Borrowing a page from Siskel and Ebert back in the good ol' days, Movie Dearest's very own Men on Film — Chris Carpenter and Kirby Holt — are presenting our own version of "If We Picked the Oscars". These aren't predictions, but what movies, actors, directors, et al that we would vote for if we were members of the Academy. We're also chiming in with our picks for the "egregiously overlooked" non-nominees as well as the "Worst Nominations of the Year" So without further ado, the envelope please...
The nominees for
Best Picture are:
The Big Short,
Bridge of Spies,
Brooklyn,
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Martian,
The Revenant,
Room and
Spotlight
And our winners would be:
CC: The year's finest film is also its most painful, and I'm not referring to a scene of Leonardo DiCaprio being mauled by a bear.
Spotlight
distills the decades-long cover up of Catholic priests abusing children
into a succinct, intense, educational and ultimately inspirational two
hours. I'm hopeful the Academy will agree that the Best Picture of 2015
deals with the most important, still potent subject of any of its
fellow nominees.
KH: No other film stuck with ma as much as the visceral, heartbreaking
Room.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
Carol is one of the best, most positive LGBT studio films to
date, so of course the Academy proved it isn't far enough along to have
nominated it. #Oscarssostraight
KH: Where do I start?
Steve Jobs,
Carol,
Ex Machina...
For their final voting, Academy members are asked to rank the Best Picture nominees from #1 to #8, so here are our rankings:
CC: 1)
Spotlight, 2)
The Big Short, 3)
Brooklyn, 4)
Room, 5)
The Revenant, 6)
Mad Max: Fury Road, 7)
The Martian.
(I haven't yet seen
Bridge of Spies).
KH: 1)
Room, 2)
Spotlight, 3)
Mad Max: Fury Road, 4)
The Martian, 5)
The Big Short, 6)
Brooklyn, 7)
Bridge of Spies, 8)
The Revenant.
The nominees for
Best Actor are: Bryan Cranston in
Trumbo, Matt Damon in
The Martian, Leonardo DiCaprio in
The Revenant, Michael Fassbender in
Steve Jobs and Eddie Redmayne in
The Danish Girl
And our winners would be:
CC: This is a deservedly strong bunch of nominees, and I
agree pre-determined winner DiCaprio is long overdue. That being said
and as much as I enjoyed Cranston's performance, I would vote for
Eddie Redmayne. His subtle, exquisite turn as real-life transgender pioneer
Lili Elbe impressed me even more than his Oscar-winning triumph last year as
Stephen Hawking in
The Theory of Everything. It would be cool
to anoint the similarly versatile Redmayne as the first back- to-back
Best Actor winner since Tom Hanks in the early 1990's too.
KH:
Michael Fassbender, for making an unlikable protagonist into a nevertheless fascinating subject in
Steve Jobs.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: Veteran actress Charlotte Rampling is deservedly nominated for
45 Years, but Tom Courtenay was equally effective and deserving as her conflicted husband in the otherwise so-so domestic melodrama.
KH: From both ends of the age spectrum:
Ian McKellen in
Mr. Holmes and Jacob Tremblay in
Room.
The nominees for
Best Actress are: Cate Blanchett in
Carol, Brie Larson in
Room, Jennifer Lawrence in
Joy, Charlotte Rampling in
45 Years and Saoirse Ronan in
Brooklyn
And our winners would be:
CC: Likely winner Larson is excellent in the harrowing
Room, but
her role is also so well written that I can't help but think any number
of younger actresses would have been equally good in it.
Saoirse Ronan
was more of a revelation for me, and there aren't many young actresses I
can think of who could have so convincingly, delicately played her
homesick yet America(n)-loving Irish immigrant.
KH: A tough call, I could go with four out of five of these women and be happy... and right. But when push comes to shove:
Brie Larson, a true revelation as
Room's "Ma".
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: LGBT fave
Lily Tomlin had a great year, and her dramedic performance as the title character in Paul Weitz's
Grandma was the cherry on top of her cake, yet sadly overlooked by the Academy in favor of now-perennial nominee Lawrence.
KH: This category this year needed less "it girl" (I'm looking at you "J Law") and more "golden girls": Blythe Danner in
I'll See You in My Dreams or Lily Tomlin in
Grandma.
The nominees for
Best Supporting Actor are: Christian Bale in
The Big Short, Tom Hardy in
The Revenant, Mark Ruffalo in
Spotlight, Mark Rylance in
Bridge of Spies and Sylvester Stallone in
Creed
And our winners would be:
CC: Out of an excellent ensemble,
Mark Ruffalo proved to be the warm heart beating at the center of
Spotlight as abuse victims' most devoted (and hunkiest) advocate.
