The 96th Oscars came to an end. " Oppenheimer " won the best picture, and Christopher Nolan won the best director. This was also his first statuette. Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. won the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor respectively for this film. There is no suspense.
The only surprise was that Emma Stone defeated the popular candidate Lily Gladstone and won the Best Actress. This may also be a small step taken by this Oscar to resist "political correctness".
After the decline of "superhero" movies, actors began to return to traditional films. "Iron Man" Robert Downey Jr., "The Hulk" Mark Ruffalo, and "Rocket Raccoon" Bradley Cooper were all nominated at this Oscar, which can be described as a collective explosion of Marvel actors.
This year's Oscars have also returned to a moderate balance. The nominated films include both high-grossing films such as "Oppenheimer" and " Barbie ", as well as niche films such as "Zone of Interest" and "The Trial of the Fall". , as well as "Poor Thing" and "American Novel" that provoke the audience's nerves in form or thought.
In last night's "Southern Weekend Video Account" live broadcast, four film critics Ma Jiahui , Hao Jian, Zhou Liming, and Xiang Yang made a detailed analysis of this year's Oscars. Let's break it down one by one.
Best Film: "Oppenheimer"
"Oppenheimer" has been praised too much. The ideological and artistic aspects are all online, the entertainment and technical aspects are also strong, and the commercial box office is so good. This is a long-awaited Oscar that will only appear after many years.
Ma Jiahui: First of all, from the perspective of the craftsmanship of the film itself, "Oppenheimer" is very outstanding. From preparing the music, to handling the subject matter, to the final presentation, every aspect was passed. Of course, movie reviews are like literary reviews, there are no absolutely objective standards, but if we reluctantly add up the scores for each item, the result is it.
Secondly, from the perspective of the judges, this character and this theme can also hit the Oscar judges. In the movie, Oppenheimer's biggest struggle is justice. How do we view this justice and how do we view his change? This is also in line with the jury's concerns.
Zhou Liming: "Oppenheimer" is a moderate result after considering various factors. Moderation is not a compliment in life, but it is in line with the traditional positioning of the Oscars. The main feature of the Oscars that is different from the three major European film festivals is that it does not necessarily select a film with the highest artistic achievement, but it hopes to select a film with the highest artistic achievement. A film that is acceptable to all parties.
Unfortunately, in the past decade or so, the Oscars have become farther and farther away from this traditional positioning. They often go off the beaten path and select some inexplicable best films.
Xiangyang: This shows that the Oscars are also evolving. Maybe a new generation of Oscar judges has appeared, and their voting results may undergo some changes.
are all based on real stories. "Oppenheimer" won, and " Killers of the Flower Moon " lost. The two can be compared.
Xiangyang: "Oppenheimer" has a higher degree of completion than "Killers of the Flower Moon". In the end, Oppenheimer opposed the development of the hydrogen bomb. He offended the official position of the United States, so whether he revoked his license or held a hearing on him, in fact, it was a manifestation of official pressure and collective evil. .
The biggest problem with "Killers of the Flower Moon" is that it does not fully present the collective evil that white people have towards Indians. At that time, the white people drove the Indians from Kansas to Oklahoma, and then to the most remote corner of Oklahoma. Miraculously, there was oil in this remote corner. After oil became available, the Indians were once again excluded, driven out, and murdered by white people. This part of the film did not explain enough.
I originally had great hopes for "Killers of the Flower Moon". I am quite disgusted with the evil of the early founding of the United States. It expanded to the west, and the devastating killings of Indians in the middle were terrible.Moreover, the source of the movie is a true story. I originally thought it would be very powerful, but the emotion it aroused in me was not that strong.
Best Director: Christopher Nolan "Oppenheimer"
Nolan deserved to win the Best Director. If I really want to find a thorn in my side, it's that ""Oppenheimer" lacks something emotionally touching." This is also a point that Nolan is often criticized for. All levels are high, and the only shortcoming is the presentation of emotions.
Zhou Liming: The best director of must be Nolan. Among all the awards, other awards may be affected by the judges and be more or less misaligned, but the best director will not be. That is the final result. Even if "Oppenheimer" didn't win the best picture, Nolan should still win the best director. This is the same as "Brokeback Mountain" and "Saving Private Ryan". Although they didn't win the best picture, they won the best director. Director, his weight is no less than the best film.
