News from Italy
Oscar marathon comes to an end
by Natale Ricci
I remember Meryl Streep’s universal speech at the 74th Golden Globe Awards.
“Disrespect breeds disrespect… Violence breeds violence… And we all lose when the one with power uses his office to bully others… My dear friend Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) once told me… Take your broken heart and turn it into art.”
Dear Streep, she was expressing the traumas caused by disrespect, violence and terror, starting from an individual and extending to the very top of the state. And she drew attention to the healing power of art to heal these wounds.
As global and regional powers skirmish in Ukraine, they have become a battlefield. Those fleeing wars and poverty conclude the deadly journey in the land of Hades as devastating earthquakes ensue. Brutal terror roams the heights; it’s time to turn our focus to Los Angeles for a few days: this weekend, I wish the 95th Academy Awards ceremony, which we will watch from our seats, be a therapy period and a band-aid for all of us…
The 2022-2023 awards season will conclude this weekend with the 95th Academy Awards ceremony. The ceremony will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, who will assume this role for the third time.
Those who are muted
Damien Chazelle’s “Babylon” and Steven Spielberg’s “The Fabelmans” led the race in the first months of the awards season. Films of this period, shot with big budgets, star actors and genius directors, also successfully reflected cinema nostalgia. There seemed to be no obstacle in front of them getting an Oscar.
They were followed by Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon”, which brought together Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, and “The Son”, the second instalment of Florian Zeller’s trilogy that started with The Father, as strong possibilities.
Among them, “The Fabelmans” survived. Unfortunately, Babylon and The Son were both critical and box office failures. Although The Fabelmans was nominated in 7 categories, including Best Picture, it doesn’t seem easy.
We can also add “The Banshees of Inisherin” to this title. “Those who loved “The Banshees of Inisherin” seem to have hope until the very last moment, but more people give “All Quiet on the front” a chance. “The Fabelmans”, on the other hand, are not mentioned much.
Why?
The reason is due to the movie “Everything Everywhere All at Once” directed by Daniels. Despite the early screening date in the spring months, it was remembered until fall when the heart of the awards season was beating. Like the ‘Cinderella tale’, it continued to rise during the awards season, with its plot and film editing that uses the low attention threshold of our age to its advantage, with its story focusing on Asian immigrants in the USA, with its “turned” actors such as Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis, who have not yet appeared on the Oscar stage, with its technical details that go beyond the traditional in every respect and what is expected. With its box office success, it rose gradually with a growing interest from word of mouth. The British chose “All Quiet on the Western Front” as the best film at the BAFTA and said “Stop!” they meant. But right after that, SAG (Gamers Guild) and PGA (Producers Guild) turned the needle to “Everything Everywhere All at Once” with the awards they gave. As of March 9, the film has 336 awards given by 92 different organisations and 691 nominations given by 110 other organisations.
Best movie nominees
Everything Everywhere All at Once is accompanied by nine films in the Best Picture Oscar race. (The Academy reverted to a fixed 10 Best Picture nominee system last year.) Among the productions competing for the Best Picture Oscar, three films stand out and could lead to a surprise victory:
Germany’s Oscar-nominated World War I movie All Quiet on the Western Front, which realised that it was getting more attention from Netflix’s other productions towards the end of the season, caused it to change the focus of its campaign.
Top Gun: Maverick, the sequel to Top Gun, one of the iconic films of 1980s Hollywood cinema, which has become the symbol of the return to cinemas after the pandemic, came years later.
The Banshees of Inisherin, where Martin McDonagh reunites with Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson years after his first feature film, In Bruges, questions existence by telling the story of friendship and resentment in the Irish countryside.
Avatar: The Way of Water, Elvis, The Fabelmans, TÁR, Triangle of Sadness and Women Talking’s chances in the Best Picture category are next to none.
Best director
The favourites of this category are “Everything Everywhere All at Once” by directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheiner. They place the duo, known as “Daniels” for short, continued their career with TV series that started with video clips and short films, mainly because they won the Directors Guild Award (DGA). Considering their directorial performance in the movie, no one can say that they do not deserve this award. The role of the directing in the film’s arrival at this point is enormous. On the other hand, master director Steven Spielberg has a great chance with ‘Fabelmans’, where he tells about his childhood and youth. Although Spielberg hasn’t won any significant awards other than the Golden Globe this year, it’s still the first name that comes to mind after Kwan and Scheinert… On the other hand, to Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin), Todd Field (Tár) and Ruben Östlund (Triangle of Sadness), very few chances are given.
Blanchett vs Yeoh
Unlike previous years, when most of the winners were announced months in advance, this year’s Academy Awards have fierce competition in three of the four acting categories.
Michelle Yeoh and Cate Blanchett compete in the Best Actress competition. On one side is Cate Blanchett, who won the BAFTA for her performance in “Tár”. On the other hand, Michelle Yeoh won the SAG (Actresses Guild) award for “Everything Everywhere All at Once”. Another factor that equalises them is that one succeeded in the drama category and the other in the comedy category in the Golden Globes. The Academy will break this balance during the awards season and determine the winner. Michelle Yeoh, whose role in the film’s success cannot be denied with “Everything Everywhere All at Once”; She is about to become the second non-white woman and the first Asian woman to win the award (after Halle Berry) in Oscar history. On the other hand, Cate Blanchett gets her third Oscar for her role as the ambitious orchestra conductor after whom TÁR is named, striving to put her name alongside three Oscar winners, Meryl Streep and Frances McDormand.
