Sharing my love of all things Oscar. I see all the movies with nominations so you don't have to - and I do my best to research and help pick the winners. Subscribe, share your comments, and feel free to share with others. Follow me on Twitter @JodiBee.
Makeup and Hairstyling, Arjen Tuiten Wonder is the beautiful adaptation of the best selling book being taught in schools around the country. The story follows Augie Pullman, entering middle schooler, whose facial features make him look dramatically different than the other kids at school. He struggles to make friends at first, but his winning personality and his incredible brain eventually wins over most of the kids at school. The genius of this story is that it honors the multiple points of view in the film - his sister, his sister's friend, his parents, the bully, his friends and it creates a larger narrative that isn't just about the main character and his challenges. Ultimately,the story is meant to teach us about kindness, kindness above all. Everyone in the film is terrific, but I was particularly moved by Daveed Diggs' portrayal of Auggie's teacher. I read the book shortly after it came out, and my sense was that the facial features were far more dramatic than portrayed in the film. It's hard to imagine why the changes were made or why the makeup was tamped down, but I hope that it wasn't to make viewing the character more palatable. That would be entirely opposite to the purpose of the film. Nonetheless, I believe you'll find this film to be very moving and most worth your while.
Best Picture, Scott Rudin, Eli Bush and Evelyn O'Neill Actress in a Leading Role, Saoirse Ronan Actress in a Supporting Role, Laurie Metcalf Director, Greta Gerwig Original Screenplay, Greta Gerwig Lady Bird is the coming of age story of a high school senior finding herself. She fights with her controlling mother, tries on personas and activities, and explores different friendships and sexual experiences. There is something charming about this film in which a strong teenage character follows her own mind, sometimes to success and sometimes to failure, but the mistakes and the missteps somehow still feel ok. Her relationship with her mother which is at once contentious and loving, feels familiar to anyone who has ever been a teenage girl (or known one!). Mother and daughter see the world through the same eyes, while Lady Bird is also trying to be her own person. Saoirse Ronan plays Lady Bird perfectly (and with a perfect American accent, I might add), and I loved her wide range of emotions, sometimes played in a single scene. There are wonderful supporting characters in this film, and Laurie Metcalf is brilliant as Lady Bird's mother. This is partially because her role was drawn so well in the screenplay, but also because Metcalf's talent is immeasurable - she is good in everything she does. (Timothee Chalamet, nominated for Call Me By Your Name is another of those terrific supporting roles, which is a coincidence because these two films have so much in common.) The movie is solidly good. Really good. It spoke to me. As you know, I wish the Academy would return to 5 Best Picture nominees, and if it did, this would be one of the films that likely wouldn't make the cut. It's exciting to see more women nominated (though I would have chosen Dee Rees for Mudbound over Greta Gerwig for this film, not that women have to swap out for each other), and Gerwig's hand is very clear throughout this film. In fact, having been raised in Sacramento, Gerwig very specifically decided to have this be the first film to give attention and love to that city. Greta Gerwig is one of those Hollywood people who just decided to take her career into her own hands - she writes, she directs, she acts, she doesn't wait for someone else to decide when she should be allowed to participate (and you should see one of her earlier films, Frances Ha). Very much like Lady Bird herself.
