1) Carol – Best Picture/Best Director
WHAT!?
Carol seemed tailor made for success at the Oscars. Powerful period drama. Check. Lush visuals. Check. Stunning direction from one of cinema’s premiere LGBT filmmakers… oh, there it is.
Six Academy Award nominations for any film is impressive, and the fact that both of the lead actresses are in the running is commendable. Rooney Mara excels as Therese, while Cate Blanchett gives what is arguably her most subtly powerful performance to date, but critics were still shocked to discover that the film had been left out of the two biggest categories.
Few films from 2015 topped as many end of year lists as Carol did, and it seemed to be a lock for both Best Picture and Best Director based on the number of awards it’s already won. Todd Haynes has flirted with Oscar success before with Far From Heaven and I’m Not There, but not one of his critically adored films has ever been nominated for Best Director. Also, Carol is just amazing.
[zergpaid]Once again though, it seems like the Academy’s stubborn refusal to acknowledge diversity has robbed Todd Haynes of a well deserved nomination that could have easily led to a win in either of the two main categories. The Danish Girl was also locked out of the running in these two key areas, although Carol is indisputably the better film.
Diversity certainly shouldn’t be shoehorned into award ceremonies for the sake of it, but when incredible films are locked out of the running for no apparent reason, it’s not surprising that people are up in arms about the situation, causing subjects like #OscarsSoWhite and #SoWhiteAndStraight to trend worldwide.
What do you think of the Academy Award nominations this year? Do we need more diversity? Which films do you think were overlooked? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
