Judging the Oscar Nominated films of 2017

The 90th Academy Awards Ceremony is approaching rapidly and this time, as every year, we've had both well-deserved recognition as well as momentous snubs when it comes to the nominations. This year's ceremony is the 9th time that the Best Picture category features more than five films (since the Academy changed its rule in 2009) with 2018's Oscars having 9 films competing for the big award of the night. The films are Call Me By Your Name, Darkest Hour, Dunkirk, Get Out, Lady Bird, Phantom Thread, The Post, The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Picture taken from Hollywood Reporter

It is a rather diverse list with films representing all genres and tastes but some of the choices seem to me to be last-minute selections in order to satisfy people from all backgrounds as well as a way for the Academy to recognise people whom it has brushed off in the past. This does not mean that they are not all beautifully crafted films; it is just my way of saying that the Academy is once again following the easy path of safe choices.
So before our big post of the year with our favourites from 2017, here is a glimpse at the Best Picture Nominees in alphabetical order.

1. Call Me By Your Name

Luca Guadagnino [A Bigger Splash (2015)]'s newest film has surprised and moved audiences everywhere with its rather touching story of two men, Armie Hammer [The Social Network (2010)] and Timothée Chamalet [Lady Bird (2017)] meeting in Italy during the early '80s and falling in love. It's been a long time since a story about two gay men has entered the mainstream (Brokeback Mountain being one of the first and best), yet, Call Me By Your Name left me a little indifferent in the end.
The real reason behind this was that it was slightly uneven. The film felt a little slow in terms of directing with its beautiful sceneries and calm glances at wealthy people's summer vacations, yet a little rushed in terms of storytelling. It was like everything knew in advance where it was going, so nothing happened in order to create the right circumstances for the story to move forward. One moment our characters meet, the next they declare their lust for each other; no struggle, no self-doubt, no spark of chemistry. At least, in my opinion.
Call Me By Your Name is a love story but it is not one that I'll remember for a long time. Mainly due to the indifferent evolution of the plot. This shouldn't take anything away, however, from Chamalet's beautifully subtle and touching performance especially as the credits were rolling and Sufjan Stevens's Vision of Gideon was playing; a moving moment, relatable to any person who has loved, has been loved and has felt overwhelmed by his or her emotions.

2. Darkest Hour

Joe Wright is renowned for his great period dramas such as Pride & Prejudice (2005), Atonement (2007) and Anna Karenina (2012) as well as for his acclaimed action thriller Hanna (2011) - featuring one of this year's nominees for the Best Actress in a Leading Role award: Saoirse Ronan. So it is no big surprise that once again he has delivered a quality film, this time set during the early days of World War II.

Darkest Hour is the narration of the events in Dunkirk (about which we will be talking in a minute) from Winston Churchill's point of view. Churchill, a newly-appointed Prime Minister, has not only to lead a country during the worst of times but also face all those who try hard to depose him from the first moment he comes to power. Churchill experiences a dilemma between fighting for his country, and thus giving hope to the whole world, and listening to his weak opponents' voices who try to persuade him to make peace with Hitler in order to avoid a worse fate. This is history, however, and we all know how it ends. Joe Wright's presentation of it, though, is effective and worthwhile.
Wright has made a rather interesting thriller out of Churchill's first days as Prime Minister with beautiful cinematography by Bruno Delbonnel and great music by his constant musical partner Dario Marianelli. What makes his movie stick out, however, and the only thing that should persuade anyone who's not really interested in Darkest Hour to finally watch it is Gary Oldman's flawless performance.
Oldman, an undoubtedly amazing actor, is exceptional here. He does not simply portray Churchill; he is Churchill. What adds to the effect is Kazushiro Tsuji, David Malinowski and Lucy Sibbick's perfect work on hair and make-up (and they have even been nominated for the related Academy Award) but it is not long after the first shock of seeing Gary Oldman transformed into this historic character, that one forgets he is watching an actor doing his job and just gets lost in the perfection that is his performance. Words cannot describe the detailed mannerisms and the subtle emotional range that Oldman has respectfully transfused into his Churchill. Even if Darkest Hour was a bad film, still it'd be worth watching it for this achievement alone, but luckily, it is a rather good movie, one of the best ones in the Best Film category this year. Unless hell freezes over, Oldman will get his long-due Academy Award in a week's time and what an amazing job he'll be awarded for.

