The announcements just went out today, so let’s see what we’ve got.<\/p>\n
Best Picture<\/strong> American Sniper<\/em> walked away with a surprising number of nominations. Clearly, I won’t be able to skip that one as I had planned.\u00a0The Theory of Everything<\/em> and\u00a0The Imitation Game<\/em>\u00a0are both mediocrities, content to merely be good enough. They were clearly made for the purpose of Oscar-baiting, and I’m disappointed (but certainly not surprised) that the Academy took the bait.<\/p>\n Selma<\/em> only got two nominations, and a whole lotta ink has already been spilled about that. Some say that it was a racist move on the part of old white Academy voters. Others say that the film was at a disadvantage because it wasn’t finished early enough to get screeners out in a timely manner. I say that it was a really good movie that got snubbed by the Academy, just the way things happen every year. Seriously, people, get with the program. Hell, there are so many other snubs this year alone that are worth far more rage, and we’ll be getting to them shortly.<\/p>\n And anyway, the point is moot because\u00a0Boyhood<\/em> is most likely going to win. It’s picked up just about every other award that’s worth a damn, and the only movie that ever stood even a remote chance of beating it is\u00a0Birdman<\/em>. All the other nominations are just window dressing.<\/p>\n Best Director<\/strong> Ooh, Nolan got snubbed for Best Director yet again. That had to hurt. I also notice that David Fincher got shut out\u00a0which surprises me. Bennett Miller and Morten Tyldum both salvaged stories that might otherwise have fallen flat, but\u00a0Gone Girl<\/em> was a master class at doing more with less.<\/p>\n Props are of course due to Wes Anderson, but my pick is\u00a0Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez I\u00f1\u00e1rritu. The odds are against him — Best Picture and Best Director typically go to the same movie — but no film this year was crafted with more style or innovation than\u00a0Birdman<\/em>. Not even\u00a0The Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em>, which is really saying something.<\/p>\n Best Actor<\/strong> I still can’t believe that Steve Carell is getting so much attention for his\u00a0Foxcatcher<\/em> performance. Giving him the award would be useless because the makeup did all the work for him. It would be like giving Meryl Streep the Oscar for\u00a0The Iron Lady<\/em> (oh, wait).\u00a0Benedict Cumberbatch? Gag me. I love the guy, but I can’t stress this enough: Everything he did here, he’s already done better previously. If he wins the award, it’ll only be because the Academy can’t give him a statue for “Sherlock.”<\/p>\n Worst of all, these two got nominated instead of David Oyelowo (Selma<\/em>) and Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler<\/em>). What the hell were the Academy voters snorting?!<\/p>\n I can’t comment on Bradley Cooper because I haven’t seen the movie, but he’s certainly earned his trophy by this point. But not nearly as much as Michael Keaton, who’s more than paid his dues by this point. All of that said, the best performance on this list has to be Redmayne’s. I’m sorry, I honestly can’t believe I’m saying it, and I’m not sure I want to live in a world where Redmayne would win Best Actor over these other guys, but his performance as Stephen Hawking was truly masterful.<\/p>\n Best Actress<\/strong> Haven’t seen\u00a0Still Alice<\/em> yet, and I regret my calculated risk in missing out on\u00a0Two Days, One Night<\/em>. Jones and Witherspoon were both solid in their respective roles, but Pike was on a whole ‘nother level.<\/p>\n Best Supporting Actor<\/strong> Robert Duvall gets nominated for shitting himself on camera? Ethan Hawke’s character is classified as a supporting role? What the flying fuck is this?!<\/p>\n Norton did solid work, so I don’t mind his nomination. Ditto for Simmons, though I really wouldn’t want to see him win for such an awful caricature of a music teacher, especially when musical education is in a very fragile place right now. And anyway, Ruffalo gave by far the best performance out of anyone else on this list. It’s his.<\/p>\n Best Supporting Actress<\/strong> First of all, Keira Knightley should not be on this list. As with Cumberbatch, there’s nothing she did in\u00a0Imitation Game<\/em> that she hasn’t already done better elsewhere.<\/p>\n Secondly, as with Ethan Hawke, I’m disappointed that Patricia Arquette is only listed as a supporting actress when her performance was such a crucial part of\u00a0Boyhood<\/em>. Then again, if she got nominated for Best Actress, she’d have to lose to Rosamund Pike.