Here’s my feelings on the major 2015 Oscar nominations
as a movie lover and an awards season monitor.
Picture
The
nominees: American Sniper, Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand
Budapest Hotel, The Imitation Game, Selma, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash
I’ve
not seen: The Grand Budapest Hotel
My
thoughts: The awards
season entries have been relatively poor this year, opening the door for
unexpected films to slide their way to the front. Oscar baits The Imitation Game and The Theory
of Everything were shoe-ins since their release, even though they aren’t
smooth enough to pull off a win. Selma and American Sniper opted for the serious docudrama route. The former is a bit too ostentatious for its
own good, while the latter has some poorly handled story elements at its
fringes. Still, these are the survivors,
and they’re strong films for what they are (except for the mawkish Theory of Everything). Whiplash,
the holdover from Sundance, was a
surprise entry that many people loved, but I was less enamored by it. Still, it’s one of the few nominations that
are making people feel warm and fuzzy, and I’m happy about that. Then there’s the inevitable runners-up: Birdman
and The Grand Budapest Hotel. Both are far too quirky to actually win, even
though Birdman handled the most
difficult material and did it splendidly.
Nope, we all know that Boyhood will
win. It’s a fine movie with a
deceptively simple story, bolstered by an interesting production schedule and
the opportunity to award director Richard Linklater, who’s been making films untraditionally
for years.
Who
I wish was nominated: Nightcrawler, Mommy, Fury (just
check out my top ten films of the year)
Lead
Actor
The
nominees: Steve Carell
for Foxcatcher, Bradley Cooper for American Sniper, Benedict Cumberbatch
for The Imitation Game, Michael
Keaton for Birdman, Eddie Redmayne
for The Theory of Everything
I’ve
not seen: NA
My
thoughts: It was a
crowded field, and although many are upset at David Oyelowo getting left out,
this is still a strong group. Cooper,
Cumberbatch, and Redmayne played familiar types, but each knocked it out of the
park. Carell probably pushed himself the
furthest, and although his cadence of speech and Foxcatcher’s icy tone turned some people off, including myself, it’s
still a great performance. Keaton will
be the deserving winner here, dominating the acting block of the Academy and
beating down his younger rival, Redmayne, with the old ‘he’ll have many more
chances’ argument.
Who
I wish was nominated: Jake
Gyllenhaal for Nightcrawler, Andy
Serkis for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,
Brad Pitt for Fury, James McAvoy for The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, and
Ben Affleck for Gone Girl (yep, I’d
change every nominee if I could)
Lead
Actress
The
nominees: Marion
Cotillard for Two Days, One Night;
Felicity Jones for The Theory of
Everything; Julianne Moore for Still
Alice; Rosamund Pike for Gone Girl;
Reese Witherspoon for Wild
I’ve
not seen: Julianne Moore
in Still Alice
My
thoughts: This is a
rough category to fill, because there weren’t many great female roles in
American cinema in 2014. Theoretically,
the Academy can nominate outside of its home country and Britain, but realistically,
they only leave one slot open for that.
Cotillard, who’s familiar to the Academy after her win in 2008, slid into
that spot this year for the Dardenne’s Two
Days, One Night. I added this film
to my TIFF lineup at the last minute, and although I wasn’t in the mood for its
realistic portrait of depression, Cotillard is good per usual. Witherspoon turned in another performance I
thought was good in Wild, but it wasn’t
particularly exciting. The other two I’ve
seen, Jones and Pike, both tried admirably in what I found to be flawed
roles. Jones simply doesn’t have much to
do and Pike’s Amy didn’t feel like a real character to me in either the movie
or the book. I can’t say I blame either
of them for my lackluster reaction to their performances, but that doesn’t mean
I think they deserve to be nominated.
Who
I wish was nominated: Anne
Dorval for Mommy, Hera Hilmar for Life in a Fishbowl, Jennifer Anniston
for Cake, and perhaps we should get
fun and nominate Emily Blunt for Edge of
Tomorrow
Supporting
Actor
The
nominees: Robert Duvall
for The Judge, Ethan Hawke for Boyhood, Edward Norton for Birdman, Mark Ruffalo for Foxcatcher, J.K. Simmons for Whiplash
I’ve
not seen: Robert Duvall
in The Judge, and I have no plans to
My
thoughts: I wish Norton
would win. He was so great in Birdman, bringing just the right amount
of chaos into that film’s world. Alas,
he won’t, because Simmons has this wrapped up.
One of the reasons I wasn’t big on Whiplash
was that the characters felt one-note to me, and Simmons is just playing nasty. He’s done this sort of thing many times, and
as much as I like Simmons, I wish he was winning for a better role. Ruffalo and Hawke aren’t actors I’ve
particularly cared for in the past, but both showed their best sides in these
films. Ruffalo in particular was great
in Foxcatcher, playing a guy who’s intelligent
but out of his depth.
Who
I wish was nominated: Toby
Kebbell for Dawn of the Planet of the
Apes, Ben Schnetzer for Pride,
Robert Pattinson for The Rover
Supporting
Actress
The
nominees: Patricia
Arquette for Boyhood, Laura Dern for Wild, Keira Knightley for The Imitation Game, Emma Stone for Birdman, and Meryl Streep for Into the Woods
I’ve
not seen: NA
My
thoughts: If you thought
the actress field was weak this year, prepare to be wowed by the supporting
actresses. Arquette, the shoe-in winner,
is actually the female lead in Boyhood,
but she moved down here to secure a win.
I’m just so turned off by her acting that I can’t understand what people
see in it, but I’m clearly the minority here.
Everyone else in this category is just blasé. Dern is stuck in a basic role, Stone only got
two real scenes, and Knightley had far more to do in Laggies. And Streep, well,
she’s getting nominated because she’s Meryl Streep.
Who
I wish was nominated: Suzanne
Clément for Mommy, Agata Kulesza for Ida
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