Normally I’m excited for Oscar nominations, but this year it was overshadowed by a couple of things that happen around the same time. Just before I went to bed last night I heard news of terrorist attacks in my homeland Jakarta in multiple locations. One of the first bombs that went off was so close to my two nieces’ schools!! I immediately texted my brother and he was right in the middle of picking up his three girls from two different schools. Thank God they’re ok. It’s truly a scary world we live in.
And then of course in the morning I heard of the passing of one of my all time favorite actor Alan Rickman 😦 My heart is heavy. I shall do a tribute for Mr. Rickman this weekend.
Ok, well I suppose life must go on. So here’s my thoughts on this year’s Academy Awards nominations…
Same like last year, I didn’t make a post of my nomination predictions this year, I only tweeted who’d be nominated for Best Picture and a few other categories. Well, I guessed correctly that it’d be 8 nominations, but apparently I got two wrong, but the two films that did get in were two I really like.
#OscarNoms nominations is tomorrow! Here’s my Best Picture predictions #PrayerCircleForMadMaxFuryRoad #Oscars2016 pic.twitter.com/3Ctj79iMWK
— FlixChatter (@FlixChatter) January 13, 2016
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So instead of Carol and Anomalisa, Brooklyn (which was in my top 3 of the year!) and Bridge of Spies (which is in my top 20) were nominated.
Anyhoo, at 5:30 PCT, actor John Krasinski, Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs, and filmmakers Guillermo del Toro and Ang Lee revealed the nominees. View complete nominees list here.
Let’s start with the positive …
The Good
Congrats to #MadMax on all the nominations! #OscarNoms #Oscars2016 pic.twitter.com/hm4qEyFTTF
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) January 14, 2016
• YES, prayer answered!! Thrilled to see Mad Max: Fury Road nearly swept the Oscars with 10 nominations! I love hearing its name mentioned over and over as I was listening to it this morning [happy dance] 2 nominations short compared to The Revenant… and both starred Tom Hardy! 😀
• Happy to see George Miller amongst Best Director nod, yes!!!!
• Speaking of the British hottie – YAY for Tom Hardy getting an acting nomination for Best Supporting Actor in The Revenant, woo hoo!!
• YAY for Spotlight! My #2 film of the year will probably be the biggest competition to The Revenant this year.
• Nice seeing Batman and Bane both getting nominations 😉 Their roles couldn’t be more different, and their names were announced one after another this morning, too!
Both Christian Bale & Tom Hardy are the best actors of their generation, they’re such chameleons who look so different from film to film.
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• YAY for Saoirse Ronan amongst the Best Actress nominees! I’m rooting for her even though I think it’s going to be down to Cate Blanchett vs Brie Larson this year.
• YAY for Sly Stallone too!
I had mentioned in my Creed review that it’d be interesting (and awesome!) if he did end up being nominated for an Oscar, as he did in 1976 for the first Rocky film. I’d think would mark some kind of record that the same actor is nominated twice playing the exact same role.
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• Congrats Leo!! I surely believe this is his year. I mean, The Revenant swept the Oscars with 12 nominations and the Best Actor race is arguably not as strong as in previous years and amongst Cranston, Damon, Fassbender and Redmayne, I think DiCaprio is the frontrunner and if I were a betting woman, I’d put my money on him.
• Now, if you think Leo is the Susan Lucci of the Oscars, heh he’s got nothing on Roger Deakins! He’s been nominated 13 times, and every single one has been amazing too which adds even more insult to injury! Cinematography golden boy Emmanuel Lubezki’s nominated again and considered the frontrunner, but he’s got TWO Oscars in the bag two years in a row. Come on Academy, stop yanking Mr. Deakins’ chain and get him his overdue Oscar!
• The only one I haven’t seen out of this list is Straight Outta Compton. YAY for Ex Machina and Spotlight, quite surprised to see Inside Out and Bridge of Spies here, but both are very good films.
• This is perhaps the rare year where I’ve seen ALL of the supporting actor nominees and I agree with ALL of the Best Supporting Actor nominations. It’s a pleasant surprise to see an acting nominee from Spotlight, and Mark Ruffalo did get one of the showiest roles in the ensemble.
