The Could and Should Have Beens
As promised, I wanted to take a moment to call out a handful of films and artists whose work I think was deserving of nominations at this year’s Academy Awards. Beyond the great honors of being nominated or winning, the Oscars are an excellent platform for under-seen and underappreciated work. This is my attempt to shine a little more light on some work I thought was particularly special, even in some of the biggest films of the year. As with my last piece on the 90th Oscars, I’ve denoted in parenthetical how many nominations these films did actually receive.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (4 Nominations)
This film is too divisive for me to spend much time here making a case for it as a Best Picture contender—I do consider it better than Darkest Hour and more affecting than The Shape of Water, but I, a massive Star Wars fan, digress—and the film is appropriately nominated in its most agreeably deserving areas (visual and sound effects, score). However, one person was due more recognition than he received, and that man is Mark Hamill. His performance as a broken, weary Luke Skywalker is incredible, not just in contrast to his work in the original three films thirty-plus years ago, but because he made every word, every glance something filled with meaning. In real life, Hamill is, well, kind of (delightfully) hammy, so for him to transform with such a thoughtful, deep performance is an achievement not just for Star Wars, but for an actor who clearly has more in him than just an optimistic farm boy (and the Joker, who he’s voiced to perfection many times).
Blade Runner 2049 (5 Nominations)
I’m not much of a fan of the original Blade Runner (it’s a little too slow and too thin on story for my tastes), but I was blown away by director Denis Villeneuve’s epic sequel. More so than The Last Jedi, which I was much more predisposed to like, 2049 is a film that I think stands right along the Best Picture nominees as one of 2017’s very best films. The Academy agreed that it was one of the year’s best looking films, as its design and cinematography* were among the technical categories the film was nominated in, but I think some attention should be paid to the acting as well, particularly to Harrison Ford. Unlike Mark Hamill, Ford hasn’t disappeared from on screen work in the last few decades, and his recent performances often fell into the categories of grumpy, jaded, or jaded grump. His return as Rick Deckard still fits those descriptors, but this time it feels like Ford’s character is truly a shell of a man, and the performance he gives is one of the most touching I’ve ever seen from Ford, let alone in this later stage of his career. I love Harrison Ford, so maybe take my opinion with a grain of salt, but I think his turn here is truly a cut above.
*Cinematographer Roger Deakins, a legend whose filmography includes The Shawshank Redemption, Skyfall and 12 collaborations with the Coen brothers, was finally awarded an Oscar for his work on Blade Runner 2049 after 13 previous nominations and losses. His past work would be deserving enough, but what he did with 2049 was astonishingly beautiful in its right.
Baby Driver (3 Nominations)
Edgar Wright’s meticulously crafted crime musical was nominated for sound editing, sound mixing, and film editing, so some of its most important aspects were not overlooked, but I do believe the writer/director himself should have been in the running for Best Director. Baby Driver's soundtrack syncs on the beat with the action on screen, and though this is something that could be achieved solely in editing, Wright took excruciating care to film most scenes (and not just action sequences) to perfectly line up with the music. To have that clarity of vision throughout is a great talent, and that he executed his vision without faltering is a terrific achievement. Baby Driver plays as popcorn entertainment through and through, but that shouldn’t discredit the brilliant film making behind the spectacle.
The Florida Project (1 Nomination)
Sean Baker’s encapsulation of the lives of poor families living in the motels outside of Walt Disney World is somewhat of a challenging film, but I think it will be remembered as one of 2017’s most unique. I wouldn’t lump it in with my personal favorites of the year, but it has an undeniable power in its quiet execution that makes it a standout. With the exception of Willem Dafoe (rightfully nominated this year), all the of actors are either unknowns or people who had never acted before, and that includes the young children who are at the center of the story. Baker shows the fantasy land the kids create for themselves at the Magic Castle motel, but their tragic reality is never far behind. It’s the kind of movie that, at times, feels painfully real, but it never becomes too hard to watch. Baker has a knack for deeply intimate storytelling, and I think both his talent and The Florida Project as a whole could have gotten far more recognition.
Molly’s Game (1 Nomination)
Aaron Sorkin’s directorial debut has its shortcomings, but Jessica Chastain’s performance is absolutely not one of them. She imbues Molly Bloom—Olympic skiing hopeful turned underground, high-stakes poker queen—with incredible confidence and a sharp intellect, and never once stumbles over Sorkin’s verbose script. Chastain even pulls double-duty with the dialogue, as she not only has to play scenes with Sorkin’s patented fast-paced patter, she also narrates throughout the entire film, creating a performance through voice over equal to what she delivers on screen. She simply owns every scene she’s in, and it's a joy to watch a talent such as she given such a rich role to dig into.