<\/p>\n Instead, Arquette has to lose to Dern, Stone, or Streep. Personally, if any of those three are going to beat Arquette, I hope it’ll be Stone. Her performance was easily better than anyone else’s, save Arquette. I really, REALLY want to believe that the Academy will know better than to give Streep the award for the Witch. But as I said before, they already gave Duvall a nomination for shitting himself on camera, so I guess anything’s possible.<\/p>\n (Side note: I notice that\u00a0The Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> didn’t get a single acting nomination, even though it tied with\u00a0Birdman<\/em> for most nominations. Curious, no?)<\/p>\n Best Adapted Screenplay<\/strong> Still haven’t seen\u00a0American Sniper<\/em> or\u00a0Inherent Vice<\/em>. To hell with\u00a0The Theory of Everything<\/em> and its godawful pacing. Whiplash<\/i> would be a good choice, except for the decision to have the main character practice with a metronome and then take that out in later drafts. Such a boneheaded move in so many ways. I’d give this one to the crackling dialogue of\u00a0The Imitation Game<\/em>.<\/p>\n Best Original Screenplay<\/strong> It’s tough to decide whether\u00a0Boyhood<\/em> should get the award, since the script was assembled piecemeal over twelve summers.\u00a0Though I can tell you right now that\u00a0Foxcatcher<\/em> told the least interesting version possible of its story, and it was adapted from the memoirs of Mark Schultz, so what the hell is it even doing here?\u00a0The Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> had a decent screenplay, though its tinkering with different time periods got very distracting. As for\u00a0Birdman<\/em>, I can’t bring myself to get past its high art\/low art bullshit with regards to theatre and cinema.<\/p>\n Nightcrawler<\/em>, on the other hand, was a very effective and creative thriller that was superbly presented all around. That’s the one that should win.<\/p>\n Best Cinematography<\/strong> Oof. Trying to pick between\u00a0Birdman<\/em> and\u00a0The Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em>. What a dilemma. Also, I haven’t seen\u00a0Unbroken<\/em>, but I’d love to see that film win just so Roger Deakins can FINALLY walk away with an Oscar.<\/p>\n Best Costume Design<\/strong> Best Film Editing<\/strong> The Imitation Game<\/em> got nominated instead of\u00a0Birdman<\/em>?! Sweet Jesus Christ, who did the Weinsteins bribe this year?!<\/p>\n Best Makeup and Hairstyling<\/strong> Best Music (Original Score)<\/strong> Okay, Academy, seriously.\u00a0Whiplash<\/em> got so many nominations everywhere else, and it doesn’t get a nomination for Best Score. Yet the cacophony of\u00a0Interstellar<\/em> got a nomination, and\u00a0The Theory of Everything<\/em> and\u00a0The Imitation Game<\/em> are once again given nods over far superior films.<\/p>\n What the sweet and sour fuck is going on this year?!<\/p>\n Best Music (Original Song)<\/strong> I’m glad that\u00a0Begin Again<\/em> got nominated, but it really should have been “Tell Me If You Wanna Go Home.” “Lost Stars” is good, but nowhere near the best song in the movie. Not that it matters, since the Academy will likely give the award to “Everything is Awesome!!!” in a nod to the vox populi.<\/p>\n Best Production Design<\/strong> Best Sound Editing<\/strong> Best Sound Mixing<\/strong> Best Visual Effects<\/strong> Best Animated Feature Film<\/strong> Excuse me while I get my megaphone.<\/p>\n *ahem*\u00a0WHERE THE FUCK IS THE LEGO MOVIE?!?!?!<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n Best Foreign Language Film<\/strong> Best Documentary Feature<\/strong> And not a single fuck is given about\u00a0Jodorowsky’s Dune<\/em>. At this point, I’m not even shocked.<\/p>\n Best Documentary (Short Subject)<\/strong> Best Short Film (Animated)<\/strong> Best Short Film (Live Action)<\/strong> ***<\/p>\n And that’s the whole godforsaken list. Please feel free to leave your own commentary below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Fuck this list.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":734,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[14],"class_list":["post-6164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-year-in-review","tag-academy-awards"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3uOb3-1Bq","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/734"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6164"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6166,"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6164\/revisions\/6166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviecuriosities.fmuk.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nAmerican Sniper<\/em>
\nBirdman<\/em>
\nBoyhood<\/em>
