Althouse: The Oscar nominees were just announced.

January 24, 2023

The Oscar nominees were just announced.

Here's everything (all at once).

38 comments:

Kay said...: Very interesting that Blonde is a strong contender for Razzies as well as Oscars.; 1/24/23, 8:29 AM
Misinforminimalism said...: Oof, what a crappy year for movies. A whole lotta "I see what you're trying to do there, but it's definitely not worth the time/pain/scolding involved in watching." Except Top Gun, which was fun.

Won't stop them from pretending to have contributed to making the world a better place for favored groups of people, though. Which at this point is the entire purpose of this exercise.; 1/24/23, 8:40 AM
rrsafety said...: Happy to see Elvis getting the love it deserves.; 1/24/23, 8:42 AM
AlbertAnonymous said...: I see what you did there….; 1/24/23, 8:42 AM
Dave Begley said...: Top Gun: Maverick should win, but it won't.; 1/24/23, 8:48 AM
Mike Sylwester said...: The only movie I saw was Elvis, which I liked very much. Austin Butler, the actor who played Elvis, was born to play that role.

This was the first movie that my wife and I saw in a movie theater since the COVID-19 epidemic began. The theater seemed like it was back to normal.; 1/24/23, 9:01 AM
Lurker21 said...: When did the movies nominated start to be those released at the end of the preceding year -- movies hardly anybody had seen. Why would people be interested in movies they hadn't seen?

I suppose that happened so that the movies nominated would still be in theaters when the awards were presented, given that people aren't watching films in theaters anymore, is that still a concern? Could the process could be changed to benefit movies that had come and gone earlier in the year?

I did see Elvis and Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, a few minutes of Banshees and Everything Everywhere, the first Black Panther and the first (1930) and second (1979) All Quiet on the Western Front.

I'll be rooting for Elvis, for Sarah Polley (I'd almost certainly hate her movie and hate her many causes, but I always sort of liked her in spite of everything) and for the Donkey from EO who got cheated out of a best actor nomination.; 1/24/23, 9:02 AM
Saint Croix said...: Interesting to me how elitist the nominations have become.

Apparently, none of the "best actors" work in any films that are popular.

How strange!

The Academy has been excluding the comics (and Hitchcock!) from the very beginning.

It's so exclusive now, it's become a joke.

They had to expand the nominations just so they would have a movie or two that ordinary people have seen.

I've always been annoyed by elitists. These are the people who think to themselves "the best movie is like X." They have a classification system running in their brain, and the only "serious contenders" are the movies that fit that classification system.

So they immediately ignore and exclude excellence from unexpected sources. This is why they miss the Marx brothers and missed Hitchcock. Truffaut would mock the shit out of the American film critics. And then he was like, "oh shit, I'm going to have to do a book."

Truffaut was embarrassed because he knew Hitchcock was a master and he was still youthful and learning. And the American critics were fawning over the "new wave" and were oblivious to the master in their midst.

That photograph of Hitchcock and Truffaut? That staging was intentional.; 1/24/23, 9:12 AM
Mike Sylwester said...: I'm surprised that Baz Luhrmann was not nominated for Best Director, for his movie Elvis.; 1/24/23, 9:33 AM
Mark said...: Sad to see that RRR only got a single nomination. It might be subtitled, but it was by far the most entertaining movie I have seen in a while.; 1/24/23, 9:42 AM
hawkeyedjb said...: Interesting. The last "best picture" I've seen was "Shakespeare in Love," which shouldn't have won. I'm pretty sure I won't have seen this year's winner, since 'fun to watch' is usually a disqualifier.; 1/24/23, 9:46 AM
Joe Smith said...: This is where we find out which terrible actress spent the most time on the casting couch.

Hollywood is a cesspool.

