Best Picture 2019
Over the last few weeks, I've been trying to watch as many of this year's Best Picture Oscar nominees as I can. I managed to watch 6 out of the 8 nominees which I think is good going. I thought I'd share my thoughts on each film and conclude which film deserves to win.
This is a 21st century remake of the 1976 remake of a 1937 film. Directed by and starring Bradley Cooper, it sees famous country star Jackson Maine who has major issues discover untapped talent Ally, played by Lady Gaga. It's described as a 'musical romantic drama' which is not the sort of film I'd normally watch. I quite liked the way the music is used though as unlike in most musicals the songs happen when the leads are either rehearsing or performing them to an audience rather than just bursting into song at random points. It's really a film about being a star, cynically showing us what it can be like and what it can do to a person.
My biggest issue with it was the pace, especially in the middle section of the film. Every scene of a film should either progress the story, tell us something about the characters or just be hugely entertaining and there was plenty in the middle which failed to do any of those things. I also was not entirely convinced by the characters, with Ally failing to address Jackson's problems until it was too late. I don't think it ought to win Best Picture but it's very likely to win Best Original Song for 'Shallow' and Lady Gaga has a decent chance to win 'Best Actress'- it turns out she is great at whatever she turns her hand to.
Directed by respected filmmaker Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman is based on the memoir of Ron Smallworth, a black police officer who infiltrated the local branch of the KKK in the 1970s. John David Washington plays Smallworth and Adam Driver is the officer who attends the meeting in Ron's place.
The film isn't entirely true to real events but I think it more than does justice to Smallworth which is the most important thing. I thought it was really excellent, quite funny but also disturbing to hear people talk in openly racist language. Scattered through the film are references which reflect the modern world. "America would never elect a man like David Duke as President" says Stallworth and my mind couldn't help but wander to the current incumbent of the postion and think that he was wrong on that view. Duke in the film says he wants to "make America achieve its...greatness again", which is an even more direct reference to Trump. The film then ends with shots from the White Supremacy Rally in 2017 where we see modern people chanting nigh-on the same phrases we hear the KKK members say in the film. It's hugely relevant and is the film I'd vote to win Best Picture this year.
It's probable that Black Panther was only nominated for Best Picture because it was almost certain to win the Oscar in the new proposed new Best Popular Film category which was then postponed. The film sees T'Challa, Chadwick Boseman, become king of Wakanda and face rival to the throne 'Killmonger', played brilliantly by Michael B. Jordan.
I'm a huge Marvel fan and whilst I think this is one of the company's better films it's still some way from the best. As good as Killmonger is, he is yet another supervillain with identical powers to the hero which has been done to death in the MCU. Speaking of death, the film also does the classic trick of pretending to kill a main character and doesn't even do it too well here. I had a major issue with one part of the plot too. Perhaps it stems from African culture but the idea that Killmonger could challenge T'Challa and take over the throne and be supported by the citizens of Wakanda despite clearly being an evil maniac seems odd. It's not a great system for selecting a ruler and one would think some reform is needed after the events depicted here.
The film does something wonderful in giving us a mainstream, blockbuster film with an almost entirely black cast. The soundtrack is full of African traditional music and modern hip-hop from Kendrick Lamar which I have to admit wasn't to my taste but worked well in context. Wakanda is really well executed too and other than the sci-fi nonsense really feels like an African country with strong traditions. There's lots of brilliant little details, like lots of speech in Xhosa which aren't really necessary but make the film feel more authentic.
Black Panther will likely win some technical awards but it's very much the outsider for Best Picture.
This film tells the story of Queen from Freddie Mercury joining the band to the huge Live Aid performance in 1985. The critics have not been kind to it and it's actually one of the worst reviewed films of all time to be nominated for Best Picture. I suspect this is because it's quite formulaic- we see the band form, we see them get signed to a record company, write some of their best songs go on tour, have major issues and fall out with each other before a triumphant ending. Critics hate films being predictable but audiences quite like it.
The film also takes a few liberties with Mercury's story, with the most criticized element being that it chooses to focus on a platonic relationship with a woman rather than any of his homosexual relationships. It seems unlikely the academy are going to vote for this as Best Picture, especially given that directer Bryan Singer has been accused of sexual assault. It's still an enjoyable film though and there's a chance Rami Malek will win Best Actor for his excellent portrayal of Freddie Mercury.
Green Book is based on a tour of the Deep South by African-American pianist Don Shirley, here played by Mahershala Ali, accompanied by his white driver and bouncer Tony Vallelonga, here played by Viggo Mortenson.