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em>
\nThe Imitation Game<\/em>
\nSelma<\/em>
\nThe Theory of Everything<\/em>
\nWhiplash<\/em><\/p>\n
\nAlejandro Gonz\u00e1lez I\u00f1\u00e1rritu, Birdman<\/em>
\nRichard Linklater, Boyhood<\/em>
\nBennett Miller, Foxcatcher<\/em>
\nWes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em>
\nMorten Tyldum, The Imitation Game<\/em><\/p>\n
\nSteve Carell, Foxcatcher<\/em>
\nBradley Cooper, American Sniper<\/em>
\nBenedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game<\/em>
\nMichael Keaton, Birdman<\/em>
\nEddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything<\/em><\/p>\n
\nMarion Cotillard, Two Days, One Night<\/em>
\nFelicity Jones, The Theory of Everything<\/em>
\nJulianne Moore, Still Alice<\/em>
\nRosamund Pike, Gone Girl<\/em>
\nReese Witherspoon, Wild<\/em><\/p>\n
\nRobert Duvall, The Judge<\/em>
\nEthan Hawke, Boyhood<\/em>
\nEdward Norton, Birdman<\/em>
\nMark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher<\/em>
\nJ.K. Simmons, Whiplash<\/em><\/p>\n
\nPatricia Arquette, Boyhood<\/em>
\nLaura Dern, Wild<\/em>
\nKeira Knightley, The Imitation Game<\/em>
\nEmma Stone, Birdman<\/em>
\nMeryl Streep, Into the Woods<\/em><\/p>\n
\nAmerican Sniper<\/em> (Jason Hall)
\nThe Imitation Game<\/em>\u00a0(Graham Moore)
\nInherent Vice<\/em> (Paul Thomas Anderson)
\nThe Theory of Everything<\/em>\u00a0(Anthony McCarten)
\nWhiplash<\/em>\u00a0(Damien Chazelle)<\/p>\n
\nBirdman<\/em>\u00a0(Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez I\u00f1\u00e1rritu, Nicol\u00e1s Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo)
\nBoyhood<\/em> (Richard Linklater)
\nFoxcatcher<\/em>\u00a0(E. Max Frye, Dan Futterman)
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> (Wes Anderson, Hugo Guiness)
\nNightcrawler<\/em>\u00a0(Dan Gilroy)<\/p>\n
\nBirdman<\/em> (Emmanuel Lubezki)
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em>\u00a0(Robert D. Yeoman)
\nIda<\/em> (Ryszard Lenczweski; Lukasz Zal)
\nMr. Turner<\/em> (Dick Pope)
\nUnbroken<\/em>\u00a0(Roger Deakins)<\/p>\n
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> (Milena Canonero)
\nInherent Vice<\/em> (Mark Bridges)
\nInto the Woods<\/em> (Colleen Atwood)
\nMr. Turner<\/em> (Jacqueline Durran)
\nMaleficent<\/em> (Anna B. Sheppard)<\/p>\n
\nAmerican Sniper<\/em> (Joel Cox, Gary Roach)
\nBoyhood<\/em> (Sandra Adair)
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> (Barney Pilling)
\nThe Imitation Game<\/em> (William Goldenberg)
\nWhiplash<\/em> (Tom Cross)<\/p>\n
\nFoxcatcher<\/em>
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em>
\nGuardians of the Galaxy<\/em><\/p>\n
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> (Alexandre Desplat)
\nThe Imitation Game<\/em> (Alexandre Desplat)
\nInterstellar<\/em> (Hans Zimmer)
\nMr. Turner<\/em> (Gary Yershon)
\nThe Theory of Everything<\/em> (J\u00f3hann J\u00f3hannsson)<\/p>\n
\n“Lost Stars” from Begin Again<\/em>
\n“I’m Not Gonna Miss You” from Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me<\/em>
\n“Everything is Awesome” from The LEGO Movie<\/em>
\n“Glory” from Selma<\/em>
\n“Grateful” from Beyond the Lights<\/em><\/p>\n
\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel<\/em> (Adam Stockhausen; Anna Pinnock)
\nThe Imitation Game<\/em> (Maria Djurkovic; Tatiana Macdonald)
\nInterstellar<\/em> (Nathan Crowley; Gary Fettis, Paul Healy)
\nInto the Woods<\/em> (Dennis Gassner; Anna Pinnock)
\nMr. Turner<\/em> (Suzie Davies; Charlotte Watts)<\/p>\n
\nAmerican Sniper<\/em>
\nBirdman<\/em>
\nThe Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies<\/em>
\nInterstellar<\/em>
\nUnbroken<\/em><\/p>\n
\nAmerican Sniper<\/em>
\n Birdman<\/em>
\n Interstellar<\/em>
\n Unbroken<\/em>
\nWhiplash<\/em><\/p>\n
\nCaptain America: The Winter Soldier<\/em>
\nDawn of the Planet of the Apes<\/em>
\nGuardians of the Galaxy<\/em>
\nInterstellar<\/em>
\nX-Men: Days of Future Past<\/em><\/p>\n
\nBig Hero 6<\/em>
\nThe Boxtrolls<\/em>
\nHow to Train Your Dragon 2<\/em>
\nSong of the Sea<\/em>
\nThe Tale of Princess Kaguya<\/em><\/p>\n
\nWild Tales<\/em> (Dami\u00e1n Szifr\u00f3n; Argentina)
\nTangerines<\/em> (Zaza Urushadze; Estonia)
\nTimbuktu<\/em> (Abderrahmane Sissako; Mauritania)
\nIda<\/em> (Pawel Pawlikowski; Poland)
\nLeviathan<\/em> (Andrey Zvyagintsev; Russia)<\/p>\n
\nCITIZENFOUR<\/em>
\nFinding Vivian Mayer<\/em>
\nLast Days in Vietnam<\/em>
\nThe Salt of the Earth<\/em>
\nVirunga<\/em><\/p>\n
\nCrisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1
\nJoanna
\nOur Curse
\nThe Reaper
\nWhite Earth<\/p>\n
\nThe Bigger Picture
\nThe Dam Keeper
\nFeast
\nMe and My Moulton
\nA Single Life<\/p>\n
\nAya
\nBoogaloo and Graham
\nButter Lamp
\nParvaneh
\nThe Phone Call<\/p>\n