Oscar Day picks--2021
Oscar Day is one of my three favorite holidays. I got a late start watching films in this pandemic year. Oddly, I have seen 0 of 5 films in the Visual Effects category, which is usually easy because it's stocked with the big event blockbusters. Today I've seen none of them. When the nomimations were announced--indeed even two weeks ago--I had only seen two nominated films, EMMA and BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM, each with two nominations (I might have given EMMA some nominations for acting, directing, and adapted screenplay, but it just got nominated for costume design and makeup and hairstyling--seems like a gendered response to a beautiful film). Now I've seen 14 out of 33 feature-length films nominated outside the documentary and international film categories (42%), accounting for 69 out of 94 nominations (73%).
I like the films I've seen. My soul feels refreshed--I had been neglecting watching films during the pandemic. I think I'm going to keep going and maybe try to watch all the nominees. I want to go back and find the nominees I missed from previous years. There are 116 nominated films I missed on my spreadsheets going back to 2013.
Here are my picks in the categories I'm picking in this year:
Best Picture
THE FATHER
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
MANK
MINARI
NOMADLAND
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
SOUND OF METAL
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7
Let's dive right in. I see these films in three groups. SOUND OF METAL, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, and NOMADLAND were outstanding, at the head of the class. I could have ranked them in any order. I rank NOMANDLAND first because it made me tingle the longest.
The second group again resist being ranked in any order. JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH told a powerful story, which I didn't know, and which I have been thinking about since it ended. The filmmaking wasn't flawless, however, and I never sank fully in, never feeling fully persuaded that the fictionalized story was fully capturing these individuals or the moment. MINARI is full of exquisite filmmaking, but with a story and situation quite far away from my own, which never quite grabbed me. THE FATHER reminded me of a few of other excellent films, AMOUR (2013), AWAY FROM HER (2006), STILL ALICE (2014), and of what a badass Anthony Hopkins is. You can never tell where the border is between the honest frailty of his 83 years ends and his acting the role of a man with progressive dementia. If PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN is a stealth superhero movie, THE FATHER is built on the DNA of horror movies. I found it oddly easier than the other films, being only about the inevitability of death and the terrible insignificance of everything we think is lasting and important.
The final two films didn’t really work for me, although they still contained pleasures.
My ranked list: NOMADLAND, SOUND OF METAL, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, THE FATHER, MINARI, JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH, THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, MANK.
Best Director
Thomas Vinterberg (ANOTHER ROUND)
David Fincher (MANK)
Lee Isaac Chung (MINARI)
Chloé Zhao (NOMADLAND)
Emerald Fennell (PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN)
ANOTHER ROUND was fun--a queasy and funny story about a group of codependent adult male schoolteacher friends egging each other on into alcoholism. It's worth it for the performances and a transcendent final scene with the lead star, Mads Mikkelson, performing in his native language of Danish. I am most impressed with NOMADLAND, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, and MINARI in this category. I'd love to see Emerald Fennell celebrated and more people driven to see PROMISING YOUNG WOMEN. The conventional wisdom that this award belongs to Chloé Zhao seems correct to me, however.
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Riz Ahmed (SOUND OF METAL)
Chadwick Boseman (MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM)
Anthony Hopkins (THE FATHER)
Gary Oldman (MANK)
Steven Yeun (MINARI)
Everyone was impressive. Chadwick Boseman's last work in MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM must be seen. It's in the superlative tradition of the great moments and excess of 20th century theater, proving definitively that Boseman was So. Much. More. than Black Panther. My favorite performance, however, that touched my core was Riz Ahmed in SOUND OF METAL. He is the best actor emoting through inarticulateness and the impossibility of clear communication.
