And the Award Goes to ...

Every year there seems to be a theme in the award nominations.  I’m not sure if it is part of the national zeitgeist but it never fails that there are threads running through these projects, connecting them, weaving them into a tapestry of … well … us.  Last year was of note, as the impact of Covid created stories of isolation, even by characters surrounded by people.  Which leaves me struggling with the crop of projects this year.  Serial killers and cannibalism, sometimes both at the same time, dominate.  Death is omnipresent and pervasive in these tales, even in the comedies.  (Frankly, I haven’t enjoyed most of the nominated comedies these past few years.)  It was a parade of unending horror.  If these films reflect the national mood, what does that say?  There are exceptions, of course.  Escapism – “Avatar”, “Everything Everywhere All At Once.”  But overall, there is a darkness to this year’s works I never thought possible. 

Another item of note this year were stories which could be told in movies being stretched into mini-series.  Not a fan.  It was a year when I felt the actors were being nominated more for their body of work than for the quality of the production.  It is also notable that there were some rave reviews for Will Smith’s “Emancipation,” but it was utterly ignored by every award body.  What can I say?  Karma’s a bitch, and sometimes she’s manmade.  Awards are as much about politics and the power of industry movers and shakers as they are about quality work.  As to the other “big conversation”, I do think we should get rid of the gendered award categories. 

All that being said, I watched it all – sometimes through closed eyes (sorry, “Dahmer”) and these are my picks.  And no, my picks don’t always win.  In fact, they rarely do.  But that doesn’t matter.  There’s a lot of good out there, so I like to think of this as sharing the wealth. 

Favorite films were:  #1  “Women Talking”, #2 “The Whale”, #3 “The Woman King”, #4 “Everything, Everywhere, All At Once”, #5 “Black Panther:  Wakanda Forever” and #6 “Elvis”.  Shout-outs to “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”, which should have been nominated for something, and for Guillermo del Toro’s brilliant “Pinocchio”, which doesn’t fall under SAG nominations.

Film

·       Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role – Colin Farrell was very un-Colin Farrell in “The Banshees of Inisherin” proving that he isn’t just an action hero, he’s an actor.  Young Austin Butler was great as Elvis.  That being said, Brendan Frasier, in “The Whale”, was incredible.  He has my vote.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role – It is hard not to vote for Michelle Yeoh, from “Everything Everywhere All At Once”.  She’s been here forever, done terrific work, and has never won any big awards.  And I love her in every project she’s ever done.  Ms. Yeoh will likely win this one, and possibly, the Oscar.  And she deserves it.  But I’m voting for Viola Davis, who has a shelf full of statues.  “The Woman King” took my breath away and her transformation into a 19^th century warrior was layered and powerful.  You can’t take your eyes off of her.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role – Ke Huy Quan in “Everything Everywhere All At Once.”  He’s just great and it wasn’t a competitive category, IMHO.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role – Truly the hardest category for me.  One of those times I wish I could just give an award to everyone who was nominated.  Rating these performances against one another is impossible.  Kerry Condon was quietly brilliant in “The Banshees of Inisherin”.  Stephanie Hsu and Jamie Lee Curtis were both amazing in “Everything Everywhere All At Once” – in incredibly different ways.  Angela Bassett will win, and she deserves to.  Her work in “Black Panther:  Wakanda Forever” was far more than a supporting role.  She also has that body-of-work thing.  She is a woman in her 60s, working like crazy, morphing from role to role and producing shows like 9-1-1.  The woman totally rocks.  That being said, my vote is for Hong Chau in “The Whale”.  If the definition of a good supporting actor is that you can’t see anyone else playing the role and that the role is integral to the production as a whole, then she is the one.  That being said, she won’t win.  In this pool, being outstanding isn’t enough.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture – “Women Talking”.  Talk about an ensemble.  Jesus!  And yes, I mean that with true praise.  “Everything Everywhere All At Once” will win this award, along with many others.  But “Women Talking” deserves to be seen … and talked about.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture – “The Woman King".  “The Batman” sucked, I don’t do “Top Gun” and everything in “Avatar” and "Wakanda Forever" is digitized.  

Television

·       Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series – Steve Carell in “The Patient”.  He won’t win but it is past time for his dramatic work to be acknowledged.  It’s brilliant.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series – Niecy Nash-Betts in “Dahmer”.  Again, she isn’t seen for the totality of her talent.  Often portraying loud, funny women (“The Rookie:  Feds”), she was unrecognizable here, and had creepy layers appropriate to the production.  Isabel May, from “1883” should have been nominated.  She wasn’t.  Had she been, it would have been a run-off, in my humble opinion.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series – Jeff Bridges in “The Old Man”.  Adam Scott is the only real competition here, IMHO, and Mr. Bridges just deserves it.  He’s been to hell and back in the past year and then he returns with this … a wicked challenging role.  Bravo.  (PS Amy Brenneman should have been nominated, too).

·       Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series – I could barely get through one episode of “Euphoria” but Zendaya deserves this award for her body of work.  Which is saying something for a 27 year-old.  Here’s hoping this talented, driven woman can keep herself together in the swamp of Hollywood.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series – Bill Hader, “Barry”.  Honestly, I haven’t kept up with most of these series, but he is the only one playing a character different from himself (I hope).  He plays a hired killer with layers.  Make of that what you will.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series – Me love Rachel Brosnahan in “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”.  Jenna Ortega is supercool as Wednesday Addams.  Jean Smart is fab in everything she touches and would have been a serious consideration had she been nominated for “Babylon”, but she wasn’t.  This one, however, has to go to Quinta Brunson, who doesn’t just play an adorable, thoughtful character in “Abbott Elementary,” she created the fricking show … the first in a long time to portray education realistically.  Warts and all.  Brava.

·       Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series – “The Crown”.  Truthfully, this is the only one of the nominated series I actually like.  It probably won’t win. 

·       Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series – “Abbott Elementary”.  This series is pure joy.  The other nominated “comedy” series have real darkness in them.

·       Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series – “Andor” didn’t have a lot of action.  “The Boys” is vicious but, like “The Rings of Power” and “House of the Dragon” much is digitized.  The same is true of “Stranger Things” but the cast of “Stranger Things” is notably young, making physical stunts more thoughtful.  I’m going with “Stranger Things”.  (It won’t win.)