Don't believe me? Take a deep dive into what happens to most child 'stars.'; 1/24/23, 9:55 AM
Kate said...: Agree about RRR. I'm ready to rewatch it.; 1/24/23, 9:56 AM
Big Mike said...: Of all the movies — and I am counting animation, documentaries, and movies mentioned because an actor or actress or director or cinematographer or whatever was nominated — the only one I saw was “Top Gun: Maverick.” I thought about seeing “The Elephant Whisperer,” but it never came to my local theater. Outside of Tom Cruise, not a good year for fun at the movie theater.; 1/24/23, 10:01 AM
Dustbunny said...: Tar is the best movie I seen about art in years. Blanchett is a great actress. The gender/race grievance crowd hate it so doubt it will win.; 1/24/23, 10:21 AM
Sebastian said...: Following up on whether there should be a male vs. female distinction in music awards: how long before the actor/actress thing gets dumped at the Oscars? Is good acting different for a man than a woman? (Even assuming we know what a woman is; but I guess the Academy has biologists on staff.); 1/24/23, 10:23 AM
Dr. Graphene said...: Banshees was, well not terrible, but it was also not terribly entertaining. Simply stated, I did not enjoy it and wished I could get those two hours back. But I loved In Bruge.

Schindler's List was a grind, often hard to watch, but there was an inner beauty, a kind of testament to the human spirit, that made it enjoyable. I cared about the characters, even Rafe Fiennes, whose character I hated.; 1/24/23, 10:24 AM
Lilly, a dog said...: The Best Picture noms for Avatar and Top Gun are a cynical attempt to boost viewership. They should have nominated Will Smith again if they want people to watch.

I'm rooting for Sarah Polley for Adapted Screenplay, since she was snubbed for Best Director. Are they required to nominate Spielberg? He's well past his expiration date.; 1/24/23, 10:53 AM
Jim Gust said...: I see that Hollywood has given up on being a mass medium.

Doesn't hurt my feelings.; 1/24/23, 11:01 AM
Mike of Snoqualmie said...: What's an Oscar? Just the beautiful people giving awards to themselves. For movies that no one watches. Also, no one watches their boring ceremonies.; 1/24/23, 11:10 AM
Rabel said...: Long ago and far away, the male lead in "Everything," Ke Huy Quan, played Short Round. Really.

Most of y'all wouldn't like the movie but I have developed an appreciation of Michelle Yeoh.; 1/24/23, 11:11 AM
Lem the artificially intelligent said...: Good. Now I have a must list.

I haven't seen any of them. (By "them" I mean movies. I've seen some of the actors in other movies prior to the year 2022)

Banshees is in the Q. I think I've been reluctant to start watching it out of the instintive fear I'm not going to make out what they are saying. I just realized that now.

The other movies, I have no idea where they are streaming.; 1/24/23, 11:11 AM
Michael K said...: The only movie I have seen recently was Top Gun: Maverick. I thought it was not as good as the original Top Gun but I do like Cruise.; 1/24/23, 11:37 AM
madAsHell said...: The Oscars are a self-promotion stunt to milk a few more dollars out the theater ticket paying public. Now, the film producers can dump their product into DVD's, and streaming to achieve profits.

The Oscars aren't really relevant anymore.

Are DVD's still a thing?? Asking for a friend.

I now see that they are also closing movie theaters.; 1/24/23, 12:03 PM
JAORE said...: Up through about age 25 the Oscars were a big deal to me. We'd hold or attend Oscar parties. Games included who could guess the most major awards correctly. We saw the majority of nominate flicks, even including foreign films. Debates were held onour choices. Good times.

Then... selections for (too, too) obviously political choices. Controversy on gender and race rather than quality. Political rants instead of humble thanks. Odd films, films not really available to be seen in the hinterlands of my youth. Hurray for me, hooray for us, Booo to you.

Feh. I can find better circle jerk videos on numerous websites.; 1/24/23, 2:09 PM
rcocean said...: Triangle of Sadness look interesting. Since we were talking about Mr. Brophy of the New Yorker, here's part of his comment on the film:

"a movie of targeted demagogy that pitches its facile political stances to the preconceptions of the art-house audience; far from deepening those ideas or challenging those assumptions, it flatters the like-minded viewership while swaggering with the filmmaker’s presumption of freethinking, subversive audacity".

This should be parody but it isn't. Basically it says, "I'm a midwit critic and friends with managment, and I can write any sort of crap, even when high on MJ, and they'll print it."; 1/24/23, 2:46 PM
rcocean said...: I was waiting for "All Quiet" and "Maverick" to come out on Blue-Ray. I'm not going to go to the theater and pay big money for stories that are so predictable. And yes, I know their special effects are better on the big screen.

