The Felix: Alternate Oscar Blog: 2023

This was a movie I adored on its release and was happy for its Oscar win. It wound up a close second for the Felix.

Beauty's story centers around Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) and his midlife explosion. Lester is seemingly living the life, with a family, a good job, a nice house... but under the surface, he's stagnating, powerless, and underappreciated. When I first saw the picture, I locked in on Burnham, however, watching it again -with eyes wide open- I was even more impressed with it on the whole. Just like Lester eventually does, I saw the big picture. Annette Benning's character, for example, was more understandable and I became a bit more sympathetic towards her.

Alan Ball's script tears the facade from this suburban neighborhood and reveals its true face. Sam Mendes direction is concise, there's not an ounce of fat on this movie (unlike many directors, Mendes will cut and cut and cut, until he captures a story's truest essence. This caused concern among writers, producers and the studio heads at DreamWorks, who were worried he was editing out too much). It's astute and has a cutting sardonic wit. There are elements of farce (which works for some, fails for others). It can be visually arresting (the scene where the roses spring from the cheerleader's chest), Conrad Hall's cinematography is all about the details - the lighting, reflection, and painterly red. The distinct score from Thomas Newman eschews traditional conceits and adds much to the personality of the film.

As for the paper bag that trips up some viewers? I was an art student; I once stared at a rusted old pipe where a glint of sunlight caught a bubble of dew. I thought it was beautiful. Filming a bag floating around and seeing something profound in it is something I can relate to. (An old GF called this trait my "Quirky ways", lol. So, I can understand why some might find it weird)

The ending is poignant – at the point of seduction Lester's dream girl says something that opens his eyes. He sees her for what she is – not a Goddess, not an object to possess - but an insecure, uncertain kid. Throughout the movie, he has been about feeding his specific wants and desires. Until finally, he sees the bigger landscape - and what emerges from that is perceptive and moving.

Back to 1999

TÁR (Director: Todd Field)
Nominees: The Banshees of Inisherin, Decision to Leave, Women Talking, The Quiet Girl, The Northman, The Batman, Return to Seoul, Godland, Joyland

Oscars pick: Everything Everywhere All at Once
Nominees: TÁR, The Banshees of Inisherin, The Fablemans, All Quiet on the Western Front, Avatar: The Way of Water, Elvis, Top Gun: Maverick, Triangle of Sadness, Women Talking

TÁR is measured, but not boring - like music, it has a certain tempo, metre, and note values that are suitable and right for such a tale. At the start we meet the title character, a respected conductor, during an interview, is this moment dull or dry, not to me, I was riveted, even by the things I didn't completely understand, I was pulled immediately into this world, fascinated by this person, and I appreciate that the filmmakers didn't 'dumb it down', that it respects the intelligence of the viewer, even when it becomes academic. In this scene, Blanchett's Lydia Tár comes off controlled, practiced, but still passionate... and as the film moves towards its finish, that control slips, and we see the person underneath the veneer. It's an astonishing transformation from a great actor who continues to show that there are no limits to her talent.

Along with exploring who she is as a maestro, there's the matter of Lydia's personal life and a secret that haunts her. Did she have a hand in the death of a former protégé, was that protégé obsessed with her, or is Lydia a predator, who groomed, then decarded and blacklisted her? When word gets out about her behavior and her part in this tragedy, Tár's fall is swift and humiliating (the neighbors knock on her door, not to fawn over her as she expects, but to complain about the noise). But still the music thrives, it's in her blood, no matter where or for whom it shared.

Feild also brings in that aged old question of separating the art from the artist, and he comes at it from both angles. It's a subject Spencer Kornhaber covers quite well in his superb piece for The Atlantic.

And what about the -perhaps- supernatural qualities, as Dan Kois puts forth in his article for Slate? If you consider the discussion and debates on what it all means, what it's trying to say, you discover a rather, Last Year at Marienbad vibe to it, where all interpretations are valid (and equally invalid) and the lack of concrete absolutes are an asset. So, is she being haunted, is everything all in her mind from the point where she falls after running from the dog? Is she actually in a coma at the hospital, did she die, and this is her personal hell?

Whatever angle I come at it, TÁR got under my skin, it made me think and ask questions and argue with myself. I still can't get it out of my head. While there were a couple of close contenders, this is the one I come back to, and reflect upon again and again. A movie that does that, has to be my Best Picture.

An MUBI interview with Todd Field

Oscars? I didn't watch them. I knew what was going to take all the major prizes, and it was for a flick I flat out disliked. And that's all I have to say about that.

My Top Films of 2022

🎭 Acting - Cate Blanchett becomes my first 4-time winner (surpassing 3 timer Jimmy Stewart). I also awarded a pair from Inisherin - Condon was a first-time nom and win, Gleeson has long been a favorite (this was his 5th nomination), so I'm very happy to finally give him an award (though yes, he's right on that co-lead line). The only truly tough choice was at actor, with Park and Colin in a dead heat.

Other performances I admired this year include... Zoë Kravitz (Batman, Kimi), Dale Dickey (A Love Song), Claire Rushbrook (Ali & Ava), Brian Tyree Henry (Causeway), Andrea Riseborough (To Leslie), Danielle Deadwyler (Till), Florence Pugh (The Wonder), Catherine Clinch (The Quiet Girl), Margot Robbie (Babylon), Bárbara Lennie (God’s Crooked Lines), Kristine Kujath Thorp (Sick of Myself), Raffiella Chapman (Vesper), Gracija Filipović (Murina), Hazel Doupe (You Are Not My Mother), Sally Hawkins (The Lost King), Claire Foy and the cast of Women Talking

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, TÁR

Honorable Mentions:

Haley Lu Richardson, Montana Story * Siiri Solalinna, Hatching * Ana de Armas, Blonde * Viola Davis, Woman King * Tang Wei, Decision to Leave * Park Ji-min, Return to Seoul * Michelle Yeoh, EEAAO * Zar Amir-Abrahimi, Holy Spider * Virginie Efira, Revoir Paris * Lee Ji-eun, Broker * Jennifer Lawrence, Causeway * Emma Mackey, Emily

Best Actor: Park Hae-il, Decision to Leave

Honorable Mentions:

Christopher Abbott, On the Count of Three * Owen Teague, Montana Story * Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin * Adeel Akhtar, Ali & Ava * Mark Rylance, The Outfit * Bill Nighy, Living * Mehdi Bajestani, Holy Spider * Alexander Skarsgård, the Northman * Felix Kammerer, All Quiet on the Western Front * Brendan Fraser, The Whale