OSCARS 2022

I had a few things to say about the 2022 Oscars, although at this point, most of it has already been said a thousand times over. So I won't say anything about Will Smith and make a general complaint about something else entirely.

I have a big problem with the choice of "CODA" as Best Picture. It is not a problem with the movie. I have no opinion of the movie. I have not seen it. That is my complaint. The movie is hard to see. CODA exists entirely on Apple+ TV. It was never in any theaters and you cannot rent it on DVD, on YouTube, on Amazon, or anywhere else. There is only one place to see it, and you need a annual Apple+ subscription.

Way way back in the day, the Academy had this rule that all movies in contention for the Oscars needed a theatrical run. This theatrical run was limited but ostensibly, it meant that if you were looking for a movie, you could see it (if you lived in NYC or LA). If you didn't live in NYC or LA, at the least you could wait for the VHS/DVD release and see the movie. Those days are over and not coming back. I'm not saying we need to bring back that particular rule, but the idea behind the rule was sound: that is a celebrated movie should be able to be seen. You should be able to buy a ticket to or rent the thing. There needs to be some new rule that mandates all Oscar nominees should be available somewhere other than a closed streaming subscription service. If the Oscars are good for anything, it is to give suggestions to the audience as to what people who make movies think are good movies to see. If the movies cannot be seen, the Oscars truly are pointless, a vapid stew of pretension where rich and beautiful people complain about inequality in designer dresses. 

Here are my picks for 2022. The best that can be said about 2022 is that it was a better year than 2021, which was the worst ever. I have excised the categories for Animated film and Foreign Language film, perhaps permanently as they seem to be kids' table categories, and have added a category for Stunt Direction, an integral part of many movies which has been overlooked for way too long of a time. 

Best Adapted Screenplay

Dune

Drive My Car

The Green Knight

House of Gucci

The Power of the Dog

Best Original Screenplay

The French Dispatch

A Hero

Licorice Pizza

Midnight Mass

Red Rocket

Best Production Design

Dune

The French Dispatch

The Green Knight

Spencer

The Tragedy of Macbeth

Best Costume Design

Dune

House of Gucci

Last Night in Soho

Nightmare Alley

Spencer

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Dune

The Eyes of Tammy Faye

The House of Gucci

The Green Knight

The Suicide Squad

Best Supporting Actress

Brenda Deiss - Red Rocket

Kirsten Dunst - The Power of the Dog

Vera Farmiga - The Many Saints of Newark

Meryl Streep - Don't Look Up

Marisa Tomei - Spider-Man: No Way home

Best Supporting Actor

Matt Damon - The Last Duel

David Dastmalchian - The Suicide Squad

Ethan Darbone - Red Rocket

Hamish Linklater - Midnight Mass

Jeffrey Wright - The French Dispatch

Best Actress

Jessica Chastain - The Eyes of Tammy Faye

Lady Gaga - House of Gucci

Alana Haim - Licorice Pizza

Frances McDormand - The Tragedy of MacBeth

Best Actor

Nicolas Cage - Pig

Benedict Cumberbatch - The Power of the Dog

Adam Driver - House of Gucci

Simon Rex - Red Rocket

Denzel Washington - The Tragedy of Macbeth

Best Use of a Song in a Movie

“Nearer My God to Thee” – Midnight Mass

“The Battle Hymn of the Republic” – The Eyes of Tammy Faye

“In the Heights” – In the Heights

“L’Ultima Volta” – The French Dispatch

Gym Dance “Mambo” - West Side Story

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xtkGKeccLI

Best Use of Cultural Appropriation

The Green Knight – Dev Patel

Midnight Mass – Catholicism and Vampires

The French Dispatch – The French Dispatch of the Kansas Evening Sun

Licorice Pizza – waterbeds, sushi bars, licorice pizza, L.A., the movies, Haim, hustlers

West Side Story – “America”

Best Visual Effects

Black Widow

The Suicide Squad

No Time to Die

Dune

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Best Stunt Direction

Black Widow

The Suicide Squad

No Time to Die

Dune

Red Notice

Best Film Editing

No Time to Die

Dune

The French Dispatch

The Power of the Dog

Red Rocket

Best Sound

Dune

No Time to Die

The Power of the Dog

The Green Knight

West Side Story

Best Cinematography

The Tragedy of Macbeth

Red Rocket

The Power of the Dog

The French Dispatch

The Green Knight

Best Director

The Green Knight – David Lowery

Dune – Denis Villeneuve

The French Dispatch – Wes Anderson

The Power of the Dog – Janet Campion

Red Rocket – Sean Baker

Best Picture

Pig

The Green Knight

Midnight Mass

Dune

The French Dispatch

The Power of the Dog

Licorice Pizza

Red Rocket

The Tragedy of Macbeth

A Hero