I haven't seen Green Book so I have to rely on other critics to form an opinion. Like BlackKklansman it's essentially a timely film about racism, this time in the 1960s. It deals with segregation and Shirley being treated terribly when not on stage. The biggest controversy is that the Shirley family are not happy with the film and say Don Shirley and Vallelonga were not really friends as depicted in the film. Green Book is the favourtie to win Best Picture at the moment and as one of three nominees in the category which deals on some level or another with the treatment of black people it is clearly very timely.
Roma is an unusual film to be nominated for Best Picture. For one thing it's in Spanish (though that does mean it's almost certain to win Best Foreign Language Film) but it is also a Netflix production, the first to be nominated for Best Picture. Set in the 1970s in Mexico City, it sees indigenous housekeeper Cleo, played by Yalitz Aparicio, fall pregnant and be abandoned by her boyfriend.
Critics absolutely adore this film and it's the one of the favorites to win Best Picture. It's certainly beautifully shot, even if it revels in holding the beautiful shots on screen for as long as it can. Personally, I found it rather pretentious like it doesn't feel it's enough to do things beautifully, it has to rub them in your face. Film critics are pretentious too so that's probably why they like it. I'll be surprised if it doesn't win Best Picture but personally I don't think it should. Certainly I'd recommend most of the other nominees over this one.
Olivia Colman plays Queen Anne in this film as Sarah Churchill (Rachel Weisz) and Abigail Marsham (Emma Stone) compete for her affections. It's the film which without a doubt has the strongest collective performance with the three leads being utterly superb- Colman was nominated for Best Actress and and both Weisz and Stone for Best Supporting Actress.
It's a quirky film, almost a comedy at times, with sexual acts and lots of swearing which is far from the norm in historical films. The main critique of it is it's historical accuracy but from all I've read of actual events it seems like a reasonable interpretation. It's certainly a great film to watch and the Academy does quite like a quirky film so I think it's got an outside chance of winning.
Here Christian Bale, looking unrecognizable, plays former Vice President Dick Cheney. It's the other nominee I've yet to see and it's one that's divided the critics. I suppose that's likely when delving into recent politics and Cheney himself was a divisive figure.
Some say it's "cleverly biting" whilst others say it's "a clumsy display of political hatred". Some say it depicts Cheney as a cartoon-like villain but the most universal criticism comes about the writing with various critics saying that the plot is unfocused and darts around the place. It seems then it's unlikely to win over enough people at the Academy to win Best Picture but Christian Bale has received nearly universal acclaim for his performance so he stands a strong chance of winning Best Actor.
In conclusion, I think Roma will probably win but I think the best film is BlackKklansman. This year's nominees are pleasingly diverse and there every one of them has some remarkable performances from it's actors- what a great year for cinema!
A Star is Born
My biggest issue with it was the pace, especially in the middle section of the film. Every scene of a film should either progress the story, tell us something about the characters or just be hugely entertaining and there was plenty in the middle which failed to do any of those things. I also was not entirely convinced by the characters, with Ally failing to address Jackson's problems until it was too late. I don't think it ought to win Best Picture but it's very likely to win Best Original Song for 'Shallow' and Lady Gaga has a decent chance to win 'Best Actress'- it turns out she is great at whatever she turns her hand to.
BlacKkKlansman
The film isn't entirely true to real events but I think it more than does justice to Smallworth which is the most important thing. I thought it was really excellent, quite funny but also disturbing to hear people talk in openly racist language. Scattered through the film are references which reflect the modern world. "America would never elect a man like David Duke as President" says Stallworth and my mind couldn't help but wander to the current incumbent of the postion and think that he was wrong on that view. Duke in the film says he wants to "make America achieve its...greatness again", which is an even more direct reference to Trump. The film then ends with shots from the White Supremacy Rally in 2017 where we see modern people chanting nigh-on the same phrases we hear the KKK members say in the film. It's hugely relevant and is the film I'd vote to win Best Picture this year.
Black Panther
It's probable that Black Panther was only nominated for Best Picture because it was almost certain to win the Oscar in the new proposed new Best Popular Film category which was then postponed. The film sees T'Challa, Chadwick Boseman, become king of Wakanda and face rival to the throne 'Killmonger', played brilliantly by Michael B. Jordan.
I'm a huge Marvel fan and whilst I think this is one of the company's better films it's still some way from the best. As good as Killmonger is, he is yet another supervillain with identical powers to the hero which has been done to death in the MCU. Speaking of death, the film also does the classic trick of pretending to kill a main character and doesn't even do it too well here. I had a major issue with one part of the plot too. Perhaps it stems from African culture but the idea that Killmonger could challenge T'Challa and take over the throne and be supported by the citizens of Wakanda despite clearly being an evil maniac seems odd. It's not a great system for selecting a ruler and one would think some reform is needed after the events depicted here.