Xiangyang: Each of us may have different levels of standards when watching movies. Each of us may have prejudices, prejudices, and professional vision. To be honest, although "Oppenheimer" has a very high degree of completion, the inner emotion it aroused in me is not that strong. Maybe I am too familiar with this history and this process.
Zhou Liming : I agree with this, and this is where Nolan has been criticized by many people. Like Spielberg, he can move people emotionally, but Nolan seems not to be able to. Nolan's skills are very high, entertaining enough, and the box office is good enough, but he just lacks some emotional things, except for " interstellar" Traveling through 》.
Xiangyang: Yes, the ending of "Interstellar" is quite touching.
Best Actor: Cillian Murphy "Oppenheimer"
Cillian Murphy won the Best Actor, which was expected. Cillian Murphy's performance is good and the character has depth. The only thing is that the layer changes of the character are a little thin. Therefore, it has also been suggested that Bradley Cooper ("Music Master") should not be ignored.
Ma Jiahui: Some roles are one-stop. It’s not that the actor can’t perform well, it’s that the persona itself is like this, so the challenges and requirements for actors are not that complicated. If the character itself has many different levels and the actor can perform well on each level, then he will have an advantage.
Zhou Liming: Although I don’t agree with the direction of the script of "Music Master", the character created by Bradley Cooper completely disappeared into the character. In fact, the entire film is held up by his performance.
Xiangyang: Yes, this film has its strengths and weaknesses. It has a somewhat documentary-style plot and performance. At first I didn’t recognize it was Bradley Cooper.
Hao Jian: I still think Cillian Murphy far surpasses Bradley Cooper. Just facing Nolan's big shots and close-ups, if it weren't for Murphy, most people wouldn't be able to bear it. In addition, Oppenheimer played by Murphy can make people feel the beating of his heart, his guilt, and his inner struggle about using the atomic bomb, which are repeatedly shown in the movie.
Best Actress: Emma Stone "Poor Thing"
"Poor Thing" is a cult female film, bold and avant-garde, Emma Stone is also very big in it, appears naked, crazy Make love, no holds barred. In terms of performance alone, whether Emma Stone ("Poor Thing") or Sandra Wheeler ("The Fall") wins for Best Actress is actually controversial.
Xiangyang: For the best female lead in , I would choose between Sandra Wheeler and Emma Stone. At first glance, the role played by Emma Stone is very rich. The adult plays the role of a child, with many emotional changes, but I think Sandra Wheeler's delicate emotional level is much stronger than Emma Stone. To put it bluntly, "Poor Things" is sci-fi, brutal, dark, but ultimately still a fairy tale.
Hao Jian: "Poor Thing" is not a simple fairy tale, it is a cult women's movie. Various elements are mixed in it, with a seamless transition between disgusting and interesting. It is impossible to classify it. I originally thought that "Barbie" was the most popular and avant-garde thing this year, the most cross-dressing thing, and the most complicated thing. But after watching "Poor Thing", I found that it is much more complicated than "Barbie".
So, I gave the best actress to Emma Stone. If it were not Emma Stone, I would give a negative review to each of the Oscar judges.
Zhou Liming: For the best female protagonist in , I choose Sandra Wheeler. I saw a very real portrayal of women in "Judgment of the Fall." This heroine is very likely to be the criminal, but the film refuses to give a clear answer. This is also the most remarkable thing about the film, refusing to give the audience a God's perspective.
Ma Jiahui: As Brother Liming said, the audience does not have God’s perspective. The design of Sandra Wheeler's character in the film allowed her to perform this ambiguous gray part. Sometimes a look or an expression makes people think that she is the murderer. Otherwise, why would some things between husband and wife not be told earlier? After the husband died, he would not tell the police, but only later at a certain point. She mastered these subtle expressions and struggling emotions very well.
Hao Jian: I am not interested in using the life of a writer, director, and screenwriter to create a very clever story like "The Falling Judgment."
In addition, if Sandra Wheeler wins Best Actress, there will be a very interesting phenomenon, that is, she is not only starring in "The Fall of the Trial", I think at least half of the factor is that she also starred in "Region of Interest". If I were asked to choose one film for the best actress between "Profit Zone" and "Falling Judgment", I would give "Profit Zone". Lily Gladstone, the favorite in the
forward-looking award, was not selected. Her acting skills are very good, but this character lacks the arc of humanity. From the noble appearance to the departure, there is no trace of the entanglement of being a human being. But such a sculptural character has won many awards in The Outpost, and many people predicted in advance that she would become "the first Native American to win the Best Actress."
