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Reader Comments (45)
WOW WOW WOW
8-TIME Oscar nominee Judi Dench!!?
Really impressive considering all her noms came later in her career.
Dame Judi Dench is really racing to beat Meryl Streep's nomination record isn't she? lol
Buckley is well deserved but No Ruth Negga for Judi Dench is a let down.
Supporting Actor to mild surprises Plemmons and Simmons one deserved the other not so much,thank the gods no Leto.
A GaGa snub as I and others predicted a few weeks ago on here,passion votes went Cruz's way,not a bad line up but would have preferred Kidman to sit it out this year.
Yay - no Leto and no Gaga - don’t have to watch House of Gucci now haha. So sad no Ann Dowd or Simon Rex though.
And yay for 3-noms for Flee!
And nice for Drive My Car to get director and best picture too!
There were def some snubs I was happy about (Gaga!) and some I wasn’t (Negga!), but overall it’s nice that the Oscars aren’t just copy and paste of the entire awards season anymore.
These announcement webisodes are so cringey tho. Just shut up and give us what we want to hear! I miss the days when it was announced live with the actors photo appearing on a screen behind them w all the journalists snapping photos - that was iconic. All I really miss is the picture popping up honestly, and why do it “live” if it feels pre-recorded.
I’m just glad my girl Kiki Dunst is FINALLY an Oscar nominee! Extremely disappointed that they passed (hah) over Ruth Negga for Judi Dench…
The Gaga snub sucks but I felt it coming yesterday for some reason. I know it's a devisive performance but I just loved her in it 🙏
Michael R - I agree. But I'll take a Gaga snub if it means we get Chastain. She was due. She's been 6th or 7th way too many times.
I'm relieved Spielberg is in but mad they didn't nominate West Side Story in Adapted Screenplay. That film is a masterpiece of adaptation.
I agree with you, Philip. It's too early in the morning for (bad) banter. A straightforward delivery by Kathy Bates or Sigourney Weaver again is all I live for. And if they're going to pull in a pundit, why not Nathaniel? :)
I was dreading a Gucci watch, too, but Cruz for the win! Glad that Worst Person has reached my city just in time.
Not a single Best Actress nominee is from a Best Picture nominee. But Best Actor is also more of a disconnect than usual, with only two nominees coming from a Best Picture nominee.
So so disappointed for Negga and Passing in general, but I will take a Supporting Actor line up without Leto in it any time of day. And Cruz and Bardem getting nominated in the same year is very cute.
Yeah I'm over these telecasts and really missing the picture announcements. Let's hope this years ceremony isn't like last years with no clips of the actual movies nominated.
Anyway!
I'm quote disappointed with Nightmare Alley showing up in Best Pic. I root for Del Toro left and right but I really was not into the mostly bland performances and drag-a-lag first half. Grateful for BCoop taking a bath though!
Super happy for:
The Power of the Dog cast!
The West Side Story nominations! Speilberg!
No House of Gucci (echoing someone here that I don't have to watch it now, lol)
The Lost Daughter!
The VFX nominees!
No Time to Die love!
Bummed:
Ruth Negga (coulda woulda should won)
tick tick BOOM (was hoping that editing nom would seal it)
everyone else snubbed in Best Actor (love Javier but there was no character arc?)
Ann Dowd and Martha Plimpton
Jamie Dornan!
Judi Dench (a former winner) gets nominated for sleepwalking, yayyy!
Can't believe Villeneuve missed. Overall pretty happy with the lineup though... satisfied that Leto and Sorkin missed. Nightmare Alley became underrated I thought and is a perfectly worthy 10th nominee, and I haven't seen Drive My Car yet but... wow!
Not displeased about the Gucci snub.
Can't believe the Kushner and Negga snubs... and not sure which breaks my heart more.
Is this the first time two couple pairings have been nominated together in Best Actor/Actress (Cruz/Bardem) and Supporting (Dunst/Plemons) simultaneously?
Cate Blanchett made two movies in 2021 and both are nominated for the Best Picture Oscar. #Queen
Love Flee getting in for Animated, Documentary, and International Film.
I'm always surprised when Javier Bardem gets nominated, but then I remember after the fact that the Academy loves to nominate him. I'm not mad, either. He's a great actor and I love seeing him pop up in Best Actor.
