movie. “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” for example. That one was a done deal. Since I am nuts for movies, I do get into a lather about nominations. This time “Barbie” causes my chagrin. I do not understand why critics love it. I thought it was worthless. Not nominating “May, December” is criminal. Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan should win. Giamatti was great, as he always is. “Killers of the Flower Moon” was totally different than the book. The movie did not emote deep sadness and tragedy the book did. I plead with the movie gods: don’t choose “Barbie.”
I don't think Gerwig got snubbed, nor do I think Barbie was one of the 10 best films of the year, either. Barbie and Maestro are clearly the 2 weakest films on the Best Picture list. And if you want a film with feminist themes, Anatomy of a Fall is superior in every way. Gerwig DID get robbed for her film Lady Bird, which is damn near a miracle of a film. Lady Bird and Get Out were the best 2 films in 2018, but somehow The Shape of Water won. You could have made a strong case that year for Gerwig to win director, along with awards for the film's stars, Saorise Ronan and Laurie Metcalf.
I agree that Killer of the Flower Moon has some significant problems, too many to recount here, but yes, that film could have used a much more ruthless editor.
It is interesting how foreign films are starting to take more of the nominee slots. I am just glad that there is more quality in the films nominated; the last several years have been pretty lean.
No Greta Lee or Greta Gerwig nominations. 🤷♀️ Alexander Payne director nom for The Holdovers? Carey Mulligan’s performance is worthy from Maestro but not the film itself. Ironic that the films nominated for best editing include two of the ones that I felt needed an editor with a firm hand, Killers of the Flower Moon and Poor Things. I read the “Killers” book, but I didn’t agree with all of the casting and felt the movie was far too long. In poor things, Emma Stone was a revelation, and Mark Ruffalo was hilarious, but the brothel scenes should’ve been cut WAY back. There was no need for it to be like a 30-minute segment. (Or was it longer? It felt like the movie was never going to move on from that segment.) I saw all the films with best actress noms and as much as I liked Nyad or Killers (Lily Gladstone) or Anatomy of a Fall (Hüller), I would have prioritized Greta Lee’s performance in Past Lives. I still plan to see The Taste of Things, Zone of Interest (when I can find these at a theater near me) and American Fiction. @Ty any other comments?
How does the Diane Warren thing work? Do producers of these obscure movies reach out to her for a song or is it the other way around? I'm imagining her manager researching films in production..."Ah, here's one about the fictitious development of the Flamin' Hot Cheetoh. No one will see this. It's perfect for you, Diane. Get crackin' on a song for it!"
Wait, is it really true that France didn’t submit Anatomy of a Fall because Hüller criticized Macron?! I heard speculation that it was because so much of the movie was in English that might either not qualify or would be disfavored by potential voters.
Great assessment, Ty! I'm still surprised Poor Things (which I loved for many reasons) didn't generate much controversy over its sex-positive approach (or at least not enough to deny it several nominations). Emma Stone's performance was over-the-top brave and quirky (in a good way), and as much as I admired Lily Gladstone in Killers, I think Stone's the one to beat. Bummer about Charles Melton (someone I was unfamiliar with). He the heart of May-December, so I hope this opens up new opportunities for him.
I avidly track the Oscars and also take it to heart that they are not a “best of.” My epiphany came after seeing Fruitvale Station several months after the ceremony.
And I think Gerwig will really win if her dream of consistently directing mainstream, big studio movies that are actually good happens. Oscars be damned. Spielberg’s best part of his career was Jaws, ET, Close Encounters, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park.
Nice to see the score for Killers of the Flower Moon by the The Band's Robbie Robertson get nominated. His mother’s family is Mohawk, a member of the Six Nations and he traveled to Oklahoma to get better acquainted with Osage culture. Also nominated is the film's song Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People) by an Osage composer.
In recent years, my feeling is the voters are victims of Groupthink rather than using their own brains in choosing the best movie. “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” for example. That one was a done deal. Since I am nuts for movies, I do get into a lather about nominations. This time “Barbie” causes my chagrin. I do not understand why critics love it. I thought it was worthless. Not nominating “May, December” is criminal. Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan should win. Giamatti was great, as he always is. “Killers of the Flower Moon” was totally different than the book. The movie did not emote deep sadness and tragedy the book did. I plead with the movie gods: don’t choose “Barbie.”
I don't think Gerwig got snubbed, nor do I think Barbie was one of the 10 best films of the year, either. Barbie and Maestro are clearly the 2 weakest films on the Best Picture list. And if you want a film with feminist themes, Anatomy of a Fall is superior in every way. Gerwig DID get robbed for her film Lady Bird, which is damn near a miracle of a film. Lady Bird and Get Out were the best 2 films in 2018, but somehow The Shape of Water won. You could have made a strong case that year for Gerwig to win director, along with awards for the film's stars, Saorise Ronan and Laurie Metcalf.
I agree that Killer of the Flower Moon has some significant problems, too many to recount here, but yes, that film could have used a much more ruthless editor.
It is interesting how foreign films are starting to take more of the nominee slots. I am just glad that there is more quality in the films nominated; the last several years have been pretty lean.