Best Picture - Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Edward H. Hamm Jr. and Jordan Peele Actor - Daniel Kaluuya Director - Jordan Peele Original Screenplay - Jordan Peele Get Out is the social commentary psychological thriller we all needed. A modern day Stepford Wives where Chris, a young African American man (Daniel Kaluuya) and his girlfriend Rose (Allison Williams) make their way to the uber-white, wealthy, seemingly liberal home of Rose's parents. But there's a weird vibe to everyone they meet and talk to, and Rose's mom weirdly keeps wanting to psychoanalyze Chris, and the workpeople in the house have a crazy far away look in their eyes. Nothing about this town nor these people makes sense and as Chris becomes more suspicious, it is clear that something in this place is just not right. This film is magical. Every actor is at the top of his/her game. Every line (at least at the top of the script) is something we have all heard before. To hear Bradley Whitford (who plays Rose's father) say to Chris, "I would have voted for Obama for a 3rd time if I could have" with utterly no context to that statement reminds of us of every awkward white person eager to prove his liberal credentials to a new black acquaintance. (I'm betting Jordan Peele took that line from real life experience.) It's these cringeworthy moments that capture the other side of the racial divide with people so desperate to connect that they alienate by default. One of the taglines of this film is, "Just because you're invited, doesn't mean you're welcome." There is a brilliance to the title of the film - who can forget Eddie Murphy's explanation for why there are no black leads in horror films because the black couple would enter the house praising it and excited to move in and that the house would say "Get Out" in a menacing whisper and instead of fighting the demons would turn to each other and say, "too bad we can't stay." But I'm convinced that the "Get Out" admonition is at least ALSO a commentary on the way that dominant culture may signal a warm reception to people of color and others who are not like them, but then fail to recognize cultural messaging that secretly tells the other to leave. To "be like us or get out." With these nominations, the Academy has successfully signaled the opposite. Jordan Peele is the first African American man with nominations in three categories in a single year. That's the right direction in my book. It's well worth every minute of your time. (and not too scary, I promise!)
Best Picture, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Lisa Bruce, Anthony McCarten and Douglas Urbanski Actor in a Leading Role - Gary Oldman Cinematography, Bruno DelbonnelCostume Design, Jacqueline DurranMakeup and Hairstyling, Kazuhiro Tsuji, David Malinowski and Lucy SibbickProduction Design, Sarah Greenwood (Production Design); Katie Spencer (Set Decoration) The Darkest Hour follows the remarkable true story of the transfer of power in England from Neville Chamberlain to Winston Churchill during World War 2. We now know Churchill to be the brilliant politician who kept Britain from falling to Hitler's Germany, but at the time, it wasn't so clear a decision about whether to negotiate with Hitler (and hope that Hitler would keep to any negotiated deal... we now know that he did not), or whether to fight with a deeply diminished British army. Coincidentally, a good portion of the film focuses on how and whether to rescue the soldiers stranded in Dunkirk, France, whose story you can see in another Oscar nominated film. I was very surprised that Joe Wright has not received the kind of recognition that one might for the direction of this film. The use of space, camera angles, how the camera pulls in so tightly at certain moments of the film to create breathtaking tension - the direction was brilliant. I honestly thought the direction was so good that he might win the category, much less be nominated. The notable story of this film is no doubt Gary Oldman's performance. Of course everyone in the film is good, but this is acting at its finest. I challenge you to find a single moment of "Gary Oldman" in this film. Yes, the makeup and the hairstyling contribute to the overall picture (and is no doubt why these fine artists who produced both are nominated), but the voice, the cadence, the gait, the demeanor were all so Winston Churchill. There were certainly many fine performances this year, but Oldman is already the winner in my book. There are certain films that I call "Apollo 13" films. Those are the ones in which the history is on the books, and since the film is based on a true story, we already know the outcome. And yet, we sit on the edges of our seats and can't miss a minute of the action. This is an Apollo 13 kind of film. A final important note that longtime readers of the blog will remember from prior years. Movies that are based on real events have no obligation to the facts of history. Movie makers have one obligation - to entertain. (ok, we can argue that their investors would say that their obligation is to make money.) Based on what was portrayed in this film, one conservative politician decided to tweet the ways that Churchill and President Trump are the same. The very knowledgeable Twitterverse then embarrassed said politician publicly by pointing out that he was taking his history from this film and not from actual history (which was different than what was portrayed in this movie, presumably for dramatic value.) My point (which has nothing to do with politics) is that if you love a movie beyond measure, let that inspire you to research the real history of the story. Read books upon which the movie is based. Take classes, do research. But never assume that what you saw in the narrative is factual. Is there a greater compliment to a film than to have you so moved that you follow up to learn more? I think not. And that's the truth.
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