There is no question that the Trump presidency has had a major impact on the Oscar race. The Obama presidency represented the way the Left most wanted to see itself: smart, educated, inclusive, open-minded, progressive. We liked who we were under Obama. The films that ran in the Best Picture race, for the most part, represented that. Under the Obama presidency, we saw a potential future that was a healthy and vibrant mix of all different types of people. The musical Hamilton really represented the kind of future Obama’s reign reflected.
There was trouble brewing, however. Not just on the Right — which was and remains plainly obvious — but also on the Left. Had we liberals remained harmonious and unified, we would have skated through to a virtual third term of the Obama presidency, wherein he would have bestowed onto the country not just the first black president, but in his footsteps, the first woman president. On the far Left, however, emerged division and strife, a hot streak of purity that judged even Obama by standards that almost no person can meet. The financial bailouts, lack of single payer healthcare, military engagement abroad — those sins were chained to Hillary Clinton. And with a little help from Putin, Cambridge Analytica, and Steve Bannon, the legacy of Obama came tumbling down. In an instant, it was all taken away as three branches of government fell into the hands of a hostile, radical GOP. Traditional American norms that had held fast for centuries were deliberately dismantled — and with that chaos, standards of liberalism itself began to falter. In short, we lost our collective minds. We’re still losing our minds.
Donald Trump as our president (and all he represents) sent waves of what can only be described as mass hysteria on two main subjects: sexual harassment and/or assault and racism. Any trace of either of these issues had to mean that Trump’s influence was present, like the devil visiting the Puritans in Salem. Many of the accusations were justified, a few were not. With Twitter there to amplify every accusation, to bolster every panicked tweet, tens of millions of us are living in a perpetual state of either fear or outrage.
The Oscar race, ever sensitive to the ways the winds are blowing, switched gears fast. A film like Vice probably could never have made the cut in the Obama era, where good people doing good things still ruled. Where people doing those good things could even occasionally be white people. Where those people could even be white men — written and directed by male filmmakers, starring honorable male protagonists. Now, not even good people doing good things resonates with the industry now. No, because somehow all white men are suspect. Following a year when Winston Churchill himself was put through the wringer, 2018 wasn’t a good year to be a white man in the Oscar race. Not unless somehow you were portrayed as a failure (A Star Is Born) or an evil person (Vice). White heroes failed to strike the right chord, like Neil Armstrong in First Man. First Man seemed offensive to some people just because it was a movie set in a mostly white male agency, made by white men, starring a white male hero. That was a vehicle was always going to be hard to get off the ground, regardless of how good the film was, and especially when the white men neglect to wear American flags as capes.
Now, this isn’t to say “boo hoo, poor white men,” nor is it to make the absurd “reverse racism” claim. It simply has to do with which films resonate right now and which ones don’t. Clearly, an underlying hum of reaction to the Trump presidency is infused in almost all of the Best Picture contenders. Movies that would have been way too dark to be considered in recent years are now practically mainstream. On the upside, inclusivity rules the day. It rules the day because it is the last gasp of what Obama represented. Ten years from now, after much of the outrage has died down, maybe even when there is another president in the White House (if ever), we will look back on this year and admire a fact that anyone can plainly see: women, gay men, and people of color populate the Best Picture race, to an extent never seen before, with the faintest echo of what used to be somewhere in there, almost as vestigial remnants.
Green Book and A Star Is Born are the only two films in the Best Picture race with a straight white male protagonist — though neither of the two so-called heroes are very heroic, and both of them are rightfully bested by their scene-stealing co-stars. If anything, they represent wrong-headed guys who either adapt to better attitude or die trying. Can you think of anything more vivid as a symbol of the Oscars under Trump than how Green Book, arguably the only film in the race with a white straight male hero, is being pummeled within an inch of its life? No, it’s not a good time to be a white man in the Oscar race.
To many, this year’s Best Picture lineup exemplifies success achieved at long last. The ultimate inclusive Oscars: two films in the lineup directed by African-American directors and an abundance of complex female-driven stories. The only thing missing from the perfect vision of what the dream Oscars would look like for an industry that rightfully pines for Obama’s America would be more movies made by women. But with so many this fine films year by America’s best female directors, it seems we couldn’t choose which one to rally around. So none of them got in.
And now, two of the films that sit atop the Best Picture category are both direct indictments of Trump himself. One is BlacKkKlansman, which illustrates the kind of violent racism the country saw in resistance to the Civil Rights movement 50 years ago, we now see going mainstream under Trump. The other is Roma, a portrayal of Mexican people rarely seen on USA screens — as families, children, companions, caring for one another, just making it through another day — and the unseen women who hold society’s foundation steady, who quietly run the world. It’s a depiction that’s in stark contrast to Trump’s deranged portrayal of Mexicans as invaders, rapists, murderers, and animals. Both films flank the Trump presidency as pure expressions of both what we yearn for, and what we hate about the monster who’s been installed in the Oval Office.
No, this is a touchy time for a movie about white man who was raised in a racist environment and is asking the audience to forgive him, a movie that wants us to understand that being a white male in America in 1960 meant a certain mindset. For that mindset to be shaken, for a different point of view to emerge at end of a journey through the deep South, wasn’t going to fly with some moviegoers. For some, there can be no forgiveness for such a thing because the rot goes to the core. No forgiveness. No understanding. No compassion. Even now, though Green Book failed to get a Best Director nomination, many are still in outrage mode that it is even in the Best Picture lineup at all. Funny, though, how the film that charmed its way to the audience award in Toronto has now passed the test of the Producers Guild, the largest group of voters yet to weigh in, as they named it the best of the year last Saturday.
Why didn’t Roma win the PGA? Why didn’t BlacKkKlansman? That’s an interesting question that might prove irrelevant now that the new members of the Academy have given an industry group a shot of diversity in the arm that no individual guild has gotten. Of course, the Academy is always going to be different from the PGA. Many of the new members were invited to intentionally diversify membership, to break the chokehold on 90 years of white men voting for stories by and about white men.
BlacKkKlansman would probably have this in the bag if it weren’t for Roma. Roma is a film that can’t be criticized for being too white. This can’t be framed as Driving Miss Daisy vs. Do the Right Thing. Who can criticize Roma for any reason? The worst people can say about it is that they don’t watch movies with subtitles (and when they say that they’re not slapping the movie; they’re slapping their own faces). So Spike Lee’s film will have to go up against the one movie that no one can hate. And that is a daunting prospect indeed.
As for the traditional white male hero, might he re-emerge someday when the shadow of Trump’s stubby little fingers finally fades, and his stench is purged from American culture? Or has the reputation of white men been shredded, gone forever, existing now only on the Right, among red state Americans, who still believe that nobody but white men can be heroes.
It’s a crazy time to be alive and the Oscar race is a crazy reflection of the times. Let’s hope that the movies themselves can rise above the craziness. The best films find a balance between artful method and powerful message. But nothing makes high profile tweeters happier than seeing troublesome films nominated for them to bring down. It lets them feel that they stand on the right side of justice, and makes them think they have the power to turn the Oscars into a wrench to fix the wrongs of a broken country.
