Music Hall Movie Guru’s guide to the Oscars
Others favor the Who Was Snubbed vs. Who Shouldn’t Be On the List approach, which lets a commentator put some real snark into the piece. There’s nothing like a chance to get outraged to let some writers channel their inner cynic and unsheathe their claws. Meow!
My approach is purely personal. Since I don’t hang out with many Academy members (I did know one in graduate school), any chance I have with the Will Win/Should Win game depends on how much attention I’m paying to Vanity Fair’s Hive emails. And that’s not much. Ditto with Shoulda/Shouldn’ta been nominated.
My Oscar picks depend a lot on how I feel about a performance or a movie a week later. If nothing about the movie or performance put a dent in my memory, what’s the point. Any movie that lets you exit the theater as the same person you went in is just entertainment.
So here are a few random, personal thoughts on the picks I’m hoping for on February 26.
Moonlight and Hell or High Water got their hooks into me real good, although it’s hard to imagine much more different films. Moonlight was so quiet on the surface, avoiding moments of conflict that other films would have turned up to 11, that it kept me waiting throughout the film. In some ways, I’m still waiting.
Hell or High Water was violent, plot-driven, and intelligent, all qualities I admire in a film in the American narrative cinema class. It leaves a little gas in the tank for a final surprise, which is also a plus. And I’d still be happy to discuss what I think might happen in the year after story in the film ended. Plus, Jeff Bridges.
La La Land? Maybe I’m just too old-fashioned, but I think a movie built around singing and dancing ought to feature people who can really sing and dance. I liked the opening number and never grew to actively dislike the film, but I never achieved lift-off either.
Film acting is about making it look easy, and Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea) and Viggo Mortensen (Captain Fantastic) made me forget that they were actors. Same for Isabelle Huppert in Elle, although I haven’t seen Loving, so can’t comment of Ruth Negga.
If Mahershala Ali doesn’t get Best Supporting for Moonlight, I will feel as bad as I would have if Donald Trump had won the Presidency.
Octavia Spencer surprised and delighted me in Hidden Figures, and that’s a great combination. Working from a fairly square script, she’s the one who kept her knife sharpest.
Like everyone, I have strong opinions about the Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing categories, but I don’t want to get too emotionally worked up, so will sign off for now.
Note: If you haven’t seen all of the nominated films, remember that Lion and Fences are coming to The Music Hall in March and we’ll be doing discussions after the showings. Toni Erdmann, which is nominated in Best Foreign Language Film will show next week, with a discussion on Tuesday, February 21.