Triangle of Sadness look interesting. Since we were talking about Mr. Brophy of the New Yorker, here's part of his comment on the film:

"a movie of targeted demagogy that pitches its facile political stances to the preconceptions of the art-house audience; far from deepening those ideas or challenging those assumptions, it flatters the like-minded viewership while swaggering with the filmmaker’s presumption of freethinking, subversive audacity".

This should be parody but it isn't. Basically it says, "I'm a midwit critic and friends with managment, and I can write any sort of crap, even when high on MJ, and they'll print it."; 1/24/23, 2:49 PM
Strick said...: Am I counting correctly? "Everything Everywhere All At Once" has 11 Oscar nominations?

That's amazing.; 1/24/23, 3:05 PM
Narr said...: I've seen some commercials or trailers for some of these.

That stuff stopped being relevant to me decades ago; even my wife no longer pays attention, and she used to lap that crap up.

The Gilded Globs were awarded a few weeks ago, I hear.; 1/24/23, 3:16 PM
Rick67 said...: I am trying to care and not remotely succeeding. I'm at the point where I want to see the entertainment industry fail. No. Seriously. Hollywood hates us. It's infected with the woke mind virus and left wing ideology. They've mostly confused entertainment with lecturing us about what we should think and believe and how we should act. They take beloved franchises and coopt/ruin them and dare berate us if we don't like it.

We don't have to spend a single dollar or minute of life consuming what they produce. We owe them nothing.

Also I haven't seen many of these. I very much enjoyed "Top Gun: Maverick" and saw it twice at the theater. But best picture? That's a tough sell.

As for documentaries I deeply enjoyed "Fire of Love". Has a mystical quality.; 1/24/23, 3:50 PM
grimson said...: The only one I have seen is Tár. It's engaging, but I can't figure out what the director was trying to say or accomplish.

It will be interesting to see whether Blanchett will win, or whether the movie will be shut out because (1) "the right" likes the scene where the classical canon is defended against identity politics, and (2) the central character is a predatory lesbian, to which some gays object.; 1/24/23, 4:02 PM
Saint Croix said...: oh yeah, I guess Elvis was popular.

oops

I skipped right over that one.; 1/24/23, 4:26 PM
Thorley Winston said...: I’ve seen three of the nominated movies: The Batman, Top Gun: Maverick and RRR and there’s at least a few others on the list that I plan to make a point of watching eventually. I’m kind of surprised though that RRR only got one nomination for Music which is well-deserved.; 1/24/23, 4:48 PM
Big Mike said...: I very much enjoyed "Top Gun: Maverick" and saw it twice at the theater. But best picture? That's a tough sell.

While I doubt that “Top Gun: Maverick” will win, against the pile of steaming dreck that are the other nominated films it has a very real chance.; 1/24/23, 6:13 PM
grimson said...: Still thinking about Tár...Maybe in part the director was trying to show that her defense of classical music to the woke pansexual was also a personal defense. In arguing that the art should be judged separately from the artist, she might also be arguing that she should be judged by her art instead of her personal conduct.; 1/24/23, 6:43 PM
EAB said...: I saw 2 Best Picture nominees: Everything Everywhere and Top Gun. Surprised I found the former quite meh after all the hype and positive reviews. I was inclined to like it, because I often enjoy non-linear storylines. But at the core, it was just another mother-daughter conflict movie.

Haven’t watched Oscars in years. Especially since I can see the dresses online, which is the only interesting thing. I’ve never understood why I should care about industry awards when I’m not involved in that industry.; 1/24/23, 6:59 PM
Bunkypotatohead said...: I'd watch Ana de Armas peel turnips for 2 hours.
Maybe longer.; 1/24/23, 7:15 PM
rcocean said...: 1) Tar - From Wikipedia: Lydia guest teaches a masterclass at the Juilliard School. She challenges self-described BIPOC pangender student Max for not taking interest in white cisgender composers like J. S. Bach,

2) Women talking - Women in an isolated religious colony struggle to reconcile with their faith after a series of sexual assaults.

Hmm...guess I'll skip these two.; 1/24/23, 8:29 PM