Great read Sasha. It triggered lots of thoughts and questions. Especially when you got to the PGA result. Could AMPAS be progressive? Even transformative? Your article vindicates my notion that Roma is their best picture win this year. There are of course bigger, deeper and more significant points being reflected upon in this State of The Race. I always look forward to reading them.
wow so amazing hahaha
Deposit Via Pulsa
Melayani Deposit Via Pulsa
Is the Obama race & Trump’s presidency anything similar to Black Panther and The Avengers?
The Left wasn’t united under Obama, the Democrats were.
Ok just putting out there snap poll did anyone know that emily blunt actress not known nor ever done any singing performances in acting role actuslly sang her own songs in MPR ? Arr no. Of you aware how hard it is to evrn come close measuring when finest actresses of all time i. Julia andrews in that same role? What emily blujt achieced in mpr was enough to get her sag not oscar nom ? Does not bother most u stupidity of oscars she get sag nom. Not oscar nom? FACT it far superior performance to lady ga ga when you consider nobody think blunt could be as convincing be comparable to original mary poppins character performed by great julia andrews did YOU think blunt pull off near impossible? Thoughts ?
Into the Woods was a singing role.
Ok she may have natural talent but demands /pressures /expectations to fulfill a role previously filled by screen legend abd amkunt dancing and singing is that not a massive raising of bar compared ti whst blunt achieved in previous roles ?
I don’t think anything she does in the near future can be better than what she did in Sicario. That was just masterful.
That true too well emily blunt rile in MPR was refreshing given she was known before that for darker grittier roles
This isn’t the Grammys…
That not the point very rate for actors of today measure up to past perfirmance in past masterpiece
You know our good friend, Paddy, Aaron?
He likes Mary Popoins Returns even better than the original.
https://www.screenonscreen.co.uk/blog/review-mary-poppins-returns-rob-marshall
Happy Australia Day; fellow Aussie, Aaron. I loved Mary Poppins Returns. I was so not expecting to, but it was such a joyous and inventive experience. It had a dream cast and was a welcome distraction in a fractious world and difficult time in life.
Omg i sometimes forget your aussie too i appreviate not only your comments but all more reasom wish you haply new year all very best congrats on u reatured comment to you i say extra respect how was u xmas?
First Oscar buzz from Sundance Julianne Moore, Michelle Williams, eliciting tears as she is always great, Billy Crudup, Abby Quinn
“After the Wedding” Bart Freundlich
Abby Quinn also in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women. First breakout star.
This is great news. The original was brilliant.
With blessings from Robert Redford.
Could Vice actually win BP? I’m struggling with the idea that it’s in the pole position for Actor, Supporting Actress, Film Editing, and Make-up (and has a shot at Original Screenplay), and yet it’s an impossibility. The biggest issues are its divisiveness (especially on a preferential ballot) and its lack of SAG Ensemble.
BlacKkKlansman is expected to win Adapted Screenplay and could win Film Editing and Original Score, so with its upset potential in Picture and Director, that could also be sufficient.
nah, best case scenario will pull a The Revenant winning 3 or 4 awards but i don’t see BP
No Vice has barely any chance of winning except Best Actor, maybe Amy.
What do you predict to win Make-up and Film Editing? I think it has the former in the bag.
Yes Make up
“impossibility”
Seems a bit extreme…
Fair – I didn’t mean it is actually an impossibility, just that it’s generally perceived to be one.
Probably true.
I’ve been saying that Lee films are overdue for winning Film Editing. Lee is overdue for Director – no black director ever won! – and BKKKM is the frontrunner – supposedly – for Adapted Screenplay. That combo almost means Best Picture by default.
Still, the Wall narrative is leading – quite clearly – Hollywood towards Roma sweeping (10 noms? it really, really overperformed… Marina de Tavira? Production Design? both Sound? really lol), which is beginning to be unstoppable. Plus, Cooper can’t win over Malek and Bale, and is “snubbed” from Director, so he can only win as Producer – unlikely – or Adapted Screenplay (undeserved)… so BKKKM may really easily get emptyhanded unless SAG, DGA, BAFTA and WGA come to the rescue.
“A film like Vice probably could never have made the cut in the Obama era, where good people doing good things still ruled. ”
Yes, Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. Such a great person
If academy did not pigeonhole their awards show through political prism vice have nothing save bales brilliant performance going for it. So many unecessary scenes just provoke viewers into believing distorted views . this ugliest new low demonstrates how what could been.one finest political drama in decades been reduced thanx to ego of filmmakers far left ideals leading to disgraceful scenes intended to smear public image dick cheney such close up of dying heart- cheneys g-d that sequence was so ugly unwelcome it new low that make me appct more past politucal biographical dramas the extreme left reduced vice to a rant by rabid far left agenda that crossed most sacred responsibility filmmakers …namely unless you do docu- drama on hitler or stalin or pol pot…stay clear of activist slander ir tarnish your film to reduve it to shadow of what could have become.
Smear the public image of Dick Cheney? LMFAO, yeah because it was so pristine before.
“The Obama presidency represented the way the Left most wanted to see itself: smart, educated, inclusive, open-minded, progressive. We liked who we were under Obama. The films that ran in the Best Picture race, for the most part, represented that.”
Slumdog Millionare, The King’s Speach, Argo, Spotlight and Birdman really represent it. Oscar winners in The Trump era have been better than that.
This is what I am referring to: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/23/us/gop-liberal-america-millennials.html
Every generation is more liberal than the previous one but the pace has been extraordinary since Obama came to power. The counter revolution led by Trump is going to stop that. In fact, it’s making worse by all accounts.
I think the point is that these changes all began with Obama. The fact that some films “Moonlight” won is both a continuation of Obama as well as repudiation of Trump. I have believed for many years that the biggest social shift in American history happened under Obama. And although that has released a somewhat horrific counter revolution, the seeds are set and it’s unlikely to be reversed. Social media might be the biggest reason for that change but Obama was both its leading figure and symbol of that change.
Approximately 60% of white people, 70% of white men, voted Trump, and that is why Sasha, Ryan and the rest of the centrist white liberals are showing their ass with Green Book.
What’s the Bernie Best Picture this year, jackass?
By the way Green Book is 9 on my top 10 list.
With my 1-8 choices I wave my dick in your silly face. After that you can see my ass.
I think I’m in love.
I may be critical at times of sasha ryans VIEWS indeed i sometimes wonder whether web hosts ate left wing but i not concerned about that sashs ryan present things stimulate debate not to declate their arguments as fact that for us to debate.
Of years i been here on this site i not seen in such civil rationally constructed website as this one so let me ask you does that mean i kiss ass?
So to simplify stereotype hosts of this all inclusive very very very tolerant site being bias black and white literally is someyhing none of hosts deserve by you on this site is insult to your intelligence ryan or any of co- hosts of site every right react how thet did to such slander.
When i first came to this site i got caught up more than i should people plsying the man rather than primary purpose of This site .
Challenge academy or praise them i wager with you academy adapts fat more problematic extreme end of political spectrum then hosts website ever do.
On this occassion in return ryan sticking up me i owe same courtesy frankly clockwork that going bit too far surely you know ryan sasha smarter than that as i sure marshall and jazz are too
kewl logik.
Why is John Singleton showing his ass?
Trumps govt shutdown irrespective of Oscars reckless willingness sacrifice films of highest groundbreaking achievement in interest of a deluded academy board and president using academy as vehicle to make anti- establishment political statemement , u
Is insanity hyperventilating big time .
