it's an everything everywhere all at once world and we're just living in it
its an oscars newsletter
hi everyone,
The pinnacle awards evening of all of us who celebrate the 90 days of award season took place on Sunday, 12 March 2023.
This was the 95th Academy Awards, which means that in almost 100 years of having this thing, there are still firsts like Michelle Yeoh being the first Asian woman to win Best Actress, or that Halle Berry is still the only black woman to ever win Best Actress, or still, no woman has ever won an award for cinematography.
But like a fool I plan my year around this damn award show, I love it so much. So here are some thoughts from my pen (or keys). I broke down my breakdown into three sections - what I thought about the actual show, what I thought about who won and who should have won, and some thoughts about the films that were nominated this year.
my opinions on the show
I liked Jimmy Kimmel’s opening monologue. I always miss the show value when performers like Billy Crystal and Hugh Jackman host, but as a comedian Kimmel did well. He told some smart, some edgy, jokes but didn’t lean completely into the cringe or the alienating.
It was okay, and I really think that all the good parts of the show were the speeches. There were no memorable bits, and the musical performances were enjoyable but felt like there were too many (the RRR performance excluded). I do like more gimics in my award shows.
In the end, I am the type of person who watches these shows so I will always have a good time, and I agree with the decision to telecast all of the winners and to give everyone the chance to be heard.
The ‘in memoriam’ segment always leaves out notable people. This year they did not include actors like Anne Heche, Paul Sorvino and South African actor Charlbi Dean who was the lead in the Best Picture nominee Triangle of Sadness. Because they could not include everyone on the telecast, they had an in-memoriam section with the profiles of everyone on their website. However, I do think that it was a misstep not adding Charlbi, especially since her film was nominated and all her castmates were at the ceremony.
It was also very emotional having John Travolta introduce this segment making reference to Olivia Newton-John:
I also wish the presenters had more connection with each other so we could’ve gotten cuter banter. The Hugh Grant/Andie McDowell reunion and Emily Blunt/The Rock were some of my faves.
my opinions on the winners
Okay firstly, you should know that I was a big fan of Everything Everywhere All At Once (EEAAO). I thought it was the best and most inventive film of the year, therefore very easily I thought it deserved most of its wins especially Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing. What the Daniels did in that film was unprecedented, creative and frankly, out of this world. This is a big win for indie creators who are making original and stunning art.
Best Actress was a tricky decision because while I felt like Cate Blanchett gave the performance of her career in TAR, but Michelle Yeoh also put her heart and soul into her performance in EEAAO and this was an important win for her. Blanchett already has two Oscars and has people clamouring to work with her, she does not need any more accolades to prove her worth. Yeoh being the first Asian actress to win Best Actress presents new opportunities and recognition for people of Asian descent, her win is about more than just her.
My pick for Best Actor would have been Colin Farrell in The Banshees of Inisherin, not just because I’m very physically attracted to Farrell but because I thought that performance was phenomenal. I also think that Farrell has done consistently good work for years with very little acknowledgement. But when it came down to Austin Butler and Brendan Fraser, I put my support behind Fraser, I thought he gave a very powerful performance in The Whale, and honestly, he deserves this honour.
The easiest category to predict was Best Supporting Actor as Ke Huy Quan was sweeping all the awards. And God, was he deserving. His performance in EEAAO was so heartwarming, and his life story and speeches were so inspiring that I love this for him. I hope this equals even more work for him.
Okay, there is a lot I can say about Best Supporting Actress but I don’t want to repeat the opinions of those cleverer than me. For me, personally, Jamie Lee Curtis was not the best actress out of these five nominees. I actually think that Angela Bassett, Hong Chau, Kerry Condon and Stephanie Hsu gave much more powerful performances and I would have been happy with any of them taking the award. Jamie Lee Curtis’ win felt more like a win because of who she is, as the child of two acclaimed actors and having a long and lustrous career herself than because of her performance in this particular film.
All Quiet on the Western Front won a few awards for Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, and Best Production Design as well as Best International Film. People were tsk-ing about it on Twitter, but I thought they deserved it. Although I’m not a huge fan of war films, I thought this was a stunning and well-made film, especially the cinematography. It is also good to see a non-English film winning so many technical awards.
India was also represented well this year, with the film RRR winning for Best Original Song for their song ‘Naatu Naatu’ also two Indian directors won for their Documentary Short, The Elephant Whisperer. But back to RRR, it is crazy for me that this is the first time that a song from an Indian film is nominated when they have had so many great original songs in their productions. Like what.
my opinions on the nominated films
I have not seen all of the nominated films (I’m especially lacking in the documentary department this year) but I have seen a fair amount and I wanted to offer my quick thoughts if you were wondering which of the films to check out.
This was my rankings of the best picture nominees before the Oscars ceremony:
The Banshees of Inisherin - I adored it, it’s the story of two best friends who fall out in 1920s Ireland. It’s deeply heartfelt, has really funny points and has magnificent performances. It’s currently available to watch on Disney+.
TAR - A stunning film with amazing cinematography, music and the best Cate Blanchett performance. It tells the story of an acclaimed composer slowly breaking down. It’s currently available to watch at cinemas. My full review for News24.
The Whale - I didn’t really enjoy this film, but I did think that Brendan Fraser and Hong Chau were amazing (the other actors were a no for me). Also, it was uncomfortable to watch how they treated people with obesity, and some plot points were just a lil bit huh for me. It’s available to watch in cinemas. My full review for News24.
Elvis - Sigh. I did not enjoy this one as much as everyone else. It was fun and very artsy, but Tom Hanks’ performance and some of the narrative choices made it very average for me. It’s available to rent from DStv Box Office and Apple TV and Google etc
Triangle of Sadness - Such a crazy film with moments that will have you thinking, and moments that will have you laughing. And it is a wild ride, and incredibly creative. You can rent it on one of the above sites. You can listen to my convo with director Ruben Ostlund and actor Harris Dickinson here.
The Fablemans - This film has gotten a lot of flack, but I actually loved it. It’s Spielberg’s personal history about dealing with his parents’ divorce and it’s such an introspective film about being an artist and dealing with your own selfishness. It’s available to rent.
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio - The winner of Best Animated Film is a stunning stop-motion film that interprets the famous tale in a new way. It’s available to stream on Netflix.
Everything Everywhere All At Once - I already said enough about this. My movie of the year. It’s available to watch at select cinemas and on Amazon Prime Video.
until we meet again
xoxo
Caryn