The Batman - 3 nominations

 

Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling Michael Fontaine  Naomi Donne  Michael Marino

Best Sound Stuart Wilson  Will Files  Douglas Murray  Andy Nelson

Best Achievement in Visual Effects Dan Lemmon  Russell Earl  Anders Langlands  Dominic Tuohy

The Riddler is murdering Gotham's high profile politicians and leaving notes behind for Batman, the masked superhero providing vigilante justice in Gotham City. He discovers that the Riddler is leaving a trail of clues behind, including a thumb drive showing the now dead Mayor with a woman from the Penguin's club, so they go there to ask questions.  This is where Batman meets Catwoman, who is the roommate of the woman whose image is shown on the drive. The Riddler then kidnaps the District Attorney and delivers him with a bomb strapped to his neck, and the Riddler threatening to detonate the bomb if he won't answer three riddles, including the name of a police informant. More very complicated hi-jinx ensue and Batman discovers that this villain's personal history can be traced back to the orphanage that his own parents funded, and the Riddler holds a deep grudge against the Wayne family that is driving some of his terrible behavior. Ultimately, Batman discovers that Riddler has a plan to destroy the seawall protecting the city, and while he is unable to prevent that tragedy, he finally overpowers the Riddler and saves the city. Catwoman takes off deeming the city unworthy of saving, and Batman stays to help with the recovery efforts and restore a sense of hope to the denizens.

And truly, that is just some of the story... I've left out so many details which only shows how complicated this story was.  While I loved the movie and I thought Robert Pattinson might be the quintessential Batman (after Michael Keaton, of course), it's not one that you can watch while playing games on your phone.  While The Batman is not going to take home any awards tomorrow night, it's still a fantastic popcorn movie that is worth your while.

And that takes us to our very last Oscars review of 2023.  Tomorrow, I'll post my picks for who should win and who I predict will win.  Thank you for going on this journey with me, it's my favorite time of year!