Best Actress is my favorite category this year. I want Kristen Stewart or Penelope Cruz to win, but I'll be happy with any of these nominees.
tick, tick...BOOM! had to be close to scoring other nominations if it got in for Editing over six of the Best Picture nominees.
I just watched EYES OF TAMMY FAYE, and I am happy with the Chastain nomination. I didn't see SPENCER, but for the other three, I have seen them all do better work and I didn't care for their films, so really sad that Tessa Thompson didn't get a nom in this category.
Also, very sad about no MASS nominations. Damn, that film has stayed with me weeks later.
Whew, I almost backed out of my longstanding prediction of a Villeneuve snub, and needless to say I'm glad I didn't. Chalk that one up to pure gut instinct, because no matter how locked up he looked on paper, I just had this feeling the directors branch wouldn't nominate him.
But I just can't believe Ruth Negga didn't make it in. And Judi Dench was the surprise inclusion over her?! Sheesh. In general, the fact that Passing got completely shut out is baffling. Is Netflix to blame here? Did they put all their energy into their other contenders?
After West Side Story missed Adapted Screenplay and Editing (the latter especially surprising), I was actually mildly surprised that Spielberg still made it into Best Director since it looked like the movie was underperforming.
Belfast doesn't look to pose much of a threat after missing Editing and Cinematography, does it? But on the other hand, I guess the surprise inclusion for Judi Dench...but on the other hand, the exclusion of Caitriona Balfe...but on the other hand, it actually got in for Best Sound...but on the other hand...it's really hard to say where it stands, actually. It could just as easily win Best Picture or go home completely empty-handed. (I guess Original Screenplay is its safest bet for a win, but Don't Look Up and maybe Licorice Pizza could win there too, I think.)
Best Actress was already the most interesting category to watch unfold, but especially w Gaga out of the way, you could honestly make a case for any of these women… exciting stuff!
I'm incredibly excited about the impending Belfast and King Richard backlash :)
Great news for KStew, the most moving imo of the major competitors (I'm assuming Cruz can't actually win). The shocking Gaga snub and surprise Cruz inclusion means this race is totally up in the air, and KStew can re-take the narrative that this is her time.
Drive My Car did better than even I thought it would, and I've been predicting it for ages. Wow.
Marsha -- I actually think Cruz has more of a chance of winning that Stewart does. It's really hard to predict right now and we might not have a clear frontrunner even going into Oscar night, but at the moment I think it's probably Colman, Kidman, Cruz, Stewart, Chastain, in that order. And even Chastain has a chance, I think. It's very much open.
Also interesting is that in addition to Cruz and Bardem both being nominated this year, this is also the fourth nomination for each.
The Gaga snub really hurts. She definitely should be in over Stewart. Gaga has deserved every accolade and industry nom she has earned this year. I am so over the moon for Chastain. I hope she wins this. Also, so happy for Drive My Car, Nightmare Alley and tick, tick...BOOM! for editing.
Love the acting lineup. The only thing I don't live is the snub of Passing.
Differently from a lot of you I'm OK with the nominations for Don't look up, but I'm very upsetted for Boring Alley in best picture. That movie for me was the total mess. I started to love the original one after watching it
Thrilled for Kristen Stewart. This is one of the strongest Best Actress lineups in years, not a weak link in the bunch, thanks to the Gaga snub.
One of the things I've found odd abut the Stewart criticism—here and elsewhere—is that the negative notes on her performance would better apply to Portman's performance in Jackie. To me Stewart gave the superior performance in the two movies. Jackie was a tighter and more controlled film but Portman's work was somewhat vacant and affected.
Conversely I found Stewart's performance really vivid and accessible, and also kind of effortless in its mannerisms. The film is a bit messier than Jackie, but Stewart holds it together really nicely. She would be my choice for the win.
That Judi Dench nomination is a real low, especially at the cost of Ruth Negga and even Balfe. What’s odd is that in the past, folks like Maggie Smith and Jane Fonda were snubbed in this category, so it’s not just that the academy goes for veterans. But, I think it’s clear that if you’re a former winner and vet in a film the academy likes, you’re in.
Shocked to see Denis missing given how good his film is. I also don’t get the nightmare alley inclusion. It’s well made with good performances, but I’m not certain it’s themes resonate.
The Plemmons inclusion is fine, but I’d have to rewatch to see if he was worthy. He was good, but the other performances in his film are so towering that his choices get lost.
