Perfect Oscar nominations
What the Academy should do.
I was making plans with a friend in New York this week and she texted me, “What are we doing? Yoga?? Torrisi round two? Some new place you want to yell about on the internet?”
Tough but fair. When I’m not being judgmental about restaurants, I’m mostly watching movies. You can find my top 25 list for 2024 on Letterboxd here and some more thoughts on all of those films here.
It was a very good yet not great movie year. That’s okay. But lemme tell ya, it’s going to be a great Academy Awards season. The Oscar nominations are scheduled for Thursday. I’m already pre-upset about a lot of the results based on what the guild precursors and betting markets are indicating. That’s also okay. I care about the Oscars because they walk the fine line of being just prestigious enough to matter but not being too dignified to yell about over dinner. Reasonable people disagreeing about art is fun, even if some of those reasonable people say they liked Conclave.
Here’s what I would nominate for the major awards, ranked in order of how upset I’ll be if they don’t make the cut. I’ve also included my pick for winners as well as one seeming lock in each category that I don’t think belongs. To avoid dunking on Emilia Perez over and over again, I’ve limited myself to flaming a single film no more than once. This’ll be fun. Let’s roll.
Note that I’ve seen almost everything, besides “Sing Sing” and a few international submissions. Blame A24. I’m also respecting the eligible candidates in each category.
Best Picture
Winner: The Brutalist
Even though they won’t all make it in, I find the top eight here pretty undeniable.
Doesn’t belong: A Complete Unknown
Timmy is great, but if we’re gonna honor a three hour music video can’t we just give the nom to this Kendrick concert?
Best Director
Winner: RaMell Ross | Nickel Boys
Brady Corbet | The Brutalist
Sean Baker | Anora
Halina Reijn | Babygirl
Ryūsuke Hamaguchi | Evil Does Not Exist
The likely Nickel Boys erasure will be upsetting across many categories, none more so than Ross not getting recognized here. His use of subjective first-person POV is unsettling, moving, essential to the film and flawlessly executed.
Doesn’t belong: Jacques Audiard | Emilia Perez
Ambition ain’t enough, dog.
Best Actress
Winner: Marianne Jean-Baptiste | Hard Truths
Mikey Madison | Anora
Nicole Kidman | Babygirl
Demi Moore | The Substance
Juliette Gariépy | Red Rooms
The most stacked category of the night. What a murderers' row of performances. I’ll be excited for the inevitable Demi Moore win, though any of the top four here missing out will be devastating.
Doesn’t Belong: Cynthia Erivo | Wicked
An entertaining press run and passable closing number does not validate a nomination. In this loaded category … why are we wasting a slot on someone who spends two hours and thirty minutes Eeyore-ing herself to the finish line?
Best Actor
Winner: Adrien Brody | The Brutalist
Timothee Chalamet | A Complete Unknown
Ethan Herisse | Nickel Boys
Daniel Craig | Queer
Sebastian Stan | A Different Man
Doesn’t belong: Sebastian Stan | The Apprentice
In general, I prefer not to nominate good performances in bad movies. Stan is wonderful in A Different Man. Nominate him for the good film instead?
Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Ariana Grande | Wicked
Danielle Deadwyler | The Piano Lesson
Michele Austin | Hard Truths
Monica Barbaro | A Complete Unknown
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor | Nickel Boys
Unfortunately, Ariana Grande is just undeniable in this otherwise disaster of a motion picture. Exception to the rule.
Doesn’t belong: Isabella Rossellini | Conclave
On one hand, the legend Isabella Rossellini is in this movie for about seven seconds, as you’ve heard. On the other hand, this is a mediocre film with meh dialogue and no recognition of the level of camp it could have achieved. Big shrug.
Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Guy Pearce | The Brutalist
Kieran Culkin | A Real Pain
Yura Borisov | Anora
Brandon Wilson | Nickel Boys
Harris Dickinson | Babygirl
Doesn’t belong: Denzel Washington | Gladiator II
This movie is insane. Denzel doesn’t save it.
Best Original Screenplay
Winner: Sean Baker | Anora
Jesse Eisenberg | A Real Pain
Mike Leigh | Hard Truths
Brady Corbet & Mona Fastvold | The Brutalist
Tim Fehlbaum & Moritz Binde | September 5
Not enough has been made about Jesse Eisenberg nailing a 90-minute movie. Ninety minutes! My man. Thank you.
Doesn’t belong: Payal Kapadia | All We Imagine as Light
I appreciate the swing here. I also really do not understand the budding love for this movie. A promising story falls apart in the hands of its director, driven by a screenplay that neither fosters compelling characters nor an engrossing vibe. Someone make it make sense.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner: RaMell Ross | Nickel Boys
Paul Schrader | Oh, Canada
Justin Kuritzkes | Queer
Virgil Williams, Malcolm Washington | The Piano Lesson
Last Summer | Catherine Breillat, Pascal Bonitzer, Maren Louise Käehne, and May el-Toukhy
I thought Oh, Canada and Queer rocked. Well written, interesting, divisive and subversive. Screenplay is the category to reward projects like this.
Doesn’t belong: Dune: Part Two
A filmmaking masterpiece from Denis Villeneuve that explicitly succeeds by yada yada-ing throughout much of its script.
I think a lot of people would disagree re: all we imagine is light. It’s such a vibe! Jazzy, romantic, showing Mumbai in a new light. But that’s also why I wouldnt give it a screenplay nod either.
And love seeing recognition for Red Rooms.