Hence, especially if Roma wins bigTrump need to take a bit responsibility , for galvanising public against Mexican border wall…shutting down govt will only galvanise opposing forces and see extremes in membership in academy exploit it .
I rapped wasnt expecting you agree with me ryan when i discovered who upvoted me …still i dont put too much stock in ” upvotes” etc but when i discovered was you i happily make exceptions …shall we see to me you ciunt as 1- 3 upvotes why dont you and sasha apply for academy membership seriously ? You all at awards daily be board but who assume presidency of acafrmy between your great team ? 🙂
I’m on the road, on my day job, on lunch break Aaron. Sometimes an upvote is all I have time to do, but I don’t give that small sign of approval and support unless I mean it.
I agree with what you said about the way dark events can galvanize opposition.
Cheers no worries
Err i like to add i rather relieved you dont engage too deeply in these conversations while your driving we all want you keep safe of course iur comments come secondary if your on rhe road take care keep safe
Where do you work?
One one hand Sasha you try justify in vain in this article Oscar taking politics as a precedent over pure artistic merit of film . I completely disagree with this notion .
On other you mention about …..” Balance Oscar searching between artistic merit and the times of today, politically, socially ” now that finest point in this dreadful mess pointless debate you raised sum.up Oscars needless dilemma that they put themselves in this position unnecessarily over last 5 years.
It given to most of us film that does most advance cinema as altogether engaging engrossing experience irrespective who in power as opposed who we prefer be in power …are films that dominate Oscar talk in public mind and amongst more established academy members know to this day better than so called new generation rabid far right and lefty activists …ATM esp far left activists that all they are…proof in results of last 5 years combined.
But we all know without question on artistic merit if ever Oscar and Hollywood insiders stop trying make academy something it not if they had academy president personify strong leadership and authority they stand up what they should for industry’s sake as opposed what they do namely guiding principles of artistic innovation merit over political considerations .
If they did that you have far superior quality Oscar race goes like this :
1. Black panther 13 Oscar noms
2. First man 12 Oscar noms
3. Mary Poppins Returns 12 Oscar noms
4. Mission impossible fallout 10 Oscar noms
5. Avengers infinity war 8 Oscar noms
6. Green book 7 Oscar noms
Most of those movies were crap and your post makes now sense. Try again.
Malek may well get the SAG but I think Oscar is now off the table for sure after these stomach churning Singer revelations.
gold derby predictions for sag:
-Black Panther and ASIB neck to neck
-Bale
-Close
-Adams
-Alì
If Bradley Cooper is gonna pull a Ben Affleck, then it has to start here and not stop. Star has to get Ensemble. Also, what are the chances both Cooper and Gaga take the Oscars? With Director not in the game now, I’d like to see this. The male and female leads of a film haven’t both won since As Good As It Gets.
“what are the chances both Cooper and Gaga take the Oscars?”
Hard to see with bare eyes. It can’t really pull an Argo anymore after the PGA loss, and both actors look like third favourites at this point.
In order for this to happen, Cooper would have to win the DGA as Affleck did during the 2012 season. Roma is going to win the DGA however, so this is not going to be 2012.
Close and Bale are getting those. We will see Sunday night. If they win SAG, they will win BAFTA and Oscar.
Poll’s closed. I’ll add to this post with the list of nominees (with an * if they hit the magic number in the first round). The rest will be added later.
SNUBSCARS NOMINEES
Best Picture
Burning
Eighth Grade
First Man *
First Reformed *
Hereditary
If Beale Street Could Talk *
Paddington 2
Sorry To Bother You
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse
Best Director
A Star Is Born – Bradley Cooper
Black Panther – Ryan Coogler
First Man – Damien Chazelle *
First Reformed – Paul Schrader
If Beale Street Could Talk – Barry Jenkins
Best Actor
Ethan Hawke – First Reformed *
Joaquin Phoenix – You Were Never Really Here
John David Washington – BlackKklansman
Lucas Hedges – Boy Erased
Ryan Gosling – First Man
Best Actress
Elsie Fisher – Eighth Grade
Emily Blunt – Mary Poppins Returns
Nicole Kidman – Destroyer
Regina Hall – Support The Girls
Toni Colette – Hereditary **** (>50% of the first votes were for her)
Best Supporting Actress
Claire Foy – First Man *
Elizabeth Debicki – Widows
Emily Blunt – A Quiet Place
Nicole Kidman – Boy Erased
Tilda Swinton – Suspiria
Best Supporting Actor
Daniel Kaluuya – Widows
Hugh Grant – Paddington 2
Michael B. Jordan – Black Panther
Steven Yuen – Burning *
Timothee Chalamet – Beautiful Boy *
Best Cinematography
BlackKklansman
First Man *
Hereditary
If Beale Street Could Talk
Suspiria
Best Original Screenplay
A Quiet Place
Cold War
Eighth Grade *
Hereditary
Sorry To Bother You
Best Adapted Screenplay
Burning
First Man *
Leave No Trace
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse
The Death of Stalin
Best Editing
A Star Is Born
First Man *
Hereditary
Mission Impossible: Fallout
Roma *
Best Animated Feature
Dr Seuss’ The Grinch
Early Man
Ruben Brant, Collector
Teen Titans Go! To The Movies
The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
Best Documentary Feature
Shirkers
The Distant Barking of Dogs
The Silence Of Others
Three Identical Strangers
Won’t You Be My Neighbour? *
Best Foreign Language Film
Birds of Passage
Burning ***** (The most votes at >65% of first place votes)
The Guilty
Best Original Score
Annihilation
Crazy Rich Asians
First Man ****
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
The Death of Stalin
After all that griping about the Oscars, we still couldn’t nominate a single woman for Best Director? I’m embarrassed for us. Marielle Heller, Lynne Ramsay, Tamara Jenkins, and Debra Granik deserve so much better than this sh*t show of an awards season.
I agree! Granik and Zhao would be my picks.
There wasn’t one clear woman to rally around like last year. (That’s how things work in Hollywood) But sure, any of those directors would have been good choices
Yeah – it was frustrating to see people not practicing what they preach.
I love that Burning and First Reformed (2017) were included here (plus Hawke and Regina Hall), but I can’t believe that no one seems to support Leave No Trace.
I also cast votes for Zama, The Rider, and Shoplifters, but I assume these are just too small to make the cut.
No Leave No Trace? Or The Rider? They are better than a teddy bear movie.
These are great…
When did this polling happen?! Sad to have missed it. Because if we’re having an Oscars for snubbed films and still cant give Leave No Trace ANY nominations then what is the actual point? Be better America.
Rosamund Pike got snubbed AGAIN.
She was THIS close to making it but Nicole Kidman edged her out.
Very encouraging. Some overlooked stuff isn’t entirely overlooked by thoughtful movie-goers. Great to see Chalamet in there. I’m not at all disturbed about his Oscar miss. He’s got time. But his performance in “Beautiful Boy” was no small or conventional or ordinary thing. Any of us who care about acting need to keep an eye this young man. He’s an unusual talent, spooky good. And I’m so pleased that Regina Hall was selected here — what a moving, magnificently controlled performance. Again, no ordinary achievement. Fine, precise work.
PGA is mostly compressed, if I recall correctly of WASP millionaires. Green Book and A Star is Born were always their frontrunners… they hardly would recognise Spike Lee or Cuarón for a foreign language Netflix film.
