Da 5 Bloods - 1 nomination

 

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score) - Terence Blanchard 

4 Vietnam veterans reunite in country after more than 40 years to honor their fallen leader's death and to dig up millions of dollars worth of gold they buried while in service.  One of the soldiers brings his semi-estranged son on the trip and they have varying degrees of PTSD, and this trip is bringing difficult conversations to the surface.  As the trip continues, the group encounters local NGO workers who become their burden, and attracts the attention of local gangsters who want the gold. Now they are in all out war, and this is the second one they've fought while in Vietnam.  Surviving Vietnam turns out to be a twice in a lifetime challenge for each of these men, and not everyone will make it out of the country alive.

This film is Spike Lee at his best.  Yes, the score is excellent (which is nothing new for a Spike Lee Joint), but the screenplay was even better.  The performances were authentic, the discussions difficult, the cinematography was beautiful (and I think snubbed in that category), and the ensemble somehow was greater than the sum of its parts.  In some ways, I'd even say this film is authentically Lee's voice, and yet stands apart from Spike Lee canon.  There is a love among men in this film that I found breathtaking.

Watch the trailer here.

BlacKkKlansman - 6 nominations

Best Picture - Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Raymond Mansfield, Jordan Peele and Spike Lee
Actor in a Supporting Role - Adam Driver
Director - Spike Lee
Film Editing - Barry Alexander Brown
Original Score - Terence Blanchard
Adapted Screenplay - Written by Charlie Wachtel & David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott & Spike Lee

"Based on a crazy, outrageous, incredible true story" is the most accurate statement made about this film - no wonder it's right there on the movie poster.  It's the 60's and somehow, African American officer Ron Stallworth has built a phone relationship with David Duke and the KKK, posing as a white man and fellow racist.  This isn't the heart of the south, this is Colorado Springs, Colorado and with racial tensions at an all time high, Stallworth knows instinctively that the place law enforcement should be focusing is on this relatively small hateful group, rather than worrying about the civil rights movement.  When he is invited to become a member of the klan, he realizes he needs a white counterpart to be his proxy in person.  He enlists fellow cop Flip Zimmerman to pose as him noting that as a Jew, Zimmerman can't pretend that the hatred from the klan doesn't affect him, whether he owns his Judaism or not.

This is truly Spike Lee's finest film, and it is his first Oscar nomination for his directing.  (In fact, he has never been nominated for directing for any award in his entire career until now.  Take that in.)  In some ways this film represents the finest of "intersectionality," the notion that oppression of any is oppression of all, and that we all must fight hatred in any form.  For my part, John David Washington is much more deserving of the Actor nomination (which he did not receive) than Adam Driver is of the Supporting Actor nomination (which he did).  While it won't win Best Picture, I think it has a good chance at Adapted Screenplay (which mostly goes to the great film that won't win Best Picture), and is absolutely worth watching.  It's funny, touching, scary, infuriating, and absolutely important.

As a caution, I always like to remind blog readers that "based on a true story" requires no obligation from the filmmaker to the actual events.  If you loved the movie (and I know you did or will), I highly recommend reading Ron Stallworth's book, Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime.  As I have said in blog posts past, movies that are based on true stories should inspire further investigation, and this one is no exception.

This film is a MUST SEE.

Jodi's Oscars Blog - Year 5!

Welcome back to Year 5 of Jodi's Oscars Blog!

Today is always the first day, and yes, I have woken up at 5 a.m. to watch the announcements live at 5:20.  To quote Kumail Nanjiani, "I asked why we don't start at 5:15 and they say, no, that would be way too early."  (Way to go Kumail and Tracee Ellis Ross for a great job hosting this morning.) Thank you to all of you who have reached out to express excitement for another year of reviews.  It truly makes me so happy when someone says, "I wait all year for your reviews," or "I went to see this film on your recommendation, and I loved it."  Who knew that my lifelong obsession with the Oscars would bring so many friends together. 

Big news! This year, I'll be adding a Facebook Live component in which I will talk about one category at a time.  I hope you'll watch (and be kind, I'm no "on camera talent!")

Some quick thoughts about the nominees in general.

For those of you shouting, "Gaga, go get your Oscar," I hasten to remind you that Glenn Close is now the most nominated actor ever without having actually won an Oscar.  Seriously, Glenn Close has never won an Oscar.  Never mind that The Wife was a badass performance, the Academy doesn't like to let aging pros go into that good night without a win (not that Close is even close to dying nor would it be a pity Oscar!).  I know most people haven't seen that film, but you should if you want a Master Class in acting.  Having said all that, A Star is Born is now 4 for 4 on getting Oscars nominations for the actress playing the ingenue.  (and yes, I'll never get the time back on the rabbit hole that took me down - so I'll share my question with you... how many actors have been nominated for the same role for the same basic film/remake?  Off you go, fellow nerds.)

It's exciting to see Spike Lee nominated for what I think is his best film (yes, I liked most of his others).  I would like to see him take this category, though I suspect stopping the Roma train would be a lot like trying to stop a, well, train.  I'm a little shocked that Bradley Cooper wasn't nominated for Director, but when you look at the films in the category, he got shut out by some pretty impressive candidates.

This is the year of the Foreign Films!  Roma, Cold War, Never Look Away, and Border all busted through other categories usually restricted to North American films.  (Though Sweden has been on a tear with Makeup and Hairstyling, this year is no exception.) 

The final interesting thing about the nominees this year is that there is a lot of love spread throughout a number of films.  There are only 52 films nominated (sometimes goes as high as 60ish), and 8 of these films have 5 or more nominations.  That should make whittling down your list much easier this year, with The Favourite and Roma leading the pack at 10 each.  No spoilers, but there were an awful lot of terrific movies to see this year, so look for me to be a very positive reviewer in the next few weeks.

Welcome back to the blog, and thank you again for tuning in and let's get to it, movie lovers!