Thoughts On Oscar's Nominations

The other night while at an Arlington Landmark of Eatery (Candlelight Inn), my friends and I got into a conversation about this past year in film.  One friend claimed the Academy Awards were becoming like the Grammys, in that the nominations are a joke and it is all name recognition at this point.  Anyone who pays the slightest attention to movie and music awards knows that is about the most insulting thing you can say about an awards presentation.

The example he used was Bradley Cooper from American Hustle.  His complaint was Cooper’s performance was not so great that he deserved a nomination, and on top of that opinion he also included that the movie, along with Captain Phillips, shouldn’t have even been included in the list of nominees for Best Picture.  My counter to his complaint was name another movie to replace either American Hustle or Captain Phillips within the list of nine.

I should have prefaced this post with the caveat that I have not yet seen all nine nominated films.  I lack viewing American Hustle, Her, and Philomena.  However, my argument for American Hustle wasn’t predicated on needing to see it.

You see, part of my friend’s complaint with the Academy Awards is that there is too much politicking for specific movies to be nominated in certain categories.  I completely agree with that aspect of his argument.  As my friend stated, “If Harvey Weinstein’s name is on the movie, it’s getting nominated.”  That is a bit hyperbolic, but you get the point.  The campaign period and release schedule do weigh heavily on whether a movie is considered for nomination during awards season.  However, where my stance on whether the Academy Awards has become as preposterous as the Grammys diverges greatly is in his complete dismissal that movies like American Hustle and Captain Phillips aren’t at least in the conversation of the year’s best.

Although I am defending a movie I haven’t seen as one of the best from 2013, I really am justifying the idea of finding nine movies in 2013 to at least consider being the best.  After watching 12 Years a Slave and Gravity, it is unquestionable that one of those two films was the best from last year.  It is completely your prerogative as to whether you would award Gravity for its technical brilliance or 12 Years a Slave for its compelling story and captivating performances, but to have a completely objective view and give the Oscar to any other movie from last year would be a hard sell.

Last year there were 158 movies released in America.  Among that group, there is a lot of crap.  In fact, there is more filth and cash-grabbing from Hollywood’s releases last year than artful, well-made pictures.  To go through the entire list of movies eligible for consideration of the best picture and ignore movies like American Hustle and Captain Phillips is a disservice.  Sure, there are some smaller, more intimate indie-made movies that get overshadowed due to the late-season campaigning, and there are even some movies that not only get a nod for Best Picture but actually end up erroneously being crowned winner, *cough* Shakespeare in Love *cough*.

Back to my friend’s negative outlook on Bradley Cooper’s performance in American Hustle, since I have not yet seen the movie I am not able to confirm or deny the validity of his opinion.  Yet, I think that the acting categories are open to much more interpretation than the technical categories when awards are given out.

If you were to get my opinion about some of the Best Actor/Actress nominees, which you’re not, I would say Lupita Nyong’o’s performance in 12 Years a Slave wasn’t Best Supporting Actress worthy.  She had one scene that showed any real range other than silent submissiveness or the painful wailing brought about by the crack of a whip, but what made that single scene stand out for her is that it was quite a departure from all the other moments she was a part of.   In reality, 95 percent of her acting was inaudible taunting toward her master’s wife and the cries of agony from the beatings she endured as punishment, so of course that final 5 percent would appear to be splendid.  Should a Best Supporting Actress award really go to someone for one good scene when Sally Hawkins, Jennifer Lawrence, Julia Roberts, and June Squibb carry their great performances throughout the entire film.

My thought train has become derailed a bit and crashed through the wall of a depot like the Kool-Aid Man, but what I am trying to get at is five minutes of what appears to be remarkable acting can get you a nomination, but an entire film of great visual effects, music, costumes, or cinematography are needed for a nomination in the specialized categories, including Best Director and Best Picture.

Is the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences a perfect system that gets it right every time?  No.  Does it bring to the public’s attention several motion pictures that are superbly made and deserve recognition for the hard work put into them?  Absolutely.

And for the final record, if I had an Academy vote it would have gone to 12 Years a Slave.  The movie is superbly done and to me outweighs the technical virtuosity that Alfonso Cuaron provided with Gravity.