My Street friends know that I am an Emilia Pérez apologist. Well. Maybe just a non–hater. Despite the mediocre soundtrack and colossal insanity of Jacques Audiard’s vision, the concept and performances and chaos just works for me. That being said, I don’t think it deserves anything close to a repeat of its run at the Golden Globes; I’d happily give it Best Editing, maybe Cinematography. Best Actress? Let Demi Moore have her Globe, but Sean Baker didn’t write the character of Anora with Mikey Madison in mind for nothing, so please lock in for me, Oscars judges. I will most likely want Best Director for Baker too, while we’re at it. Jeremy Strong was snubbed Best Supporting at the Globes, so I hope he gets it this time for his masterful and almost—but not quite—sympathetic portrayal of Roy Cohn. The Apprentice being snubbed so hard in general was surprising to me; it’s a great film and obviously topical for the year it was released. And it seems like watching The Brutalist, A Real Pain, and Conclave has become my homework before March, so for now, jury’s still out on Best Picture. My little Anora heart might still pull for it, though.
—Jackson Zuercher, Film & TV Editor
Justice for Marianne Jean–Baptiste, who gave one of the decade’s best performances in Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths. While we’re at it, justice for Mike Leigh, who wrote and directed one of the decade’s best films in Leigh’s Hard Truths. Leigh has been nominated for seven Oscar’s in his career but has never won one. And at 81 years old, it feels like this might have been the legendary British director’s last chance. I hope Audiard can sleep at night. Beyond that, I think it’s really cool that Nickel Boys made it into Best Picture but downright bizarre it got snubbed in cinematography. That was one of my favorite films of the years and director RaMell Ross and cinematographer Jomo Fray’s distinct visual style, shooting the entire film from a first person perspective, was a large part of that. Ignoring that aspect of the film is an odd choice. My prediction as it stands now is that A Complete Unknown will be the surprise winner of the night, winning in Picture, Actor, and Director. Emilia Pérez feels too divisive to me and A Complete Unknown is the kind of crowd pleasing, broadly popular movie that will be helped by ranked choice voting.
—Aden Berger, Film & TV Writer
Conclave hive, RISE UP! Will it win Best Picture? Maybe not. Should it win Best Picture? To me, yes, but to be fair, I haven’t actually seen alleged heavy–hitter The Brutalist yet. (But neither have the voting members of the Academy, it seems, so I guess I’m in good company). I’m upset about Challengers not getting a score nom, I’m upset about Sing Sing not getting—among other things—a Best Picture nomination, and I’m upset about Wicked getting as many hits as it did. As Street’s resident theater kid, you’d think that I’d be pulling for it, but a movie that hideously lit and color graded can’t be saved by any amount of Ariana Grande’s and Cynthia Erivo’s homoerotic press tour. I’m a radical Emilia Pérez centrist (the music was horrible, most of the other elements were fine to good, the politics are another conversation entirely) but I did get so mad when it won at the Globes that I accidentally threw my phone across the room, so for the sake of my cracked screen, I hope it doesn’t do too well. At the end of the day, though, I’m a television lover before anything else, even while watching movies, so I’m most excited to see Kieran Culkin and Strong duke it out on a non–Succession battleground. And also to make jokes that no one finds funny about how this is “just like Conclave” if Conclave wins.
—Isaac Pollock, Senior Staff Writer
I am going to be a hater about this year’s award season. I’m sorry Jackson but the only award Emilia Pérez deserves nomination for is best actress. It has been nominated for—and won—an undeserved number of awards across this awards season. Audiard was nominated for best director despite making a film with not a single cohesive element, and even worse, doing almost no research into Mexican culture. I saw a lot of films at various film festivals this past year, and I am very surprised by what made it through to the awards … and what didn’t. One film I was expecting to get more love was Nickel Boys, a film uniquely shot almost entirely in first person POV—which somehow did not get nominated for Best Cinematography. To be honest, sometimes I wonder if the screeners watched movies in their entirety or just read the descriptions and said “good enough.”
—Bea Hammam, Film & TV Writer
Most of this year’s nominees are not surprising, especially since many of them were also nominated during the Globes (though I was shocked to see the lack of recognition for Challengers, specifically in the Cinematography and Original Score categories). That being said, I think outcomes are going to be different from the results we have seen from the Globes. I would love to see The Wild Robot take the title for best Animated Feature and Anora win the award for Original Screenplay. However, there may be some waiting for Wicked fans this year. Although the film definitely has potential in winning in categories for Production Design and Makeup and Hairstyling, the film may not win much this awards season because the second part of the movie hasn’t been released yet—but that doesn’t stop me from hoping for wins for Erivo and Grande this year.
—Sophia Leong, Film & TV Writer
Let me cheer the stoic, taciturn, yet undeniably adorable Yura Borisov in his role as Igor in Anora. Who else could possibly be up for Best Supporting Actor with so few lines, yet manage to say so much through a single glance, a subtle shift of expression, and that elusive “broken telephone” interplay between Russian and English? It could only be Borisov, who got his start portraying grim, tough–guy roles in mass–produced Russian TV series, who has now found himself in the stellar company of Baker and Madison. I hope that judges will support him, because even someone as legendary as Angelina Jolie couldn’t help but succumb to the charm of his perfectly bald head. With every silent moment on screen, Borisov proves that true talent often lies in the art of understatement, and sometimes words are unnecessary.
—Eva Lititskia, Staff Writer
The Oscars are here, and two things are clear: Adrien Brody is still leagues ahead, and Baker deserves the world. (Anora should be taking home everything that isn’t nailed down.) I’ve had Brody on my mind since The Darjeeling Limited, and while I’ll always have a soft spot for Timothée Chalamet (especially his SNL bits), let’s be honest—Brody operates on a different level. Meanwhile, Baker continues to make films that actually feel alive. If the Academy has any sense, they’ll recognize that. As for Best Costume Design? Somehow, a category meant for spectacle ended up looking like an overpriced capsule wardrobe.
—Kate Cho, Style Editor
My favorite movie of the year, Sing Sing, received shockingly few nominations, including being excluded from the Best Picture race. Colman Domingo’s tour de force received a worthy Best Actor nod, as did Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley’s incisive screenplay. But overall, Kwedar’s emotionally introspective film about the caged human condition lost out to a number of larger films, a decision which I find to be a disservice to the film’s artistic mission. In terms of what the academy got right, Madison’s leading actress nod for Anora and Strong’s supporting actor nomination for The Apprentice were both well–earned, as were the makeup and costume nods for Nosferatu. It’s a great year for movies, and I can’t wait for March.
—Walker Carnathan, Sports Editor Emeritus
