Disney

Promotional image courtesy of The Oscars

The Academy Awards for excellence in film were awarded on Sunday night. 23 trophies were handed out during the ceremony, with the independent film Anora taking home the most of any film with five awards. However, this, like most, year’s editions of the award shows had many controversies and questionable decisions made by the Academy. 

Beginning with the most controversial aspect of the overall award season, the Netflix film Emilia Perez. The film follows a former cartel leader, played by Karla Sofia Gascon, deciding to transition to a woman and attempting to live out her new life with the help of a lawyer, played by Zoe Saldana. The controversy comes from the way the film handles these complex issues, including the real issue of cartels in Mexico, as well as being a musical with forgettable songs. The film was nominated for 13 Oscars including Best Picture, coming away with two; best supporting actress for Saldana, beating out Wicked’s Ariana Grande and best original song. The vitriol and controversy surrounding this was near unprecedented, however it isn’t shocking that a film like this was highly nominated. The Academy gravitates towards films with controversial or not often explored aspects, as this film does.

Another controversial piece of the show was the awarding of Best Leading Actor to Adrien Brody for The Brutalist over Timothee Chalamet. While Brody was great in a film that ended up with three Oscars, Chalemet’s performance as reclusive singer Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown was so on point for so many audience members. This alongside his well documented work ethic for the role, including three years of singing lessons and relentless studying of Dylan’s movements and mannerisms endeared him to many as the candidate for Best Leading Man. However for many others, the race was 50/50 between the two actors with Brody winning the metaphorical coin flip. 

Taking home the most prestigious award of the night, Best Picture, was Anora. The film follows a woman from Brooklyn marrying into a powerful Russian family, with her new family desperately trying to annul the marriage. The Cinderella-like story also took home Best Lead Actress for Mikey Madison and Best Director and Original Screenplay for Sean Baker, marking a first win for both respectively. With another win for editing, the independent film was the big winner of the night, emphasizing the importance of low budget independent films. 

Other highlights include two wins for the musical Wicked (Costume and Set Design), the previously mentioned Adrien Brody becoming the first actor to go two for two in Best Actor nominations, having won previously for The Pianist, and I’m Still Here becoming the first Brazilian film to win best international feature. 

The show itself was also different then years past, with comedian Conan O’Brien replacing Jimmy Kimmel as host. This swap greatly increased the general enthusiasm for the program, as many disliked Kimmel as the host. The show also included performances from Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, culminating with the duet “Defying Gravity” from the film. Finally, there was a performance dedicated to James Bond as the leading producers of many of the icons’ film outings recently sold the rights to the special agent character to Amazon. 

This year’s Oscars overall were a success with no egregious snubs or selections (outside of Emilia Perez’s two wins). However the lack of blockbusters nominated, unlike previous years, was very apparent throughout the ceremony, and was shown in the lack of interest for the show overall.