Academy Awards: The Annual Kvetch Fest

It's that time of year again where we parse the nominations. As you can see below, this was not a great year for American movies. The best picture nominees are a mixed bag, with some movies that don't belong in there by any stretch of the imagination (Arrival, I'm talking to you).

As usual, better independent movies are ignored in favor of big, corny spectacles.

I am not doing the technical categories or shorts because in many cases I have not seen the films.

Below, my rants and raves. Predicted winners in red. Who I think should win, in blue.

BEST PICTURE

I seem to be the only person in the world who absolutely adored Jackie. In my view, it is better than any of the films below. La La Land, the probable winner, is very polarizing, but I think that even though it strikes people as conventional, it is the most audacious movie of the bunch. In contrast, Moonlight, which has been hailed as audacious because of its subject matter, seemed to me utterly trite. The fight is between those two.

ARRIVAL - The most boring movie about aliens ever made.
FENCES - Good, but it's a stiffly filmed stage play, not Best Picture material.
HACKSAW RIDGE - I have trouble seeing movies by antisemites.
HELL OR HIGH WATER - Preposterous but entertaining modern Western.
HIDDEN FIGURES - Conventional but effective and winning.
LA LA LAND - For sheer moxie and audaciousness. A love letter to long-suffering artists.
LION - I hear it's a five-hankie weepie. I just can't stand Dev Patel.
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA - There is nothing wrong with this movie, but it leaves me cold.
MOONLIGHT - Vastly overrated. 

SNUBBED: Jackie, Loving, Elle, Captain Fantastic, Hail, Caesar! Indignation.

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
CASEY AFFLECK. An effective one-note performance.
Manchester by the Sea
ANDREW GARFIELD. Haven't seen it. But I've never understood why directors like him.
Hacksaw Ridge
RYAN GOSLING. He is wonderful.
La La Land
VIGGO MORTENSEN So glad he's here. A subtle and committed performance.
Captain Fantastic
DENZEL WASHINGTON. He's great.
Fences

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
MAHERSHALA ALI. I love him in everything, but I don't get why he is here.
Moonlight
JEFF BRIDGES. He's fantastic.
Hell or High Water
LUCAS HEDGES. I hated him, but maybe that was his job.
Manchester by the Sea
DEV PATEL
Lion
MICHAEL SHANNON. Absolutely righteous nomination. The best of the bunch.
Nocturnal Animals

SNUBBED: 

Tracy Letts in Indignation

Ralph Fiennes in Hail, Caesar! or A Bigger Splash. 

Simon Helberg and Hugh Grant in Florence Foster Jenkins. 

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
ISABELLE HUPPERT. Killer, as usual.
Elle
RUTH NEGGA. Wonderful.
Loving
NATALIE PORTMAN. Frighteningly good.
Jackie
EMMA STONE. Excellent.
La La Land
MERYL STREEP.  Sure, but enough already!
Florence Foster Jenkins

SNUBBED: Annette Bening (20th Century Women), Amy Adams (Arrival)

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE  A lackluster category this year.
VIOLA DAVIS. She's fine. I have an issue with the snot.
Fences
NAOMIE HARRIS. She was fine, considering the cliched role.
Moonlight
NICOLE KIDMAN. Didn't see it.
Lion
OCTAVIA SPENCER. She was good, but no better than her colleagues.
Hidden Figures
MICHELLE WILLIAMS. Fine.
Manchester by the Sea

SNUBBED: Taraji P. Henson (Hidden Figures), Linda Emond, Indignation.

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM - I haven't seen any of these films but I'm judging from the trailers.
KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS
MOANA
MY LIFE AS A ZUCCHINI
THE RED TURTLE
ZOOTOPIA

CINEMATOGRAPHY
ARRIVAL
Bradford Young
LA LA LAND
Linus Sandgren
LION
Greig Fraser
MOONLIGHT
James Laxton
SILENCE
Rodrigo Prieto

SNUBBED: JACKIE, Stephane Fontaine

                     HAIL CAESAR!, Roger Deakins

                     THE HANDMAIDEN Chung-hoon Chung

COSTUME DESIGN
ALLIED
Joanna Johnston
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM
Colleen Atwood

FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS
Consolata Boyle
JACKIE
Madeline Fontaine
LA LA LAND
Mary Zophres

SNUBBED: Zophres for Hail, Caesar! 