KH: Forget Leo and that bear,
The Revenant was all about
Tom Hardy's immoral rascal for me.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: Idris Elba is frighteningly impressive in Netflix's
Beasts of No Nation, and his nomination would have brought some desperately needed diversity to this year's competition.
KH: Megalomania never looked so good: Idris Elba in
Beasts of No Nation and Oscar Isaac in
Ex Machina.
The nominees for
Best Supporting Actress are: Jennifer Jason Leigh in
The Hateful Eight, Rooney Mara in
Carol, Rachel McAdams in
Spotlight, Alicia Vikander in
The Danish Girl and Kate Winslet in
Steve Jobs
And our winners would be:
CC: Hmmm, this may be the toughest category for me this year (and I haven't even seen
The Hateful Eight).
The four nominees I have seen are all exquisite but I think I would
give
Kate Winslet the vote for playing a character both so unlike herself and
so unlike any character she has previously played.
KH:
Alicia Vikander, not just for her earthy passion in
Danish Girl, but also for her cold automaton in
Ex Machina.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: It would have been sadly too bold a move this year for the Academy to
nominate an actress who is both black
and transgender, but either
Kitana Kiki Rodriguez or
Mya Taylor are deserving for the spicy, gritty
Tangerine.
KH: I was very impressed with usual-funny ladies Elizabeth Banks' and Kristen Wiig's dramatic turns in, respectively,
Love & Mercy and
The Diary of a Teenage Girl.
The nominees for
Best Director are: Lenny Abrahamson for
Room, Alejandro G. Iñárritu for
The Revenant, Adam McKay for
The Big Short, Tom McCarthy for
Spotlight and George Miller for
Mad Max: Fury Road
And our winners would be:
CC: I think this is one of the few batch of nominees ever where I would vote
for a sentimental but deserved favorite (and I think
Academy voters will do the same):
George Miller. His first nomination in this category
caps an incredible career that has included
Lorenzo's Oil and
Babe in addition to his post-apocalyptic oeuvre.
KH: The subtle, intimate work of
Lenny Abrahamson in
Room gets my vote over the big casts/epic spectacle of the other nominees.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: Previous Oscar winner Tom Hooper handled the tricky subject of transgender identity sensitively and skillfully in
The Danish Girl. The film is visually ravishing to boot. Hooper definitely should have been nominated over Abrahamson.
KH: Ridley Scott really should be in this mix for
The Martian, his most crowd-pleasing work, as well as Danny Boyle for the brilliant
Steve Jobs.
The nominees for
Best Adapted Screenplay are:
The Big Short,
Brooklyn,
Carol,
Room and
The Martian
And our winners would be:
CC:
The Big Short is a shrewd, unexpectedly entertaining and intelligible saga about the tragic housing market collapse.
KH: With
Emma Donoghue's transfer of her novel to the screen, it's four for four for
Room from me.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
Mr. Holmes,
Bill Condon's crafty rumination on the fictional detective adapted from Mitch Cullin's novel, and
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. How did this fine, Sundance-acclaimed indie get completely shut out of the Oscar nominations?
KH: I'm not usually an Aaron Sorkin fan, but his three-act structure for
Steve Jobs was genius. I also loved the teen indies
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and
The Diary of a Teenage Girl.
The nominees for
Best Original Screenplay are:
Bridge of Spies,
Ex Machina,
Inside Out,
Spotlight and
Straight Outta Compton
And our winners would be:
CC: As strong as
Spotlight's true story and screenplay are,
Inside Out was more genuinely touching.
KH: Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer's
Spotlight was simply the best written film of the year.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: Amy Schumer's sour yet sweet screenplay for
Trainwreck.
KH:
Goodnight Mommy and
It Follows used classic horror movie tropes in fresh ways, creating the two scariest movies of 2015.
The nominees for
Best Cinematography are:
Carol,
The Hateful Eight,
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Revenant and
Sicario
And our winners would be:
CC: I would join the likely majority and give Emmanuel Lubezki his third
Oscar in a row for his visually stunning, naturalist work on
The Revenant.
KH: Edward Lachman's lush lensing on
Carol, the least showy (and, in some cases, show off-y) of the nominees.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
The Danish Girl.
KH: Alwin H. Küchler craftily used three different film formats to create the distinct looks of the three time periods depicted in
Steve Jobs.
The nominees for
Best Production Design are:
Bridge of Spies,
The Danish Girl,
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Martian and
The Revenant
And our winners would be:
CC:
The Danish Girl more often than not looked like a beautiful impressionistic painting come to life.