By the way, the more I think about Roma, the more a vanity project it seems… if you analyze the film, it’s not a tribute to his nanny, but a tribute about how his family was so cool to her in the time of need. Think twice. I can live with Roma winning Picture and Director, but honestly, I rather see Bohemian Rhapsody win than Roma. Bohemian Rhapsody is actually misunderstood, underrated and a movie that survived a way too troubled production and have delivered in a way that it has become a true blockbuster and iconic film… no small achievement.
Still, I think this should go (which is not might or will) to BlacKkKlansman winning the Picture/Director/Adapted/Editing combo with Hollywood sending a crystal clear message to the White House by awarding one of the most important voices in political cinema in the age of Trump. Problem is that the AMPAS may embrace the must softer and disneyfied Green Book version of “fight against racism” or they may overreact by making Roma have a sweep (hopefully the Netflix controversy makes them avoid overrewarding it, but every time that Trump insists on the wall, it helps more and more Roma’s narrative into a clean sweep at the Oscars).
At this point, after the noms, and due to political climate, the race is like this…
1. Roma – the wall is pushing it higher and higher
2. Green Book – it may be the consensus vote, seen as anti-Trump but also soft enough to earn a lot of number ones from mild members of the AMPAS
3. The Favourite – because of noms
4. BlacKkKlansman – as I exposed, it’s not only political, it’s highly entertaining and by an overdue living legend that could make history in the Oscars.
5. Vice – while it is strong in the noms, it’s not clear in the end if it is against Cheney’s heritage or actually humanizing him.. which surely was not the point of McKay
6. Bohemian Rhapsody – critics hate it, but audiences are in love with it. It has momentum
7. A Star is Born – it lost many trains but still there’s a minor margin after Cooper’s snub at Director – not that I think he was really snubbed – could result in an Argo like win.
8. Black Panther – so happy to be there, the nom is its reward. No director, no screenplay, no acting… a superhero film… it won’t win.
“Who can criticize Roma for any reason? The worst people can say about it is that they don’t watch movies with subtitles (and when they say that they’re not slapping the movie; they’re slapping their own faces).”
Best thing I’ve read all day!
The first hour is pretty dull. Same problem Leigh had with Mr. Turner. Too many dead spots.
as I said, it’s a masterpiece with unclear motivations, I suspect a vanity project by Cuaron… if you pay attention, the movie plays more as a tribute to his own family than to his nanny, and it is obsessed with showing off his masterful skills in all fields possible, that it becomes distracting and a pure Awards-bait. A film pretending to be humble, a wolf desguised as a lamb.
A film that makes me wonder, if he has a bet with Iñarritu to win the most Oscars. I think del Toro couldn’t care less about that rivalry (he clearly does not give a shit about any other thing, that making the films he likes to film, not worrying about Oscars or huge b.o.).
So far…
del Toro 2 Oscars / 4 nominations
Iñarritu 5 Oscars (4 in competition – 1 honorary) / 7 nominations)
Cuarón 2 Oscars / 10 nominations – likely to win 1 or 2 this year.
So you’re saying that he’s a master of manipulation. You’re probably mistaking him for Alejandro.
News flash: ALL great directors are by definition masters of manipulation. What on earth did you think, cinema is?
What I am bothered, is the travesty of desguising as humble, what it ultimately is, a vanity project in the search of awards recognition. I respect way more, masterpieces like “In the Mouth of Madness”, “The Thing” or “They Live” by Carpenter who never gave a shit about making a vain project and served his stories without ever showing off beyond what the narrative of the story demanded. By the way, Carpenter is a bigger master of storytelling that Cuaron or Iñarritu, they’re just more showy.
By “a vanity project in search of awards recognition” maybe you meant A Star is Born?
I am not sure Cooper thought the film would be as huge as it became. I honestly – and I don’t like Cooper that much – think he saw it more like a challenge to himself – and Gaga – than as an Oscar-bait film or vanity project. Most actors feel tempted to try directing, and I am always OK with curiosity… he did a great job in all fields, despite the film’s more than obvious flaws and I am really interested in what he may helm next, it’s a promising start, and hope that he pays attention to the negative aspects to the reviews (pacing too rushed, characters too basic) and fix them in future projects.
Man, did that trigger you. And this movie trigger you.
I had no idea that such a personal, heartfelt movie could incite such disdain. I love that you attack Roma for being a vanity project but then you constantly rave Bohemian Rhapsody, which is like the biggest vanity project of the year at least. But to each their own, I suppose.
Someone was bound to make a Freddy Mercury biopic, they just did it first, controlling it. No one was going to make a biopic about Cuaron’s nanny
Our main difference on Bohemian Rhapsody is that you consider it a Freddie Mercury biopic, while I think it is anything but.
it’s not a LITERAL biopic. For that, check out the “These are the days of our lives” documentary, which is excellent. Bohemian Rhapsody never tries to be a doc but an allegory of Queen’s trajectory. Again, remember the first verse of the song itself. “Is this real life… or is just fantasy?” The film plays with that idea continuously, while delivering the core meaning of the story.
“the movie plays more as a tribute to his own family than to his nanny”
We probably watched different movies. To me, especially in the closing shot, it is very clear that the family clearly doesn’t respect her and her work nearly as much as they should.
“it is obsessed with showing off his masterful skills in all fields possible”
I think that a lot of people disagree with me, but in my opinion Roma isn’t even that showy. The mere act of having a carefully designed sound world and having long takes is not showing off one’s talents. Cuarón made the film in his style but for example the one-shot beach scene was never expressed as: “Look at me, it’s one take” to me but rather is pretty much the only way the scene could have been shot with the tone the scene is thriving for (cuts would have made it so much more sentimental or dramatic easily). This obsession with the length of takes that the directing category has had in some of the recent years has really murkied the notion of what is “showing off” to the point where a film’s softness, gentle care, eloquent expression and pure beauty is shrugged off because of a lot of this being done via observing long takes. This is going past Cuarón and Roma because they’re not at that level, would you consider for example Tarkovsky to use Stalker to only show off his talents since its ASL is 68 seconds (there are several other examples but that’s an easy one)?
I thought of Tarkovsky a lot during Roma.
As for the beach scene, think of the concentration Aparicio needed for such a technically challenging sequence still needing to nail her most important lines of dialogue in the whole movie.
I came across a funny observation on YT…
If Roma wins, it will be the second year in a row that a BP by a Mexican director where the protagonist is a woman who works in the janitorial arts.
No…lemon…pledge…
No, no, no…
I don’t know what to take from this article apart from the fact the Oscars have become the vehicle of the Liberal Left to vent their frustrations towards President Trump versus actually being a vehicle of truly rewarding the best films made in a year.
It’s sad and pathetic in my opinion and I’ll leave it at that. And no one seems to really care.
By the way, if Roma wins, it should be because it’s truly the best film of the year. And nothing else. But who am I kidding here?!
When has it ever been about rewarding the best films? You’ve got to be kidding! You cannot be that oblivious and must know that that’s never been the case. Also, why should artists not be able to show their distaste and disgust at something or someone? Aren’t they allowed to give their opinions? Is it then that surprising when it correspondents with their choices?
“By the way, if Roma wins, it should be because it’s truly the best film of the year. And nothing else. But who am I kidding here?!”