3. Dunkirk

If you've been following this blog, you might know that I am a huge fan of Christopher Nolan. He is one of my most favourite contemporary directors and some of his movies are my all time favourites as well [Inception (2010), Interstellar (2014), The Prestige (2006) and The Dark Knight Series being some of them]. So, being such an admirer of his, I have always been frustrated and angry at the Academy as it has always seemed to ignore him during awards season. When I finally got to see his first historical film Dunkirk, a film about the truly horrific entrapment of British, Belgian and French soldiers on the beach of Dunkirk, France, and the efforts of military and civilians alike to save them, I was certain that this was the time that the Academy would finally recognise his talent if not award it as well; especially because of its topic.

Before I saw Dunkirk my expectations were high. After I saw it, my reaction was quite lukewarm. This does not mean that I will not cheer if Nolan gets his much-deserved award on Sunday night. It is just that I would really prefer it if he'd got it for something more revolutionary.
You see Dunkirk is a big movie; big sets; big beautiful shots; big scenes. It is a true story presented as a thriller, a race against time; and that it was. But as it begins and it takes your breath away putting the chess pieces in place, giving you the story and making you understand that "this is what I am going to be narrating to you for the next two hours", it does not do anything else. It does not take a next step after this and it does not evolve to something extraordinary. The worrying ticking music gets irritating after a while, along with the huge shots of characters that you don't really care about (or really get to know, despite being with them for hours). After an hour or so, I started thinking that I would like something more; something that was missing.
Dunkirk is a directorial triumph but that does not make it a rather once-in-a-lifetime experience or a tremendously memorable one. I consider it one of Nolan's weaker films especially because he has spoiled me with having me sit at the edge of my seat to see what is going to happen next. But this time, despite dealing with an amazing true event (which can be more easily accepted by an Academy that rarely awards fantasy and science fiction) it just fell short.

4. Get Out

Can this be happening? A horror film at the Oscars? How long is it since this has happened? (To answer this question I'll take you back 8 years, when Black Swan was nominated for Best Motion Picture and its protagonist Natalie Portman won the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - but that was the last time that a horror film was nominated). This year the small indie Get Out broke all records and became the unexpected underdog that managed to enter the cream of the crop. But is it any good, I hear you ask. Truth be told, it kinda is. Not Academy Award-worthy but it is.
Get Out starring the also Oscar-nominated Daniel Kaluuya, as well as an all-star cast including Catherine Keener [The 40-year old Virgin (2005), Simone (2002)], Bradley Whitford [The West Wing (1999-2006)] and Allison Williams [Girls (2012-2017)] is a social satire about racism and racial prejudice hidden behind the veil of a horror film.

Kaluuya is playing Chris who is in a relationship with Rose (Williams). Rose invites him for a weekend at her parents' house and informs Chris that he is the first black boyfriend that she's ever had but that her parents will not be bothered by the fact. When they finally arrive at the house, after a scary incident with a deer on the road, not only the parents are tremendously (even suspiciously) polite, but seeing as they have organised a gathering for all their extremely white friends, everyone seems to be exceedingly kind and weel-disposed toward Chris. But naturally, things are not what they appear on the outside. Chris soons understands that he has to get out of there because something creepy is going on and it could be dangerous.
Jordan Peele [Keanu (2016)]'s movie is fun and entertaining in addition to it being disturbing. I've watched it twice and both times time flew by fast. Without getting into spoiler territory, Get Out is a rather interesting satire full of twists and turns that can be predictable but the fact that Peele's characters act as all sensible people would act in such situations is a plus in my book.

