In 2018, filmmakers had a successful year producing iconic movies from Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War,” to the romantic comedy “Crazy Rich Asians” to the Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Following a big year of blockbusters and masterpieces, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released the list of the Oscar nominations Tuesday morning, and the list is full of surprises.
Following last year’s impressive display of best picture nominees, the complete list of nominees for 2019’s best picture award comprise of “Black Panther,” “BlacKkKlansmen,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “The Favourite,” “Green Book,” “Roma,” “A Star is Born” and “Vice.”
Nominations for best actor in a leading role include Christian Bale for playing Dick Cheney in “Vice,” Bradley Cooper in “A Star is Born,” Willem Dafoe in “At Eternity’s Gate,” Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Viggo Mortensen in “Green Book.”
The best actress in a leading role nominations include Yalitza Aparicio in “Roma,” Glenn Close in “The Wife,” Olivia Colman for her role in “The Favourite,” Lady Gaga for her performance in “A Star is Born” and lastly Melissa McCarthy in “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Massive talent is evident in the supporting roles, as the male nominations include former Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali in “Green Book,” Adam Driver in “BlacKkKlansman,” Sam Elliot in “A Star is Born,” Richard E. Grant in “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” and last year’s best actor in a supporting role Sam Rockwell returns for playing George W. Bush in “Vice.”
The nominees for best actress in a supporting role have Amy Adams in “Vice,” Marina de Tavira for her performance in “Roma,” Regina King in the drama “If Beale Street Could Talk” and Oscar winners Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz for their roles in “The Favourite.”
As for the award for achievement in directing, Spike Lee acquired a nomination for his work in “BlacKkKlansman,” Paweł Pawlikowski for “Cold War,” Yorgos Lanthimos’s work in “The Favourite,” Alfonso Cuarón for “Roma” and Adam McKay for “Vice.”
For the best animated feature film, Disney has “Incredibles 2” and “Ralph Breaks the Internet” nominated, Wes Anderson has “Isle of Dogs,” Mamoru Hosoda’s Japanese animated film “Mirai” and the highly-acclaimed “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.”
Netflix’s “Roma” and Yorgos Lanthimos’s “The Favourite” lead the nominees with 10 nominations each as opposed to the 2019 Golden Globes nominations which saw the Dick Cheney biopic “Vice” with six nominations and “The Favourite,” “Green Book” and “A Star is Born” with five nominations each.
“Roma” and “Black Panther” make Oscar history. “Roma” is Netflix’s first film to be nominated for best picture.“Black Panther” goes down in history as the first superhero movie to be nominated for best picture following outstanding praise from an overwhelming amount of the movie’s audiences.
Following the controversy of #OscarsSoWhite in past years, the Academy appears to have presented nominations for films that emphasized diversity. “Black Panther” centers on African-American culture. “BlacKkKlansmen” and “Green Book” concentrate their stories on racism in the past. “Roma” looks into the life of a hispanic maid in the 1970s. “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “The Favourite” delve into Freddie Mercury’s (Rami Malek) homosexuality and the lesbian love triangle between Queen Anne (Olivia Colman), Sarah (Rachel Weisz) and Abigail (Emma Stone), respectively.
Although the movies listed are undoubtedly quality to some degree, some people may argue that other films were snubbed in certain categories.
The highly-praised drama “If Beale Street Could Talk” did not secure a best picture nomination despite only eight movies being in the category rather than the usual 10. It was nominated for a Golden Globe for best Motion picture – drama.
Some people believe that “A Star is Born” deserved more nominations. Bradley Cooper was not included in either best director nor best actor in a leading role, in spite of receiving those nominations for the Golden Globes.
Even with a nomination for best supporting actor for both a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award, Timothée Chalamet did not manage to attain an Oscar nomination for his performance in “Beautiful Boy.”
Regardless of all the snubs, it is worth mentioning those who received their first Oscar nominations.
As for actors and actresses, numerous performers including Rami Malek, Lady Gaga, Olivia Colman, Yalitza Aparicio, Marina de Tavira, Regina King, Sam Elliot and Adam Driver have been recognized for their talent.
The 91st Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, Feb. 24 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. It will be presented on ABC at 8 p.m. eastern standard time.
The full list of nominations can be found on the Oscars website.
Jude Infante is a campus correspondent for The Daily Campus. He can be reached via email at jude.infante@uconn.edu.