What wins should be the best but then the question is: who is the judge of what is the best? Has the best always won? are some of the nominees this year among the best films this year? if the answer is no, then what are you talking about? How is it any different from previous years? yes, the atmosphere around award season is different from long gone, I’ll give you that. But the point is that it’s never been about the best so spare that tired cliché.
All I am saying is there used to be a time when movies used to be judged on the merits and only after that on their political message. Now, it’s all about message and nothing else. The Oscars have been ruined as a result.
It just leaves one with a bitter taste in the mouth. Films used to be able to transport you to a different place where you can concentrate on the story and enjoy the movie for what it is. Nowadays, people try to dig for messaging and try to justify the existance of one movie or another for its implications – the first this, the first that, etc, etc. When The Hurt Locker won, I was happy because I liked that movie and to be honest, I wouldn’t care as much about the importance of the first woman director winning.
I am sure that it is important but to me The Hurt Lucker won because it was the best. And wouldn’t anyone want to win because of that?! Why do we have to tag people with first AA to win, or first European Slavic man to win, or what have you. To me it takes away from the achievement – it almost makes you feel like that the Academy rewards certain people because of their background vs rewarding them based on the work that they have done…
I just got nostalgic reading this text. Some (I would say a lot actually) have always tried to discredit the choice of Slumdog Millionaire in 2008/09, calling it a traditional (sic) industry choice. The first film with a whole cast of non-whites to win BP was absolutely a perfect representation of Obama’s rise. The little film that was going straight to home video became a worldwide phenomenon with a vibrant message of flourishing in adversity.
It has always amazed me how Benjamin Button was crowned here. Always. Slumdog was a terrific film that perfectly represents that historic moment.
It was easily the best thing Boyle ever did, it was exciting cinema
Better than Trainspotting?
I didn’t care for Trainspotting’s last act
What is it with you and last act? “Trainspotting” is a fecking masterpiece and one of the most influential film of the 90’s.
Slumdog happened before counting the number of minorities in a movie became a sort of parlor game. It was a movie that went for a feel good appear instead of challenging its audience and that made it feel safe, especially coming off of a year when No Country For Old Men had just won. To the movie’s credit it was plainly the best nominee in that weak-ass year.
Most people in this space have a terrible misconception that films with happy or sort of happy endings are not challenging. Always thought that was the case of the judgement of Slumdog.
Exactly.
I think it is more challenging than most BP winners. I don’t particular rate highly overall as I was expecting more from a film by Danny Boyle but I like a lot more than other Oscar winners like in early noughties. I prefer it to “Titanic” and “Forest Gump”. Those were dumb and cringy films.
One more thing Toni Collette was robbed . Yalitza Aparicio ranks right up there with Marlee Matlin . Playing a character very similar to yourself is not much of stretch is it ? I found her performance wooden and awkward which I won’t say about the mother in Roma . That nomination was deserved .
You mean Lady Gaga?
Saying Lady Gaga played herself is just plain stupid. That means all singers have the same personality.
It’s not as stupid as saying Aparicio played herself as a maid
And Nina should be Black China
“Playing a character very similar to yourself is not much of stretch is it ?”
So you know both Marlee Matlin and Yalitza Aparicio personally? Because otherwise claiming that someone is playing someone “like themselves” is completely absurd
Because Marlee Matlin is playing a deaf person, she is playing someone like herself. By the same token, all non-disabled actors who play a non-disable character are playing themselves?
Wait, Yalitza is a maid?
I noticed he didn’t mention Gaga when he is talking about playing very similar to themselves.
No, she was getting her teaching degree when she was cast in Roma…
Toni Colette – Hereditary **** (>50% of the first votes were for her)
Granted this is a small sample. But this performance is clearly loved.
Imagine what a campaign would have done.
Who can criticize Roma for any reason? I can . It was a boring bloated pretentious soap opera . We never really learned anything about the main character. We hardly learned anything about the Corpus Christi massacre and the involvement of the United States . Just imagine what filmmakers like Gillo Pontcorvo and Costa-Gavras would have done with Roma . I’d rather watch movies like Z and Missing or The Battle of Algiers and Burn over Roma anyday. The other Foreign language nominees in my opinion were all better than Roma which was nothing more than a telenovela with great black and white cinematography about Alfonso Cuaron and his family.
What would be your pick for Best Picture, Steve?
BlackKKlansman or Green Book . I wish First Reformed had been nominated . It’s a great film . Thanks for asking .
I would pick Leave No Trace and BlackKklansman over Roma. Roma should be shorter.
To me, Roma wasn’t about the Corpus Christi massacre, so for it to not focus in depth on that particular event was fine.
whoever actually pays attention to Roma, discovers that the film is not as much a tribute to Cuaron’s nanny, but Cuaron showing off skills and telling us, he’s coming from a family so cool, that they took extreme care with his nanny, in the times of need. Technically a masterpiece, but its motivations way more unclear and probably dishonest than he says to be.
So you’re criticizing a movie for not being about what you want it to be about.
The Battle of Algiers is amazing, but that doesn’t mean Roma can’t do something different.
So the movie had to be about a historical event that gets about 5 minutes of screentime? Have you missed the 125-minutes-long part about his family?
Trump doesn’t give a shit about The Oscars. He most likely thinks of a variety of tomato when he hears the word Roma. I’m really piss at him because his on going hissy fit about The Wall is going to delay my tax refund.
Are you so sure about that? I mean, let’s look back a whole year ago…
https://deadline.com/2018/03/donald-trump-oscar-ratings-stars-chaos-1202312217/
I clicked on the link he is just a douche that likes to point out when things are not successful. I doubt he even saw any of The Oscar movies that year.
“Trump doesn’t give a shit about The Oscars.”
Unfortunately. if he did, he would sabotage Roma’s win by giving up the Wall.
That would imply he knows his way around the kitchen.
You think trump eats produce?! Haha
Off topic but apparently they are only letting two artists perform their Oscar nominated songs. I’ll give you one guess as to the two they annointed.
https://www.imdb.com/news/ni62351672?pf_rd_m=A2FGELUUNOQJNL&pf_rd_p=73ff69c3-cf0f-4468-ab90-5a2ea2639a0b&pf_rd_r=Y54SPX7MSNKK9K9KZNTM&pf_rd_s=center-6&pf_rd_t=15061&pf_rd_i=homepage&ref_=hm_nw_tp4
No Mary Poppins? That’s a bit of a letdown.
Then again who whould have had the nerve to call up Emily Blunt like “hey girl, sorry about snubbing you for the 13th consecutive year, I guess we just REALLY couldn’t have lived with ourselves if we hadn’t turned two good-not-great first-timers into Oscar nominated leading ladies… ANYWAY we need a favour!”
Probably wouldn’t have snubbed Lin Manuel Miranda if his song Trip the Light Fantastic was nominated instead of one of Blunts. Probably would have turned it into a whole stage production number like it was in the movie. Yay Hamilton! I’ll live off it forever.
They should have nominated “A cover is not the book”, the best song in the movie.
I do like Feed the Birds 2. It is my favourite in the new one, as Feed the Birds was my favourite in the old one.
Cool less musical performances is always good.
So I guess snubbing Emily Blunt not once but twice on Nominations Morning wasn’t enough, they just REALLY had to complete the trifecta, huh ?
