Movies
My Rankings Of The Five Nominees For Best Original Screenplay
My Thoughts & Rankings On The Five Nominees For Best Original Screenplay
No. 5
Maestro
Maestro is the only one of the five nominations that I do not have in my own personal nominations at this point of publishing. For myself, Bradley Cooper’s passion project doesn’t thrive in the dialogue or story, it instead sings with its visuals and music. There are a few scenes where Cooper and Carey Mulligan have moments of gusto and the script cooks, but those are fleeting clips and not permeated throughout.
The best scene in the movie is the Ely Cathedral scene and that is all Cooper’s acting and the camera moving to the sound. It’s goosebump inducing, but there are barely any words spoken. Unlike other nominations on this list where non-dialogue is a deliberate choice to further the story or the characters, Maestro tends to have these quiet moments to let the actors cook.
Maestro is still a very good movie. It’s not a knock on the movie to say its screenplay isn’t its strongest component.
Bradley Cooper and Josh Singer are the two individuals nominated. He won Best Original Screenplay back in 2016 for Spotlight (2015). Cooper has 12 Oscar nominations now but he has not won anything yet. In terms of screenplay nominations, Cooper has been nominated twice now, the other being A Star Is Born (2018) at the 2019 awards.
All in all, Maestro is nominated for seven Academy Awards.
No. 4
The Holdovers
Director Alexander Payne, writer David Hemingson and Paul Giamatti are made for each other. The humor written into The Holdovers is dark, and the relationship between Paul Hunham and Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa) blossoms like a hilarious flower. Their disdain and frenemy relationship evolving into one of mutual respect is admirable for the amount of shots they take at one another.
The Holdovers as a movie manages to be a happy movie despite having some remarkably awful characters. Where the screenplay thrives is in the moments of panic amongst all the sentimental and mean moments. When Angus breaks his arm, well that’s one of the funniest things to happen in movies this year.
David Hemingson has been nominated for his first Academy award. The most insane thing is that this is Hemingson’s first major motion picture project. He has done a lot of television, most recently being Whiskey Cavalier.
All in all, Maestro is nominated for five Academy Awards.
No. 3
Anatomy Of A Fall
Writer and director Justine Triet teamed with Arthur Harari are the writers for Anatomy Of A Fall, both of whom have garnered their first Oscar nominations.
What’s most appreciated is how the two simply don’t dilly dally trying to teach you about the French judicial system. And nor should it be seeing how it’s based out of France, but it’s a testament to the screenplay that even if you have no idea of the normal judicial process, the movie is still more than easy enough to follow.
The screenplay also makes the rather daring choice of not giving the audience a clear answer at its conclusion. We don’t know if Sandra Voyter is innocent or guilty. Actress Sandra Hüller didn’t even know her character’s verdict when playing the part. She was told to play it as innocent, but she was never told by Triet or Harari if she was truly innocent or not.
Perhaps the child being blind and its symbolism of the justice system is a little bit on the nose, but the character plays a worthwhile part in the story and isn’t just a birdie in a badminton game.
Speaking for myself, if you have fast talking courtroom scenes, I am going to be intrigued. Anatomy Of A Fall also has plenty of that.
All in all, Anatomy Of A Fall is nominated for five Academy Awards.
No. 2
May December
I can’t stop thinking about May December. It is one of those movies that sticks in your crawl and forces you to ask some unflattering questions. The more you read into May December, the funnier the story becomes, and that is so twisted to think about. Natalie Portman’s portrayal of Elizabeth is a web of weird dark comedy. An actress playing the part of an actress who thinks she is a serious actress but in reality the whole thing is a parity of over-serious actors as a whole.
The only redeemable character in May December is Charles Melton, who plays the part of Joe Yoo. The way that Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik show the youth in Joe without words is most admirable. The scene on the roof with his son is sad, and the post sex behavior with Elizabeth is cringe “oh I’ve been there before”. It’s all brutal and sad to watch, but the performances in the movie make it a easy recommendation for people.
Burch and Mechanik are both walking the red carpet at the Academy Awards for the first time. It may not be the last because each of these men have less than 10 writing credits. They are young, and work confidants. Burch and Mechanik have worked together before on shorts All You Can Eat and Crown Prince, so having your first major motion picture screenplay get nominated is pretty fucking exciting.
May December was nominated for just one Academy Award.
No.1
Past Lives
Can one give an Academy Award just for its opening scene? Past Lives opens with a ghost POV shot of Nora, Hae Sung and Arthur hanging out at the bar. It is the public’s perception of their unique relationships to one another, and it shows that nobody can quite pin down who means what to someone without having the proper context.
The way that Past Lives makes a romantic story out of nostalgia and hypotheticals is insightful and deeply personal. The duality that Past Lives vibrates in highlights how people can constantly wonder “what if?”. When the comfortability of home arrives out of the blue and smacks you in the face, how would you react? When the excitement of change walks up to you in the park, would you be able to think rationally?
The ending gets a ton of credit, and rightfully so. It’s gorgeous. But There is one other scene that sticks in my brain more than any other. The dialogue written by Celine Song in the bathroom catch-up scene between Nora and her husband Arthur is outstanding stuff. It’s the real world, contemplative. It’s a relationship where Arthur knows that Nora needs to talk this out with herself because he can’t relate to the battle waging inside her head.
Past Lives was nominated for two total Academy Awards.
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