With the industry recovering from last year’s dual strikes, we were destined for an unusual crop of films celebrated at theAcademy Awards, at least unusual in relation to past years. Not only are esoteric, genre-crossing films likeEmilia PérezandAnoraBest Picture nominees, but they are also serious contenders to walk away on March 2nd with the top prize. You know it’s a bizarre Oscar season when a farcical, body horror satire inThe Substanceis receiving top-level consideration in the acting and directing categories. Perhaps this off-kilter Best Picture lineup, which also includes under-the-radar, word-of-mouthcritical darlings likeNickel BoysandI’m Still Here, is a sign of the changing of the guards. At the very least,the Best Director lineup, which features five first-time nominees, the first time this has occurred in 27 years, shows that we don’t have to keep relying on the old masters to protect the sanctity of cinema.
Voter Expansion and Diversification Has Led to New Voices Represented at the Oscars
For nearly 100 years, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been built upon tradition. Considering that the awards body is the most prestigious and well-renowned celebrator of the cinematic art form in the world, relying on legacy is an advantageous strategy. After so many years of familiar styles of movies and performances recognized by the Oscars,derisively known as “Oscar-bait,“that contrasted with audience taste, the voting body was due for a shakeup, especially with rampant accusations of racial bias in their voting patterns. Asvoters have expanded and diversifiedover the last decade,the honorees have not always been smash hits or undeniable crowd-pleasers, but rather, artfully minded, intimate dramas released by smaller studios like A24 and Neon.
This year’sBest Director lineup, which includesJacques AudiardforEmilia Pérez,Sean BakerforAnora,Brady CorbetforThe Brutalist,Coralie FargeatforThe Substance, andJames MangoldforA Complete Unknown, reflects the Academy’s new tastes. Not only are these five all first-time nominees, but their respective films (minus Mangold’s familiar music biopic), appeal to more arthouse sensibilities. The strange, off-kilter tones and subjects of four of the five movies share the kindred spirits ofpast Best Picture winners, likeMoonlight,Nomadland, andEverything Everywhere All At Once, whose odds of winning the award in any other era were infeasible.
1998 Also Saw 5 First Time Nominees For Best Director
This is not the first time the Best Director lineup has been headlined by Oscar rookies.At the 70th Academy Awards, during the 1997-98 awards season, the category featured five first-timers,some who would be elevated to a new pantheon of prestige, while others were indie darlings who attained mainstream recognition. The category, which honoredPeter CattaneoforThe Full Monty,Atom EgoyanforThe Sweet Hereafter,Curtis HansonforL.A. Confidential,Gus Van SantforGood Will Hunting, and winnerJames CameronforTitanic, was an eclectic group and highlights the potential of the Academy’s positive influence on cinema. Cattaneo (who made his feature film debut withThe Full Monty), Egoyan, and Van Sant were indie filmmakers with distinct voices and worldviews who received an immediate bump in public adoration. Hanson, a reliable genre journeyman, was finally rewarded for his impeccable craft. Cameron, after years of being a box office champion, was crowned king of the world bydirecting the highest-grossing movie of all timeupon release and an undisputed modern classic.
To the chagrin of casual viewers who implore the Academy to give a platform to more populous-minded films, this year’s Best Director lineup is light on star power, especially compared to last year’s slate, which includedMartin ScorseseandChristopher Nolan.The Oscars shouldn’t be a popularity contest, and the awards body is a vital tool for increasing the public’s awareness and curiosity about lesser-known but thoughtful films.Sean Baker and Jacques Audiard, two Palme d’Or-winning filmmakers, have been producingbold, idiosyncratic workfor years, and this platform will inspire more viewers to seek out their previous films.The BrutalistandThe Substance, a European-influenced, 3+ hour epic about the disillusionment of the American, and a grisly body-horror film about societal alienation and insecurity, should not have crossed into the mainstream, but their word-of-mouth popularity is a testament to the visions of Brady Corbet and Coralie Fargeat. As for James Mangold, a rock-solid,versatile studio filmmaker for decades,A Complete Unknownshows how the slightest touch by a veteran director can turn a familiar music biopic into something more emotionally resonant.
In addition to being all first-time nominees,each Best Director candidate has a writing credit for their respective films, which speaks to the Academy’s increased interest in auteurs with total control of their vision. While they may not be household names, there’s no denying the autonomous, distinct creative control of these nominees for five unique cinematic expressions.
Anora follows a young sex worker from Brooklyn who impulsively marries the son of a Russian oligarch, igniting a potential fairy tale. Upon learning of the union, his influential parents travel to New York to annul the marriage, jeopardizing her unexpected chance at a new beginning.