I think it’s nice of them. They made it to where she doesn’t have to attend the show at all now. She can stay home with her family. Now if only they extended Rami Malek the same courtesy.
Outrageous. they wasted nominations on Aparicio and Talavera to look inclusive or whatever even though they are such one-off gimmick that won’t repeat. Blunt should have gotten in for AQP.
That’s disgusting. They should treat all nominees equally.
That’s a shame if it is true. The musical performances are the one thing I like about the Oscars telecast. That said,was planning on just watching the clips online the next day.
Wasn’t Snowden driven out of the country during the obama administration? Or what happened to manning? I’m no Republican and Trump is an idiot, but to call the obama presidency ‘good people doing good things’ is hypocritical. Also, the oscar race is not sensitive to any real change. The oscar race is sensitive to studios trying to capitalize on change. That’s what Black Panther is. I’ll give you a better example.
2010-2011 were years of great shifts in the world. Where people had had enough. Where occupy wallstreet happened.The arab spring. Times that had a surreal apocalyptic vibe to it. Like the end of an old world. Some were attuned to these times. Malick did Tree of Life. Von trier Melancholia. Cahill “Another Earth’. Jeff Nichols Take Shelter. Chandor Margin Call. Who won BP that year? The Artist. So don’t tell me the oscars are sensitive to any winds. Maybe to the farts of this phony industry, that may be the case.
Snowden wasn’t “driven out”, he defected
because the penalty for what he did, was death sentence… just saying.
Or he always intended to end up where he did because he wasn’t a whistleblower but a straight up double agent
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I am not surprised the Messiah does not come back for the second coming… he’ll be crucified right away!!!
I like you, I really do, but you are being really really really goddamn naive about Snowden
well, let me ask you about this… have you ever worked for a government n an international and diplomatic background, iwith access to classified information and signed a confidentiality contract? I did 😉
Repeat to me, I am being naive 😉 😉
Not the point.
Snowden was put up to it, his was not a spontaneous action
if we were talking about Wikileaks and Chelsea Manning, different story… that was an US Government set up from the get-go, destined to wow audiences with what people that has worked in diplomatic sphere – as I did – know is just “gossip”.
But Snowden’s leak was completely different. It was a warning to the american and world population of how sick the system was going, becoming in fact a “Big Brother” in which no one is safe from a puppet government in the hands of DC Lobbies and Wall Street. Which is what the US Goverment has been till Trump arrived – now it’s at a crazy millionaire’s mercy and his friends. As I have previously stated somewhere else, the only decent human being at the White House in the last 40 years was probably Jimmy Carter… but everyone else (Reagan, the Clintons, the Bushes, Obama) are mere war criminals, and the only one with actual personal power was George Bush Sr…. the rest, entertainers (Reagan, Bill Clinton, Obama) or puppets )W and Hillary).
Snowden was put up to do what he did. By the country he defected to.
So you are citizen of the country that committed genocide against most of the natives of the Americas, Muslims, Jews, and “heretics”. They also engaged in the slave trade. Onate caught off the feet of all the men of Acoma.
Maybe he should have been cool about what he did. He committed a crime then went to China and Russia.
oh, yeah, it’s a “crime” to warn YOU and everyone, you’re being spied without your consent by your own government.
A crime is defined by being against the law.
no, at all… you can legalize murder, and that wouldn’t prevent it from being objectively a crime. Still, let me remind you that a government spying its citizens while serving the interests of the lobbies coming from banks, corporations and markets, is by common sense, a crime of high treason.
Devil’s Advocate: The Artist was a movie about someone being driven out of a job because of a technological innovation and the changing winds of time…
Maybe MJS, but that’s not enough for me. You can equally argue The King’s Speech is about bringing people together. Same old cheese. Not furious enough for me. And let’s be honest. The artist happened because weinstein flexed his muscles. The 70s were much more furious than we are. Network, Taxi Driver, All The Presidents Men.
Also the dude could hardly speak in English. That is the main reason the lead actor disappeared from Hollywood movies despite winning a Oscar. He could not get rid of his accent.
he was in Wolf of Wall Street, though. And in a really charming role, again.
Do you know that France’s has the best film industry in the world?
It just sucks that The two lead actors in a foreign film who won a Oscar were such flash in the pans.
“Wasn’t Snowden driven out of the country during the obama administration?”
Oh so close.
Here’s what actually happened.
Snowden stole 200,000 classified documents from America’s NSA — you know, the national security agency that monitors terrorists and global cyber-criminals to protect American citizens.
Then Snowden ran like a thief and coward to Hong Kong. And he gave away a bunch of America’s secret methodology there.
Then Snowden accepted an invitation from Putin to come live out the rest of his shitty life in Moscow as fugitive from justice — as long as he gave Putin the 200,000 classified documents so Russia could exploit that cyber intel against us.
Who told you Obama chased poor innocent little Snowden out of the country? Glenn Greenwald?
That Putin pawn Glenn Greenwald? Glenn Greenwald who has his nose up the asses of Jill Stein and Bernie Sanders?
Chelsea Manning stole classified documents too. You realize that is sort of a serious crime, right?
What did President Obama do to her?
He looked at her 35-year prison sentence and said: “Too much. Too harsh.”
So Obama granted Manning clemency, he commuted her prison sentence — and she was immediately set free.
Thanks to President Obama, she is a free woman, she ran for office as a Democrat last year, and she almost won.
Snowden meanwhile is still a fugitive, still collecting Russian food stamps from Putin as a reward for stealing incredibly high-value secrets from America’s first line of defense against worldwide cyber-crime — and thanks to Snowden, Putin was able to use American cyber technology against us to put Trump in office.
So remind us again why your heart bleeds for Snowden?
Now is there anything else you want to tell us that infuriates you about the way Obama handled Snowden and Manning?
Does somebody need to be somebody else’s pawn in order to be concerned with some sort of freedom of the human spirit and dignity? Is that how we all ended up to be? Suspecting everyone of lobbying for someone’s malefic interests? I guess history will judge us and them in due time. It may very well be true what you say but I’m always afraid of definite statements. All I know is that I saw Obama posing as this cool, smiley guy who had everything figured out and I look around me and saw mostly pain and injustice and wondered ‘why is this guy smiling?’
“I look around me and saw mostly pain and injustice and wondered ‘why is this guy smiling?'”
If you have a minute, Seb, make a quick list for us of all the world leaders in the history of Western Civilization who figured out how to fix pain and injustice.
In fact, just give us the names of the top 10 World-fixers that you know about.
We’ll look at your list and see if we can find a similar person to run against Trump in 2020.
Hey. You insist that you’re not a Republican, Seb, and I do believe you.
But if you’re a liberal and want to help us whip Trump’s ass two years from now — then we’re going to need you to pause your quest to find a president who can solve all the pain and injustice with a stroke of his pen. Okay?
Otherwise, you’re no help at all.
Otherwise you’re the type of liberal that Sasha is writing about.
I’m so done with ill-informed or misinformed left-leaning voters who thinks a president is a fucking magician.
(Isn’t it kind of a big deal that Obama was able to orchestrate a rescue of the entire planet from a worldwide economic depression worse than 1929? No? Saving millions of families from financial ruin? Not enough pain and catastrophe averted for you there?)
How about right now we just just focus on finding a president who’s not an ignorant , spiteful, petty, greedy, deranged traitor.
Do I sound irritated? Good.