Very happy to Bardem over Leo, even if folks like Simon Rex would have been better. The Penelope Cruz inclusion is the best of morning, and I hope it comes down to her and Kidman.
Aaron Sorkin missing is surprising.
Happy that Don't Look Up made the list for Best Picture. Don't understand the dislike for this film. I thought it was a wild and spot-on satire of modern day life. Happy to see Andrew Garfield nominated, as well as Denzel. Hope that Jessica Chastain wins for Tammy Faye or Penelope for Parallel Mothers. Wonder why they nominated J. K. Simmons; maybe I'm just sick of seeing him in that insurance commercial. Happy that Kiki Dunst was nominated and that The Lost Daughter got some Oscar love.
I'm with those who are happy Don't Look Up got nominated. I actually ended up liking Gaga's performance a lot but I knew she'd get snubbed all along. The Oscars don't like actresses who they feel aren't real actresses or are pigeonholed (J Lo, Jennifer Aniston, Gaga in this case). Happy for Cruz though I haven't seen it yet. Negga the biggest snub. Drive My Car is overrated but I'm always happy to see international cinema do well.
Kidman will win.
The Gaga snub sucks. She was phenomenal and the only actress to manage have a hit movie in a sea of flops. Oh well. Negga missing is also pretty brutal.
*Judi Dench takes a walk*
AMPAS: WOW! We should nominate that
Sarah - Yeah, I understand people didn't like the film, but it's disconcerting to see people actively root against the one adult-oriented theatrical hit this year. I didn't much like Nightmare Alley, but I'm glad to see an auteur-driven theatrical release nominated over something like Being the Ricardos.
Jules - If the movie / performance sucks, I'm not going to root for it just because it's a hit... it's as simple as liking or disliking it, that's all.
--
The Judi Dench over Ruth Negga nod gives me the same energy as Kathy Bates being nominated over JLo... obviously very different circumstances, but for me, Negga and Lopez gave the supporting actress performances that should've won, but got snubbed on Oscar morning whilst one of the nominees (a former winner) was quite ... blah.
Of course, for all we know Judi Dench wasn't even fifth place in voting LoL.
Philip H - Several of the people rooting against it in this thread admit they haven't seen it. It's a divisive film and performance, with both fans and detractors (Gaga even won NYFCC!), so it's odd to me to write it off, sight unseen.
Love Best Actress, LG was entertaining but not sure she was best. Happy to see any of this group win.
I may be in the minority, but I don't get the Balfe love -- she did nothing that I don't think 20 other actresses could have brought to the table. OTOH I though Dench was given the least to work with and she elevated it. Her scenes are the ones I remember the most.
One more "snub" - I'm sad to see that Mahershala Ali wasn't nominated. He gave a brilliant performance and his chemistry with Awkwafina, Glenn Close, and Harris was great.
Very glad that the BAFTA noms aren't a copy and paste of Oscar this year, once again, as it spreads the wealth.
jules - Gotcha, now I understand what you mean.
And this has got to be the first time in history that the Best Actress nominees from Bafta and the Academy do not overlap at all. Shocking.
I got 86 out of 120 nominations right, that's 71,7%... quite usual... I guess it wasn't harder to guess than usually... just about the same as always...
9 out of 10 best pictures right (I had Being the Ricardos instead of Drive my car), 9/10 screenplays (I had Being the Ricardos instead of maybe the biggest surprise The Worst person in the world) and 5/5 best actors and 4/5 best actresses (I had Gaga instead of Penelope).
Most of my mistakes took place in the shorts categories (except for best live action, where I had 4/5 right), best editing, best documentary and best international film. how did they not nominate "A hero" and "The rescue"? Weird.
Despite some disappointing omissions, this is actually a good year for nominees, with some genuine surprises - more and more the changes the academy has made have really helped w/ international films in particular. I love that today brought far less of a rubber stamp for what all the other awards branches did prior. Favorite inclusion: Drive My Car for BP. Favorite exclusion: (a tie): Being The Ricardos for BP & Jared Leto. Bummer exclusion: Ruth Negga. Bummer inclusion: Javier Bardem.
Okay, just finished watching SPENCER (streaming on Hulu) Though the physicality is not quite right, Stewart is quite remarkable in the role as Diana during that horrible time in her life.
I'm now rooting equally for Jessica Chastain and Kristen Stewart to take Best Actress.