KH: The future never looked so (not) good as in
Mad Max: Fury Road.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: The sexually-repressed period piece
Carol.
KH:
Room is a master class in the use of set design to complement story and character.
The nominees for
Best Costume Design are:
Carol,
Cinderella,
The Danish Girl,
Mad Max: Fury Road and
The Revenant
And our winners would be:
CC: Cate Blanchett's wicked gowns alone deserve an Oscar in Disney's smart, live action
Cinderella.
KH: The intricate, quirky costumes of
Mad Max: Fury Road immediately, excellently clued audiences in on each character.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
Jurassic World, if only for Bryce Dallas Howard's retro yet stylish but decidedly jungle-unfriendly outfits (and heels).
KH: The colorful period stylings of
Brooklyn should been in this mix, especially over the rags and furs of
The Revenant.
The nominees for
Best Original Score are:
Bridge of Spies,
Carol,
The Hateful Eight,
Sicario and
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
And our winners would be:
CC: Well, I haven't yet seen/heard
The Hateful Eight and its acclaimed score by maestro Ennio Morricone and I found
Carol's score a little too reminiscent of Carter Burwell's previous score for
Gods and Monsters. Therefore, I would vote for octogenarian's John Williams' typically rousing
Force Awakens score.
KH: The legendary Ennio Morricone returned to the genre he does best with
The Hateful Eight.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: Ryuichi Sakamoto's spare yet memorable score for
The Revenant was the most interesting of the year, in my opinion.
KH: Howard Shore's subtle score added greatly to
Spotlight.
The nominees for
Best Original Song are: "Earned It" from
Fifty Shades of Grey, "Manta Ray" from
Racing Extinction, "Simple Song #3" from
Youth, "Til It Happens to You" from
The Hunting Ground and "Writings on the Wall" from
Spectre
And our winners would be:
CC: In a toss up between pop stars turned theme song chanteuses
Lady Gaga
and
Sam Smith, I would vote for Smith's unexpectedly gorgeous James Bond
confessional
"Writings on the Wall". However, Gaga and her never-won collaborator Diane
Warren likely have the Academy's vote.
KH: Out of this quintet consisting of documentary dirges, falsetto-ed pop noise and an endless aria, I'd have to say finally give it to Diane Warren for
"Til It Happens to You". (Plus, when Lady Gaga wins it will
really piss off
Madonna.)
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: Wiz Khalifa's ubiquitous yet genuinely heartfelt "See You Again" from
Furious 7.
KH: Hey music branch, how about some happy songs? Like "Feels Like Summer" from
Shaun the Sheep Movie or the title song from
I'll See You in My Dreams.
The nominees for
Best Film Editing are:
The Big Short,
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Revenant,
Spotlight and
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
And our winners would be:
CC: The complex yet sassy and snappy
Big Short.
KH: The editing of
The Big Short helped create the comedic rhythm that made it so unique and enjoyable.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
Furious 7, believe it or not.
KH: They should have made room for
Room.
The nominees for
Best Sound Mixing are:
Bridge of Spies,
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Martian,
The Revenant and
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
And our winners would be:
CC:
The Revenant and
Star Wars are pretty interchangeable for me in this category and the following.
KH: Mostly solid work here, so I'll give this one to
The Martian.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: It was good to see and hear the resurrected dinosaurs of
Jurassic World again.
KH:
Love & Mercy let the viewer listen in on the sounds of insanity.
The nominees for
Best Sound Editing are:
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Martian,
The Revenant,
Sicario and
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
And our winners would be:
CC: See above.
KH: The
Star Wars: The Force Awakens crew gave voice to BB-8, and that's enough for me to give them my vote.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: See above.
KH: James Bond always gives good sound effects, so
Spectre.
The nominees for
Best Visual Effects are:
Ex Machina,
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The Martian,
The Revenant and
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
And our winners would be:
CC:
The Force Awakens proved that old
Star Wars visual magic lives on.
KH: The subtle yet eye-popping creation of Ava in
Ex Machina outshines for me all the spaceships and bears and more spaceships, oh my.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: As ridiculous as
Jupiter Ascending often is, its visual effects were nothing to laugh at.
KH:
Ant-Man had some crazy fun effects sequences and made you mourn the fall of a (digitally-created) ant named Antony.
The nominees for
Best Makeup & Hairstyling are:
Mad Max: Fury Road,
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared and
The Revenant
And our winners would be:
CC: This is the strangest set of nominees this year.
The Revenant?
