WWTBAM Bored

I have now seen all of the nominees for Best Picture. I am not a "serious movie buff", so to speak..I love movies, but do not consider myself to be a scholar or qualified to analyze every nuance in the making of a film. I just enjoy watching an entertaining film. So, having said all that, here's my ranking of the 9 films, based solely on how much I enjoyed them, nothing else.


1-Hidden Figures. Possibly the most appealing film to the mainstream, so I guess it's not surprising that it tops this layman's list. I was a little surprised that out of the 3 main actresses, Octavia Spencer was the only one to score an acting nomination. Spencer was quite good, but I definitely thought Taraji P. Henson should've scored a Best Actress nod.

2-La La Land. Big, bright, and dazzling. A really nice piece of moviemaking. I wasn't as completely enthusiastic about the plot or the performances..very good all, but storywise, I was more invested in Hidden Figures. Also, I was a wee bit ambivalent about the ending.

3-Fences. Having never seen the play..I did know the basic plot, but that's it..This was a fresh production to me. The acting was astounding...although Viola Davis should've been nominated for Best Actress, not Supporting Actress. Only a slight possibility of a backlash based on being in the wrong category would keep her from getting the statue I think. Held my interest for the whole 2 hours-plus running time..no mean feat considering all of the "action" takes place, other than a couple very short scenes, in the home or in the back yard. That's how good the acting is.

4-Hacksaw Ridge. Some of the dialogue and battle scenes seem to be lifted from other movies, but I still found it to be a pretty good war movie. It certainly held my attention.

5-Manchester By The Sea. Low key but peppered with emotional explosions. Raw and powerful. Casey Affleck is superb.

6-Lion. The good surprise of the bunch for me. Thought it would bore me to tears. It didn't. I found myself emotionally invested in the story.

7-Hell Or High Water. Watching it once was enough. I liked it ok, but couldn't see myself in a repeat viewing anytime soon. Not bad, but thought there were other movies that were more deserving of a spot among the nominated films.

8-Arrival. The bad surprise of the bunch. I thought I would really like this movie. I didn't. The pace was way too slow. I'm not saying it should've been "Independance Day", but it took its sweet time getting to the point. I nodded off while watching it. Twice.

9-Moonlight. Naturally, this is one of the favorites to win if "La La Land" doesn't rake in the awards as many have predicted. So of course it's at the bottom of MY list
Yeah, I get that it deals with important issues and emotions and so on..sorry, but it was a snoozefest for me. The most interesting character in the movie disappears after the first act. Compared to the pace of "Moonlight", "Arrival" seems like "Raiders Of The Lost Ark".


I've seen all of the Best Actor performances..I'd say it's a tossup between Denzel Washington and Casey Affleck. Viggo Mortenson is very good, too, and Ryan Gosling and Andrew Garfield have their moments. But Washington and Affleck are just great.


I've only seen 2 of the Best Actress turns, Natalie Portman and Emma Stone. Both did creditable jobs but I have to admit that Portman's accent took some getting used to, even though it is, by most accounts, pretty accurate. Can't offer an opinion on who should win, though...still hoping to catch "Loving" and "Florence Foster Jenkins"..doubt I'll see "Elle", however.


No hesitancy on Supporting Actress..Viola Davis blew me away, even if it should've fallen under the Best Actress category.


Supporting Actor. Haven't seen "Nocturnal Animals", but out of the other 4, I'd have to go with Mahershala Ali. Even though I really didn't like "Moonlight", he was terrific. Jeff Bridges is always fun to watch, but Ali made the most of his screen time.

La La Land is going to sweep the major awards and probably most of the rest. Hollywood always goes gaga over movies about Hollywood, even pretty bad ones.

My vote would be for Manchester by the Sea and Casey Affleck.

My personal favorite in terms of enjoyment value is Hell or High Water.

And Michael Shannon was terrific in Nocturnal Animals. He's the type of actor who arguably could merit an Oscar nomination in almost every film he's in (with the notable exception of his money grab in Superman, but I'll forgive a guy who's done so much good work for one big paycheck in his career).

Denzel Washington is the new favorite to win over Casey Affleck, who has had personal issues this year that turn off voters.

I don't see either lead from La La Land winning, but it will win a bunch of other stuff, which is fine with me. I thought it was visually compelling (and the music was B+ good but not great), but I was actively angry about the final ten minutes of plot.

I would rather Hugh Grant had gotten a nomination than Meryl Streep; he was the emotional heart of Florence Foster Jenkins. But she is astounding, so what can we do.

I agree that a nomination for Taraji P. Henson would have been appropriate. I've picked the lady from Elle in my pool for Best Actress.

Still need to see Fences, Lion and Moonlight, though the last one sounds super-dark. Hacksaw Ridge is of interest because I grew up a Seventh-day Adventist, and they support conscientious objectors (even if you aren't a member). It is an interesting aspect of pacifism to me. But the movie is probably mostly action, so eh. Also I hesitate to support Mel Gibson's career.

Manchester by the Sea also sounded majorly dark to me, though I've heard there may be some hope toward the end. On the fence about Hell or High Water, though I read some good things about it.

Ritterskoop wrote:Denzel Washington is the new favorite to win over Casey Affleck, who has had personal issues this year that turn off voters.

I don't see either lead from La La Land winning, but it will win a bunch of other stuff, which is fine with me. I thought it was visually compelling (and the music was B+ good but not great), but I was actively angry about the final ten minutes of plot.

I would rather Hugh Grant had gotten a nomination than Meryl Streep; he was the emotional heart of Florence Foster Jenkins. But she is astounding, so what can we do.

