The Academy has finally spoken, and while “La La Land”’s record-tying 14 overall nominations and inevitable snubs are the lead stories, there is an undercurrent of forward thinking that is lurking beneath the surface.
There has always been criticism that the Academy has passed over the true artistic achievements in any given year. This year, though, the most critically acclaimed film of 2016, “Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins’ masterpiece about the coming-of-age of a gay African-American man, a film with no major stars and only $15 million at the box office, didn’t just earn a few token acting and screenplay nominations. No, that “Carol” nightmare did not occur this year. Instead, “Moonlight” easily earned a Best Picture nomination among eight overall. Eight! You could not have convinced even the most optimistic of Academy members, studio execs or entertainment journalists that would happen even five years ago.
READ MORE: Consider This: Is #OscarsSoWhite A Symptom Of Movies Losing (Even More) Ground To TV?
Thanks, Obama? No, this creative shift is the result of the Academy’s almost decade-long effort to broaden the membership. Not only did they add younger and more diverse members, but they increased the international contingent as well. And while the work, performances and overall films have to shine, it’s noteworthy that “Hell Or High Water,” “Elle,” “The Lobster” and “20th Century Women” managed to earn major nods in the narrative categories. Or an unconventional sci-fi drama such as “Arrival” with a female lead (let’s forget that that lead was snubbed herself for a minute) could earn eight nods, including Best Picture. Sure, more conventional fare such as “Hacksaw Ridge” and “Hidden Figures” made the cut, but we’re talking about a year where a musical that most people equate with the word “indie” that has only two uplifting songs and a downer ending may sweep everything.
There will be lots to ponder in the weeks to come, but for now, here are some quick thoughts on each category outside of the shorts because, well, that’s homework for next week.
BEST PICTURE
“Arrival”
“Fences”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“Hell Or High Water”
“Hidden Figures”
“La La Land”
“Lion”
“Manchester By The Sea”
“Moonlight”
Analysis: The fact that the Academy went with nine nominees for the first time in three years should not be overlooked. Many believed this was a weak crop of contenders than usual (I wouldn’t argue that), but the dramatic increase in membership in response to #OscarsSoWhite contributed to a more diverse field.
BEST DIRECTOR
Denis Villeneuve, “Arrival”
Mel Gibson, “Hacksaw Ridge”
Damien Chazelle, “La La Land”
Barry Jenkins, “Moonlight”
Kenneth Lonergan, “Manchester by the Sea”
Analysis: Slightly shocked by Gibson’s nomination, but the fifth slot was always iffy and clearly the directors branch did not believe Garth Davis, a DGA nominee, was worthy. Barry Jenkins is only the fourth nominee of African-American descent ever nominated in this category. It would be wonderful if he could be the first to win, but Chazelle likely has this in the bag.
BEST ACTOR
Casey Affleck, “Manchester By The Sea”
Ryan Gosling, “La La Land”
Andrew Garfield, “Hacksaw Ridge”
Viggo Mortensen, “Captain Fantastic”
Denzel Washington, “Fences”
Analysis: The five are who we thought they would be. Affleck should still win, but Washington has a chance.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight”
Jeff Bridges, “Hell Or High Water”
Michael Shannon, “Nocturnal Animals”
Lucas Hedges, “Manchester By The Sea”
Dev Patel, “Lion”
Analysis: Geez, I guess those of us who picked Michael Shannon after “Nocturnal Animals” debuted at Venice and Toronto shouldn’t have gotten off the bandwagon? After both Golden Globe and SAG Awards snubs, even Shannon must be surprised by this result. Shannon’s inclusion meant the surprising exclusion of “Florence Foster Jenkins”‘ Hugh Grant.
BEST ACTRESS
Ruth Negga, “Loving”
Natalie Portman, “Jackie”
Emma Stone, “La La Land”
Meryl Streep, “Florence Foster Jenkins”
Isabelle Huppert, “Elle”
Analysis: Simply the most unexpected outcome. Amy Adams’ snub here is actually more shocking than Huppert’s inclusion. Focus Features has to be floored by Negga’s nomination, but they never gave up on her or “Loving” with a campaign that began seven months ago in Cannes. As for Huppert, this means more people will likely see “Elle” in theaters (only a good thing), and there is buzz that she could spoil things for Portman or Stone as we get closer to Oscar Sunday.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Viola Davis, “Fences”
Naomie Harris, “Moonlight”
Nicole Kidman, “Lion”
Octavia Spencer, “Hidden Figures”
Michelle Williams, “Manchester by the Sea”
Analysis: When you are in the award-season trenches, you make good early predictions and bad ones. I’ll stand by my takes on “Hacksaw Ridge” and “Fences” as not being real Best Picture contenders (whoops), but from the beginning, I said Octavia Spencer was the supporting-actress nominee from “Hidden Figures” and was scoffed at. That bathroom scene with Kirsten Dunst sealed it, especially after the election.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Lion”
“Moonlight”
“Silence”
“La La Land”
“Arrival”
Analysis: Rejoice, Bradford Young (“Arrival”) finally has an Oscar nomination. In fact, outside of Rodrigo Prieto (“Silence”), this year’s crop are all first-timers — very rare in this category.