Zhou Liming: I have read a lot of Western reports, and few judges really love the subject matter of "Killers of the Flower Moon" and this film. They thought the film was well shot and the degree of completion was very high, but they didn't say it really moved me.
On the one hand, this may be because Martin Scorsese is getting older and has lost the momentum and energy of his youth. On the other hand, the current creative environment in the West does not allow him, or in other words, makes him afraid to do this kind of excavation. For example, every white person is different, and Indians are victims as a whole, but they are also different individually. But in "Killers of the Flower Moon", we don't see this kind of presentation. What we see is a rough depiction, and this depiction is based on political correctness.
I think behind this, there is a subtext that no one says, which is called white skill in English, white people’s sense of guilt. Those white judges and white filmmakers have a strong sense of guilt when dealing with this subject, and they bring it into their creations, which is a bit fatal.
Today, the Oscar went against the trend and awarded the Best Actress to Emma Stone. Does this mean that these so-called political correctness has also begun to cause rebellion?
Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr. "Oppenheimer"
In "Oppenheimer", General Strauss, played by Robert Downey Jr., has a good relationship with Oppenheimer on the surface, but secretly It is full of jealousy and malice. Being able to break a deeply rooted character like Iron Man and perform a quietly bad character is Robert Downey Jr.'s skill.
Zhou Liming: I agree with Robert Downey Jr., he completely disappeared in the role of General Strauss, although the role itself does not have much span.
In addition, the contrast between this and the Iron Man he once starred in is huge, which is also a plus point for Robert Downey Jr.Including Bradley Cooper, he became famous by acting in nonsensical comedies, which are particularly out of tune. Now he suddenly directs and acts in some serious films, which will make people think, wow, this person is so different.
Xiang Yang: All the stars from Marvel this year have gathered together to do more in-depth role-playing. Mark Ruffalo in "Poor Things" was once the Hulk in "Avengers". He impressed me very deeply this time, even more than Robert De Niro ("Killers of the Flower Moon"). Better than Robert Downey Jr.
Best Supporting Actress: Damien Joy Randolph "Stay in School"
Among all the early predictions, Best Supporting Actress and Best Director are the least suspenseful. But what is a little different from Nolan winning the best director is that many people don't seem to be so impressed by Damien Joy Randolph's performance in "Stay." In terms of role performance alone, she can't even say she overpowered other nominees, such as Emily Blunt ("Oppenheimer") and Jodie Foster ("Ned") She won all the Vision Awards by herself, and finally won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. There was no other candidate. why?
Hao Jian: Watching "Stay in School" always reminds me of films such as "Dead Poets Society" and "Spring of the Cowherd". As for the supporting actress, I didn't pay much attention to her before, and the movie went by smoothly.
Zhou Liming: The director Alexander Payne also directed a "Sideways" (2004) before. If you like "Sideways" you will also like "The Staycation". It is a very old-school movie. It imagines that we can return to the 1970s and have a particularly innocent and intimate relationship between teachers and students. It is very flavorful. .
is an actress. I don’t deny that she is good at acting, but there is another important reason (for winning the award), and that is her figure. Now (Hollywood), if you are a plus-size actor and you say you don’t lose weight, that is politically correct.
Best Original Screenplay: "The Falling Trial"
The movie is about a family of three living in a remote mountainous area. Suddenly one day, the husband was found to have fallen from a building and died outside the house. Was it suicide or murder? Police open fall trial against wife. The director refused to give a God's perspective, and until I watched the entire film, I couldn't be sure whether the wife had killed her husband.
Zhou Liming: Among these 10 nominated films, my personal favorite is "Falling Judgment". It uses the formula of a commercial genre film, that is, a suspenseful court trial, but in fact, it is a profound reflection on gender and a serious exploration of marriage relationships. Moreover, in this process, the director only presented without taking sides, nor gave any God's perspective, which is very rare.
In the past two years, there were many female-themed or feminist films, all of which wanted to be made into cool movies, but this film refused to be a cool movie. The recording of the couple's quarrel in the movie is as exciting as "Marriage Story" (2019) starring Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver.