I agree that a nomination for Taraji P. Henson would have been appropriate. I've picked the lady from Elle in my pool for Best Actress.

Still need to see Fences, Lion and Moonlight, though the last one sounds super-dark. Hacksaw Ridge is of interest because I grew up a Seventh-day Adventist, and they support conscientious objectors (even if you aren't a member). It is an interesting aspect of pacifism to me. But the movie is probably mostly action, so eh. Also I hesitate to support Mel Gibson's career.

Manchester by the Sea also sounded majorly dark to me, though I've heard there may be some hope toward the end. On the fence about Hell or High Water, though I read some good things about it.

My understanding is that Emma Stone is a heavy favorite to win Best Actress. --Bob

Bob78164 wrote:My understanding is that Emma Stone is a heavy favorite to win Best Actress. --Bob

I think that's probably true; I just couldn't vote for her.

Ritterskoop wrote:

I would rather Hugh Grant had gotten a nomination than Meryl Streep; he was the emotional heart of Florence Foster Jenkins. But she is astounding, so what can we do.

Meryl Streep actually studied recordings of Jenkins singing and patterned her singing after that. In other words, she didn't just sing badly; she sang badly the same way Jenkins did, which I doubt very many other actresses would have bothered to try.

Hugh Grant is like Cary Grant. He's seems so natural at what he does that people overlook him.

silverscreenselect wrote:My vote would be for Manchester by the Sea and Casey Affleck.

My personal favorite in terms of enjoyment value is Hell or High Water.

And Michael Shannon was terrific in Nocturnal Animals. He's the type of actor who arguably could merit an Oscar nomination in almost every film he's in (with the notable exception of his money grab in Superman, but I'll forgive a guy who's done so much good work for one big paycheck in his career).

I was exploring Amazon late one night, mainly to prevent my wife from firing up her PS4 game, and I came across a movie called Elvis and Nixon. I started it, thinking that we would just watch a little bit of it before going to bed. We sat there riveted for the whole movie (albeit only 90 minutes). Kevin Spacey was great as Nixon, but it was Michael Shannon as Elvis who really carried the movie.

I had two movie tickets I had bought through Groupon that had to be used by the end of February, so I saw Moonlight and La La Land over the past two weekends. Moonlight was such a disappointment. I still haven't figured out exactly what people love so much about it, although I definitely agree that Mahershala Ali did an amazing job, and I'm glad he's being recognized for it.

I went ga-ga for La La Land, though. My favorite scene was the one after they left the party. What's not to love about that scene? Nothing, that's what!

I thought the ending was really original and stirred up a lot of emotions. The particular blend of emotions was kind of unfamiliar and left me a little bit dizzy and unsure of what I was feeling, so "ambivalent" could describe my reaction to the ending as well, although I have a positive feeling for it overall.

I don't get the hype about Moonlight either, I fell asleep while watching it in the theater. Manchester was ok, but nothing special. Arrival I thought was terrible. La La Land was my favorite, one of the better movies I have seen in a long time.

The day before the Oscars, the Razzies were announced. Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party by Dinesh D'Souza got Worst Picture and two other Razzies. D'Souza appeared in the Razzie video to say thank you. To his supporters, a Razzie is a badge of honor. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Zoolander 2 also got Razzies.

goongas wrote:I don't get the hype about Moonlight either, I fell asleep while watching it in the theater. Manchester was ok, but nothing special. Arrival I thought was terrible. La La Land was my favorite, one of the better movies I have seen in a long time.

I rather enjoyed Arrival and I thought it was somewhat more accessible than its source material, but I was surprised to see it get a Best Picture nod. --Bob

jarnon wrote:The day before the Oscars, the Razzies were announced. Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party by Dinesh D'Souza got Worst Picture and two other Razzies. D'Souza appeared in the Razzie video to say thank you. To his supporters, a Razzie is a badge of honor. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Zoolander 2 also got Razzies.

I'm still on the Razzies nominating committee and nominated and voted for Worst Picture, Worst Actor (Dinesh D'Souza), Worst Actress (Becky Turner), Worst Director (Dinesh D'Souza and Bruce Schooley), and Worst Screenplay.

It had nothing to do with politics, it is truly dreck.

After watching the "Adam Ruins Everything" episode about awards shows, the winners of the awards usually go to the studio, movie, etc. that lavishes the voters with the best gifts. They hold "For Your Consideration" parties and woo the voters to vote for their movie. Fancy dinners, gifts, and trips are just some of the things that they brib... bestow on them for when it's time for the pen to hit the paper. He also goes on to say for just a nomination for a major award shoots up a movies box office take. Winning an award makes millions and millions for the studio.

Ray

rayxtwo wrote:After watching the "Adam Ruins Everything" episode about awards shows, the winners of the awards usually go to the studio, movie, etc. that lavishes the voters with the best gifts. They hold "For Your Consideration" parties and woo the voters to vote for their movie. Fancy dinners, gifts, and trips are just some of the things that they brib... bestow on them for when it's time for the pen to hit the paper. He also goes on to say for just a nomination for a major award shoots up a movies box office take. Winning an award makes millions and millions for the studio.

Ray

This is true -- I would never have paid good money to see The Trip to Bountiful if it hadn't been for Geraldine Page's Oscar.

On the other hand, I've seen My Cousin Vinny and Shawshank Redemption dozens of times, if you count the times I fell asleep when they were on the late show and when I was doing dishes, dusting, etc. while they were on, and that was regardless of the Oscar win and nomination respectively.