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“Fire At Sea”
“I Am Not Your Negro”
“Life, Animated”
“O.J.: Made In America”
“13th”
Analysis: The fact that “Cameraperson” was questionably snubbed here is already being overlooked, and the debate over whether “O.J.: Made In America” is truly a movie or a television documentary is rearing its head again. The fact that “I Am Not Your Negro” was nominated is something to truly celebrate, however.
BEST EDITING
Joe Walker, “Arrival”
Tom Cross, “La La Land”
John Gilbert, “Hacksaw Ridge”
Joi McMillon, Nat Sanders, “Moonlight”
Jake Roberts, “Hell Or High Water”
Analysis: Somewhat telling that “Manchester By The Sea” did not make the cut here. That is all.
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
“Arrival”
“Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them”
“Hail, Caesar!”
“La La Land”
“Passengers”
Analysis: Frankly, “Passengers” making the cut was something of a surprise, but this branch clearly did not want to reward the more fantastical aspects of “Doctor Strange” or “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Nicholas Britell, “Moonlight”
Hauschka, Dustin O’Halloran, “Lion”
Justin Hurwitz, “La La Land”
Mica Levi, “Jackie”
Thomas Newman, “Passengers”
Analysis: No one, I mean no one, saw Newman’s nod here, especially over John Williams’ score for “The BFG.” More importantly, the nods for Britell, Levi and Hauschka and O’Halloran are three of the more groundbreaking nominations for this category ever. Hurwitz will win, but their three nods this year are remarkable.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” — “La La Land”
“Can’t Stop The Feeling” — “Trolls”
“City Of Stars” — “La La Land”
“How Far I’ll Go” — “Moana”
“Running” — “Hidden Figures”
“The Empty Chair” — “Jim: The James Foley Story”
Analysis: The way the music branch votes on this category always throws a curveball, and this year it means “The Empty Chair” made the five. Of course, once you realize Sting is one of the songwriters, the fact that it got nominated makes a lot more sense. On a completely different note, the telecast producers have to be overjoyed that Justin Timberlake was nominated for the biggest hit of 2016.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Efthymis Filippou, Yorgos Lanthimos, “The Lobster”
Kenneth Lonergan, “Manchester By The Sea”
Damien Chazelle, “La La Land”
Mike Mills, “20th Century Women”
Taylor Sheridan, “Hell Or High Water”
Analysis: These were my picks, and I’m thrilled Mills and Lanthimos made the cut. “La La Land” does not deserve to be here, but it just shows how much love there is for the movie in the Academy and industry overall.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“Arrival,” Eric Heisserer
“Fences,” August Wilson
“Hidden Figures,” Theodore Melfi, Allison Schroeder
“Lion,” Luke Davies
“Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins
Analysis: The lack of female screenwriters and, therefore, nominees is still discomforting, but the fact that Schroeder and two African-Americans made this field is a step in the right direction.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
“Kubo And The Two Strings”
“Moana”
“The Red Turtle”
“Zootopia”
“My Life As A Zucchini”
Analysis: Pixar probably isn’t thrilled that “Finding Dory” was snubbed, but it was an insanely competitive year for animated films and ‘Dory’ did not live up to its predecessor creatively. Academy voters also tend to vote for the biggest Pixar or Disney hit in this category, which means they’ve avoided awarding ‘Dory’ over the more deserving “Zootopia.” Whew.
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Australia, “Tanna,” Bentley Dean, Martin Butler, directors
Denmark, “Land Of Mine,” Martin Zandvliet, director
Germany, “Toni Erdmann,” Maren Ade, director
Iran, “The Salesman,” Asghar Farhadi, director
Sweden, “A Man Called Ove,” Hannes Holm, director
Analysis: These were the five films I predicted. “Toni Erdmann” should win, but “The Salesman” has a small shot at an upset.
BEST SOUND EDITING
“Arrival”
“Deepwater Horizon”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“La La Land”
“Sully”
Analysis: Unexpected snubs for “Doctor Strange,” ‘Fantastic Beasts’ The only other musical to get nominated in this category was the animated “Aladdin.” That’s how much they love “La La Land.” It’s literally historic.
BEST SOUND MIXING
“Arrival”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“La La Land”
“13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi”
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
Analysis: Unexpected snubs for “Doctor Strange,” ‘Fantastic Beasts’ but at least they get to say “Benghazi” on the telecast, right?
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Allied”
“Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them”
“Florence Foster Jenkins”
“Jackie”
“La La Land”
Analysis: Correctly predicted these five as well. “Jackie” should win here, but if “La La Land” starts a sweep, this will be an early sign.
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
“Star Trek Beyond”
“Suicide Squad”
“A Man Called Ove”
Analysis: So much for “Deadpool”‘s guaranteed Oscar nod. Who knew we’d be referring to “Suicide Squad” as an Oscar nominee for years to come?
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Deepwater Horizon”
“Doctor Strange”
“Kubo And The Two Strings”
“The Jungle Book”
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
Analysis: ‘Kubo’ is the only animated film to earn a nomination in this category besides “The Nightmare Before Christmas” 23 years ago. Considering its love with the Academy overall and its artistic achievement, it’s somewhat surprising “Arrival” was passed over for “Deepwater Horizon.”
What are your thoughts on this year’s Academy Awards nominations? Share them below.