It’s the big one!
The announcements of the 95th Academy Awards happened at 1:30pm GMT today. Here they are, with some brief comments on some of the surprises for me.
In terms of pure numbers, these are the movies that have received more than 5 nominations:
- Everything, Everywhere, All At Once – 11
- The Banshees of Inisherin – 9
- All Quiet on the Western Front – 9
- Elvis – 8
- The Fabelmans – 7
- Tár – 6
- Top Gun Maverick – 6
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – 5
There is so much love for EEAAO, that it could be the one to beat for Best Picture. And the other major surprise would be the success of “All Quiet on the Western Front”: it led the BAFTA list, but it is more of a surprise that it is in joint second place for the Oscars.
The Oscars will be announced on March 12th.
Best Motion Film
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Avatar
- The Banshees of Inisherin
- Elvis
- Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- The Fabelmans
- Tár
- Top Gun Maverick
- Triangle of Sadness
- Women Talking
I’m disappointed that “Empire of Light” didn’t make this list and surprised that “Triangle of Sadness” did (although I’ve still to watch it). At least – unlike the BAFTA nominations – “The Fabelmans” is nominated.
Actress in a Leading Role
- Cate Blanchett – Tár
- Ana de Armas – Blonde
- Andrea Riseborough – To Leslie
- Michelle Williams – The Fabelmans
- Michelle Yeoh – Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
OK… so my BIGGEST disappointment is that Danielle Deadwyler wasn’t nominated for “Till”. Shocking! And England’s own Andrea Riseborough, who apparently mounted her own campaign for this nomination, gets a slot for a ‘tiny’ film “To Leslie”. That’s an enormous surprise.
Actor in a Leading Role
- Austin Butler – Elvis
- Colin Farrell – The Banshees of Inisherin
- Brendan Fraser – The Whale
- Paul Mescal – Aftersun
- Bill Nighy – Living
YES – Bill Nighy, Colin Farrell and Irish actor Paul Mescal get their first Oscar nominations… Fabulous! And Brendan “George of the Jungle” Fraser, after an acting journey in the wilderness, gets a nomination. This is going to be a tough category to call, and will be an emotional speech whichever way it falls.
Actress in a Supporting Role
- Angela Bassett – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Hong Chau – The Whale
- Kerry Condon – The Banshees of Inisherin
- Jamie Lee Curtis – Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- Stephanie Hsu – Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
Angela Bassett becomes the FIRST EVER actor from a Marvel Universe film to be nominated for an Oscar. Elsewhere, it was a surprise (a delightful one) that Kerry Condon is nominated for Banshees. And Jamie Lee Curtis, after such a long and distinguished career, gets her first ever Oscar nomination!
Actor in a Supporting Role
- Brendan Gleeson – The Banshees of Inisherin
- Brian Tyree Henry – Causeway
- Judd Hirch – The Fabelmans
- Barry Keoghan – The Banshees of Inisherin
- Ke Huy Quan – Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
Woo Hoo! An Oscar nomination for Barry Keoghan! And I think this is also the first nomination for Brendan Gleeson too.
Directing
- Martin McDonagh – The Banshees of Inisherin
- Daniels – Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- Steven Spielberg – The Fabelmans
- Todd Field – Tár
- Ruben Ostlund – Triangle of Sadness
The big surprise omission here is James Cameron for “Avatar: The Way of Water” and the surprise addition for me would be Ruben Östlund for “Triangle of Sadness”.
Adapted Screenplay
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Glass Onion
- Living
- Top Gun Maverick
- Women Talking
It seems very dodgy that Glass Onion and Top Gun Maverick should be able to be nominated for Adapted Screenplay, just because they are sequels. Both are a real surprise to me in this category.
Original Screenplay
- The Banshees of Inisherin
- Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- The Fabelmans
- Tár
- Triangle of Sadness
Triangle of Sadness (which I still have to see) was a surprise and seems the rank outsider in this list.
Costume Design
- Babylon
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Elvis
- Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- Mrs Harris Goes to Paris
I was a bit surprised that EEAAO was nominated for Costume Design. I think this will be a run off between Babylon, Elvis and (possibly) Mrs Harris Goes to Paris, but what do I know with this category!
Sound
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Avatar
- The Batman
- Elvis
- Top Gun Maverick
The big surprise for me in this category was that Tár wasn’t nominated. I kept waiting for its name to come up, but it never happened.
Music – Original Score
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Babylon
- The Banshees of Inisherin
- Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- The Fabelmans
I’d argue with the inclusion of “All Quiet on the Western Front” in here – as I said in my review, I personally found the music intrusive. John Williams is nominated for his 53rd Academy Award. He held the record before, and has just extended his lead with “The Fabelmans”.
Original Song
- “Applause” from Tell it Like a Woman
- “Hold my hand” from Top Gun Maverick
- “Lift Me Up” from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- “Naatu Naatu” – from RRR
- “This is a Life” – Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
“Naatu Naatu” is absolutely brilliant (see the video here) and will be a fabulous performance on the night. Would love this to win!
Documentary Feature
- All that Breathes
- All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
- Fire of Love
- A House Made of Splinters
- Navalny
Documentary Short
- The Elephant Whispereres
- Halout
- How do you Measure a Year
- The Martha Mitchell Effect
- Stranger at the Gate
International Film
- All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)
- Argentina 1985 (Argentina)
- Close (Belgium)
- EO (Poland)
- The Quiet Girl (Ireland)
Given the number of nominations, you’d be hard pressed to bet against All Quiet on the Western Front for this. Perhaps, that is, unless it pulls off a real surprise and “does a Parasite” by getting Best Picture! (Unlikely I think).
Animated Feature
- Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
- Marcel the Shell
- Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
- The Sea Beast
- Turning Red
You’d be crazy to bet against Pinocchio for this one.
Makeup and Hairstyling
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- The Batman
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Elvis
- The Whale
Another category that will be difficult to predict. I think All Quiet on the Western Front might pull out a surprise here.
Production Design
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Avatar
- Babylon
- Elvis
- The Fabelmans
Production Design for Avatar? Really?
Film Editing
- The Banshees of Inisherin
- Elvis
- Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
- Tár
- Top Gun Maverick
No surprises with this category, but I think (just for the multiverse hopping sequence) Everything, Everywhere, All at Once will likely pick this one up on the night.
Cinematography
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Bardo, False Chronicles of a Handful of Truths
- Elvis
- Empire of Light
- Tár
A surprise to me in this category is Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s “Bardo….” – a “Mexican epic black comedy-drama” that I was not aware of. Very pleased to see Empire of Light at least picked up one nomination, and I will have my fingers crossed for Roger Deakins.
Visual Effects
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- Avatar: The Way of Water
- The Batman
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Top Gun Maverick
A good set of films, and good to see “All Quiet on the Western Front” nominated here. But this is surely Avatar’s to lose?
Live Action Short Film
- An Irish Goodbye
- Ivalu
- Le Pupille
- Night Ride
- The Red Suitcase
Best Animated Short
- The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and the Horse
- The Flying Sailoir
- Ice Merchants
- My Year of Dicks
- An Ostrich Told Me the World is Fake and I Think I Believe it
“My Year of Dicks” got the most un-PC roar of approval during the announcement show!
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