Here is Part II of my Oscar Edit – the bigger players so to speak and bigger categories. I truly wish, I would have had more time to edit these posts, but life came between and at this point, I‘m just glad I could post them at all.
JUDY
- Company: BBC Films
- Duration: 120 min.
- Rating:
I rarely cry from movies, but some hit hard, like this one. Nominated for BEST LEADING ACTRESS & BEST HAIRSTYLE & MAKEUP this one is hard to watch. I grew up with the Wizard of Oz, I loved Judy Garland films all my life and seeing how this industry ruined such a young life is heart-breaking. Such a tortured soul and I believe Rene Zellweger did an incredible job portraying one of Hollywood’s greatest actresses. She is my winner in this category.
HARRIET
- Company: Perfect World Pictures
- Duration: 125 min.
- Rating:
This was beautifully told. Very strong narrative and such an important story to tell on the big screen. Several performances weren‘t to my liking but they hardly deterred from the main storyline in terms of performance. Nominated for BEST LEADING ACTRESS & BEST ORINAL SONG this one comes highly recommended.
“God bless that potential that we all have for making anything possible if we think we deserve it. I deserve this.”
—Shirley MacLaine
BOMBSHELL
- Company: Annapurna
- Duration: 110 min.
- Rating:
Based on true events, this is a shocking look into the goings on of one of America’s biggest networks. I loosely followed the case as and when it unfolded years ago and truth be told, I was sure it would be turned into a movie one day. Never expected it to be such a good one. Nominated for BEST LEADING ACTRESS, BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS and BEST HAIRSTYLE & MAKEUP – it‘s hard to say I enjoyed it but I can only employ you to give it a watch and see and important story in us network history.
Here the link to a NYT article on the facinating Makeup for Bombshell Article.
PAIN AND GLORY
- Company: El Deseo
- Duration: 115 min.
- Rating:
My love for Pedro Almodóvar films is no secret. They have something about them hardly any other director ever managed. They feel supremely real, vulnerable and the characters relatable. This is no big budged Hollywood production, even though big names only to eagerly want to be in them regardless. Nominated for BEST LEADING ACTOR & BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM this one feels like a personal story to Almodóvar himself. If you aren’t a foreign films lover like me, you might not enjoy it, but it is a masterpiece.
THE TWO POPES
- Company: Netflix
- Duration: 125 min.
- Rating:
I always have a hard time with films based on real people but creating a very fictionalized event upon them. There is no doubt the BEST ACTOR & BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR nominations are highly deserved. Anthony Hopkins was incredible and if for no others reason his performance alone well worth giving this film a go. Make of the story what you will, and I would love to believe that in a parallel universe this meeting could have happened but these things shall remain fiction forever. A well-executed screenplay in my opinion and the nomination BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY well deserved.
“When you are in the ocean you must swim.”
— Pedro Almodovar
RICHARD JEWELL
- Company: Appian Way
- Duration: 131 min.
- Rating:
I might not have been a great Clint Eastwood fan when it comes to the actor, but I happen to have an appreciation for him as a director. The way he does movies is almost poetic. Nominated solely for Kathy Bates as BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS I think the academy understated and undervalued the film a bit. I highly recommend you watch it. Based on true events like many of Eastwood’s films.
A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
- Company: TriStar Pictures
- Duration: 110 min.
- Rating:
This film came right out of left field for me. At first, I thought „Oh no, what is this going to be?“… but only 20 minutes in and the story had me hook line and sinker. Tom Hanks got his BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR nomination for the right reason; he is simply amazing. He has been playing characters based on real life but I‘m willing to say, this was his masterpiece in that sense. Even though, it only got one nomination, I say please give this film a go – it hits home in a great many ways.
THE OSCAR EDIT – Best Picture Nominees
THE OSCAR EDIT – The & two time Nominees P. I