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• I’m glad to see Cartel Land and The Look of Silence shortlisted in the Best Documentary category ! Now I haven’t seen the other four that are nominated so I can’t say who’s most deserving, but what Joshua Oppenheimer did with The Act of Killing was astounding, so no doubt he did an equally brilliant job with its follow-up doc.
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• Lots of GREAT composers amongst the Best Score nominees, wow! I mean Ennio Morricone and John Williams are practically legends. Now, Mr. Morricone is yet another ‘always a bridesmaid, never a bride’ nominee with 5 previous nominations, let’s hope this is his year also!
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The Bad
• Well, I think the hashtag #OscarSoWhite will be trending again this year [shrug].
Here’s what the 20 acting nominees look like this year:
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Another bad year for diversity. Just like last year, NONE of the acting nominees consist of an actor/actress of color 😦
My daily industry news reading led me to this reaction post by Variety:
But the most disappointing outcome is that, for the second consecutive year, all 20 of the acting nominees are white. No Michael B. Jordan or Tessa Thompson for “Creed”? No Idris Elba or Abraham Attah for “Beasts of No Nation”? No Will Smith for “Concussion”? And despite a best picture nomination, the cast of “Straight Outta Compton” was all shut out. No doubt, yet another year of an all-white Oscars, which is being widely criticized on Twitter, will be addressed by host Chris Rock at the Feb. 28 telecast.
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• I was convinced to see Idris Elba‘s name on the list for Beasts Of No Nation, which from what I’ve read should’ve been recognized here. I think Michael B. Jordan was a very strong performer as well in Creed, though I think the Leading Actor category is more crowded than the Supporting one, so Elba surely had a much better shot and it’d be a deserving nomination too, not just to fill a diversity quota!
• Bummed to see Charlize Theron overlooked once again in Mad Max: Fury Road 😦
For some reason there’s no love for Emily Blunt in Sicario. I’m sooooo tired of seeing Jennifer Lawrence, she’s nominated AGAIN this year, sheesh! I sure hope she won’t win this time!
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• Not a good year for female talents either it seems. Only ONE female filmmaker gets a nod this year, that is Deniz Gamze Ergüven who directed the French-film Mustang. It sounds similar to Girlhood which is in my top 10 of the year (also a French film directed by a woman) so I should check it out!
The buzz for Suffragette by Sarah Gavron seems to have sizzled before it even opened in major cities. I also heard tons of great buzz for The Diary of a Teenage Girl by Marielle Heller and got plenty of Critics and Film Festival noms, but it was overlooked by both Golden Globes and Oscars. Apparently 36% of Sundance Film Competition was directed by women according to Indiewire, well that sure sounds like a heck of a lot when female filmmakers are largely absent from major awards.
• Two actors who seem to have been overlooked are Paul Dano in Love & Mercy and Jason Siegel in The End of the Tour. I’ve only seen the latter and thought that Siegel did an excellent performance as David Foster Wallace.
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The WTF
• Ok now, Writing’s On the Wall for Best Original Song?? REALLY?? Heh, I think the melody of the song is nice but gah, I can’t stand Sam Smith’s whiny voice and now it sounds like we’d all have to listen to him sing at the Oscars ceremony! Of ALL the years to recognize a Bond song, the Academy chose the most-maligned one that sounds more like writhing on the wall.
• The comedy/musical category is the most baffling thing about the Golden Globes but Oscar’s most baffling category is the downgrading of actors’ role prominence. As in the case with Alicia Vikander in The Danish Girl. Anyway you look at it, her role is a lead more than a supporting, but she’s nominated in the Supporting Actress category.
• Where’s Oscar Isaac?? No offense Mark Ruffalo, I think he’s an excellent actor but as much as I love Spotlight as a film, I feel like I’d rather see Oscar Isaac in Ex Machina who’s sooo much more memorable. Ah well, at least we have this awesome dance sequence to console us 😉
• Oh and I never thought I’d say this but I’d have loved to see Kristen Stewart gets a nod for her performance in Clouds of Sils Maria. She became the first American actress to win a César Award in the role. I think she gave a far stronger performance than Rachel McAdams in Spotlight. Ok it sounds like I’m ripping Spotlight but I’m not, and if the two acting nods increase its chances to win Best Picture, then I guess I’m happy about that. But still it’s baffling that McAdams get a nod whilst Michael Keaton‘s left out.
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• Last but not least, poor Sir Ridley Scott!
