Last Monday, the 2020 Oscars nominations were released and while major films, such as the foreign film Parasite, and Netflix hit Marriage Story were nominated for Best Picture, many other box office successes were left off the final roster. Despite them having positive critic reviews and audience reactions. Keep in mind that the Oscars are arguably subjective, here is my list for the movies that I think should’ve been nominated.
#1: Us (Best Actress)
When the Oscar nominations came out, I was scrolling up and down trying to find this particular movie on the nominations list, and when it didn’t make it in any category, I was sorely disappointed. This was the second horror film from Jordan Peele, director of Get Out, and it received a wide range of reviews from critics and horror fans alike. From its time in the box office, this movie made $255 million, which is incredible in comparison to its $20 million production budget.
The movie’s plot follows a family on vacation when they find their doppelgangers, and things take a turn for the worse. Personally, this movie had me on the edge of my seat, and I thought Lupita Nyong’o’s performance of the character “Red” was creepily amazing, and deserved an Academy nomination.
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#2: Booksmart (Best Director)
Seeing the trailers for this movie, I already knew that this would be an amazing, comedic film, and I was not wrong. This teenage coming-of-age film follows two best friends in their senior year of high school, and their realization that they should’ve had more fun during high school, and the important lesson of letting loose every now and then.
After watching Booksmart, I hoped that Olivia Wilde would get recognized by the Academy, but after reviewing the nominations for Best Director, I was disappointed to find that there were no female directors nominated. Hopefully next year, films like Booksmart will be nominated into some of the top notch categories, alongside other major films.
#3: Parasite (The Cast?)
Okay, so I know the film itself was nominated for Best Picture, but I decided to place this on the list because the ensemble didn’t receive a single nomination.This film did amazingly well, as typically foreign films don’t catch the Academy’s eye all that often. It would’ve been better if it was nominated for what the cast brought to the table, but I am curious to see who will take home the Oscar for Best Director.
The film Parasite is about how the Park family offers to “help” the Kim family by employing themselves as tutors and when plans get interrupted, chaos breaks out. If you haven’t seen this movie, you should definitely check it out.
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#4: Uncut Gems (Best Actor)
This film at first glance can seem a bit messy and chaotic, but nevertheless, I think there was one aspect of this film that got completely blindsided: that was, Adam Sandler’s performance. Now, I know Adam Sandler doesn’t have the best reputation, but in Uncut Gems, he does a phenomenal job at capturing the addictive, hopeless personality of Howard Satner.
The story of Uncut Gems follows Howard Satner, a New York jeweler, and his struggle with a serious gambling addiction. This movie is definitely not a fun, light-hearted movie, but Adam Sandler’s performance should’ve been recognized by the Academy.
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Though these are my picks for movies that should’ve been picked, I am excited to see which films win Oscars. Perhaps next year’s Oscars will include a bit more diversity and variety in each of the categories. I look forward to watching the Oscars on February 9th.