The Oscar Shortlists are Here!
Thursday, December 21, 2023 at 5:00PM
Cláudio Alves in Best Animated Short, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short, Best International Feature, Best International Film, Best Live Action Short, Best Makeup, Best Original Score, Best Original Song, Best Sound, Best Visual Effects, foreign films

by Cláudio Alves

Like Scorsese's film, SOCIETY OF THE SNOW got into four different shortlists.

AMPAS has announced shortlists for ten categories, from International Feature to Makeup and Hairstyling. One can deduce plenty from the results, seeing what films overperform and which titles don't meet expectations. Well, at least that's true for the more general races. In something like International Feature, one can surmise other things, like the Academy's European bias, or how some titles are popular enough to make it there and Best Documentary. All in all, this should shake up predictions beyond these ten prizes, so there's much to analyze. After the jump, discover the complete lists and some additional commentary…

 

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE  

The most shocking thing about this list is how unsurprising it is. Sure, there are some notable misses like Australia's Shayda, Turkey's About Dry Grasses, South Korea's Concrete Utopia, and North Macedonia's Housekeeping for Beginners. However, all the expected contenders are here, still vying for the prize. 

As ever, one must note how European the list is. Armenia, Bhutan, and Japan represent Asia, though that last title is a German coproduction helmed by Wim Wenders. Morocco and Tunisia make up the African presence, and Tótem is the only film from the Americas. 2023 was a fantastic year for Latin American cinema, but you wouldn't know it by looking at this list.

Quotas probably aren't the solution, but something should be done about a discrepancy that ends up influencing international distribution and the film's visibility. I love this category and follow it every year, so I'm especially invested in seeing it improve, diversify, and become a better look at world cinema excellence.

 

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

As always, there are surprise inclusions here, along with some surprising snubs. Apolonia, Apolonia and Desperate Souls strike me as exciting additions to the shortlist, along with In the Rearview. One wonders if two documentaries about the war in Ukraine will split votes – there's also 20 Days in Mariupol. In terms of absent titles, there's Peck's Silver Dollar Road and Morris' The Pigeon Tunnel, Wenders' Anselm, the much-beloved Little Richard: I am Everything and Lakota Nation vs United States. 

Having recently seen it, I'm sad that Smoke Sauna Sisterhood didn't make it here. Indeed, from many pictures competing for this and the International Feature award, only the submissions from Ukraine and Tunisia made it to both lists. The Mother of All Lies would have been a nice inclusion here, too.

 

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

For a branch that's always been stingy with honoring films full of songs and pre-existing material, this list is a radical departure from the status quo. American Symphony, Barbie, and The Color Purple are the surprises in that sense. Beyond them, the inclusion of Saltburn and The Holdovers is also notable, signaling that the former may not be so derided within AMPAS as within certain critics groups and that the latter is one of the season's absolute favorites. The biggest surprise, absence-wise, is that branch golden boys Hans Zimmer and Alexandre Desplat didn't get in with any of their 2023 scores.

John Williams' nomination feels pretty secure, along with Göransson. Apart from those two, a lot could happen. Personally, I'm rooting for Joe Hisaishi to get his first Oscar nomination.

 


BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Get ready for another Diane Warren nomination and a massive showing for Barbie and Killers of the Flower Moon on nomination morning. That the pink fantasy got its three songs into the shortlist isn't that unexpected, but the Scorsese flick's presence marks a swell of universal support bound to result in countless nods. Interestingly, multiple films have more than one song here. People predicting a poor showing for The Color Purple may want to reconsider. 

When it comes to those tunes bumped out of the competition, this list becomes quite interesting. Wish was utterly ignored, which is unusual for Disney animated musicals. As was The Little Mermaid, for that matter. Then there's Wonka, whose disappointment might signal a lack of support for that holiday treat.

Ultimately, the biggest mystery from this category will be what Barbie song will get snubbed. According to Academy rules, only two can be nominated, even if they get enough votes for three nods.

 

BEST SOUND

This is a deserving shortlist across the board, with only Barbie standing out due to frontrunner fever. The Killer and Ferrari, in particular, feel like that kind of inspired single nomination that the sound branch sometimes delivers. The Zone of Interest would make an unusual nominee, but it'd also be a genius pick from AMPAS.

The Color Purple not being here is notable, but one guesses that the music-focused slots went to the Mattel dream and Maestro. Other brow-raising absences are Poor Things and the Spider-Man movie.

 

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS 

The Spider-Man movie could be on its way to becoming the third animated film ever nominated for Visual Effects. Godzilla Minus One is surging at the right time, and, along with Society of the Snow, it could become the rare non-English nominee. Regarding absences, rejecting the latest Transformers is odd considering the branch's history. One should also note that Guardians and Spider-Man are the only superhero movies, meaning Aquaman, Ant-Man, and The Marvels were all thoroughly rebuked. 

I'll be mourning the lack of Dungeons & Dragons for a while and wondering what on earth will take the gold with Oppenheimer ineligible. Poor Things will get a boost as a Best Picture contender, but will it be enough?

 


BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING

Biopics and true stories dominate as expected, but including horror-adjacent cinema is a welcome surprise. I expect that Society of the Snow will be nominated as the prestigious international title this branch so often loves to recognize.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's record-breaking achievement is the big snub, showing that the Academy might have run out of patience with Disney after their annus horribilis. Beyond the inter-galactic heroes, other notable exclusions are Barbie, NYAD, The Iron Claw, and The Color Purple.

 

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM

Just when I was counting Disney out, they managed to show up again. The studio is the all-time champion in this category's history, so watch out for a nomination.

 

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM 

Even though I'm usually unaware of the short film races, I've seen campaigning for The Barber of Little Rock and The Last Repair Shop. It wouldn't surprise me if they made it to the final nominations.

 

BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT FILM 

Big names don't always succeed in this category. Even so, one must assume the Ben Whishaw-starring Good Boy, Almodóvar's Strange Way of Life, and Wes Anderson's The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar will benefit from their larger profiles compared to their competition.

 

 

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Article originally appeared on The Film Experience (http://thefilmexperience.net/).
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