5. Lady Bird

Now, we arrive at another little indie gem that managed to steal everyone's heart from festivals to regular viewings. Lady Bird, which currently has a 99% rating on Rotten Tomatoes is Greta Gerwig [Frances Ha (2012)]'s directorial debut and it is a semi-autobiographical movie about a girl Christine [Academy Award Nominee Saoirse Ronan] who lives with her family in Sacramento, California and goes through some self-questioning moments during her last year in high school.
Christine wants to go by the name Lady Bird (thus the title of the movie) and has a love-hate relationship with her mother with whom she fights constantly but also loves unconditionally. Lady Bird is a rather realistic glimpse on everyone's teenage years, when you are happy with nothing, not even your own self, and you want to get away from everything that you feel keeps you back from your personal development; whether that is your school, your hometown, your friends or your family. Gerwig has become the first female director being nominated for a Best Achievement in Directing Academy Award for a debut movie and in truth she has managed to give us a rather down-to-earth representation of those moments when you are not really a kid but still not an adult; those chaotic sequences before you finally step into adulthood.
Lady Bird is a fun, relatable, entertaining movie worth seeing especially if you were a teenager in the late 90s - early 00s (such as myself).

6. Phantom Thread

Paul Thomas Anderson has given us a lot of interesting and rather important movies such as Magnolia (1999), Punch Drunk Love (2002), There Will Be Blood (2007) and The Master (2012), but his latest one titled Phantom Thread will always be known as Daniel Day Lewis' last film.

If you have been living in a cave for the past several months you might not know that the three-time Oscar winner announced that he is retiring from acting due to some personal reasons. So, all of us movie lovers will have to revisit some of his older movies to admire his talent from now on.
There is one disadvantage that comes after such an announcement: it raises the bar of expectations for someone's last movie. And although it is a known fact that Anderson's movies are a different kind of cinema that takes its time to tell you the story and make you invest in the characters, this time his somewhat allegorical critique on human relationships and the role power plays in them missed the mark in my opinion.
Lewis plays Reynolds Woodcock, a famous dressmaker in 1950's London who along with his sister Cyril [Academy Award Nominee Lesley Manville] owns The House of Woodcock. Woodcock is a strange, reserved man, obsessed with his schedule and afraid that any change may disturb his creativity. He, however, soon meets a girl Alma (Vicky Krieps) who not only becomes his muse but also turns his life upside down. The two have a rather passionate relationship, presented timidly through their conversations and stares -it is marvellous that they do not share a love scene throughout the movie, yet their lust is unmistakably obvious-. Their relationship however is a sick one; it is overwhelmed by their contest for power and their struggle to maintain what each one believes is the most important thing in their lives: for him his daily routine that leads to creation, for her the affirmation of her self-worth and importance.
Does it sound heavy? Well, it is. Phantom Thread is a slow burning movie led by glorious performances and surrounded by great cinematography and beautiful costume-design, but it just feels like it does not truly reach its goal by the time it ends.

7. The Post

Personally speaking, it has not been a good year if we haven't experienced a new Steven Spielberg film. This time, the great Hollywood director teams up with Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks and brings us the true story of The Washington Post's publication of the Pentagon Papers - some top-secret documents which mentioned the futility of the Vietnam war and revealed the cover-ups made by three US administrations.
This all-star movie feels like it was made especially for the Oscars, yet this does not make it any less good. Meryl Streep portrays Kay Graham, the first female president of a major newspaper in the United States. Graham has to face a huge dilemma when her journalists come across these classified papers: should she avoid publishing them, thus avoiding the government's threat of closure or should she respect the principles of journalism and fight for the freedom of the press? Her lawyers advise her to do the first, her journalists (led by The Post's news editor Ben Bradlee, played by Tom Hanks) insist on the latter.
The Post is a film set in the early 70s, yet it feels rather contemporary and relatable. The antagonism between the press and the governments has always been existent (not any less nowadays) and this movie is not afraid to address it. Yet, besides the big names that are connected to this film, The Post is not loud or extravagant. No one in the cast overacts and they all seem to serve the story - and how well do they all serve it! As for Spielberg - that true master of the art -, he silently, and without making any statements, presents the events matter-of-factly but not in a dry way; never in a dry way. The road to Graham's decision is set marvellously even if her choice is not really a surprise and we all hold our breath to see which side she'll finally take.

