2015 Academy Award Nomination Reactions
BEST PICTURE
Nominees: American Sniper, Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Imitation Game, Selma, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash
Reaction: I’m thrilled Whiplash got in, but no Foxcatcher? Are you kidding me? Can someone explain to me how Bennett Miller gets in for Best Director, but the movie is left out of Best Picture? I don’t get it. This is going to be a theme you hear all through out these nominations, but The Imitation Game is one of the most overrated movies of the year, and the obscene amount of nominations it got is absurd. It’s not in the same galaxy as Foxcatcher. Gone Girl will obviously be the big talking point for everyone, and it definitely deserves to be there over some of these other selections. If you really think about it, the Academy went lighter/uplifting with a lot of these films, and left out colder ones like Foxcatcher and Gone Girl. This is something to think about for next year.
BEST DIRECTOR
Nominees: Wes Anderson – The Grand Budapest Hotel, Alejandro González Iñárritu – Birdman, Richard Linklater – Boyhood, Bennett Miller – Foxcatcher, Morten Tyldum – The Imitation Game
Reaction: I couldn’t be happier for Bennett Miller. That was a nice surprise for me, as I thought he was the Best Director of the year. Even though I don’t love The Grand Budapest Hotel, to see Wes Anderson nominated for Best Director is just awesome. Morten Tyldum? No. Absolute garbage. You’re going to put this guy in over David Fincher (Gone Girl)? I just don’t understand how you can take such a well crafted, intricately directed film like Gone Girl, and nominate The Imitation Game which is completely generic and paint by numbers. I can see the reasoning for leaving Gone Girl out of Best Picture, but in the directing category? Ridiculous.
BEST ACTOR
Nominees: Steve Carell – Foxcatcher, Bradley Cooper – American Sniper, Benedict Cumberbatch – The Imitation Game, Michael Keaton – Birdman, Eddie Redmayne – The Theory of Everything
Reaction: I haven’t seen American Sniper yet, but I know I’m going to love Bradley Cooper’s performance. He’s a fantastic actor, and I’m glad he got this nomination. This was a tough category as it always is, but again, Benedict Cumberbatch over Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler)? You got to be kidding me! David Oyelowo (Selma) also deserves it over Cumberbatch. At the end of the day, this is a three horse race between Keaton, Carell, and Redmayne, but leaving out Jake Gyllenhaal for that performance really puzzles me.
BEST ACTRESS
Nominees: Marion Cotillard – Two Days, One Night, Felicity Jones – The Theory of Everything, Julianne Moore – Still Alice, Rosamund Pike – Gone Girl, Reese Witherspoon – Wild
Reaction: I’m sure somewhere in Los Angeles, Jennifer Aniston (Cake) is punching walls. No surprises here other than Marion Cotillard. I haven’t seen her performance in Two Days, One Night yet, but I’ll never disagree with nominating her in anything. She’s always fantastic.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Nominees: Robert Duvall – The Judge, Ethan Hawke – Boyhood, Edward Norton – Birdman, Mark Ruffalo – Foxcatcher,
J.K. Simmons – Whiplash
Reaction: No surprises. All deserving choices. J.K. Simmons already won.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Nominees: Patricia Arquette – Boyhood, Laura Dern – Wild, Keira Knightley – The Imitation Game, Emma Stone – Birdman,
Meryl Streep – Into the Woods
Reaction: For all my complaining about The Imitation Game, Keira Knightley is the one element to that film who is deserving of a nomination, so good for her. At this point, we just have to assume that Meryl Streep is guaranteed a nomination if she acts in a film after October 1st. I’m disappointed that Jessica Chastain (A Most Violent Year) didn’t get in, but I have to say, Laura Dern in Wild is actually a really great call, and a nice surprise. She’s deserving.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Nominees: Birdman, Boyhood, Foxcatcher, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Nightcrawler
Reaction: I had Whiplash in the wrong Screenplay category, but the fact it went into Adapted made these nominations pretty easy. No surprises, all great choices.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Nominees: American Sniper, The Imitation Game, Inherent Vice, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash
Reaction: If Whiplash loses this award to The Imitation Game, I am going to lose my mind. Other than Whiplash, this category blows bags. Inherent Vice for Best Screenplay?! That film was a mess! The Imitation Game and The Theory of Everything…yawn. Wild and Gone Girl deserve to be here way more than those films. Ridiculous.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Nominees: Big Hero 6, The Boxtrolls, How to Train Your Dragon 2, Song of the Sea, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Reaction: The Lego Movie’s snub is just absurd. I honestly have nothing else to say.
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Daniel Cohen is the Film Editor for Pop-Break. Aside from reviews, Daniel does a weekly box office predictions column, and also contributes monthly Top Tens and Op-Ed’s on all things film. Daniel is a graduate of Bates College with a degree in English, and also studied Screenwriting at UCLA. He can also be read on www.movieshenanigans.com. His movie crush is Jessica Rabbit. Follow him on Twitter @dcohenwriter.
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