The nominees for the 88th Academy Awards have just been announced in Los Angeles, bringing Leonardo DiCaprio ever closer to finally nabbing that Best Actor Oscar, so he can shut up about it already.
As far as the big award goes, fans hopeful that Star Wars: The Force Awakens would validate their life choices by snagging a Best Picture nomination will be disappointed, although it did pick up nods for Editing, Visual Effects, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, and John Williams’ score. (Speaking of, The Hateful Eight was shut out except for Jennifer Jason Leigh for Best Supporting Actress, Robert Richardson’s cinematography and Ennio Morricone’s score, arguably the three best parts of the movie.) Instead, the Best Picture Category is filled with expected choices, like “Best Comedy” The Martian, The Revenant, Spotlight, Bridge Of Spies, and unexpected awards juggernaut Mad Max: Fury Road, the latter of which was nominated for an impressive 10 awards. (Witness!) The only film to pick up more is Golden Globes favorite The Revenant, which was nominated for 12 awards.
In the acting categories, DiCaprio will vie for the prize against newly branded “comedian” Matt Damon, Steve Jobs’ Michael Fassbender, Oscar-bait specialist Eddie Redmayne, and Trumbo’s Bryan Cranston. Cate Blanchett is once again up for Best Actress against Golden Globe winner Brie Larson, her fellow newcomer Saoirse Ronan, Jennifer Lawrence—who picked up Joy’s only nomination—and Charlotte Rampling, who gave a career-high performance in 45 Years.
Elsewhere on the list, Sylvester Stallone has once again been nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Rocky Balboa, where he’ll square off against Tom Hardy (for The Revenant, not Fury Road), Mark Ruffalo, Christian Bale, and Mark Rylance. Rachel McAdams, who played a Boston Globe reporter in Spotlight, is up for Best Supporting Actress against Blanchett’s Carol companion Rooney Mara, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Alicia Vikander, and Kate Winslet.
In conclusion, Fifty Shades Of Grey was nominated for an Oscar, but then again, so was World Of Tomorrow.
Best Picture
The Martian
The Revenant
Room