By Liam Jean Pierre
This year a “billion people” got to watch the light leave the eyes of Oscar nominees that didn’t quite cut it. Although the validity of the Oscars is annually called into question by some, that doesn’t stop the Academy Awards from raking in over $200 million each year. Conan O’Brien hosted again this year with his signature awkward, self-deprecating style of humor, bringing equal parts comedy, seriousness, and the requisite amount of corniness. But beyond the monologues, the awards themselves told the story of a battle between technical brilliance and pure popularity.
History was made with Sinners being the most nominated film with a total of 16 nominations. One of the nominations was an all-new award for Best Casting Director. After a fierce battle between the critics’ darling One Battle After Another and the people’s favourite Sinners, Best Picture was awarded to the former. One Battle After Another won just a few small Oscars with a total of six golden statuettes to its name. Michael B. Jordan clinched his first Best Lead Actor award over heavy hitters Leonardo DiCaprio and Timothée Chalamet.
The glass ceiling wasn’t just broken, it was shattered. Autumn Durald Arkapaw became both the first woman and the first woman of colour to ever win Best Cinematography. Continuing the night’s streak of women-led triumphs, Jessie Buckley secured Best Lead Actress for the film Hamnet. Hamnet’s ever-eccentric director Chloé Zhao was nominated for Best Director, but lost to Paul Thomas Anderson. For her bewitching performance in Weapons, Amy Madigan won Best Supporting Actress. Kate Hawley won Best Costume Design for her frankly grotesque work on Frankenstein. The first ever recipient for Best Casting Director was Cassandra Kulukundis for bringing together the ensemble of characters in One Battle After Another.
No Academy Award Ceremony is without its controversy. This year may not have had any slaps, but there were definitely a few slips. Conan O’Brien was quick to highlight the lack of British nominees. When he asked a British spokesperson, they cleanly delivered the blow, “Well, at least we arrest our pedophiles.” Later in the night when the crew for KPop Demon Hunters were in the middle of their acceptance speech for Best Animated Feature, the orchestra began playing them off stage. Timothée Chalamet’s contentious statement, “No one cares about [opera and ballet] anymore,” may possibly have been the final nail in his Best Lead Actor coffin, especially in a room full of theater kids. On the topic of actors who distanced themselves, Sean Penn was absent to receive his award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in One Battle After Another. The actor, at the time, was headed to Ukraine, where he was later given an “Oscar” made from a railway damaged by Russian missiles.
As the curtains fall on last year’s cinematic cycle, we are left with a bitter irony: a night that cost $56 million dedicated to the “art” still finds its most viral moments in awkward jokes and controversial snubs. It wasn’t the Sinners sweep we expected, with its record-breaking number of losses, but in Hollywood, a predictable win is rarely as interesting as a well-timed controversy. Change is often glacial, but the Academy is beginning to look a little like the industry it claims to represent.
Best Picture: One Battle After Another
Actress in a leading role: Jessie Buckley, Hamnet
Actor in a leading role: Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Actress in a supporting role: Amy Madigan, Weapons
Actor in a supporting role: Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Adapted Screenplay: One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson
Original Screenplay: Sinners, Ryan Coogler
Documentary Feature: Mr. Nobody Against Putin
Documentary Short: All the Empty Rooms
Animated Feature: KPop Demon Hunters
Animated Short: The Girl Who Cried Pearls
Cinematography: Sinners, Autumn Durald Arkapaw
Costume Design: Frankenstein, Kate Hawley
Film Editing: One Battle After Another, Andy Jurgensen
International Feature: Sentimental Value (Norway)
Live-action Short: Two People Exchanging Saliva, The Singers
Makeup and Hairstyling: Frankenstein, Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey
Original Score: Ludwig Göransson
Original Song: “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters
Production Design: Frankenstein
Sound: F1
Visual Effects: Avatar: Fire and Ash
Casting: One Battle After Another (new award)