The four-time Oscar nominees is overlooked despite his best directing effort in years. The Martian was a return to form for the 78-year-old filmmaker. Heh, let’s hope he gets another shot again as he’s no spring chicken.
The 88th Academy Awards will air on February 28 on ABC.
FLIXCHATTER FILM BLOG 
I’m sick of J-Law too. I hate these nominations for Best Original Song. I’d just rather stay home. I don’t want Eddie Redmayne to win again. I’m starting to find him insufferable. Jacob Tremblay should’ve gotten the nomination. I’m not in a celebratory mood either. I’m too sad about Alan Rickman. First Bowie and now him. I hate 2016.
Yeah I think many people are but she still have a ton of fans in the industry as well as moviegoers. Ahah yeah, the Best Original Songs category isn’t very strong this year. I’m not in a celebratory mood either, very sad about Alan, definitely will write a tribute for him this weekend. Boy, two British legends died in the same week, both were 69 and lost to cancer. It’s just too much!
Glad to hear your family’s OK.
I haven’t seen any of the nominees this year — 2015 was not a good year for me and getting to the movies — so any surprise/foreknowledge on my part is due strictly to buzz and hype. With that said, I was surprised to not see Creed on the Best Picture list, or Michael B. Jordan on the Best Actor list. Idris Elba not being there didn’t surprise me, if only because this is the first I’ve heard of Beasts of No Nation.
This might be Leo’s year. The Revenant has got a lot of hype behind it, and I know from other adaptations that it’s a pretty powerful story, and a real-life one at that (which, you know, Oscar loves.)
I’m pleased to see The Martian in the Best Picture race, and Damon in Best Actor for it. I read the book, it was great, so it’s nice to see that the movie is apparently so good. Mad Max: Fury Road is going to go down as one of the biggest surprises ever as far as critically-loved films. When I first heard about the film being made, I figured it was going to be just another stupid, poorly-thought-out, soulless decades-late sequel. Guess not.
Animated feature is always an interesting mix at the Oscars. Can’t keep Pixar out, and have to assume they’re the favorite. Always a lot of international influence though in this category, and some more “artistic” ones than just populist. It’s funny, but this is one category that #OscarsSoWhite almost never has room to complain on.
Speaking of… yeah, I think it’s going to be trending again. But then, it was trending even before the nominations came out, just in anticipation. Other than the potential snubs you mentioned above, I think it was just a bad year for diversity in Hollywood, period, not simply a matter of the Academy not picking non-white movies and leads. I remember people asking “Where’s Viola Davis and Angela Bassett?” when that one magazine posted their photo spread of potential Oscar leading actress noms, and when I looked it up I found that nothing they were in this past year made any significant waves. Can’t get nominated if they don’t get real roles.
That said, though #OscarsSoWhite definitely has a point, I still have some trouble sympathizing with the people using the tag, because I don’t think most of them would have said “people of color” the way you do. The fact that we’re only discussing black people kind of says it all; diversity means more than just black and white, and I don’t think the average person using the tag would have counted the non-white leads of The Grand Budapest Hotel or Life of Pi, nor would most of them care that only two films featuring Native Americans have ever been Best Picture nominees, and both of them have an asterisk for actually being about a white man among the Indians. And ultimately, it goes back to Hollywood again, simply not making the films. While we can point to a few examples of great films here and there that could or perhaps even should have been nominated, I think it’s more #HollywoodSoWhite and #FilmgoersSoWhite than #OscarsSoWhite. But I’m ranting again. Still tempted to crunch the numbers on the actual historical racial breakdowns though.
Thanks Morgan, glad to see you stop by & left me such an awesome comment!
You haven’t seen any of the nominees? For Best Picture or all of the acting noms as well? You should check out Fury Road, it’s really the most unique of the bunch. It was such a pleasant surprise how good it was. Yeah Oscars love based-on-a-true-story stuff so The Revenant and Spotlight certainly are the frontrunners, but I’m rooting for Fury Road.
I was surprised how much I enjoyed The Martian too, I wasn’t even looking forward to it. Ha! Very true that the animated feature is exempt from #OscarSoWhite complaints. I think the issue w/ the lack of diversity in the noms is that there are lack of diversity in general in Hollywood as people of colors just don’t get as many roles as white actors. So yeah, definitely the problems start long before the Oscar ballots were cast. I think #HollywoodSoWhite is a far more appropriate hashtag in that case and you’re absolutely right, it’s not just about Black actors. I mean Latinos and Asians are far less represented in Hollywood. That’s why it’s a bummer Oscar Isaac who’s Guatemalan isn’t nominated as he’s a worthy contender and a phenomenal actor.