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Viola Davis (MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM)
Andra Day (THE UNITED STATES V. BILLIE HOLIDAY)
Vanessa Kirby (PIECES OF A WOMAN)
Frances McDormand (NOMADLAND)
Carey Mulligan (PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN)
I've only seen 3 of these performances, because the great female roles out there are still not consistently in "big," "mainstream," "well-received" films. Viola Davis, Frances McDormand, and Carey Mulligan were all transcendently good in their roles. Really! I would like to give the award to all of them. I would especially like to give it to Carey Mulligan, for carrying the tricky central part so deftly in the incredible PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN.
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Sacha Baron Cohen (THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7)
Daniel Kaluuya (JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH)
Leslie Odom Jr. (ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI)
Paul Raci (SOUND OF METAL)
Lakeith Stanfield (JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH)
I have less enthusiasm for the Actor in a Supporting Role nominations. Daniel Kaluuya's part is nominated as a supporting role not a leading one? Nah. The best for me here, again, comes from the film with my favorite acting. Paul Raci in SOUND OF METAL, who persuaded me he was the person he was portraying, many layers deep.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Maria Bakalova (‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”)
Glenn Close (“Hillbilly Elegy”)
Olivia Colman (“The Father”)
Amanda Seyfried (“Mank”)
Yuh-jung Youn (“Minari”)
I've seen 4 out of 5 films and hope to catch up with HILLBILY ELEGY. Like with the actor category, I have less enthusiasm for these supporting performances. Amanda Seyfried made me see her in a different light in MANK, which is a pure supporting role. Without her work and Gary Oldman's, that film would have been considerably more tedious.
Best Adapted Screenplay
BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM, Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern; Story by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Nina Pedrad
THE FATHER, Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller
NOMADLAND, Chloé Zhao
ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, Kemp Powers
THE WHITE TIGER, Ramin Bahrani
I look forward to seeing THE WHITE TIGER--films that receive a single nomination for their writing are intruiguing. THE FATHER must have been hard to write, but the way the film is constructed is a trick. This is between NOMADLAND, based on a nonfiction book, and ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, based on a play.
NOMANDLAND is totally spectacular. ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, however, knocked me out with the power of its choice focusing on the relationship between Malcolm X, Mohammed Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke. This is an American story that is revelatory and devastating. So I vote for ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI.
Best Original Screenplay
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH, Screenplay by Will Berson, Shaka King; Story by Will Berson, Shaka King, Kenny Lucas, Keith Lucas
MINARI, Lee Isaac Chung
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, Emerald Fennell
SOUND OF METAL, Screenplay by Darius Marder, Abraham Marder; Story by Darius Marder, Derek Cianfrance
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, Aaron Sorkin
There are a lot of great films on this list. Watching the Oscar preshow as I write this I am struck by the sincerity and personal expression involved in MINARI, which is a beautiful film. I want this award to go to PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN.
Best Sound
GREYHOUND, Warren Shaw, Michael Minkler, Beau Borders and David Wyman
MANK, Ren Klyce, Jeremy Molod, David Parker, Nathan Nance and Drew Kunin
NEWS OF THE WORLD, Oliver Tarney, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller and John Pritchett
SOUL, Ren Klyce, Coya Elliott and David Parker
SOUND OF METAL, Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés and Phillip Bladh
I don't know if there have ever been a clearer answer--the sound design in SOUND OF METAL is incredible. I haven't seen GREYHOUND or SOUL but I'll fight to defend SOUND OF METAL in this category.
Best Costume Design
EMMA, Alexandra Byrne
MANK, Trish Summerville
MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, Ann Roth
MULAN, Bina Daigeler
PINNOCHIO, Massimo Cantini Parrini
I'm not necessarily qualified to opine in this category, but I'd like to see EMMA get some love, because it was a great adaptation, and great film.
