A Sequel to My Oscars Thoughts
More opinions, many of you probably won’t agree with, about some of the Best Picture nominees at the 2023 Academy Awards:
READ MY THOUGHTS ON THE OSCARS TELECAST HERE
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[1] I tried watching The Banshees of Inisherin. Made it 24 minutes in before shutting it down in frustration (HBO). Seriously, is there an Irish movie that *isn’t* filmed entirely on some windswept green rock next to the ocean out in the middle of nowhere packed with half-shaven characters in wool sweaters you can’t understand half the time who spend every waking moment drinking pints in the pub with swirling flutes as a soundtrack and is depressing as holy hell? I might give TBOI another go sometime, but the opening scenes I saw were excruciating.
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[2] I made it about 30 minutes into All Quiet on the Western Front (Netflix). I guess I’ve just grown wary of too many war movies, mafia movies, and regurgitated violent genres that have been done over and over again where there’s no more olive oil left to squeeze out of the lemon. Obviously. AQOTWF is a technical marvel (and a great anti-war story, since the original in 1930). It probably deserved all four Oscars it won this year. But do I really want to sit through this same old story again? Hasn’t this been done and redone and redone again more times than A Star is Born and Annie? Stories about war souring idealism is an important message, one that we never seem to learn and so maybe it’s an important reminder for every generation. I admit to a bias against remakes, which is sorta’ like cheating when it comes to awards since half the creative process (writing-story) is already in the can.
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[3] As I wrote previously, I’ll reserve my final judgment about the Best Picture Oscar winner Everything Everywhere All at Once. It’s interesting how divided audiences are on this film and my initial reaction was based on closer alliances with friends whose tastes I generally share. I have seen films before that I disliked, but also recognized for their merits (perhaps the best example of this was Being John Malkovich, which I hated but was also very creative and won lots of praise). I’m of the school of thought that no matter what we might think of a movie, to be a real film aficionado one *must* see the top films, or at least give them a chance, and 7 Oscars doesn’t lie. Sometimes, my mind has been changed as was the case with Molly’s Game a few years ago — hated the book and concept, but after reluctantly agreeing to watch it, found it to be a terrific movie.
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[4] Navalny aired on CNN several months ago and I watched it then, and then rewatched it again later. Wow, what a powerful story that is, and remains. It’s impossible not to be overwhelmed by the real courage and brave struggle of the Russian opposition leader (now imprisoned). I had some qualms about awarding this based on film merit alone, which seemed more like an episode of PBS Frontline — after all, the Oscars is about recognizing artistic merit, not a sympathy award. Then, the more I thought about it, the very fact that these brave FILMMAKERS risked their own lives making this documentary probably prevails over any concerns about lack of artistry and straightforward no-frills documentary film. Sometimes, just getting the shot and releasing the movie, and telling the story is more important than cinematography or other technical merits.
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[5] Finally, my actual favorite movie of the year is very likely to be one of the short films, which I go out of my way to see on every occasion (this is the winner — The Elephant Whisperers — but all are worth seeing, I’m sure). Here in Las Vegas, Suncoast Casino (Cinemark) shows them all together in one special night of viewing, along with all the animation shorts, usually about three weeks after the Oscars. I’ve written extensively about these short films in the past, with reviews. I hope and plan to do the same, as this year’s nominees for Best Documentary Shorts and Best Short Animation look awesome.
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[6] Oh, and finally (for real this time, unless I think of something else and add it later) — a glorious shout out to the great Bill Nighy, who had no chance of winning the Best Actor Oscar for Living, but who still got a well-deserved nomination probably for his many lovable wise-old man characters he’s portrayed over the years. I’ll see “Living” just for Nighy, who steals the screen in every movie he’s in.
Okay, I couldn’t help myself. Here’s the real trailer from Living:
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