War for the Planet of the Apes (1 Nomination)
The culmination of this new Planet of the Apes trilogy is great, thoughtful blockbuster film making in its own right, but once again the standout is Andy Serkis as lead ape Caesar. Serkis has long been un-rewarded for his masterful work in motion capture roles dating back to Gollum in The Lord of the Rings, but his three performances as Caesar are standouts. Caesar is the first ape to gain greater intelligence and the ability to speak, so Serkis fist played him as literally just an ape; he’s now played him as an elder statesman of sorts who must protect his fellow apes as extremists in the human race make a last ditch effort to exterminate the simian threat. Serkis conveys not just the physicality of an ape, but the soul of a creature who’s lost more than most in a struggle to find a peaceful way to coexist with the humans. There seems to be a stigma for these kinds of performances, given that the actors who do performance capture are covered up in digital makeup, but hopefully we’re not far off from seeing their performances recognized alongside more traditional ones.
The Big Sick (1 Nomination)
It seems like it’s been an incredibly long time since Holly Hunter was given a great film role, but that’s what she finally got in Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani’s autobiographical romantic comedy (in which Emily goes into a coma shortly after breaking up with Kumail, and he desperately tries to help in any way he can). Playing the mother to the character based on Gordon, she comes into the story as a force to be reckoned with, especially with her daughter in a mysterious coma. But, rather than be a domineering almost-mother-in-law to Nanjiani, she reveals a sweet side that can find admiration for her daughter's ex. A standout scene involves her defending him against a racist heckler during one of Nanjiani's stand up sets. It became clear in the churn of the awards race that Hunter wouldn’t get nominated, but if I had a say, she would have found herself in the supporting category for sure.
The parental role with less flair but equal amounts of emotional weight is given to Ray Romano. As Emily’s father, he immediately reveals more sympathy for Nanjiani, the reasoning for which becomes clearer as we learn more about his complex relationship with Emily’s mother. Romano’s dramatic talents have been well-utilized before on TV shows like Parenthood, so it’s a treat to see him get to show off his understated ability on the big screen, doubly so because he still gets to be very funny. I don’t know that he would have been nominated under any set of circumstances, but his work here is the kind of honest, sad, and funny stuff that he, and Holly Hunter, excel at, and I wish the Oscars had shed more light on it (as they did for Laurie Metcalf’s similar work in Lady Bird).
Stronger
David Gordon Green’s biographical drama about Jeff Bauman (Jake Gyllenhaal), a man who lost both legs in the bombing of the Boston Marathon, is a refreshing take on that event. It puts the focus on a ne’er-do-well thrust into the limelight as a hero (he helped identify the bombers) who was only at the race to try to win back his ex-girlfriend (Tatiana Maslany), who had left him for being too unreliable. He’s burdened by both his injury and by the expectations of his family and hometown to be the symbol of hope and heroics that people want him to be. Meanwhile, no one but his ex understands that he feels like the furthest thing from a hero. It’s always encouraging, after a tragic event, to see a community pulling together, but this film dives into the deep pain that lingers for those most affected by the tragedy. Gyllenhaal and Maslany are the standouts that really make this movie work. He conveys every bit of the pain, fear, and frustration born of his new disability, and she embodies her own frustration and strength as the only person willing to give Jeff the help he needs to move forward.
Logan Lucky
Director Steven Soderbergh takes his Ocean’s Eleven, Twelve, and Thirteen panache to the world of NASCAR with this heist film centered on the Logans, two brothers and a sister, who mastermind a plan to rob the Coca-Cola 600 race, an event with millions in concession stand profits. A key player in their scheme is Joe Bang, a bleached blonde, southerner with a vocal pitch you wouldn’t expect from Daniel Craig. This is one of those comedic performances so uncharacteristic of the person in the role that you almost forget that Joe Bang is also James Bond. It’s a totally go-for-broke turn from Craig, and it’s frankly thrilling to see him branch out from the cool stoicism for which he’s known. Your mileage may vary on whether or not you enjoy Logan Lucky as a whole. It has the same confidence of the Ocean’s films without the glamour and there’s a spry, looseness to the proceedings that Soderbergh applied to those earlier films that can make things feel a little aimless, but it’s all on purpose. For nothing else, give it a look sometime for Joe Bang; he’s a scene-stealing creation.
Professor Marston and the Wonder Women
Here’s a film that I don’t think would make the cut for nominations, simply due to a crowded field, but which I think is deserving of attention all the same. It tells the story of the creator of Wonder Woman, and his polyamorous relationship with two women. It stars Luke Evans as Professor Marston, Rebecca Hall as his wife and research partner, and Bella Heathcote as the woman they both fall for. Writer and director Angela Robinson takes great care not to cheapen the erotic qualities of their relationship, and she never over-dramatizes their dynamic. Sure, it’s a story about three people in a committed relationship at a time where such a lifestyle could mean being personally and professionally ostracized, let alone judged, but Robinson eschews the melodramatic in favor of honest humanity. It’s what makes this otherwise conventional film all the more engaging.
Of this group of films, only Star Wars and Baby Driver really set the box office ablaze, so hopefully there are some gems here to explore that you wouldn't have heard about otherwise.