Best Cinematography
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH, Sean Bobbitt
MANK, Erik Messerschmidt
NEWS OF THE WORLD, Dariusz Wolski
NOMANDLAND, Joshua James Richards
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, Phedon Papamichael
I saw some great cinematography this year. Some of the best was in two films which aren't nominated in this category--MINARI and SOUND OF METAL. They each used landscape photography and a patient wait for the the light at the perfect day to arrest you and stop your breath. What the hell, Academy. NEWS OF THE WORLD was lovely. I felt that cinematography was actually a weak spot for THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, which seemed tawdry and small on the screen compared to its ambition. The choice and execution of the black and white photography in MANK was as often frustrating as it was satisfying. Among the nominated films, I am comfortable choosing NOMANDLAND.
Best Film Editing
THE FATHER, Yorgos Lamprinos
NOMADLAND, Chloé Zhao
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, Frédéric Thoraval
SOUND OF METAL, Mikkel E.G. Nielsen
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, Alan Baumgarten
Good editing is invisible, right? The best edited film is probably just feels like the best film. The editing of THE FATHER was mostly frustrating, as that is a puzzle box movie (and did it really need to be? Maybe.) I'm going to go with NOMADLAND here, but like with best picture, if you tell me I should have said PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN or SOUND OF METAL, I can't dispute that.
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
EMMA, Marese Langan, Laura Allen, Claudia Stolze
HILLBILLY ELEGY, Eryn Krueger Mekash, Patricia Dehaney, Matthew Mungle
MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Jamika Wilson
MANK, Kimberley Spiteri, Gigi Williams, Colleen LaBaff
PINOCCHIO, Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli, Francesco Pegoretti
Give it to MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM. I'm so glad I watched that movie. You should too!
Best Production Design
THE FATHER, Production Design: Peter Francis; Set Decoration: Cathy Featherstone
MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, Production Design: Mark Ricker; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara and Diana Stoughton
MANK, Production Design: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Jan Pascale
NEWS OF THE WORLD, Production Design: David Crank; Set Decoration: Elizabeth Keenan
TENET, Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Kathy Lucas
I look forward to seeing TENET. I feel like production design on MANK must have been a lot of work, and if there is a need to give that film one award out of its ten nominations, this or Amanda Seyfried would be fine. I thought the production design for MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM was clever, despite that I still felt trapped on the confines of the stage the play was written for. I don't think that NEWS OF THE WORLD makes sense as a nominee, it felt like it was mostly filmed on preexisting Hollywood backlots.
That's it! Please enjoy the Oscars.
I like the films I've seen. My soul feels refreshed--I had been neglecting watching films during the pandemic. I think I'm going to keep going and maybe try to watch all the nominees. I want to go back and find the nominees I missed from previous years. There are 116 nominated films I missed on my spreadsheets going back to 2013.
Here are my picks in the categories I'm picking in this year:
Best Picture
THE FATHER
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
MANK
MINARI
NOMADLAND
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
SOUND OF METAL
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7
Let's dive right in. I see these films in three groups. SOUND OF METAL, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, and NOMADLAND were outstanding, at the head of the class. I could have ranked them in any order. I rank NOMANDLAND first because it made me tingle the longest.
The second group again resist being ranked in any order. JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH told a powerful story, which I didn't know, and which I have been thinking about since it ended. The filmmaking wasn't flawless, however, and I never sank fully in, never feeling fully persuaded that the fictionalized story was fully capturing these individuals or the moment. MINARI is full of exquisite filmmaking, but with a story and situation quite far away from my own, which never quite grabbed me. THE FATHER reminded me of a few of other excellent films, AMOUR (2013), AWAY FROM HER (2006), STILL ALICE (2014), and of what a badass Anthony Hopkins is. You can never tell where the border is between the honest frailty of his 83 years ends and his acting the role of a man with progressive dementia. If PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN is a stealth superhero movie, THE FATHER is built on the DNA of horror movies. I found it oddly easier than the other films, being only about the inevitability of death and the terrible insignificance of everything we think is lasting and important.
The final two films didn’t really work for me, although they still contained pleasures.