I haven’t seen any of the nominees… period. For pretty much any award, I think. I barely saw any 2015 films at all. But yeah, Fury Road‘s on my to-see list, and would be by now even if it weren’t for the Oscar nom. Kind of funny to think of it, though, isn’t it? The third sequel to a B-movie (I love Mad Max, but it’s a B-movie) is in contention for Best Picture of the Year.
Definite lack of diversity in Hollywood. I mean, yeah, most of the western world is white, so most film actors are going to be white, but even without crunching the numbers, I think the representation is out of proportion in major films.
Ah I see, well it’s never too late to catch up I suppose. Fury Road is SO MUCH FUN! I bought the Bluray and it’s still excellent for rewatch. I think George Miller has elevated the franchise into something truly worthy.
Yep, I think people who don’t think Hollywood lacks diversity is either blind or in denial.
I’m glad Scott is out. His ego got so inflated because of all the attention, the stuff coming out of his mouth was just unbelievable. I think the only snub is Elba. I mean really, no other actor of color had much buzz going on and great actors miss out every year. So people are overreacting again,but I’m sure Elba was at least good and worthy of nomination unlike all that Selma upset last year which was preposterous considering the quality of that movie.
Ahah, I guess you might be right about Scott. Yeah Elba’s snub is so egregious! He is one of those non-white actors who actually don’t care about race and he’s one of the best actors working today. Man it’d have been nice to see a Rocknrolla reunion w/ Hardy and Elba together at the Oscars 😦
Good breakdown Ruth! Enjoyed reading. I have read several things about the lack of diversity. I’m not sure it’s an indictment of the Academy this year. As much as I loved Jordan’s work in Creed I don’t think it was Oscar worthy (IMO) and I’m not surprised that Will Smith was left off. Heard some fairly tepid responses to his performance. But on the other hand Elba and Attah are BIG omissions for me. And I would absolutely have Benicio Del Toro nominated. So I’ve basically contradicted myself! 🙂
Love seeing Mad Max, Spotlight, and The Revenant (new review posted last night) getting a lot of love. I love all three in their own wonderful ways!
Thanks Keith! I almost didn’t want to do this post given the situation in my hometown Jakarta (that barely got any coverage in the media unlike in Paris 😦 ) and also Alan Rickman’s passing. I think the omission of Idris Elba and Oscar Isaac are bigger than Jordan and Smith not being nominated. Del Toro was getting a ton of buzz for his performance, surprised he wasn’t nominated for GG either.
Yes the Fury Road and Spotlight mentions sure made me happy! I’ll check out The Revenant eventually, it’s just too brutal to see on the big screen for me.
I agree Ruth. It is infuriating how little coverage terrorist incidents get in non-European countries compared to all the attention paid to what happened in Paris. It’s an ugly sign of deeply rooted prejudice, and it’s unconscionable.
Great post. There are so many things we agree on. I too thought Charlize Theron was just great in Mad Max: Fury Road, and I do secretly hope that Jennifer Lawrence won’t win this time 🙂 It is always obvious for everyone, but for me the best original score is always hard to predict, it’s like the Academy should stick to things it knows best – the movies.
Hey thanks! I’m so bummed Charlize barely got any recognition from any major award. I really hope J-Law’s “fad” goes away real soon. Ahah I think you’re right about the Academy sticking to just movies!
Nice summary of events, Ruth. I think it’s too bad “Youth” was ignored. I’m surprisingly feeling a lackluster with this year’s film nominations. No Elba? That’s a serious slap for Ridley Scott. I haven’t seen “Room” but don’t think I want to. Quite a few of the contenders just don’t interest me too much. Maybe I’m just tired and will get fired up later.
I think I’m just bummed because of the loss of Alan Rickman. Man, I liked his work.
I’m super bummed too! I have an interview to post tonight but this weekend I’ll be working on my tribute to Alan Rickman. It’s such a huge loss.