DIRECTING
ARRIVAL - Humorless, leaden: no.
Denis Villeneuve
HACKSAW RIDGE
Mel Gibson
LA LA LAND 
Damien Chazelle
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA - Good job.
Kenneth Lonergan
MOONLIGHT - Fine.
Barry Jenkins

SNUBBED: Paul Verhoeven, Elle. Pablo Larrain, Jackie. 

DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE)
FIRE AT SEA - Haven't seen it.
Gianfranco Rosi and Donatella Palermo
I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO - So glad this is here. Excellent. 
Raoul Peck, Rémi Grellety and Hébert Peck
LIFE, ANIMATED - Haven't seen it.
Roger Ross Williams and Julie Goldman
O.J.: MADE IN AMERICA - One of the best movies of the year. Period. 
Ezra Edelman and Caroline Waterlow
13TH - Excellent.
Ava DuVernay, Spencer Averick and Howard Barish


FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
LAND OF MINE
Denmark
A MAN CALLED OVE
Sweden
THE SALESMAN - Farhadi is one of the best filmmakers in the world today so I root for him.
Iran
TANNA
Australia
TONI ERDMANN - Super overrated.
Germany

SNUBBED: THE HANDMAIDEN. One of the best movies of the year in any language. 

THE CLUB by Pablo Larrain, Chile. 

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
JACKIE - If this hadn't been nominated I would have thrown a symphonic tantrum. Spectacular.
Mica Levi
LA LA LAND - Not memorable music, but a lot of it.
Justin Hurwitz
LION
Dustin O'Halloran and Hauschka
MOONLIGHT - Distracting and pretentious.
Nicholas Britell
PASSENGERS
Thomas Newman

SNUBBED: Nocturnal Animals. 

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
AUDITION (THE FOOLS WHO DREAM)
from La La Land; Music by Justin Hurwitz; Lyric by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
CAN'T STOP THE FEELING
from Trolls; Music and Lyric by Justin Timberlake, Max Martin and Karl Johan Schuster
CITY OF STARS
from La La Land; Music by Justin Hurwitz; Lyric by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
THE EMPTY CHAIR
from Jim: The James Foley Story; Music and Lyric by J. Ralph and Sting
HOW FAR I'LL GO
from Moana; Music and Lyric by Lin-Manuel Miranda

SNUBBED: Pharrell Williams' excellent songs for Hidden Figures. 

PRODUCTION DESIGN
ARRIVAL - The only good thing in this film, plus Amy Adams.
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM
HAIL, CAESAR! Love, love, love. 
LA LA LAND - Technicolor without the style.
PASSENGERS

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
ARRIVAL
Eric Heisserer
FENCES
August Wilson
HIDDEN FIGURES
Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi
LION
Luke Davies
MOONLIGHT
Screenplay by Barry Jenkins; Story by Tarell Alvin McCraney

SNUBBED: Elle by Philippe Djian. Indignation by James Schamus.

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
HELL OR HIGH WATER - Entertaining but I didn't buy it.
Taylor Sheridan
LA LA LAND - Bittersweet and smart. 
Damien Chazelle
THE LOBSTER  Their weakest script yet.
Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA - Very good writing.
Kenneth Lonergan
20TH CENTURY WOMEN - Good.
Mike Mills

SNUBBED: Noah Oppenheim, Jackie. 

The Oscars SUCK

They have always sucked but this year they suck more. This year, they are not even trying with the pretense of inclusion. They are going mostly for the safe, the well trod, the boring. Except for the actress nominations and some of the technical departments, it's an all male, mostly white dudes cast. I am the last person to clamor for affirmative action in art. But this is dispiriting. Because this year deserving women like Ava DuVernay and Gillian Flynn are shut out for no good reason. Safe, well-meaning biopics like The Imitation Game and The Theory of Everything replace better, more hard-hitting, but less palatable movies like Foxcatcher, A Most Violent Year, or even Gone Girl.  Yes, some original, independent-spirited movies like Boyhood, Whiplash, Selma and The Grand Budapest Hotel made it, but it is not enough. A cause for concern should be that Hollywood has to rely on indies or British films to fill up ten slots. A dismal year for American movies.

Below is the list of nominations.

The ones in bold are the noms I consider well deserved. And those who unfairly did not make it. In blue, my favorites.

