Ever since I was little, the Academy Awards have been my favorite thing to watch on television. I spend the months going up to the show in and out of movie theatres hoping to watch every nominated film. This year was the 90th annual Academy Awards and it was definitely a year that will go down in history. Many females, such a Greta Gerwig who was nominated for best director, were the first to be nominated in their category. Movies like Get Out and Mudbound have made incredible social advances in the film industry with minority representation. All in all, a great year in Hollywood.
First, I want to point out some of my red carpet favorites. Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan, both nominated for Lady Bird, will always be the best dressed pair at any award show. Another one of my favorites was Sally Hawkins, who never fails to stun me. Last but not least, was Emma Stone. She walked onto that stage rocking her pantsuit and made history in the world of red carpet fashion. My hope is that she sets the example for all women who feel pressured to wear a dress they don’t feel comfortable in. Equality is happening people, and it looks so good.
Let’s recap on the actual award ceremony. Host Jimmy Kimmel made one too many La La Land jokes, but that was expected, how could he not mention it. The interview clips showing trailblazing movie makers like Guillermo Del Toro and Kumail Nanjiani was one of the most inspiring things to watch, and I could not help smiling every time they would say “women and men” instead of “men and women”. Every one of those performers from Sufjan Stevens to Keala Settle blew me away. The show was a good four hours long, and do I have midterms to study for? Yes. Did I watch the whole thing? Of course!
Now what we all care about: who won what. Allison Janney won best supporting actress for her role in I, Tonya (my favorite movie of the year), and Sam Rockwell for best supporting actor for his role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Although Greta Gerwig did make history by being the first woman nominated in the director category, she lost to the director of Shape of Water, Guillermo Del Toro. I was not disappointed in this at all, actually. I’m all for female representation, but Shape of Water was phenomenal and deserved every award it got. It also won best score and, wait for it, Best Picture! Honestly, it was a hard choice for me, who I thought would get best picture. I did not expect Get Out or The Post to win, because even though they were amazing films, some of the others had stronger characters and more emotional stories that were being told. It was really between Lady Bird, Three Billboards, and Shape of Water for me. I am a little sad Timothee Chalamet didn’t win best actor for Call Me By Your Name, because who can deny it, he’s gorgeous and adorable. Gary Oldman ended up with the award for his role in Darkest Hour. He transformed himself into the most accurate Winston Churchill hollywood has ever seen, so I was not surprised when his name was called. Best Actress went to Frances McDormand for her role in Three Billboards, which won best drama at the Golden Globes this year. Frances is one of these strongest female leads I have ever seen in a film. She carries this persona off the screen as well, and gave such a powerful speech acknowledged all the women being nominated this year and proceed to have them stand up as the audience roared with applause.
This was the year of the trailblazers. Everyone had a voice tonight and they were not afraid to speak out. There were so many quotable moments in those speeches I could not keep track. One of my favorites was from Guillermo when he won best director: “Erase the lines in the sand…even when the world tells you to make them deeper”. This was the year of film that open doors for people, no matter the sex, race, or background. Anything is possible, and this much needed change happening in Hollywood has proved that to be true.
A list of the 2018 Academy Award Winners:
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Allison Janney, “I, Tonya”
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Sam Rockwell, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“A Fantastic Woman”
DOCUMENTARY (SHORT)
“Heaven is a Traffic Jam on the 405”
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“Icarus”
ORIGINAL SONG
“Remember Me,” “Coco”
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
“Coco”
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“Call Me by Your Name”
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Get Out”
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Gary Oldman, “Darkest Hour”
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Frances McDormand, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
DIRECTOR
Guillermo del Toro, “The Shape of Water”
BEST PICTURE
“The Shape of Water”
PRODUCTION DESIGN
“The Shape of Water”
CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Blade Runner 2049”
COSTUME DESIGN
“Phantom Thread”
SOUND EDITING
“Dunkirk”
SOUND MIXING
“Dunkirk”
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“Dear Basketball”
LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
“The Silent Child”
ORIGINAL SCORE
“The Shape of Water”
VISUAL EFFECTS
“Blade Runner 2049”
FILM EDITING
“Dunkirk”
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
“Darkest Hour”