The Oscars are tonight! And I thought it would be kinda fun if I shared what I thought were some of the best films and performances from 2019, so I put together my own little Oscar list. Now I am going to start with the films I DID NOT watch, due to various reasons (most of them having to do with time and money), that probably would have affected my lists in some way. So in no particular order I did not watch...
Parasite The Irishman Knives Out One Cut of the Dead Pain & Glory Jojo Rabbit Honey Boy Ford v Ferrari The Peanut Butter Falcon A Hidden Life Waves A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Rocketman How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World There are probably a couple more that I didn't think of but those are the big ones. One more house keeping thing, I will not be talking about the awards for any of the short films, documentary, foreign language films, as I did not watch nearly enough to warrant my opinion. I also won't be talking about the sound awards because I really don't have any opinion on these. Oh also no Original Song, I couldn't think of any. So without further ado, here are the nominees and winners if I were solely in charge of the winners. (Keep in mind this is just my opinion so please don't freak out!) Actor in A Supporting Role Alan Alda (Marriage Story) Brad Pitt (Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood) Jonathan Majors (The Last Black Man in San Francisco) Kevin Garnett (Uncut Gems) Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse) *Winner* This is a strong group of actors, but there was only one choice for me here, and that was Willem Dafoe. Easily one of the biggest snubs this year, Willem is one of the classiest actors working today, and this may be one of his best performances ever. Best Makeup and Hairstyling Joker *Winner* Us The Two Popes Little Women 1917 Joker isn't my favorite film of the year, but I couldn't argue with how great and iconic that makeup is! Best Costume Design Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood The Last Black Man in San Francisco 1917 Little Women The Lighthouse *Winner* Tell me those costumes aren't incredibly authentic and that they don't transport you to that world. The Lighthouse was seriously snubbed this year. Best Production Design Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood The Lighthouse 1917 *Winner* Uncut Gems The Last Black Man in San Francisco This film is such an incredible technical achievement and the production design just scratches the surface of that. Actress in A Supporting Role Beanie Feldstein (Booksmart) Florence Pugh (Little Women) *Winner* Julia Fox (Uncut Gems) Laura Dern (Marriage Story) Zhao Shuzhen (The Farewell) I liked to call 2019 the year of Florence Pugh. She stole the show for me in Little Women. Her ability to act dignified as an adult and fun and eccentric as a child was so much fun to watch and she really just stole the show. Pulling for her tonight! Best Animated Feature I Lost My Body Klaus *Winner* The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part Missing Link Toy Story 4 Honestly, this is probably the strongest group of nominees out of everything. These are all pretty amazing films, but Klaus was something special! Absolutely stunning animation, with a fun and heartfelt story that expands upon the Christmas mythology. One of the best films of the year, and one I'm really rooting for tonight. Best Visual Effects Avengers Endgame Spider-Man: Far From Home Detective Pikachu *Winner* It Chapter 2 Shazam Nobody is talking about how amazing the visual effects are in this! Those pokemon look amazing!!!!!!!! Easily my pick. Best Editing Benny Safdie, Ronald Bronstein (Uncut Gems) Even Schiff (John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum) Fernando Stutz (The Two Popes) *Winner* Jamie Gross (Booksmart) Nick Houy (Little Women) This is another one of those really strong categories that's really hard to choose from, but ultimately I went with The Two Popes. First off, this film is really pretty great and I think a big reason for that is the editing. In a story that could come off pretty bland, the editing keeps it fresh and interesting. Although you can't go wrong with any of these. Best Adapted Screenplay Anthony McCarten (The Two Popes) Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely (Avengers Endgame) Darren Lemke, Henry Gayden (Shazam) Greta Gerwig, Louisa May Alcott (Little Women) *Winner* Guillaume Laurant, Jeremy Clapin (I Lost My Body) That Little Women Screenplay though. That's something special. The interweaving timeline, that dialogue, That picture perfect ending. SO GOOD! Best Original Screenplay Ari Aster (Midsommar) Emily Halpern, Katie Silberman, Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel (Booksmart) Jimmie Fails, Joe Talbot, Rob Richert (The Last Blackman in San Francisco) Lulu Wang (The Farewell) Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story) *Winner* Another strong category! But Baumbach's Marriage Story is just incredible. Equally brutal and heartwarming, the screenplay juggles so many tones to perfection. Plus that dialogue feels so realistic and every line feels utterly important. Truly masterful. Best Cinematography Darius Khondji (Uncut Gems) Jarin Blaschke (The Lighthouse) Pawel Pogorzelski (Midsommar) Robert Richardson (Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood) Roger Deakins (1917) *Winner* I almost cried just looking at the images of this film. Enough said. Best Musical Score Alex Weston (The Farewell) Alexandre Desplat (Little Women) Daniel Lopatin (Uncut Gems) Michael Abels (Us) Randy Newman (Marriage Story) *Winner* The score just adds to the magic of this film. Not too overbearing, but touches you just at the right time. Best Directing Ari Aster (Midsommar) Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie (Uncut Gems) *Winner* Greta Gerwig (Little Women) Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse) Sam Mendes (1917) I think the academy is scared of the Safdie Brothers. They are making some of the most interesting and electric films in the world right now, and Uncut Gems is their best yet. Intense, panic inducing, a non stop wild ride across the diamond district in NYC, and there isn't a single beat missed. Easily the best direction I saw all year. Actor in A Leading Role Adam Driver (Marriage Story) *Winner* Adam Sandler (Uncut Gems) James McAvoy (Glass) Joaquin Phoenix (Joker) Robert Pattinson (The Lighthouse) Probably my most controversial pick, mostly because I'm not selecting Phoenix (even though he really did do an incredible job), but Adam Driver absolutely just slayed this role. I was captivated by him, and his song at the end, that would've won it for me alone, but he has so many incredible scenes that I play back in my mind and just can't help but think that this guy really deserves it! I won't be mad if Phoenix wins, but I will be ecstatic if Driver wins tonight! Actress in A Leading Role Awkwafina (The Farewell) *Winner* Florence Pugh (Midsommar) Lupita Nyong’o (Us) Saoirse Ronan (Little Women) Scarlett Johansson (Marriage Story) The biggest snub of the Oscars this year by far! Awkwafina gives an incredibly nuanced and layered performance in The Farewell. I didn;t know that she had that kind of performance in her! I really can't believe she wasn't even nominated, especially after she won a golden globe! Don't sleep on her or this film! Phenomenal! BEST PICTURE 1917 The Farewell The Last Black Man in San Francisco The Lighthouse Little Women Marriage Story *WINNER* Midsommar The Two Popes Uncut Gems The Films listed above are all some of my favorites of the year, but none moved me like Marriage Story did. Captivating with powerhouse performances, beautiful cinematography, phenomenal score, and a realistic yet touching script. I could sing the praises of this film for a long time, but I wouldn't do it justice. It's my favorite film of the year and extremely worth your time! Thanks for taking the time to read my awards! 2019 had some really great films, here's to 2020!
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Austin VincentJust a guy with a passion for film and Jesus who's trying to show that He can be found in our creative endeavors. Archives
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