Image = Oscar Nominations Best & Worst

It is finally time to talk about The Oscars!  The good, the bad and the absurd.  Here's my take on the nominees – who & what deserves the acknowledgment and who doesn’t – and who did not make the cut.

THE BEST:

12 Years a Slave – This is simply the best film of the year and my pick for Best Picture.  Great script, wonderful performances, visually stunning and a period piece about a subject of great social significance.  I will be holding my breath to hear the name “Lupita Nyong’o” announced early in the evening because she is the Best Supporting Actress this year.  Also - Michael Fassbender's performance as a sadistic slave owner is one that I will remember forever.  If I was an Academy voter, it would be challenging for me to choose between Fassbender & Jared Leto.   

Philomena – I love everything about this movie.  Compelling true story, wonderful script and inspired performances by both Judy Dench and the incredibly underrated Steve Coogan (who also co-wrote the screenplay).  I am rooting for this film for Best Adapted Screenplay. 

Nebraska –  I love that the Academy is finally honoring small indie films like this.  Nebraska is a totally original and heartwarming film about a family dealing with a crisis in an unusual way.  On the journey, there is both great drama and delightful comedy, featuring two seasoned thespians - Bruce Dern & June Squibb.  It is also great to see Will Forte do something completely different and do it so well.             

Gravity – This film is visually stunning and technically groundbreaking, but I was not impressed with the script or Sandra Bullock.  Gravity deserves every technical award it is nominated for and Alfonso Cuaron deserves credit for helming such a revolutionary film. 

Cate Blanchett – It is about time for this exceptional actress to have a Best Actress statuette and I’m thrilled that Woody is the one to make it happen for her.  Period. 

Dallas Buyers Club – Some reviews of this film said that McConaughey & Leto are great but not the film.  I completely disagree. This is a great independent film about AIDS, which still plagues American society 30 years later.  It also raises critical questions about how much the government harms us under the guise of protection.  Its anti-establishment tone may be why Dallas Buyers Club is not nominated for Best Picture.  And yes - Jared Leto deserves the Oscar because his performance as Rayon is heartbreaking and wonderful.

Matthew McConaughey – It is his year.  Period.  For more on this – see my recent blogpost and this great article from The New Yorker about Matthew's McConaissance: http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2014/0/the-mcconaissance.html


THE OVERRATED:

American Hustle – For the second year in a row a David O. Russell film is totally overrated and getting an absurd amount of acclaim.  Last year, Silver Linings Playbook was shoved down our throats and now once again there is outrageous hype over a not that special movie.  The only phenomenal thing about American Hustle is Christian Bale, who completely transforms himself, as usual.  The rest of the movie is all over the place.  It’s mostly serious but with moments of farce that border on ridiculous. The story gets very convoluted in the third act and the movie is at least 20 minutes too long.    

Jennifer Lawrence – How did this idol worship of Jennifer Lawrence happen?  It was intriguing when she was nominated in 2010 for Winter’s Bone.  No one had heard of her and it’s always fun to have a dark horse in the race.  But now – after she won the Oscar last year (which she did NOT deserve) she is a huge movie star and regaled as this brilliant actress and it’s all too much too soon.  She is only 23 for goodness sake.

Amy Adams – Please take a year off, Amy.  You were so amazing in Junebug, Enchanted and even Julie & Julia and since then, you have been churning out films every year and getting nominated over and over and losing over and over.  You are definitely talented but maybe be a little more selective in your career choices and maybe - oh I don’t know – change your hair and your voice every once in a while (your “English” accent in American Hustle does not count).  It seems as if you get nominated for simply making a movie every year and that’s just not what this is all about.

The Wolf of Wall Street – I really hated this movie.  To me, it is one note storytelling with a one note leading performance and it is entirely too long.  There is nothing redeeming about these debauched characters and after a short while the unabashed gluttony is exhausting.  The only shining light is a great breakthrough performance from the gorgeous and talented Margot Robbie.
   

Leonardo DiCaprio – I LOVE Leo, who has definitely been robbed in the past for Oscars (What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and The Aviator) but I truly hope the Academy does not give him an owed award.  I hate when they do that.

*Note to Leo – Please take a break from working with Scorsese and maybe consider playing an original but fictional character just for a change of pace.  I think you are in a Marty/real life character rut.

Jonah Hill – WTF?  No one mentioned his name all season and then he gets an Oscar nod out of nowhere?  It’s fishy.     

August: Osage County – What a downer!  This movie was more depressing than 12 Years a Slave!  Wonderful ensemble cast (so great to see the great Chris Cooper again!) but once again I feel like its nominations are based upon hype versus substance.  Julia Roberts is good but not great and Meryl the great is good but a little too much of a caricature.  I enjoyed the Broadway play much more and the Tony Award winning Deanna Dunagan was a powerhouse because I really believed that she was that bitter and evil.  In terms of supporting players, I would have loved to see Margo Martindale honored for her performance.

THE FORGOTTEN:

Saving Mr. Banks – It boggles my mind that this amazing movie got so outrageously overlooked.  Emma Thompson is sensational and Colin Farrell is heartbreakingly wonderful.  It has everything – great script, wonderful supporting cast and the compelling story of a woman healing her childhood wounds through the creation of a beloved children’s book which becomes a huge Hollywood film.  And Tom Hanks is in it too.  What more does the Academy want?  In this stellar year for film, couldn’t they go ahead and make the Best Picture nominations an even ten?

Lee Daniels’ The Butler – This movie has Oscar written all over it.  It’s a slice of American history with a huge ensemble cast (and some ingenious casting) about the civil rights movement with a remarkable performance by Forest Whitaker.  And David Oyelowo deserves some recognition as well.  Maybe it was just released too early in the year?  It’s interesting that Harvey Weinstein didn’t push this one harder for Oscar glory.

All is Lost – This is a completely unique film in every way and Robert Redford kept me engaged throughout despite barely saying a word. Redford is the real deal and it is crazy that he doesn't have an Oscar for acting yet.

Oscar Isaac – I could not take my eyes off the screen when he was on it in Inside Llewyn Davis.  It is one of my favorite performances of the year.  Isaac is captivating in a critically acclaimed film and it is strange that the Oscars did not follow the trend of the enormous amount of praise this film has received all season.   

Who would you like to see take home Academy Awards on March 2?