I haven’t seen Beast of No Nation yet but from the reviews sounds like Elba is a worthy contender. ‘Room’ is quite harrowing but it’s not all down and depressing actually, and believe it or not there are some lighter moments. Which other films you’re not all that interested in?
Yeah for Tom Hardy’s nomination for the Revenant! He didn’t get a Golden Globe nom so I thought there was a good chance he’d be overlooked by the Oscars. This could be Leo’s year, although arguably he has other performances which are more Oscar worthy, not to say this one isn’t. 😀
I forgot to say great post, it was fun reading your thoughts on each!
I’m so thrilled for Hardy!! I thought the same thing too that he might get overlooked again but thankfully the Academy members are wiser in this particular case. Ahah well, it seems that sometimes there are performers who win for the performance that’s *not as deserving* to make up for the performance they failed to recognize the previous years. Case in point: Russell Crowe for Gladiator, he should’ve won for The Insider!
Thanks for the kind words, appreciate you reading & commenting, Eddie!
Saw The Revenant last night and now i really think Leo has a great shot at winning. And the movie was fantastic too. However i’ve not seen Spotlight but my sixth sense thinks it’ll clean up on Oscar night.
Also i’ve thought of starting a hashtag of #OscarsSoBritish! Seriously, there aren’t very many Americans nominated for the big awards!
Yo Mikey! I think the Best Actor competition isn’t as strong this year so yeah I think this is indeed Leo’s year. Spotlight was so well-crafted, great acting & absorbing script, so yeah I hope it will sweep the Oscars.
The Brits have always dominated major US awards, but hey, I live in the US but my faves are usually Brits because they do produce so much better actors! I just wish they’d nominate non-white Brits as well, as Elba sure deserved one!
Idris Elba is getting better and better, I think it’s only a matter of time before Oscar comes calling 🙂
He is indeed! So talented and charismatic. I love that he’s at ease in both comedic and dramatic roles, now THAT’s range.
I’m not so excited about Lawrence, I hope Larson wins though I haven’t seen Room yet. I’m super excited for Mad Max and I hope it takes some wins over The Revenant just because wow.. I think it would be great to see the best director and best movie divided with Miller and Inarritu’s movies, like it would be a fair deal. I would want Miller to get best director because he did something amazing within the action genre which is a big deal.
Sad to see the lack of diversity, just after when the diversity was already commented so so much throughout last year. And it seems these white-washed roles are more prominent in the promotional stuff as well, and it’s not just the awards that lack that diversity, it comes down to casting great roles to white actors. Anyway, I didn’t expect anything better from the Academy.
YAY FOR TOM!
Hi Getter! I really think it’s incredulous to keep nominating JLaw as if she’s the ONLY great young actress out there. I mean there are a ton of more talented actresses who may not be as media *savvy* who remain invisible. I think Saoirse and Brie are both excellent in their roles and they haven’t won before so I’m rooting for both. I’m w/ you about George Miller, let’s hope Fury Road sweep the Oscars!!
I think the diversity issue should be talked about more. The Academy voters are largely white, middle-aged guys so anyone who don’t fit that category, including women, are largely ignored. Who knows if they’ll ever change but we can always hope and try to affect some kind of change.
Sorry to hear about the difficult time in Jakarta. I did watch the coverage of it on CNN, but you are right that it didn’t get enough coverage. Glad you family was able to get through it safely.
About the selections – I was sorely disappointed by Mad Max: Fury Road. Great action, unbelievable cinematography, and, and…not much of a story. This was NOT an actor’s picture – this was a director’s picture. So while Charlize did a superb job – it is no surprise that she didn’t make the cut for Leading Actress – that field was just too crowded with excellence – given the backlash and tedium about J-Law, maybe Charlize should have been included.
Nice work on this post Ruth.
Thanks Mike. It’s funny that certain countries get far more media attention, not a single person at work asked me if my family’s ok, it seems that they didn’t even know there’s anything going on.
Sorry you didn’t care for Fury Road, I thought the story is definitely there. It may be more of a director’s picture but I still think the actors did an amazing job and made the audience care about their journey. So tired of J-Law, seems that the industry are still enamored w/ her but not sure for how long.
Kristen Stewart getting nominated would’ve been lovely, but she had no support for Sils. They should’ve campaigned it more. She was wonderful. I’m so sick of Jennifer Lawrence at this point. lol
I would’ve loved Paul Dano to get in on the Supporting line up. Or Jason Segel, though he feels more like a lead. Those were great performances in great films.