The film does something wonderful in giving us a mainstream, blockbuster film with an almost entirely black cast. The soundtrack is full of African traditional music and modern hip-hop from Kendrick Lamar which I have to admit wasn't to my taste but worked well in context. Wakanda is really well executed too and other than the sci-fi nonsense really feels like an African country with strong traditions. There's lots of brilliant little details, like lots of speech in Xhosa which aren't really necessary but make the film feel more authentic.
Black Panther will likely win some technical awards but it's very much the outsider for Best Picture.
Bohemian Rhapsody
This film tells the story of Queen from Freddie Mercury joining the band to the huge Live Aid performance in 1985. The critics have not been kind to it and it's actually one of the worst reviewed films of all time to be nominated for Best Picture. I suspect this is because it's quite formulaic- we see the band form, we see them get signed to a record company, write some of their best songs go on tour, have major issues and fall out with each other before a triumphant ending. Critics hate films being predictable but audiences quite like it.
The film also takes a few liberties with Mercury's story, with the most criticized element being that it chooses to focus on a platonic relationship with a woman rather than any of his homosexual relationships. It seems unlikely the academy are going to vote for this as Best Picture, especially given that directer Bryan Singer has been accused of sexual assault. It's still an enjoyable film though and there's a chance Rami Malek will win Best Actor for his excellent portrayal of Freddie Mercury.
Green Book
Green Book is based on a tour of the Deep South by African-American pianist Don Shirley, here played by Mahershala Ali, accompanied by his white driver and bouncer Tony Vallelonga, here played by Viggo Mortenson.
I haven't seen Green Book so I have to rely on other critics to form an opinion. Like BlackKklansman it's essentially a timely film about racism, this time in the 1960s. It deals with segregation and Shirley being treated terribly when not on stage. The biggest controversy is that the Shirley family are not happy with the film and say Don Shirley and Vallelonga were not really friends as depicted in the film. Green Book is the favourtie to win Best Picture at the moment and as one of three nominees in the category which deals on some level or another with the treatment of black people it is clearly very timely.
Roma
Roma is an unusual film to be nominated for Best Picture. For one thing it's in Spanish (though that does mean it's almost certain to win Best Foreign Language Film) but it is also a Netflix production, the first to be nominated for Best Picture. Set in the 1970s in Mexico City, it sees indigenous housekeeper Cleo, played by Yalitz Aparicio, fall pregnant and be abandoned by her boyfriend.
Critics absolutely adore this film and it's the one of the favorites to win Best Picture. It's certainly beautifully shot, even if it revels in holding the beautiful shots on screen for as long as it can. Personally, I found it rather pretentious like it doesn't feel it's enough to do things beautifully, it has to rub them in your face. Film critics are pretentious too so that's probably why they like it. I'll be surprised if it doesn't win Best Picture but personally I don't think it should. Certainly I'd recommend most of the other nominees over this one.
The Favourite
Olivia Colman plays Queen Anne in this film as Sarah Churchill (Rachel Weisz) and Abigail Marsham (Emma Stone) compete for her affections. It's the film which without a doubt has the strongest collective performance with the three leads being utterly superb- Colman was nominated for Best Actress and and both Weisz and Stone for Best Supporting Actress.
It's a quirky film, almost a comedy at times, with sexual acts and lots of swearing which is far from the norm in historical films. The main critique of it is it's historical accuracy but from all I've read of actual events it seems like a reasonable interpretation. It's certainly a great film to watch and the Academy does quite like a quirky film so I think it's got an outside chance of winning.
Vice
Here Christian Bale, looking unrecognizable, plays former Vice President Dick Cheney. It's the other nominee I've yet to see and it's one that's divided the critics. I suppose that's likely when delving into recent politics and Cheney himself was a divisive figure.
Some say it's "cleverly biting" whilst others say it's "a clumsy display of political hatred". Some say it depicts Cheney as a cartoon-like villain but the most universal criticism comes about the writing with various critics saying that the plot is unfocused and darts around the place. It seems then it's unlikely to win over enough people at the Academy to win Best Picture but Christian Bale has received nearly universal acclaim for his performance so he stands a strong chance of winning Best Actor.
In conclusion, I think Roma will probably win but I think the best film is BlackKklansman. This year's nominees are pleasingly diverse and there every one of them has some remarkable performances from it's actors- what a great year for cinema!
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