Brian: I, too, am glad that Peter Farrelly and Bryan Singer didn't get nominated. Singer's fall from grace is a real disappointment to me because 1) his alleged actions are so despicable and 2) I've really enjoyed his films. I get separating the art from the artist, but it's really hard to watch his films anymore. The Usual Suspects, which is one of my favorite movies of all-time, now has the added Singer stink on top of it in addition to Kevin Spacey. Yeah, there were rumblings about Singer before, but they were never really this loud.
OK, moving on to our final category: Best Picture. This ties in to my previous statement because we have a Singer directed (but not finished) film in Bohemian Rhapsody. A film that I said in my initial email that's a in the 50s as far as critical praise, and yet might actually win this thing. That, coupled with Vice and its 60% rating, could lead us to the worst critically praised Best Picture winner of all-time. I'm not sure it happens, but there's a chance and that is totally weird to me.
This category is another WTF category with some major snubs and surprises. On the good side, we're living in year 10-11 of The Dark Knight rule and we finally have our first superhero movie nominated for Best Picture (Black Panther). We've got a Spike Lee movie getting love (BlacKkKlansman) in a way that we haven't seen with one of his films in years. We've also got another signature Alfonso Cuaron masterpiece (Roma), which signaled Netflix's emergence as a legitimate awards season player.
However, I can't get past all the stinkers in this category (Vice, Bohemian Rhapsody and Green Book) that are here at the expense of other, better films. This category is allowed to go up to ten films, and yet we don't have a full slate of nominees. I honestly don't understand this rule and its criteria for getting films nominated.
Here are the nominees:
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Roma
Green Book
A Star Is Born
Vice
Who Will Win: Honestly, it's anyone's guess. We saw Black Panther jump up the list after its SAG upset. I also can't shake this feeling that Bohemian Rhapsody has a chance, warts and all. If I had to guess, I would go with Roma or A Star Is Born. Roma is a note perfect film that shows you don't need a "big" story to make a sprawling epic. A Star Is Born is a great film that I thought would make a bigger splash than it has.
Who Should Win: Black Panther was an epic film with rich and complex characters and a great story to boot. If we're ever going to see a superhero movie win Best Picture, this is the year.
Snubs/Surprises: Where do I begin? First Man and Hereditary have legitimate claims for those final two spots. Both were critical darlings that somehow just didn't connect with audiences at the Box Office. I feel like we'll be talking about Hereditary the same way we do other classic horror films in 10-15 years. Eighth Grade somehow didn't get the Lady Bird quirky comedy slot like last year. First Reformed was another major snub that was inexplicably overlooked in this and other categories.
For me, the biggest snub was Annihilation, my favorite movie of 2018. I've seen it a few times and each time I get something more out of it. I know the Academy typically overlooks "weird" sci-fi system, but I really wish it wouldn't. I was hooked from the moment I saw this film, and I really wish it received more recognition for the masterpiece I believe it to be.
So there you have it. Who takes home your top prize?
Finally, thanks again for doing this with me. I really enjoy it and I can't believe we're already in year 6 of this.
Adam: Yeah I am still a fan of The Usual Suspects, but there's no doubt that its legacy has taken a beating. And oddly enough, despite the widely reported, credible allegations against him, he's somehow managed to be signed on to direct a remark of the Schwarzenegger cult film Red Sonja. I'll never understand why people like him and Mel Gibson keep getting second, third and fourth chances while others are rightfully pushed off-stage for good.
On a more positive note, I think last year was a great year for films and I saw a lot of work that really inspired me and moved me -- for instance, Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse was such a euphoric cinematic experience for me that it truly lifted my spirits and restored my faith in the future of movies. That'd being said I don't feel a lot of 2018's best were represented in the Best Picture category. I agree that Vice and Bohemian Rhapsody are two of the worst reviewed nominees since they expanded the category (I think the worst rated ever was the forgettable Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close). I disagree, however, with your belief that either of them can win. I could see four maybe even five of these movies winning the big prize.
I think Black Panther has a lot of momentum off the SAG win but perhaps the academy will say a nomination is enough of a reward for a superhero film. I think BlackKklansman could be a sentimental favorite -- its weirdly very topical thanks to Virginia's blackface scandal -- and if Spike Lee were to pull off an upset, it could maybe take the top prize. A Star is Born could be this year's Argo, like you suggested before, since a lot of people think Bradley Cooper was snubbed for Best Director, Green Book -- while polarizing as hell -- has been the safe choice for some time now -- and then there's Roma, which is widely being hailed as a cinematic achievement, but perhaps will suffer from its Netflix tie-in. Could it be the first Best Picture winner with virtually no theatrical grosses?
Who will win: Roma, It's really really close. I feel like this could have been A Star is Born's award to lose but it peaked too early. I think Black Panther would be amazing but I just think it'll suffer from not enough acting branch support. I think BlackKklansman has always been an also-ran in this competition. I love The Favourite to death but its too quirky to win. And I think neither Vice nor Bohemian Rhapsody is loved enough to win (remember the new system is tiered and preferential voting, so basically the movie the most people don't hate usually wins this).
That leaves Green Book and Roma, and I find it hard to believe with all the controversy over its alleged whitewashing of history and cultural tone-deafness, I just don't see Hollywood endorsing it with their top prize. And I think Roma, as unconventional a picture as it is, has virtually no detractors. It's not my personal favorite of the year, but it is an unassailably worthy winner.
Who should win: Black Panther. This has always been very personal for me. As an African-American cinephile, this was the kind of movie I've always been waiting for. A sophisticated epic that had both the wit and world building of Star Wars but also the moral complexity of the Blade Runner films. Regardless of who wins, I believe this was THE movie of last year and certainly the one that has had the greatest cultural impact of any of the movies released in 2018. Wakanda forever!
Snubs/surprises: Again First Man has been criminally under-appreciated. Honestly, I wish Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse were taken seriously enough to be included, but Black Panther clearly already took up that lane. Eighth Grade was a magical movie, hopefully it'll become the cult classic it deserves to be. And I'm totally with you on Hereditary, such a great advance of the horror genre. And yeah I'd be happy to see First Reformed, Mary Poppins Returns, Crazy Rich Asians, Annihilation, The Death of Stalin, You Were Never Really Here and A Quiet Place in place of Vice and Bohemian Rhapsody and/or Green Book, but that's just my two cents.
p.s. I neglected to mention it when we talked Best Actor, but I just want to give a shout out to Nicolas Cage and his performance in Mandy, as well as the movie itself. For obvious reasons, a movie as experimental, non-linear, gory and strange as that one never stood a chance of ever having any kind of awards consideration, but it was one of the most striking, unforgettable cinematic experiences i had all year, and I could see this one creeping into my top 10 when all is said and done.
p.p.s. Thanks for doing this too!
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