Each Oscar nomination morning brings waves of hot takes. Here are seven things that stood out to me on first pass. What stood out for you?
Barry Jenkins directing his young cast in MOONLIGHT which received 8 nominations
Oscars No Longer So White (For Now)
As far as we are aware this is only the second year (other than 2004) where all four acting categories feature at least one actor of color. There are seven actors of color nominated this year, or 35% of the nominees. While I personally felt the anger last year was both justified and misdirected (there simply weren't that many options to feasibly nominate - and the Oscar nominees have been more diverse than Hollywood itself in years past which is where the problem truly lies), it's a great relief to see so much diversity this year. Not every year has so many acclaimed hits starring people of color like Hidden Figures, Fences, Moonlight, Loving and Lion so let's hope the Academy has plenty of options next year, too. It's a good development. We also have the first black female nominated in editing (Joi McMillion for Moonlight) and the second black man ever nominated in cinematography (Bradford Young for Arrival -- the first was British Remi Adefarasin for Elizabeth) and, most famously, Viola Davis becomes the most Oscar nominated black woman of all time with her third nomination.
Releasing After Christmas Just Doesn't Work
A24 had been there before with A Most Violent Year but the magical miraculous 20th Century Women met nearly the same fate of a shut-out...
Opening after Christmas is just much too late to build momentum. There are other examples but Hollywood never seems to learn that the best time for Oscar releases is October and November with early December working well, too... and barring that opening in the summer is a way to set yourself apart and still compete (see Florence Foster Jenkins and Captain Fantastic)...
Don't Trust Buzz on Non-Conventional Contenders
There was quite a bit of "O.J. Made in America in big categories" and "Deadpool coming on strong for multiple nominations" in the final days of the Phase One but in the end they were a documentary and a superhero flick. Documentaries almost never leave the Doc category outside of recently the Best Original Song race. Exceptions like Woodstock (1970, sound & editing), Hoop Dreams (1994, editing) and Waltz With Bashir (2008, foreign film) and The Missing Picture (2013, foreign film). Superhero films, unless Batman is in them, aren't taken seriously by Oscar voters. Final tally: O.J. Made in America nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Deadpool shut out completely.
The Unfortunate Comeback of Angry Older White Men
2016's most annoying theme continues at the Oscars with Mel Gibson getting a real Oscar comeback with a Best Director nomination at the same time that we're dealing with a new rise in anti-Semitism and sexism in the USA via the White House. (sigh)
La La Land Sweep?
The hit musical will almost certainly be the biggest Oscar winner in a decade or so on February 26th. Only Titanic and All About Eve, which both won Best Picture, received as many nominations (14). Titanic won 11 Oscars. Can La La Land do that? It remains to be seen but a clean sweep is surely out of the question (How could Ryan Gosling win in Best Actor?). But we're surely looking at the biggest winning haul since Slumdog Millionaire (2008) which took 8 Oscars. Of Note: The most Oscars ever won by a musical was 10 for West Side Story (1961) which only lost one of its nominations, for Screenplay. The second most was Gigi (1958) which won 9 in a weak Oscar year.
Golden Globes Go Their Own Way
Some people take it a sign of a downfall that the Globes aren't as predictive as they once were. We think it's a strength as awards groups shouldn't even exist if they don't have their own identity apart from Oscar. We only need one Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. But nevertheless it's worth noting that their intense love for Nocturnal Animals, followed by BAFTA's love of the same was not echoed at Oscar where only Michael Shannon was nominated (with zero precursor support, mind you). Aaron Taylor Johnson is the first Supporting Actor winner to not go on to an Oscar nomination since Richard Benjamin in The Sunshine Boys (1975)
The precursors favored Aaron Taylor Johnson but Oscar wanted Michael Shannon in Nocturnal Animals (2016)
Michael Shannon Don't Need No Stinkin' Precursors
Nocturnal Animals is the second time in his career where Michael Shannon has showed up in the Oscar race with zero major precursor support. The first time was Revolutionary Road (2008). Curiously the year in which he had precursor support (99 Homes in 2015) he was not nominated!
Never bet against Meryl Streep
The most-nominated actor of all time does it again with her 20th nomination... and she barely even campaigned this year compared to year's past. If you need a refresher her nearest rivals are Jack Nicholson (retired) and Katharine Hepburn (deceased) who each only made it to 12 nominations. So about four films from now, since she's nominated for breathing, Meryl will double the count of her nearest rivals. In a feat of 'Only Meryl! adorability she sent this gif as her press statement about her new record.
This is Meryl Streep's #Oscars nomination statement. Seriously, she sent a gif. pic.twitter.com/wa18Jix6Vf
— Chris Harnick (@chrisharnick) January 24, 2017