In red, my predictions for your Oscar pool. The categories that have no red, I have no idea about. 

If you win the pool, you give me half, if you lose, which is far more likely, I'm not responsible.

Best Picture
Birdman - Fun, fantastic movie.
Boyhood - Yes, and should win.

The contest is between the navel-gazing ego fest of Birdman, Hollywood talking about itself, which the Academy loves, or the lack of ego and sustained excellence of Boyhood. It's a tough call, but if the Academy members are not utterly depraved, they should vote for Boyhood.
Selma - Yes, however grudgingly and ungenerously it made it to the list. It's being shut out of virtually everything else except that stupid song at the end, which nearly ruined the entire movie for me. This sole nomination feels more of a consolation prize than a deserved nod. Selma should have gotten nods at least for Best Actor (David Oyelowo), Best Director (Ava Du Vernay), Best Screenplay (there's a fight about who really wrote it), Score (by Jason Moran) and Costume Design. It seems that the Selma team completely mishandled their p.r.; the greatest irony being that DuVernay used to handle p.r. in Hollywood before she became a director. It's a damn shame because this is a good and important movie, at a time when more people need to remember this story.
The Theory of Everything - Yawn. It's a good movie but not a great one.
The Imitation Game - Yaaawn. Both are classic, safe choices for the retirement community. If we go for British biopics, Mr. Turner kicks their ass.
The Grand Budapest Hotel - lovely and surprising, and I'm happy it's here.
American Sniper - Haven't seen it, but Clint Eastwood is the most overrated person in the world.
Whiplash - Yes! A damn good film. Original. Bracing. Spectacular.
Foxcatcher could have been included, as well as Gone Girl. But they are too dark for these losers.

Actress in a Leading Role
Julianne Moore,  Still Alice - She is fantastic.
Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything - She rocks in this movie.
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl - she is very fine.
Reese Witherspoon, Wild -  She tries, but is totally lacking in depth.
Marion Cotillard, Two Days One Night - Freaking amazeballs. 

The contest here, I think, is between the illness du jour, as portrayed by Julianne Moore, and La Cotillard, who is a monster actress. Between Alzheimer's and the beleaguered working class of the world, I think they'll go for Alzheimer's. It hits closer to home.

Actor in a Leading Role
Michael Keaton, Birdman - He is very good, I love him dearly, but I think there are others more deserving.
Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything - No doubt, he is awesome.
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game - No doubt, he is wonderful. Also, he seems to have more fun than any other celebrity, so that's why I'm rooting for him. None of my favorites are in this race.
Steve Carell, Foxcatcher - Excellent.
Bradley Cooper, American Sniper -  I'm sure he's good. 

But where is David Oyelowo who so convincingly portrays Martin Luther King? Where is Ralph Fiennes, who is miraculous in The Grand Budapest Hotel? Miles Teller was brilliant in Whiplash, but he has been thoroughly ignored because he plays an asshole. Oscar Isaac in A Most Violent Year? Even Channing Tatum in Foxcatcher. I'm tired of actors not being recognized for subtle work.

Directing
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu,  Birdman - A tour de force.
Richard Linklater, Boyhood - A bigger, quieter tour de force.
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel - Absolutely.
Morten Tyldum, The Imitation Game - Pat, predictable, just decent. Instead, James Marsh of The Theory of Everything. 

Instead, Ava DuVernay for Selma. It is appalling that she is not in the running.
Bennett Miller, Foxcatcher - Well done. But instead, Damien Chazelle for Whiplash.

Actress in a Supporting Role
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood - If there is justice, this will happen.
Emma Stone, Birdman - She is wonderful in this film.
Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game - Very good but instead, Jessica Chastain in A Most Violent Year. 

Meryl Streep, Into the Woods - She is becoming the Queen of Good Hams. Let's just give her an award each year and call it a day.
Laura Dern, Wild - She is better than the entire movie.

Actor in a Supporting Role
J.K. Simmons, Whiplash - probably and deservedly the winner.
Edward Norton, Birdman - I LOVE him in this.
Ethan Hawke, Boyhood - Great but not as great as Arquette.
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher - Great.
Robert Duvall, The Judge - Have not seen him, but he always kills.