Fraser against Butler, Farrell against both
Throughout the awards season, there was a tie between Brendan Fraser, “The Whale”, Colin Farrell, “The Banshees of Inisherin”, and Austin Butler, “Elvis”. Critics gave the first two a little more chance. After the British chose Austin Butler as the best actor at the BAFTA, all eyes were turned to the SAG (Actor’s Association) awards this time. Fraser equalised by winning the SAG award. Colin Farrell, star of the critical favourite The Banshees of Inisherin, lost its grip as awards season entered the industry awards phase. The scene was left to Brendan Fraser, who made a comeback with The Whale after being erased by injustice and harassment in Hollywood after the 90s, and young star Austin Butler, who turned into Elvis in Baz Luhrmann’s movie. At the moment, forecasters think Butler is ahead, as “The Whale” is not very popular as a movie. The fact that he successfully portrayed an American legend like Elvis Presley makes him stand out. But given the fact that the Academy likes to reward performances that require physical change and where actors push their bodies to the limit, Fraser could also finish the race. Meanwhile, Colin Farrell continues the race until the winner is announced. We will see together which of the comeback narratives and biographical performances that the Academy loves will outweigh.
Best Supporting Actress
In this category, the awards, which help us to predict who will win the Oscar, have been shared between 3 actors. That’s why there are three favourites: Before the BAFTA and SAG awards were announced, Angela Bassett won both the Golden Globes and the Critics’ Choice for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”. Basset’s Oscar chances increased with these awards. Some saw Kerry Condon’s “The Banshees of Inisherin” and Jamie Lee Curtis’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once” closer to the Oscars. So the success of Kerry Condon at the BAFTA and Jamie Lee Curtis at the SAG awards was no surprise. These days, the dominating name for the Oscar is Jamie Lee Curtis. Like Michelle Yeoh and Austin Butler, she is believed to catch the wind and received the award. It is easy to guess that his most significant rival will be Condon. Few have given a chance to Stephanie Hsu’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and Hong Chau’s “The Whale”. But it is known that the number of Hsu’s supporters is not tiny.
Best supporting actor
Ke Huy Quan, who started acting at 13, moved away from working and did other jobs in the film industry. However, it did not succeed. “Everything Everywhere All at Once” was his spectacular comeback. After the Golden Globe and Critics’Choice, it won the SAG (Gamers Guild) award. On the one hand, there is such a rebirth story.
On the other hand, we should remember the BAFTA winner Barry Keoghan (The Banshees of Inisherin). He is the first name that comes to mind after Ke Huy Quan, not only because he won the BAFTA award but also for his performance in the movie. This is because) the number of those who give a chance is very.
Best original screenplay
After the announcement of the Independent Spirit Awards, and specifically the Writers Guild Awards (WGA), the needle has turned to Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert. In contrast, Spielberg and Kushner did a near-perfect job with “Fabelmans” based on actual events. The scenario of “Tár”, in which Todd Field tells a dizzying anti-hero story, is also among the favourites. Before the “Everything Everywhere At Once” storm started during the awards season, many critics considered director Martin McDonagh, who stands out for his writing, as the favourite for the original screenplay Oscar with “The Banshees of Inisherin.” Winning the Golden Globe and BAFTA also made us think his way was clear. We’ll see their final decisions on awards night.
Best adaptation scenario
“Women Talking”, adapted by Sarah Polley from the novel by Miriam Toews, was one of the most admired and notable independent films of the past year. As soon as the awards season started, the adaptation took its place among the favourites of the screenplay category. It won this award in the Critics’ Choice. Currently, it is the number one favourite of the Oscars. Sarah Polley seems to be the right choice for the Academy. It has made it a habit to award the outstanding independent filmmakers of the year in screenplay categories and has given importance to female directors in recent years. Its biggest rival is “Nothing New on the Western Front”, which won the BAFTA. The script of “Living”, a remake of Akira Kurosawa’s 1952 film, also received positive reviews, but no one was mentioned for the award.
Best international film
German production “Nothing New on the Western Front” (Im Westen nichts Neues), a remake of the 1930’s classic Hollywood movie of the same name, achieved one of the most important successes of this year by being nominated for 9 Academy Awards. Not only in the international category at BAFTA, Winning the film, director, adapted screenplay, image, original music, and sound awards once again revealed its claim to the Oscars. It may not be the favourite in the best movie category, but it has a high chance of winning. Critics say the Belgian production “Close” is the second film. ‘AI’ (Poland), ‘Argentina, 1985’ (Argentina) and ‘Quiet Girl’ (Ireland) have many fans, but not many people get a chance for the award. In summary, if the German-made film does not win, one of the night’s surprises will be experienced.
Best Animation
Guillermo Del Toro, the director and producer of “Pinocchio,” is one of the Oscar nominees that is almost certain to win. He was favoured not only because he won all the major awards but also because he stood a few steps ahead of the other nominees in aesthetics. Although Del Toro appears with new characters and a new plot, he builds the story on Pinocchio’s uncontrollable energy, disobedience and exclusion. Does not deviate much from the themes of the work. It should be said that Del Toro positions Pinocchio as a character who puts a cross on Mussolini’s fascist regime, does not obey authority, and challenges Italian militarism. Aside from everything else, there is a perfect application of the stop motion animation technique, which tries to minimise the digital effects.