I don’t know where you got this idea: that a thief who stole America’s most sensitive intel and then sold out, and defected to Putin’s Russia is an American hero.
But I hope to god you start to get better sources of news before November 2020.
Because you know who wants you think Obama was a failure? Trump does. Putin does.
So okay, you fell for that bullshit in 2016, and I can forgive you.
Because it was hard for some people to see the depth of meddling deception that was happening, right?
But now we all know. Now there’s no more excuse to get duped.
We need you on our side in 2020, Seb. Stop saying nonsense like “I’m no Republican and Trump is an idiot, but it’s hypocritical to say Obama was all about a ‘good person doing good things.”
No sane sentence can be written with the formula: “Trump might be awful but Obama wasn’t perfect either.” That’s like saying “Cancer is a horror show but water isn’t always the right temperature either.”
You’re smarter than that, Seb. Please don’t talk like you’re regurgitating WikiLeaks agitprop..
“No sane sentence can be written with the formula: “Trump might be awful but Obama wasn’t perfect either.” That’s like saying “Cancer is a horror show but water isn’t always the right temperature either.””
Well said, Ryan.
Srr for the late reply. Lots of things going on. Some of the spark of our conversation is gone by now but I have this to add: you’re irritated and angry. Good, I say. That’s the kind of person we need for a change. Angry like Howard Beale. Not a phony Obama, with silly rhetoric and smiles.
Always good practice for me to argue with an intelligent gentleman, Seb. Makes me want to be a better fellow. Thank you.
This point is at least debatable though. There are two conflicting interests. On the one hand, there is national security and the obvious public interest in not letting classified national security documents get into the enemy’s hands. On the other hand though, there is a public interest in revealing a huge-scale global surveillance program that threatens freedom inside America as much as outside it. This person decided that the latter is more important, and acted accordingly. Some agree with that decision, some disagree.
Now, I think it’s pretty hard to condemn someone for not wanting to be jailed for life, or maybe executed. He believed that he acted in the public interest, so it’s only logical to assume he did not feel guilty, as indeed, many people do not think he is guilty. (While others, obviously, do.) Therefore it makes sense for him to move to another country. And, since US allies were not appropriate (as they might’ve extradited him) he finally chose Russia.
I would suggest that Snowden always intended to go to Russia because Russia put him up to the theft to begin with.
Snowden actually warned American People and the world, the USA became Big Brother and it was getting worse. He is an American hero, thus Obama’s administration was the clear villain, because it was the Big Brother that was / is taking over your country. Just so you know. Plus Obama administration was key – thanks to Hillary’s role as Secretary of State – in the destabilization of Syria (over 200,000 deaths and counting) which provocked an expansion of ISIS (do I need to recall y ou about the deaths worldwide?) and broke the record from most bombs thrown by an American President. That was pre-Trump. Trump just makes Obama look better, but he isn’t looking good at all for the objective eye… what is more, it is a pity the USA can’t go through the international tribunal of The Hague (like civilized countries do) to answer for crimes against humanity, which all presidents after Carter, have committed.
Syria was being destabilized because its people were rising up as part of the Arab spring and Assad chose to kill them in the streets rather than step down and allow free elections. The only way Obama and Clinton could have “stabilized” the situation was by either sending in American troops to fight on behalf of the resistance (and possibly starting World War 3 due to Russia’s involvement on Assad’s side) or by taking Assad’s side and helping a ruthless dictator take back control, both of which would have been pretty fucking villainous.
nope. You americans are SO delusional. You’re completely unable to see the pattern: Chile, Syria, Yemen, Lybia, Iraq, Venezuela, Afghanistan, etc… all of them deserve to have their governments overthrown… while you basically perform oral sex on Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, the latin american dictatorships on the 70’s and 80’s… or even how the USA supported my country’s dictator despite killing near 200,000 people and making another 400,000 work as slaves (1939-75). Do you really think an oposition wasn’t identified, funded, fake news invented (as some of the chemical attacks by Assad were completely debunked) and then the war was “justified”? Who do you think is waiting to get the resources, and who are ready to have the contracts? Haven’t you learnt anything from Iraq or Syria? The biggest threat of the world is ALWAYS the White House, specially since 1945 and double duty sin 1989
You are changing the subject, what exactly do you think Hilary Clinton and Barrak Obama should have done to “stabilize” Syria? Should they have put troops on the ground to help the rebels or should they have supported the murderous Bashar al-Assad regime to end the civil war? Is there some magical third option I’m not aware of? Because those both sound like worse options than what they did.
Assad bombed and starved his own people. Cut the crap.
hahahaha… it didn’t work that way. Syria was a stable regime, and “someone” funded an oposition, declared it was the right government and terrorist attacks started. Guess which other countries have gone through same? Well, just look right now to Venezuela.
I’m going to tell you what happened – I actually studied this and made some work for the University 20 years ago, on this. The world after the end of Cold War and the communist block, resulted in roughly two main blocks: NATO (with adition of Japan, Australia, New Zealand) and the ex-communist block (Russia and its satellites, China – oh, they’re only “communists” as excuse to implement the wildest capitalism you can imagine, guess where your Apple devices are being produced, they’re the world’s factory right now – and they’re fighting for the fewer and fewer resources that remain as we burn them with consumerism and programmed obsolescence. We’re talking specifically about oil, gas, and the minerals required for the newer technologies and batteries… Countries like Congo, Venezuela, Syria, Lybia, Iraq, Afghanistan have been disputed for long and they’re following always the same route… funded oposition to the governemnt that was “friendly” with the communist block, then goverment overthrown, and if “necessary” allied troops invading the country for “humanitarian reasons”… while our western corporations take over the resources whatever the (human lives) costs may be. Do you really think that the same country that does not give a flying fuck about Saudi Arabia’s human rights situation and its invasion of Yemen, is really “worried” about Human Rights in Syria or Venezuela? Don’t make me laugh. We’re stealing the resources of these countries to use them in our favor, and the fact is, that everytime we turn one of these key countries into our side, we make the other block more and more desperate – China and Russia already announced that they may send troops to Venezuela if there’s an allied “help” to the “new government”. World War Three already started back in 1990, it has just been low key since then. And guess what: while the other block aren’t saints by any means, NATO is the evil side.
Great read Sasha. It triggered lots of thoughts and questions. Especially when you got to the PGA result. Could AMPAS be progressive? Even transformative? Your article vindicates my notion that Roma is their best picture win this year. There are of course bigger, deeper and more significant points being reflected upon in this State of The Race. I always look forward to reading them.
Featured.
Because we miss our friend Dave 10 months of the year.
Thanks Ryan. Absence makes the heart grow fonder!. I’m never too far away.
Hah, I really wanted to avoid Trump articles today. Can we talk about the Bohemian Rhapsody controversy?
If they didn’t care about it before I don’t know why they’ll care about it now. I do wonder how all this would play if he hadn’t been fired two weeks before it wrapped as that seems to have given them a lot of cover to be like “Bryan who?” during the film’s awards campaign.
actually i heard it was overa month before filming wrapped
The Atlantic expose article says he was fired “with less than three weeks of filming left,” maybe it did turn out to be a month with the delays involved in bringing in the new guy.
