Oscar Prep #1: Oscar Noms
Oscar noms were announced last week.
There weren’t many surprises given they pretty much mirrored the Globes.
I had not seen a single film nominated for Best Picture. I’ve still only seen one as of this writing (Mad Max) but that doesn’t upset me because I’ll make up for lost time in the coming weeks.
Besides watching a krillion movies; besides the ceremony itself; I am most excited that Chris Rock is hosting again (his last stint was in 2005).
It’s bound to be an entertaining show!
I had only seen TWO of the 42 movies going up for an Academy Award:
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Ex Machina: 5 stars (out of 5)! This movie asks you to consider what it means to be human, as well as what it means to be a monster. A modern-day spin on the Frankenstein story, I was both entranced and appalled throughout. Nature versus nurture plays a smaller role here than in its predecessor, but the pursuit of science at all costs reigns supreme just as it did in Frankenstein. Highly recommend for any sci-fi fan, computer geek, robotics nut, and lover of the “what if” questions necessarily prevalent in good dystopia stories.
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Inside Out: 5 stars (out of 5)! This animated film was so much deeper than you would expect from a kid’s cartoon. Indeed, my 18-yr-old niece exclaimed, “This is so NOT a movie for kids! There’s no way children can grasp these concepts.” She is only mistaken in that this movie is truly for all ages; it will appeal to the young at heart with its funny characters and typical slapstick style while at once striking right at the heart of every adult with its themes on what it means to be in control of your emotions and have self-acceptance. My mom only got about 20 minutes in before she had to turn it off; she said it “hit too close to home.” She ain’t wrong – I cried multiple times throughout the movie. Yet, it’s not heartbreaking. It’s beautiful and, overall, very cathartic. Highly recommend.
Either I haven’t been to the theater in way too long (FACT), or both the Globes and the Oscars choose some pretty fucking obscure titles (FACT).
WHY WAS THIS FILM NOT NOMINATED FOR AN OSCAR?
I am extremely miffed about an omission from the Oscar noms: Home did not get nominated in the category of Best Animation. It was such a sweet movie, highly entertaining and really funny in places. My 22-year-old son pointed out that it was merely a remake of Lilo & Stitch, and while at first I railed against this summary, in retrospect I admit he has a point. However, I enjoyed Home way more than I did Lilo. The protagonist was much less whiny and the alien friend was much less annoying. The gags also hit the mark more often. The Academy made a mistake in overlooking this gem. Highly recommend.
The night before the Oscar noms, I discovered we don’t pick up ABC and I about lost my shit. You might be thinking, “How do you not pick up ABC, Andi-Roo?” or “How do you not know what channels you have, Andi-Roo?” Well, we don’t watch “regular TV” in this house, because fuck commercials is why. And also because fuck cable. Oh and also because fuck being on someone else’s schedule. I ain’t trying to rush home to catch my damn stories, y’all. This is 2016 and you should really get some.
So no ABC = no watching the Oscar noms live as they are announced. WHUT?!? Unacceptable. So I made plans to catch it at sister’s house. She is the Oscar noms Team Captain of Oscar Season, or what we also refer to as the Oscar Run, wherein we attempt to see as many nominated films as possible so we can more accurately guess which films will win.
The morning of the event, I hopped into my car and was promptly stuck behind one school bus after another, and then had to sit at a train. I arrived right in time – to catch my sister floundering with multiple remote controls to figure out how to change the input from Xbox or Wii or whatever. We were a hot mess, you guys. But we finally got our shit straight and plopped down to watch.
As we head from the Oscar noms straight on into Oscar Season, I will put together a priority list of which films we most need to see. For now, however, here are the 42 films, with a strikethrough indicating what I have seen as of this writing. Please note these do not include any films in the “short” categories because fuck those.
2016 Oscar Noms:
| 1 | 45 YEARS |
| 2 | 100-YEAR OLD MAN, THE — |
| 3 | AMY |
| 4 | ANOMALISA |
| 5 | BIG SHORT, THE |
| 6 | BOY AND THE WORLD |
| 7 | BRIDGE OF SPIES |
| 8 | BROOKLYN |
| 9 | CAROL |
| 10 | CARTEL LAND |
| 11 | CINDERELLA |
| 12 | CREED |
| 13 | DANISH GIRL, THE |
| 14 | EMBRACE OF THE SERPENT (Columbia) |
| 15 | EX MACHINA |
| 16 | FIFTY SHADES OF GREY |
| 17 | HATEFUL EIGHT, THE |
| 18 | HUNTING GROUND, THE |
| 19 | INSIDE OUT |
| 20 | JOY |
| 21 | LOOK OF SILENCE, THE |
| 22 | MAD MAX: FURY ROAD |
| 23 | MARTIAN, THE |
| 24 | MUSTANG (France) |
| 25 | RACING EXTINCTION |
| 26 | REVENANT, THE |
| 27 | ROOM |
| 28 | SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE |
| 29 | SICARIO |
| 30 | SON OF SAUL (Hungary) |
| 31 | SPECTRE |
| 32 | SPOTLIGHT |
| 33 | STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS |
| 34 | STEVE JOBS |
| 35 | STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON |
| 36 | THEEB (Jordan) |
| 37 | TRUMBO |
| 38 | WAR, A (Denmark) |
| 39 | WHAT HAPPENED, MISS SIMONE? |
| 40 | WHEN MARNIE WAS THERE |
| 41 | WINTER ON FIRE: UKRAINE — |
| 42 | YOUTH |
- Are you about the Oscar noms?
- Which films have you already seen?
- Do you plan to watch the Academy Awards?