KH: Like its costumes, the wild makeup and hair designs of
Mad Max: Fury Road were wildly over-the-top yet spot on for this apocalyptic adventure.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC: The lovely period 'dos of both
Carol and
Cinderella.
KH: The team behind
Mr. Holmes did beautiful age work on Ian McKellen.
The nominees for
Best Animated Feature are:
Anomalisa,
Boy and the World,
Inside Out,
Shaun the Sheep Movie and
When Marnie Was There
And our winners would be:
CC: I loved
Shaun the Sheep but the emotional power and design mastery of
Inside Out make it my winner.
KH: I'm in the minority, but I found
Inside Out underwhelming, while
Shaun the Sheep Movie was an absolute delight, the most effortlessly entertaining movie of the year.
The nominees for
Best Foreign Language Film are:
Embrace of the Serpent (Colombia),
Mustang (France),
Son of Saul (Hungary),
Theeb (Jordan) and
A War (Denmark)
And our winners would be:
CC: I'm disappointed in myself to admit I haven't yet seen the near-universally acclaimed Holocaust drama
Son of Saul, so the black & white existential adventure
Embrace of the Serpent gets my vote.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
François Ozon's startling
The New Girlfriend.
KH: The unflinching horror of Germany's
Goodnight Mommy is hauntingly unforgettable.
The nominees for
Best Documentary Feature are:
Amy,
Cartel Land,
The Look of Silence,
What Happened, Miss Simone? and
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom
And our winners would be:
CC: This is another tough category of equally-worthy contenders. I would give
The Look of Silence my vote based on its important subject matter.
KH:
The Look of Silence, Joshua Oppenheimer's powerful, disturbing companion piece to his previously nominated, equally disturbing
The Act of Killing.
Egregiously Overlooked:
CC:
Best of Enemies and
Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine, two powerful gay-themed docs about critical 20th century figures.
KH: The shocking, blistering exposé that is
Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief was likely too close to home for some in the Academy.
The nominees for
Best Documentary Short Subject are:
Body Team 12,
Chau, Beyond the Lines,
Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah,
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness and
Last Day of Freedom
And our winners would be:
CC: Short though they may be, I'm sorry to say I haven't had time to watch any of this year's short film nominees.
KH: In a field filled with grim subjects,
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness (about barbaric "honor" killings in Pakistan) is the most immediate and emotionally-charged.
The nominees for
Best Animated Short Film are:
Bear Story,
Prologue,
Sanjay’s Super Team,
We Can’t Live Without Cosmos and
World of Tomorrow
And our winners would be:
CC: See above.
KH: The delightful, slightly deranged world of Emily² in the
World of Tomorrow is easily my favorite here.
The nominees for
Best Live Action Short Film are:
Ave Maria,
Day One,
Everything Will Be Okay (
Alles Wird Gut),
Shok and
Stutterer
And our winners would be:
CC: See above.
KH: The strongest line up of contenders of all of this year's nominees, any of these would be a worthy winner. But if I could only vote for one, it would be the devastating
Shok.
Egregiously Overlooked:
KH: Who knows if it was even eligible, but how about the insane and insanely entertaining 80's action homage
Kung Fury?
And now for our own special category of dishonorable mention, the
Worst Nomination of the Year:
CC: This year's nominees are by and large a consistently deserving bunch. I have to say though that — despite their occasional artistic and dramatic merits —
The Martian, Mad Max: Fury Road and
The Revenant are all highly overrated; this is especially true of their inclusion in the
Best Picture category.
KH: There's a lot of head scratchers among this year's finalist, from the bafflingly bad Original Song contenders to the excessive haul of
The Revenant (at least its
script was passed over), but I have to single out the knee-jerk nomination of
Jennifer Lawrence for Best Actress in Joy. Lawrence has increasingly worn out her welcome for me, and David O. Russell's insistence on casting her in roles she's too young for only exacerbates the problem. It's doubly frustrating that her default nod this year shut out fine performances from acting legends Blythe Danner, Lily Tomlin and Maggie Smith (
The Lady in the Van), not to mention younger, newer talent like Bel Powley (
The Diary of a Teenage Girl) and Karidja Toure (
Girlhood). Let's hope that this year will mark the end of the Academy's blind adoration of her.
And so the final march to Oscar glory begins. Tune in to the Big Show, hosted by Chris Rock, on
ABC this Sunday to see who wins, as well as which nominees are rocking the best (and worst) gowns, most attractive escorts and most heartfelt
acceptance speeches.
By Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Rage Monthly Magazine, and Kirby Holt, creator and editor of Movie Dearest, The QuOD: A Who's Who of Who's Out and the Out Movie Guide.