Warn me before you throw his picture around like that
I never expect much from the Academy (your tweet about Vertigo being snubbed sums up my feelings); safe, heart-warming stories done by mediocre filmmaking have the advantage. From Driving Miss Daisy to King’s Speech to A Beautiful Mind to The Artist to Braveheart, etc., Oscars are mostly given to the better “message” movie or the most inspirational story w/a few exceptions, of course. My issue w/them is that even after time has proven them wrong on most of their choices and w/so many film scholars and outlets to really understand what makes a great film, they make no effort to refine their choices and really promote outstanding achievement in film even when there are so many artists out there making great pictures still. I don’t really agree that they give race much consideration. King’s Speech was about a white man, so was Social Network. Birdman was up against Boyhood – white male stories; Artist vs Hugo/Tree of Life/Midnight in Paris, etc. They only can nominate what the industry makes. Sure, Driving Miss Daisy beat a masterpiece (not nominated) but it was more about their honoring the same mediocre, feel-good movies over great, edgy, masterworks not racism. I mean they picked Crash, the diversity option before it was a thing (unpopular opinion but I don’t think homophobia against Brokeback was the main reason for that win, though there was some if that). They just don’t honor groundbreaking filmmakers, regardless of race. Scorsese for Taxi Driver, Spielberg for Jaws were snubbed as was Lee for Do the Right Thing and what won those years? The feel-good, inspirational stories. It might seem like it’s them but it’s really the industry to blame. They used to honor women pictures back when women pictures were the norm and successful in Hollywood. Ordinary People over Raging Bull, Terms over Right Stuff, Shakespeare (which I love) over Saving Ryan. This year, I don’t think they snubbed the white man’s picture because of the white man, it was because they were actually great movies they didn’t “get” (First Reformed was what First Man was for you). Their votes for 12 Years, Moonlight and if they pick Roma this year really is about what we in the minority live with and know, you have to be GREAT to get the same honors an average straight, white man gets by default. Will Roma and BkkkM be GREAT and/but heart-warming, inspirational enough to beat their average inspiring story about a white man protecting the black man to realize how great he always was at the core and how blessed he is to have/have had a great supporting girl by his side if the option is there? (King’s Speech/Beautiful Mind/Gladiator/Braveheart/Rocky/Artist, etc)
Good article, but I’m surprised you would use a term like reverse racism when the real one would suffice.
So we are arguably in a Golden freaking age for black creative artists, and in a Patriots level domination by the Three Amigos (I cant think of any comparable stretch in Oscar history) and the takeaway is “wither the white man?”
Remember two years ago when this very blog openly wondered why films headlined by women hadn’t won BP since Million Dollar Baby? Now we have Roma. Aparicio and de Tavira ought to be the story of nominations week. Yet it’s the fragile white man we are talking about? Again?
Until some academy voters explain why First Man stiffed, making that film some kind of Trump Rorschach Test seems possibly misplaced.
Well, who voted for the three amigos? As long as they are making the decisions, it is right the focus should be on changing that. You mean domination by non-US directors, right? Also, if you haven’t noticed, they are still white men. Just a different and more diverse ones.
“Yet it’s the fragile white man we are talking about? Again?”
Fragile? white men ego, more like. Nice try in attempting to shift focus to Mexican director’s recent dominance but they are not the ones giving out the awards and they reward has been just, mostly (you know who I am talking about). There has been a lot xenophobia in recent months on this site. It’s shocking! I wholeheartedly support the Academy’s change to be more inclusive. Four non-US directors were nominated for Oscar in the same year for first time ever. That’s a wonderful new development.
Great article.
It does feel a bit like some people on the left are trying to push “white maleness” out, to instead grant opportunities and recognition for other minority groups. What is dangerous about this is that if some white men (and possibly white women, who were a key demographic for Trump in 2016) feel like they are not welcome on the left, but they are still RULING on the far right, they will just switch there and this whole Trumpism thing will be here to stay, possibly long after he is gone from politics. What the left does in the next two-six years might have a big impact on what the right will look like afterwards.
That has been happening since Obama’s first term, henceforth birtherism, the Tea Party and Trump.
What has been happening since Obama’s first term? the rise of white supremacism in mainstream politics? You are absolutely right on that.
I agree with your point when it comes to political arena. I don’t think it applies to the entertainment industry and especially when it comes to art. You cannot compromise the truth and art must speak the truth to people. You must also speak the truth in politics but there is a room for flexibility to win over doubters. Politics is about popularity, art isn’t. Art is about the truth. If there is no truth, there is no art.
I’d argue that, for example, criticizing stories that are about white men just because they are about white men, as Sasha pointed out, is exactly this kind of behaviour that might antagonize some people. And, similarly, praising other stories just because they are not about white men can have a similar effect. (I’m not talking making an effort to recognise otherwise great works by black, female, etc. artists.)
You are conflating two things here. White men are feeling under attack because their grip on power on many aspect of society is declining rapidly. That’s the driving force behind Trumpism. On the other hand, questioning the championing of films by white male is legitimate when there are films by POC and women which are just as good or even better. Okay, we would rather not focus on colour or gender but the current system only helps one kind of people and it’s been set up to be that way. You cannot say don’t focus on that when that is a big problem. Politicians can manage their language to get support from people and make changes. However, I expect art to speak nothing but the truth. Sasha is not a politician and has a right to speak the truth.
“Green Book and A Star Is Born are the only two films in the Best Picture race with a straight white male protagonist”
And Vice
I guess a lot of us consider Cheney to be an antagonist? He’s the sick villain in his own sick life story.
I guess if you’re looking at it as a movie from the Jesse Plemons character’s point of view that works.
I see your point, but your point is not the point of this piece.
All semantics aside, what I think sets Cheney outside the thrust of Sasha’s article here is that Cheney is not a hero.
It’s true that Antagonist and Hero are not synonyms, but for the purpose of this piece, I think none of us feels comfortable putting Cheney on a protagonist pedestal alongside Neil Armstrong in the pantheon of white dudes.
I hear you. That OP wasn’t meant to be insulting, just… something I noticed.
A well written piece, as always. But where is the evidence for your opener that there is NO DOUBT the Trump presidency has impacted the race? Is there any?
What would the nominees/front runners be if Obama or Clinton were POTUS?
Then the frontrunner would be, without a doubt, Mary Poppins Returns
Roma.
We probably wouldn’t be worrying about getting Popular Films in the mix so as to appeal to a divided white conglomerate (they basically forced Black Panther/BoRhap into Best Picture status imo). I bet Old Man and the Gun and The Mule would have done better as old white man’s response to a threat to their power. Tully, The Front Runner, Eighth Grade to inspire more light-heartedness to prove the libs are content with the country’s well-being. Dunno, just thoughts. Scruggs, I could see Scruggs being the Roma breakthrough instead.
Who knows. If Obama or Clinton were president, maybe we wouldn’t have (or need) so many movies that feel like reactionary resistance statements.
Maybe we would have some different movies.
Like whatever this movie is in my dreams, starring Tessa Thompson and Elizabeth Debicki giving each other a fingertip tickle.
Whatever this story is right here, it sure as heck looks like Best Picture material to me.
If we had a Hillary Clinton presidency, the working title of this movie would be:
Fuck Trump, He Lost, He’s Ruined, And Now He Will Die In Prison
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5bfc9d84b502c98197c3ab85a6a3bcf9b6a56d397d253c6f28f1a5cac1767a73.jpg