My ranked list: NOMADLAND, SOUND OF METAL, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, THE FATHER, MINARI, JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH, THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, MANK.
Best Director
Thomas Vinterberg (ANOTHER ROUND)
David Fincher (MANK)
Lee Isaac Chung (MINARI)
Chloé Zhao (NOMADLAND)
Emerald Fennell (PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN)
ANOTHER ROUND was fun--a queasy and funny story about a group of codependent adult male schoolteacher friends egging each other on into alcoholism. It's worth it for the performances and a transcendent final scene with the lead star, Mads Mikkelson, performing in his native language of Danish. I am most impressed with NOMADLAND, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, and MINARI in this category. I'd love to see Emerald Fennell celebrated and more people driven to see PROMISING YOUNG WOMEN. The conventional wisdom that this award belongs to Chloé Zhao seems correct to me, however.
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Riz Ahmed (SOUND OF METAL)
Chadwick Boseman (MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM)
Anthony Hopkins (THE FATHER)
Gary Oldman (MANK)
Steven Yeun (MINARI)
Everyone was impressive. Chadwick Boseman's last work in MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM must be seen. It's in the superlative tradition of the great moments and excess of 20th century theater, proving definitively that Boseman was So. Much. More. than Black Panther. My favorite performance, however, that touched my core was Riz Ahmed in SOUND OF METAL. He is the best actor emoting through inarticulateness and the impossibility of clear communication.
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Viola Davis (MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM)
Andra Day (THE UNITED STATES V. BILLIE HOLIDAY)
Vanessa Kirby (PIECES OF A WOMAN)
Frances McDormand (NOMADLAND)
Carey Mulligan (PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN)
I've only seen 3 of these performances, because the great female roles out there are still not consistently in "big," "mainstream," "well-received" films. Viola Davis, Frances McDormand, and Carey Mulligan were all transcendently good in their roles. Really! I would like to give the award to all of them. I would especially like to give it to Carey Mulligan, for carrying the tricky central part so deftly in the incredible PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN.
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Sacha Baron Cohen (THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7)
Daniel Kaluuya (JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH)
Leslie Odom Jr. (ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI)
Paul Raci (SOUND OF METAL)
Lakeith Stanfield (JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH)
I have less enthusiasm for the Actor in a Supporting Role nominations. Daniel Kaluuya's part is nominated as a supporting role not a leading one? Nah. The best for me here, again, comes from the film with my favorite acting. Paul Raci in SOUND OF METAL, who persuaded me he was the person he was portraying, many layers deep.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Maria Bakalova (‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”)
Glenn Close (“Hillbilly Elegy”)
Olivia Colman (“The Father”)
Amanda Seyfried (“Mank”)
Yuh-jung Youn (“Minari”)
I've seen 4 out of 5 films and hope to catch up with HILLBILY ELEGY. Like with the actor category, I have less enthusiasm for these supporting performances. Amanda Seyfried made me see her in a different light in MANK, which is a pure supporting role. Without her work and Gary Oldman's, that film would have been considerably more tedious.
Best Adapted Screenplay
BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM, Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern; Story by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Nina Pedrad
THE FATHER, Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller
NOMADLAND, Chloé Zhao
ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, Kemp Powers
THE WHITE TIGER, Ramin Bahrani
I look forward to seeing THE WHITE TIGER--films that receive a single nomination for their writing are intruiguing. THE FATHER must have been hard to write, but the way the film is constructed is a trick. This is between NOMADLAND, based on a nonfiction book, and ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, based on a play.
NOMANDLAND is totally spectacular. ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, however, knocked me out with the power of its choice focusing on the relationship between Malcolm X, Mohammed Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke. This is an American story that is revelatory and devastating. So I vote for ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI.