Foreign Language Film
Ida - A wry, fantastic film about the aftermath of the Holocaust.
Leviathan - A wry, fantastic film about living with corruption in Russia.
Tangerines - Have not seen it.
Wild Tales - Have not seen it.
Timbuktu - This is a poetic, sweet, and surprisingly funny film about Islamic fundamentalists (!) 

I doubt that the members of the Academy actually watch the films so they may want to punish Putin, they may want to extend an olive branch to Muslims, or, and this has been known to happen, vote for the movie that has something to do with the Holocaust. They are all deserving. 

I can't believe Force Majeure is not in the running. Or Two Days, One Night. Or The Wonders.

Writing – Adapted Screenplay

Graham Moore, The Imitation Game -  Defanged, sentimental version of the life of Alan Turing. A travesty. 

Damien Chazelle, Whiplash. How is this an adapted screenplay?
Anthony McCarten, The Theory of Everything. He has a scene of applause in the end which I will never forgive.
Jason Hall, American Sniper
Paul Thomas Anderson, Inherent Vice - Gets brownie points for trying to adapt Pynchon. 

Where is Gillian Flynn's smart adaptation of Gone Girl? 

Writing – Original Screenplay
Richard Linklater, Boyhood 
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris and Armando Bo, Birdman. 

I think the script is the weakest link in this movie.
Wes Anderson and Hugo Guinness, The Grand Budapest Hotel - Lovely.
Dan Gilroy,  Nightcrawler - Creepily funny, but I don't buy the contrivances of this script.
E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman, Foxcatcher - A well written American nightmare. 

Selma should be in this category but it isn't because of an unfortunate conflict over writing credits. Too bad.

Cinematography
Emmanuel Lubezki, Birdman
Roger Deakins, Unbroken
Robert D. Yeoman, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Dick Pope, Mr. Turner
Lukasz Zal and Ryszard Lynzewski, Ida

All of them utterly deserving.

Music – Original Score
Hans Zimmer, Interstellar - Tries to make it sound like something exciting is happening.
Alexandre Desplat, The Imitation Game  - Desplat at his schmaltziest.
Johann Johannsson, The Theory of Everything - Nice score
Alexandre Desplat, The Grand Budapest Hotel - Why nominate him twice? This one is the keeper.
Gary Yershon, Mr. Turner

In general, I don't care. None of these scores (I have not seen Interstellar) made an impression. 

Jason Moran's score for Selma was lovely. The big band score for Whiplash too. Both should be here.

Makeup and Hairstyling
Foxcatcher
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians of the Galaxy
WHATEVS

Costume Design
Colleen Atwood, Into the Woods -  I hated the drab, pedestrian costumes.
Anna B. Sheppard, Maleficent - I'm sure this rocks.
Milena Canonero, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Jacqueline Durran, Mr. Turner
Mark Bridges, Inherent Vice

Selma should be here.

Music – Original Song 
“Glory” by Common and John Legend, Selma 
“Lost Stars” by Gregg Alexander, Danielle Brisebois, Nick Lashley and Nick Southwood, Begin Again
“Everything Is Awesome” by Shawn Patterson, The LEGO Movie
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” by Glen Campbell, Glenn Campbell: I’ll Be Me
“Grateful,” by Dianne Warren, Beyond the Lights

Visual Effects
Interstellar
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Guardians of the Galaxy
Captain America: Winter Soldier
X-Men: Days of Future Past

Documentary Feature
“Citizenfour”
“Last Days in Vietnam”
“Virunga”
“The Salt of the Earth”
“Finding Vivian Maier”

Film Editing
Sandra Adair, Boyhood
Tom Cross, Whiplash
William Goldenberg, The Imitation Game
Joel Cox and Gary Roach, American Sniper
Barney Pilling, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Sound Editing
Interstellar
Unbroken
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
American Sniper
Birdman

Sound Mixing
Interstellar
Whiplash
Unbroken
American Sniper
Birdman

Production Design
Into the Woods - No imagination.
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Interstellar
The Imitation Game - Meh
Mr. Turner

Short Film – Live Action
Boogaloo and Graham
Aya
Butterlamp
Parvenah
The Phone Call

Short Film – Animated
Feast
The Bigger Picture
A Single Life
The Dam Keeper
Me and My Moulton

Animated Feature Film
Big Hero 6
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The Boxtrolls
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Song of the Sea

Why is The LEGO Movie not here? Everyone loved it.