Well, once again, they snubbed Barbra. Bastards.
Relieved FENCES did so well. Thrilled about August Wilson. Thrilled for Ruth Negga in LOVING, and sad but not surprised about Joel Edgerton, whose performance is a thing of beauty. LOVING is a future classic----the movie audiences have yet to discover, and will watch again and again thru the years. Should have been up for screenplay. Not surprised about Mel Gibson. He's a pig but he knows how to make a movie (and how to hire a great crew.) He stole it from LION's Garth Davis. (LION bored me silly after the first section; I thought it would never end.) (I don't love MANCHESTER much either, beyond Affleck's typically beautiful work.) Glad for Andrew Garfield. Bummed for Hugh Grant. Bummed for Adam Driver but blame A24's foolish Dec. 28 release date. No one saw it, plus the Academy doesn't understand that kind of performance. (Ya gotta have a gimmick.) Amy Adams? Well, maybe she's relieved. Six losses in a row would be brutal. (Like Leo, when she finally wins, it'll be for the wrong movie.) Annette Bening---I'm not a fan of "20th Century Women" (it's such a "movie") but she must be bummed. (She'll get an Honorary Oscar soon.) Sad for Taraji P. Henson. She deserves to win---that's a classic Academy performance. In another time, Kevin Costner would have been a lock. Not surprised about SILENCE or Scorsese though the Cinematography nod is nice. (The Cinematography branch does nice things, like the time they nominated SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS.) SILENCE is not a screener movie---they never finished it (if they even put it in the player). Nominating Viggo Mortensen for Actor is a lovely surprise---the sweet spot nom of the day. (His son in CAPTAIN FANTASTIC, George MacKay, IS that movie.) Wish they had found a spot for Krisha Fairchild, whose work in KRISHA, is staggering.
O.J.: MADE IN AMERICA is the best documentary ever made for television, but still....it's a TV show, kids, and always was. (It'll be fun to see if its genius PR team can pull off Emmy noms next September.)
Nine Best Picture nominees. Absurd. If you nominate everyone, how does it mean anything? When the Academy went up from five Beat Picture nominees, they ruined the brand. When you have to check an app to remember the Best Picture nominees---instead of ticking them off on your hand---meaning has been lost. (Chuck Wilson)