Best Original Screenplay
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH, Screenplay by Will Berson, Shaka King; Story by Will Berson, Shaka King, Kenny Lucas, Keith Lucas
MINARI, Lee Isaac Chung
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, Emerald Fennell
SOUND OF METAL, Screenplay by Darius Marder, Abraham Marder; Story by Darius Marder, Derek Cianfrance
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, Aaron Sorkin
There are a lot of great films on this list. Watching the Oscar preshow as I write this I am struck by the sincerity and personal expression involved in MINARI, which is a beautiful film. I want this award to go to PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN.
Best Sound
GREYHOUND, Warren Shaw, Michael Minkler, Beau Borders and David Wyman
MANK, Ren Klyce, Jeremy Molod, David Parker, Nathan Nance and Drew Kunin
NEWS OF THE WORLD, Oliver Tarney, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller and John Pritchett
SOUL, Ren Klyce, Coya Elliott and David Parker
SOUND OF METAL, Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés and Phillip Bladh
I don't know if there have ever been a clearer answer--the sound design in SOUND OF METAL is incredible. I haven't seen GREYHOUND or SOUL but I'll fight to defend SOUND OF METAL in this category.
Best Costume Design
EMMA, Alexandra Byrne
MANK, Trish Summerville
MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, Ann Roth
MULAN, Bina Daigeler
PINNOCHIO, Massimo Cantini Parrini
I'm not necessarily qualified to opine in this category, but I'd like to see EMMA get some love, because it was a great adaptation, and great film.
Best Cinematography
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH, Sean Bobbitt
MANK, Erik Messerschmidt
NEWS OF THE WORLD, Dariusz Wolski
NOMANDLAND, Joshua James Richards
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, Phedon Papamichael
I saw some great cinematography this year. Some of the best was in two films which aren't nominated in this category--MINARI and SOUND OF METAL. They each used landscape photography and a patient wait for the the light at the perfect day to arrest you and stop your breath. What the hell, Academy. NEWS OF THE WORLD was lovely. I felt that cinematography was actually a weak spot for THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, which seemed tawdry and small on the screen compared to its ambition. The choice and execution of the black and white photography in MANK was as often frustrating as it was satisfying. Among the nominated films, I am comfortable choosing NOMANDLAND.
Best Film Editing
THE FATHER, Yorgos Lamprinos
NOMADLAND, Chloé Zhao
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, Frédéric Thoraval
SOUND OF METAL, Mikkel E.G. Nielsen
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7, Alan Baumgarten
Good editing is invisible, right? The best edited film is probably just feels like the best film. The editing of THE FATHER was mostly frustrating, as that is a puzzle box movie (and did it really need to be? Maybe.) I'm going to go with NOMADLAND here, but like with best picture, if you tell me I should have said PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN or SOUND OF METAL, I can't dispute that.
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
EMMA, Marese Langan, Laura Allen, Claudia Stolze
HILLBILLY ELEGY, Eryn Krueger Mekash, Patricia Dehaney, Matthew Mungle
MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Jamika Wilson
MANK, Kimberley Spiteri, Gigi Williams, Colleen LaBaff
PINOCCHIO, Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli, Francesco Pegoretti
Give it to MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM. I'm so glad I watched that movie. You should too!
Best Production Design
THE FATHER, Production Design: Peter Francis; Set Decoration: Cathy Featherstone
MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, Production Design: Mark Ricker; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara and Diana Stoughton
MANK, Production Design: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Jan Pascale
NEWS OF THE WORLD, Production Design: David Crank; Set Decoration: Elizabeth Keenan
TENET, Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Kathy Lucas
I look forward to seeing TENET. I feel like production design on MANK must have been a lot of work, and if there is a need to give that film one award out of its ten nominations, this or Amanda Seyfried would be fine. I thought the production design for MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM was clever, despite that I still felt trapped on the confines of the stage the play was written for. I don't think that NEWS OF THE WORLD makes sense as a nominee, it felt like it was mostly filmed on preexisting Hollywood backlots.
That's it! Please enjoy the Oscars.