Best Adapted Screenplay: "American Novel"
"American Novel" is very avant-garde in terms of ideology. The male protagonist is a black novelist. He refused to be miserable and no one cared about him when he was writing. In anger, he wrote a novel that catered to public stereotypes. The superficial black novel that I had an impression of turned out to be an award-winning novel, a big hit, and was even adapted into a movie. The entire film is an unflinching satire on the hypocrisy of white dominance. It's quite surprising that a film like this can advance to the Oscars.
Xiangyang: "American Novel" is an enjoyable film, and it was quite enjoyable to watch.
Hao Jian: uses humor to deconstruct a lot of the pressure of political correctness.
Zhou Liming: I am a little rebellious against the so-called political correctness in some Western circles, so I felt very happy when I watched this movie. Moreover, I also encountered the experience of the male protagonist in the movie in the United States, and it resonated strongly with me. But if it is the target of criticism, like the female judge of the novel in the film, it may be very unpleasant to watch.But such people are unhappy after watching it, and the purpose of this film has been achieved. It is actually a film that goes against the trend.
Best international film: "Zone of Interest"
In the past, such themes mostly started from the side of suffering, but "Zone of Interest" uses a perspective outside the wall to present the indifference of human nature: on this side of the wall is a peaceful family of an officer. The comfortable pastoral life, the hostess loves gardening, and the yard is full of red flowers and green willows, which is very comfortable; on the other side of the wall is the inhumane massacre at Auschwitz concentration camp, the fire is burning, and various sounds are faintly heard. Does the hostess know what's going on on the other side?
Zhou Liming: Maybe she knows it subconsciously, but she is resisting the truth. Being able to experience this, to a certain extent, experiences the banality of evil. This refers to the fact that many people will not do evil with their own hands, but they see the evil happening around them and pretend not to see it. .
In addition, the male protagonist Rudolf Hoss was obviously one of the leaders of the massacre, but when he finally walked down the stairs, he suddenly made a loud retching sound. This retching sound is the highlight of the whole film.
Hao Jian: I have to make an analogy. This retching sound is a bit like the secret agent in "The Eavesdropping Storm" who withheld the eavesdropping report that was handed in. In my opinion, what the director wanted to express was that Rudolf Hoss knew that he was doing evil. Whether you say he was afraid or you said he was under mental pressure, the director gave him this.
Zhou Liming: In many movies, going down the stairs is like going to hell. He is going to hell morally, but deep down in his heart, there may still be a trace of humanity. He is a devil, but not a mask. He is a living person. He regards the evil he has done and witnessed as normal, but he is not the same from beginning to end.
In addition to the in-depth presentation of "evil", the sound design of the movie is also outstanding. Watching it with the sound on and watching it with the sound off are almost two different movies.
Ma Jiahui: "Area of Interest" If you don't listen to the sound, you can fast forward to finish it. But you can only know the story, but you can't feel it. The feeling part of the movie is not accomplished through dialogue and story, but through sounds and images.
Here is the full list of winners:
Best Picture: "Oppenheimer"
Best Director: Christopher Nolan, "Oppenheimer"
Best Actor: Cillian Murphy, "Oppenheimer" 》
Best Actress: Emma Stone, "Poor Thing"
Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr., "Oppenheimer"
Best Supporting Actress: Damien Joy Randolph, "Remain" School Alliance"
Best Original Screenplay: "The Trial of the Fall"
Best Adapted Screenplay: "American Novel"
Best International Film: "Zone of Interest"
Best Animated Feature Film: "What Kind of Life Do You Want to Live"
Best Documentary Feature: "20 Days in Mariupol"
Best Editing: "Oppenheimer"
Best Cinematography: "Oppenheimer"
Best Visual Effects: "Godzilla-1.0"
Best Sound: "Area of Interest"
Best Art Direction: "Poor Things"
Best Costume Design: "Poor Things"
Best Makeup and Hairstyling: "Poor Things"
Best Original Score: "Oppenheimer"
Best Original Song: what was i made for? "Barbie"
Best Animated Short Film: "The War is Over!" Inspired by the music of Lennon and Yoko"
Best Live Action Short Film: "The Amazing Story of Henry Sugar"
Best Documentary Short Film: "The Last Repair Shop"
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Editor-in-Chief Chen Lingling
