Out of the hundreds of films that were shown in 2018, only eight titles were given the Best Picture nod by the 91st Academy Awards. For some, its mere nomination has already made history. Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther” is the first-ever superhero film to be nominated in this category, a genre which often gets named mostly in the ranks of editing and visual effects. While Alfonso Cuarón’s “Roma” tallied as Netflix’s first time to have one of its original movies gun for Hollywood’s ultimate prize. Clearly, the streaming giant is no longer just making waves on the documentaries arena.
It’s pretty much a game of numbers after the Oscar nominations. “Roma” and “The Favourite” lead the pack with 10 nods each—and, more importantly, they’re both up for the Best Picture award. “A Star Is Born” only came up in eight nominations, when critics said it would at least have 10. Meanwhile, “Green Book” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” ended as bets for five categories each.
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” “A Star Is Born,” and “Black Panther” were all box office hits and crowd-favorites among 2018’s movie roster for sure. But no matter how much we’re in love with Matthew Libatique’s (A Star Is Born) cinematography, we think the real competition is between black-and-white film “Roma” and the true story-inspired comedy-drama that is “Green Book.” And it isn’t just because the Academy is trying to project itself as diverse and accepting, these two masterpieces actually deserve all the buzz it has been getting.
It’s been seven long years since a foreign film has last been nominated for Best Picture—the last one recognized was in 2012, and it was Micheal Hanake’s “Amour.” The odds of foreign-produced films being included in this roster has always been quite slim. Cuarón’s “Roma” was the one to break the streak, and now counts as the 11th foreign film to be nominated in this widely acclaimed category. There’s no doubt that it is Netflix’s biggest hit among film critics.
“Roma” isn’t just an attempt to define and explore the childhood and realities Cuarón grew up to in 1970s Mexico. The film’s main strife is to crush the known barriers of language, culture, and class—with every frame composition ripe with stunning cinematography and reflective meditation.
The film is attentive, invested, and meticulous in the profound story it is trying to tell. A story that has equally profound characters as it doubles as the filmmaker’s very own ode to the women who have raised him. Sure, “Roma” has its eyes on the period’s details, a recreation of reality in hindsight. But it cascades further as a filmmaker’s careful reflection with how he defines his own artistry: It is Cuarón’s honesty with the city that continues to define him that pulls through.
So much of his socio-political observations are painted in the film as it features the middle-class neighborhood of Roma, Mexico City. As much as Cuarón tries to lessen the credit he’s been getting by saying the film was a story written by Mexico itself, and that he merely watched the greatness of Yalitza Aparicio—who played Cleo and, by the way, is the second Mexican woman to ever get nominated as Best Actress—pan out on the screen, there is no doubt that it is his writing and direction that made it a masterpiece.
On the other side of the ring is “Green Book,” a film with a great potential of being this year’s dark horse. Peter Farrelly’s film relies on the back of a good screenplay, a moving narrative that endures racism as an unlikely pair set out for a trip of a lifetime.
It is clear that “Green Book” is a call for kindness, a warranted hope for social change. It puts together the comedic duo of Dr. Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) and Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen) who rely on a Green Book to make sure that the establishments they perform at are safe for African-Americans. The film records an inspiring and precious journey that captured the great chemistry of its actors.
What’s your 2019 Best Picture bet?
Here is the complete list of nominees:
Best Picture
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Green Book
Roma
A Star Is Born
Vice
Actor in a Leading Role
Christian Bale for Vice
Bradley Cooper for A Star Is Born
Willem Dafoe for At Eternity’s Gate
Rami Malek for Bohemian Rhapsody
Viggo Mortensen for Green Book
Actress in a Leading Role
Yalitza Aparicio for Roma
Glenn Close for The Wife
Olivia Colman for The Favourite
Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born
Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams for Vice
Marina de Tavira for Roma
Regina King for If Beale Street Could Talk
Emma Stone for The Favourite
Rachel Weisz for The Favourite
Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali for Green Book
Adam Driver for BlacKkKlansman
Sam Elliott for A Star Is Born
Richard E. Grant for Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Sam Rockwell for Vice
Directing
Spike Lee for BlacKkKlansman
Paweł Pawlikowski for Cold War
Yorgos Lanthimos for The Favourite
Alfonso Cuarón for Roma
Adam McKay for Vice
Adapted Screenplay
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, and Spike Lee for BlacKkKlansman
Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Barry Jenkins for If Beale Street Could Talk
Eric Roth, Bradley Cooper, and Will Fetters for A Star Is Born
Original Screenplay
Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara for The Favourite
Paul Schrader for First Reformed
Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, and Peter Farrelly for Green Book
Alfonso Cuarón for Roma
Adam McKay for Vice
Foreign Language Film
Capernaum, Lebanon
Cold War, Poland
Never Look Away, Germany
Roma, Mexico
Shoplifters, Japan
Animated Feature
Incredibles 2
Isle of Dogs
Mirai
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Original Score
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
If Beale Street Could Talk
Isle of Dogs
Mary Poppins Returns
Original Song
“All the Stars” from Black Panther
“I’ll Fight” from RBG
“The Place Where Lost Things Go” from Mary Poppins Returns
“Shallow” from A Star Is Born
“When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings” from The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Documentary Short
Black Sheep
End Game
Lifeboat
A Night at the Garden
Period. End of Sentence.
Cinematography
Lukasz Zal for Cold War
Robbie Ryan for The Favourite
Caleb Deschanel for Never Look Away
Alfonso Cuarón for Roma
A Star Is Born, Matthew Libatique
Best Documentary Feature
Free Solo
Hale County This Morning, This Evening
Minding the Gap
Of Fathers and Sons
RBG
Production Design
Black Panther
The Favourite
First Man
Mary Poppins Returns
Roma
Sound Mixing
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man
Roma
A Star Is Born
Costume Design
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Black Panther
The Favourite
Mary Poppins Returns
Mary Queen of Scots
Film Editing
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Green Book
Vice
Sound Editing
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man
A Quiet Place
Roma
Animated Short Film
Animal Behavior
Bao
Late Afternoon
One Small Step
Weekends
Live Action Short
Detainment
Fauve
Marguerite
Mother
Skin
Makeup and Hairstyle
Border
Mary Queen of Scots
Vice
Visual Effects
Avengers: Infinity War
Christopher Robin
First Man
Ready Player One
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Art by Pearl Antoinette Sevilla
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