Hello, Bloggers, in the midst of all this controversy surrounding the Oscar nominations ranging from the apparent lack of diversity to the Lego Movie snub, here are, what I consider, to be a few high points to be found.
1. Quality Trumping Politics In The Best Actress Category: When Marion Cotillard's name was announced over the Globe-winning Amy Adams and heavy campaigner Jennifer Aniston in the Best Actress category, it was a great example of looking into what was one of the better performances because Cotillard was practically invisible during the campaign trail. Not only that, but being nominated for a foreign film is quite a rarity these days.
2. The Trend of Loving/Hating Comedians Slowly Breaking: In the Best Actor category, we had not one, but two comedians (Steve Carell and Michael Keaton) being recognized for their versatile work. The Academy has had quite a history with recognizing comedians as they gave Bill Murray only one nomination and don't want to nominate Jim Carrey for some reason. So, it is nice that in the Best Actor category, they got to go for two for the price of one and even recognize the usually dramatic Edward Norton for his comedic work.
3. Precursors Not Being A Deciding Factor: Bradley Cooper, Laura Dern, and Bennett Miller didn't receive any precursor support, yet they successfully managed to sneak into their respective categories. So, it was nice that we were actually in for surprises Thursday morning and I treasure surprises when they take place.
4. Inherent Vice Getting Nominated For Best Adapted Screenplay: Since Inherent Vice was a contender for Best Adapted Screenplay, the Academy had a chance to recognize something unique and out there. Thankfully, they took it even when they recognized other scripts that were a little more conventional.
5. A Lot Of First Time Nominees: One of the chief complaints about the Oscars is how they tend to play favorites and vote for their buddies. That complaint is justified because when their buddies get voted in, usually they have no hope of actually winning and that prevents a new face waiting to be recognized from getting in. They may have played favorites this year by including Robert Duvall and Meryl Streep. But we have a lot of fresh blood this year: Wes Anderson for his first Best Director nomination, Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Felicity Jones, Benedict Cumberbatch, Steve Carell, Eddie Redmayne, Patricia Arquette, J.K. Simmons, etc. We even saw some new faces collect acting trophies last year (Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Lupita Nyong'o).
6. Snubs Still Leave Us Curious: Plenty of the Critics' Choice winners this year were snubbed by the Oscars (Birdman for Editing and Score, Gone Girl for Best Adapted Screenplay, Force Majeure for Best Foreign Film, Life Itself for Best Documentary, and Lego Movie for Best Animated Feature). While I do feel that these winners should be at the Oscars and their snubs are difficult to swallow, at least they have me wondering who could win in their respective categories which makes them less predictable. Plus, these snubbed winners would still make my own personal ballot anyway.
So, those were my thoughts on 6 silver linings to be found from this year's Oscar nominees that I hope will ease your pain. Please feel free to share your thoughts on the nominations in the comments section. Thanks for reading!
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