8. The Shape of Water

Our penultimate film for today is most likely the most controversial story in this list. The Shape of Water is Guillermo del Toro's newest and it is his most peculiar film yet. If you are familiar with del Toro (or even if you have watched his Golden Globe acceptance speech this January) you surely know that he is renowned for his monsters. After all, his filmography includes the outstanding Pan's Labyrinth (2006) and some of the greatest comic book movies of all time Hellboy (2004) and Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008). Del Toro is in love with his monsters; and he is a great director as well.

Naturally The Shape of Water is once again a monster movie but this time something feels different. His new film is a calmer version of his usual self; it is quiet, dreamlike and full of love. It is a love story after all. His protagonist Eliza, played by the flawless Sally Hawkins [Happy Go Lucky (2008)], is a mute lonely janitor working in a research facility. One day she encounters the most recent guinea pig that the scientists are studying: a man-like amphibious creature. Being mute and used to communicating with signs and gestures, Eliza creates a bond with the creature and starts loving it not as an emotionless animal but as the only person in the world that can understand her and accept her as she is.
The Shape of Water explores this strange yet so sweet relationship, as Eliza is trying to save her friend from the fatal experiments he is going through. Guillermo del Toro's film might have been nominated for 13 Oscars but I feel like it is one of those movies that I mentioned in the introduction: a stepping stone for the Academy to correct their previous mistake of constantly ignoring the amazingly talented mexican director. This adult fairy tale is artistic and masterful, it is beautiful and sentimental, it is thoughtful and magnificently set and presented; but it is quite bizarre nonetheless. And that is the reason why when it ends you are left with a little numb question mark and you don't really know what to think about it after all.

9. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

And here we are. We've arrived at the last film in our list, which also is the film that most likely will win the golden statue on Sunday - that is if I don't jinx it like last year. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri is a small film that under normal circumstances it wouldn't really gain any recognition apart from festivals and small screenings. But it so happened that Martin McDonagh [director of the glorious In Bruge (2008)]'s story of pain and of quest for justice not only stars some of the biggest names out there but it is also nominated for 7 Oscars.
Three Billboards stars Oscar winner Frances McDormand [Fargo (1996)] as Mildred, a foul-mouthed mother who has lost her daughter some months before; the person who had raped and killed her however has not yet been caught. Desperate for an answer to the pain that devours her every day, she decides to make a bold move and rent the three billboards that are situated outside Ebbing in Missouri and write on them a controversial message aiming to mobilise the sheriff and the police to finally catch the killer.

Her move, though, is not received well by the community who just doesn't seem to sympathise with the grieving mother but instead, stands against her. As for the sheriff, William Willoughby, played by Woody Harrelson [The Hunger Games (2012)], he seems to be a decent man who wants to help everyone in the community but has also to face some personal health problems that obstruct him from doing his job. What is more, one of his officers named Dixon [Sam Rockwell, [Moon (2009)]], a racist, sexist, uneducated mamma's boy with a tendency to violence, is there to make things worse.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri is a quite good film driven by excellent performances (it is no surprise that all three of its protagonists are nominated this year) and a rather engaging story. It is not long after one has watched it though, that many of the gaps in the narrative - as well as the almost non-existent third act - start to stand out. Being fun and emotional is one thing - and it made me really enjoy watching it - but the numerous plot holes and inexplicable questions that I was left wondering about (and which I will not delve into here) weakened my excitement for the film.

So, there you have it. These are the 9 Nominees this year. What is your favourite and which one you think will win the golden statue this Sunday?