James Cameron remembers what it was like to have the most-nominated film of its year. He made “Titanic,” you know. He also made the first “Avatar,” which tied in 2010′s Oscar nomination field with “The Hurt Locker,” directed by Kathryn Bigelow, one of his ex-wives, and which went on to win best picture.
But this year is not like those years.
It’s a foolish stretch to say Hollywood has changed greatly. Enough talent of color, and talent not male, was overlooked in the 95th Academy Awards nominations to get millions of heads shaking, especially over the directorial picks. But it is changing, a bit, and maybe the Oscars are, too, in their two-steps-forward, one-back-and-three-sideways way, judging from the nominations announced Tuesday morning.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once,” a rollicking, discombobulating and finally heartwarming science-fiction fantasy utterly different from Cameron’s “Avatar” sequel, tops this year’s list with 11 nominations. Unlike “Avatar: The Way of Water,” one of its best picture competitors, it is crammed with digital-effects world building but populated by, you know, people. Not set in a cinematic aquarium.
With nine nominations including best picture, the latest adaptation of the World War I novel “All Quiet on the Western Front” presents itself as a potential spoiler. Depending on the ranked-ballot voting of the approximate 10,000 academy members, a well-regarded, narratively straightforward title such as “The Banshees of Inisherin” also has a shot at the top prize. It’s likely a lot of people’s solid second choice of the 10 vying for best picture.
Or maybe it’s “The Fabelmans” I’m talking about. Or, I don’t know, “Top Gun: Maverick”? Tuesday morning quarterbacking recalls what the studio mogul hollers in the 1930 Kaufman and Hart Hollywood satire “Once in a Lifetime”: “That’s the way we do things here! No time wasted on thinking!”
Here are 10 thoughts so far on the 95th running of the bull called Oscar.
1. Big jump in Asian American representation: With acting nominations for Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu and Ke Huy Quan (”Everything Everywhere”) as well as Hong Chau (”The Whale”), this is significant. There’s also producing and co-directing nods for “Everything Everywhere’s” Daniel Kwan. Just don’t call it a sea change until we get a little closer to the 100th Academy Awards ceremony five years from now.
2. Possible first wins: For Angela Bassett’s imposing, queenly farewell to the “Black Panther” franchise (”Wakanda Forever”). With a nomination for actress in a supporting role, she’s among many other potential first-time winners in the four acting categories. Which would be lovely, but …
3. Black actors and actresses shut out of the leading-role categories: I was rooting especially for the inclusion of Danielle Deadwyler (”Till”), but the Academy instead went for the eleventh hour, self-propelled nomination campaign waged by the excellent Andrea Riseborough, star of the British drama “To Leslie.” Also …
4. The Ana de Armas “Blonde” nomination: This, along with many other nominations this year, points directly to the increasing influence of the academy’s global membership: Plenty of Oscar pundits called this one, along with the strong nomination showing of the divisive Ruben Östlund social satire “Triangle of Sadness.” But even more conspicuously …
5. A very noisy “All Quiet on the Western Front”: Nine nominations! Now streaming on Netflix, this latest telling of the anti-war story makes the four nominations garnered by the 1930 “All Quiet” (which won best picture that year) look pretty pale. This, too, may be a direct result of the international voters’ preferences. Now, more American viewers will check it out. Could it go all the way?
6. You can still follow the money: Screenwriter William Goldman came up with the line “follow the money” for “All the President’s Men,” and what’s true in political corruption holds true for Oscar nominations. Would we see “Everything Everywhere” so heavily nominated if the film hadn’t made a considerable profit on its modest budget? If “The Way of Water” and “Top Gun: Maverick” hadn’t broken the billion-dollar barrier, would they be in the best picture nomination bracket? Why am I even using question marks? If a hit such as “Elvis” grabs a clutch of nominations, does one of them really have to be best editing, when clearly it’s a contender for “most conspicuous and nervous editing,” not “best”? Now and then, I really wouldn’t mind if …
7. What if Oscar nominations shocked us by recognizing films that didn’t get the business they deserved? I’m thinking of “Till,” or “Nanny,” or “Saint Omer” (which didn’t get an international feature nod). Or any number of others.
8. On the other hand … it’s very good to see Paul Mescal nominated for “Aftersun.” If only his director-writer, Charlotte Wells, had been nominated as well. Also very good to see “Women Talking” in the best-picture ranks, and screenwriter-director Sarah Polley in the adapted screenplay lineup.
9. You know who’s not a first-time nominee? John Williams. For his atypically unassuming contribution to director/co-writer Steven Spielberg’s “The Fabelmans,” the composer has secured his 53rd nomination. He’s the most-nominated living human. Which is 53 more than …
10. “Nope”: Jordan Peele’s thriller was shut out of the nominations.
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