Yeah I don’t think she’s the kind of person who’d go all over the place promoting herself either, unlike J-Law. I think she’s terrific in Sils and I wasn’t even a fan of hers to begin with.
Dano and Segel both are robbed IMO, yes Segel’s definitely a lead. I’d have loved to see him instead of Redmayne and both roles are based on a real person.
Such a sad past couple of days – with the terrorist attacks and the deaths of David Bowie and Allan Rickman this week, it has made the Golden Globes awards and the Oscars nominations seem insignificant.
As is the case with the Oscars featuring films release in America very recently, I have yet to see a number such as The Revenant and Spotlight. I’m glad Mad Max has made the Best Film list though, it isn’t often you see an action film like this one make the category. Chances of winning: ziltch.
Hi Dan, indeed it has. Certainly put things like film awards into perspective like you said, and how it’s pointless to scream Oscar snubs, ahah.
Yeah I don’t think Fury Road has a chance of winning but I’m glad it’s being recognized as really there’s nothing like it out there, a crazy action film that actually has a heart, AND a female lead with an intriguing character arc!
Mostly agree. The Revenant was disappointing. Technically a masterpiece but too grisly for a second viewing and loooooooong!
Glad to know I’m not the only one getting sick of Jennifer Lawrence. I even called her the new Meryl Streep because they nominate her for the dumbest stuff. She could fart on camera and there would be awards consideration.
http://carlyheartsmovies.com/2016/01/14/88th-annual-academy-awards-one-girls-thoughts/
And, of course, I had more than enough to say about OscarsSoWhite again.
http://carlyheartsmovies.com/2016/01/14/oscarssowhite-strikes-again-so-lets-talk/
Hi Carly! Ahah, it seems that The Revenant proved to be quite polarizing. Initially the raves seem unanimous but I start seeing more negative reviews. I haven’t seen it yet and probably just rent it later as I can’t bear gory stuff, I don’t consider enduring a man being brutalized relentlessly as entertainment.
Ahah yeah, J-Law is the Millennials’ version of Meryl Streep, but w/ half the talent.
Someone tried to argue with me on twitter about #OscarsSoWhite basically being stupid. He was like “don’t make it about race, make it about who deserves it.” It’s like…..don’t tell me discrimination doesn’t exist in Hollywood. What a joke of a conversation that was. Great post though 🙂
Well the thing is, there ARE people of color who deserve to be nominated but the Academy voters probably didn’t bother to see it. I think the discrimination already started long before the voting began though, so the diversity issue runs very deep. People who don’t think it exist are basically blind or defiant.
Extremely thankful your family is OK, that’s too close to home. I had to search for the story, finally found it on Reuters. Am very sad about Alan Rickman, that’s way too young to leave us. Not too much to say about the Oscar’s except this should have been Elba’s year.
Hi Becky! Yeah this has been a very emotional week. Of course what happened in Jakarta barely got any media coverage unlike a place like Paris where it’s a far ‘sexier’ place that’ll guarantee ratings [shrug]
My heart is heavy for Alan Rickman as well, I’ll be writing a tribute for him this weekend. I love so many of his performances.
Yeah, a bummer about Elba, his omission is really egregious.
Glad to hear your family are okay Ruth! There are evils in this world that I just don’t understand.
So sad to hear about Alan Rickman too, didn’t even know he’s that sick, may he rest in peace.
As usual I didn’t pay much attention to the Oscar noms but I was surprised that J-Law got nominated again, didn’t her new film JOY totally tanked and got pretty bad reviews? Guess the Oscar voters just love to nominate a young pretty girl. But I’m glad the voters actually gave some love to Fury Road and Stallone!
Hi Ted! I immediately texted my brother when I saw the news on Twitter. It’s crazy that he was in the middle of picking up my nieces from school! I had no idea Alan Rickman was sick either, he’s such a great actor, perfect in practically any genre.
Yeah I think the middle-aged white male Academy voters must have a crush on J-Law or something, ugh. But yeah, at least they have some sense to nominate Fury Road and Sly!
Paul Dano is completely underrated.
He absolutely is!
