Love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea. —Henry Fielding

17 February 2019

Oscar Nominations 2019: Part 8 of 11


Spider-man: into the Spider-verse
1 Nomination
  • Animated Feature
Cast: Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, Hailee Steinfeld, Mahershala Ali, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Velez, Zoë Kravitz, Lily Tomlin, Kathryn Hahn, Liev Schreiber, Chris Pine, Nicolas Cage, John Mulaney, Kimiko Glenn

I loved this film so much. I wasn't expecting even to like it – an animated Spider-man film? Don't we get enough Marvel on our screens these days? – but Into the Spider-verse is no ordinary Marvel movie. It's a moving comic-book with clear references to the style of comic books themselves and an ability to use that style to generate quality humor. Spider-verse has fresh, funny jokes and an irreverent approach to the save-the-world obsessions of these types of films. This is a great movie. It's in my top 5 for the year.
Will Win: Animated Feature
Could Win: N/A
My Rating: #4 out of 68

Incredibles 2
1 Nomination
  • Animated Feature
Director: Brad Bird
Cast: Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Catherine Keener, Bob Odenkirk, Samuel L. Jackson, Huck Milner, Eli Fucile, Brad Bird, Sophia Bush, Phil LaMarr, Isabella Rossellini

Eh. This is totally forgettable. I think because it's basically a re-tread of The Incredibles. There are a couple of really great sequences – one with the little baby and a racoon that is cute and a great montage in which Mr. Incredible begins to succeed at being a stay-at-home dad – but... this is just not very inventive. The big plot-twists (and Incredibles 2 is for some reason invested in plot-twists) is obvious from the very beginning of the movie, and the action sequences aren't nearly as fun as they ought to be. This is harmless, but definitely a let-down of a sequel.
Will Win: N/A
Could Win: Animated Feature
My Rating: #35 out of 67

Mirai (未来のミライ)
1 Nomination
  • Animated Feature
Director: Hosoda Mamoru
Cast: John Cho, Rebecca Hall, Jaden Waldman, Victoria Grace, Crispin Freeman, Stephanie Sheh, Daniel Dae Kim, Yakusho Kōji

This movie is perfection. If Spider-verse weren't as great as it was this would easily be my favorite animated movie of the year. As it is, it is in my top ten for this year. It is worth saying, too, that I tend to be biased against animated features. I consistently resist ranking them really high for some reason, but this year, we have Mirai and Spider-verse and I am in love. This is a gorgeously drawn and beautifully made film about family and history and learning new ways of being in the world. I know it's tough for most people to see right now – I got really lucky and was able to see a screening – but as soon as it is on DVD you're all going to see it and love it. I promise.
Will Win: N/A
Could Win: N/A
My Rating: #6 out of 68

Ralph Breaks the Internet
1 Nomination
  • Animated Feature
Cast: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Gal Gadot, Taraji P. Henson, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Alan Tudyk, Alfred Molina, Ed O'Neill, Sean Giambrone, Flula Borg, Timothy Simons, Ali Wong, Hamish Blake

Honestly I don't understand why stuff like this exists. Why people give things like this awards is even more unfathomable to me. This film is not funny at all, and it seems entirely designed not to make its audience laugh but to make us nod our heads in knowledgeable ways about how the world works. But who is this even for? In this film, Ralph, if you don't know, goes into a materialized version of the internet. Unbelievably, this image of the internet is not the least bit visually interesting. It's like these filmmakers didn't even try. There is more to say about Sarah Silverman's saccharine performance, about the stupid emotional lessons about friendship and betrayal that this film thinks it's "teaching" us, and about the ridiculous plot. But this is a phoned-in sequel that isn't worth anyone's time. Ralph is at the absolute bottom of my list.
Will Win: N/A
Could Win: N/A
My Rating: #68 out of 68

No comments:

Post a Comment