5 reactions to the 2024 Oscar nominations

Mostly great, but a big miss.

The Academy rarely gets it all right. Sometimes, they get nothing right at all. There’s usually one “how in the world” miss that they have when the Oscar nominations are announced. The show may still be a little less than seven weeks away, but let’s get into a few reactions as the analysis and omissions are sorted through.

1.) Oppenheimer rules the day, rightfully

Christopher Nolan created a marvelous film that holds up after a rewatch or two, and stores enough power in its storytelling to rock you down the line when you come across it again. Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, and Robert Downey Jr. were nominated; two of them are favored to win. The unique stamp that Nolan put on this one was the unconventional depiction of the events that took place before the Manhattan Project, the building of the bomb, and the cold blooded aftermath. Like Dunkirk, he mixes and matches the timelines up throughout the running time, seeking a catharsis for the characters.

Celebrating that all around is a solid move, as evidenced by the 13 nominations. Another film should have been right there in nominations, except for a critical miss. Let’s get into my biggest gripe.

2.) No Gerwig for Director

While the brilliance of Barbie was a cumulative effect of several departments and talents, the home base was Greta Gerwig’s brain. Her genius is what spun the tale around our brains and hearts. I didn’t expect the film to punch as hard as it did, and a lot of that credit goes to the filmmaker who threw a helluva spin on a popular toy. Like Lady Bird, she put it all into the picture.

Name me one or two other directors who could have made a film called Barbie feel like that. She’s the composter and conductor rolled into one, a maestro that made us think and wonder about the reality vs fantasy debate we wage in our minds. There’s nothing sexier than an identity crisis.

Yeah, the films we want to see get nominated usually don’t. John Wick: Chapter 4 predictably received none, even if I wanted it to be nominated. But for just about every major awards group to nominate her and see the big show not is a bad miss in my opinion. It was beloved by critics and audiences, not just one. Gerwig is the X-factor.

3.) The Holdovers checks all the big boxes

Alexander Payne’s film scored the serious meat and potatoes nominations: Best Picture, Actor, Best Supporting Actress, screenplay, and editing. Directing would have been nice bow, but the understated film marched to its beat and that’s the good stuff.

Joy Randolph is just about a lock to win, but Paul Giamatti’s soulful take on Professor Paul Hunham has the credits to upset Murphy. Payne’s easygoing, sharply witty, and unconventionally endearing movie was a knockout, so I hope it goes 5-5 like Matt Holliday on a late summer day in 2009. Hope is a beautiful thing, but I think its best chances are in the acting category.

4.) No John Wick: Chapter 4 love

Look, I knew it was a long shot. The Academy’s allergy for female directors also lends itself to the more adventurous brand of cinema. Action films, like legit hardcore comedies, receive little love during awards season. They’re just too noisy. That’s a big part of the reason my overall passion for this time of year has lessened. The older than dirt voting body can’t evolve.

Chad Stahelski, like the Wachowskis with The Matrix, reinvented the action movie with John Wick, and Chapter 4 was a blood drenched yet soulful sequel that brought the running gun plot of the four films to a satisfying close… at least for now. Keanu Reeves doesn’t need an Oscar for his mantle, but I wish Stahelski got recognized for his work.

5.) Good for you, Sterling K. Brown

He was integral to the success of American Fiction, playing the younger brother of Jeffrey Wright’s novelist. Their interactions and roasts of each other are some of the best parts of a the Best Picture candidate. The Olivette native scored a Best Supporting Actor nomination, recognition that he has been elevated Clooney style from being a television star to a movie star. At the very least, someone stealing scenes from the star.

Good for him and for St. Louis born talent.

The Oscars take place on March 10. Have a great night.