I rarely chime in on Oscars discussions because I don’t get around to watching any of the movies until the following year. *LOL* I did see Mad Max and Ex Machina, and they certainly deserve the accolades. So far, Ex Machina is my favorite movie of the year.
The absence of people of color is disheartening. I haven’t seen Beasts of No Nation or Creed, so I can’t comment on those decisions. But it’s clearly an industry-wide problem. The selection of movies, across the board, just isn’t racially diverse, in my opinion. I hope we’ll see that change dramatically in the years ahead.
Oh at least you saw those two, easily two of the best of the year and the most unique.
Yep, diversity is definitely a glaring issue in Hollywood. I guess certain habit die hard, but until the people who make decisions in the industry are becoming more diverse, I don’t see this issue *resolved* anytime soon.
Hey Ruth. I understand wanting Deakins to win, but…. lets face it, Lubezki probably deserves that 3rd Oscar. As for Oscar Issac’s performance in Ex Machina… I don’t see it. It was fun, but award worthy?
Hi Ian. I haven’t seen The Revenant yet but seriously, Deakins has done SO MANY astounding work, I sure hope he wins this time.
I’m happy A War (from my country Denmark) managed a nomination for foreign film. It’s a pretty good drama, but I think Son of Saul is the frontrunner right now to win. I too hoped Charlize Theron would get a nom, oh well. Loved Inside Out, a little disappointed it didn’t manage a Best Picture nom, as it’s the best film of the year for me.
Hi Chris! That’s cool to see another Danish film made the cut, I think The Hunt was the last Danish film nominated in the Foreign Language category, right? I’m very curious to see it and also Son of Saul, but I heard it’s really harrowing to watch. I think Inside Out is the frontrunner in the Best Animation category.
I was like yourself thrilled with the nomination for Fury Road. And seeing Charlotte Rampling nominated was a lovely surprise. I got to see 45 Years as I’ve heard it’s a marvellous and moving movie.
Hey Vinnie, I just saw 45 Years last night and was very moved by Rampling’s performance. I’m thrilled she’s nominated and I’m rooting for her and Saoirse, which is interesting as Saoirse is the youngest nominee and Charlotte is the oldest 😉
I’ve gonna get it on DVD and report back on my thoughts on it.
Awesome! I might review it as well. It’s a simple love story beautifully-told.
That’s great, if you review it I’ll check it out.
Oh my goodness, I felt myself nodding and talking to you during this post. Ugh so many disappointments. A few things I thought off the top of my head… I like J Law but I don’t want to see her win again and you are right Emily Blunt should have received a nod. I loved Carol and it didn’t get nominated, that makes me sad. And seriously Beasts of No Nation got snubbed, not sure if you saw it, but it was so good and the actors in it were phenomenal. Straight outta Compton was great too. I really want Leo and Tom to win for The Revenant. I don’t know why but I did not go gaga over Mad Max, it wasn’t Melissa-able for me. haha 🙂 Great roundup, good post as always.
Hello dahling! Sorry I missed your comment here, I’m terrible! I’m not so enthused about the Oscars this year, for obvious reasons. I mean a lot of the Black actors complain not being nominated but the Latinos are overlooked as well, Oscar Isaac, Benicio del Toro, etc. I’m surprised you’re not as fond of Mad Max, not Melissa-able eh? I guess I was surprised how much I love it, but hey Tom Hardy 😉
Same here I am not that excited for the Oscars. I just want to see Leo win and maybe get some surprises out of it. I will probably watch it though because I am a sucker. Yes Latinos too, we didn’t get much love this year. So sad!
Glad your family are ok, Ruth. It’s scary times.
Totally agree with your Good points, except I haven’t seen Cartel Land, and I think Keaton is best in show in Spotlight. 😉
It’s a shame there couldn’t be more diversity. Hopefully, the recent changes the Academy made will lead to more noms for POC and women directors.
Category fraud aside, I’m really happy for Vikander. And I actually like “Writing’s on the Wall”. 😛
It’s interesting that Ruffalo and McAdams are getting so much kudos for Spotlight, but Keaton is the star I think. Cartel Land is a very visceral and quite scary doc, worth watching for sure.
I think the diversity issue stems from the decision makers (studio honchos) with myopic views. I don’t think they’re racists necessarily, just ignorant. Ahah, well I think the melody of Writing’s on the Wall is nice, I just can’t stand Sam’s voice.
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