My Oscar Favorites

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Anyone else excited about the upcoming Oscars on Sunday evening? No! Only me? 😁 I often listen silently when I hear acquaintances say that they have never seen any or have only seen one or two of the films nominated for the Oscars because invariably by the time the Oscar nominations roll around I have seen every single film nominated and am usually able to predict which films will be nominated for the coveted award as soon as I leave the movie theatre, or even while watching the movie, as was the case when I saw Rami Malek in his stellar portrayal of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody, the movie about the rise of the British rock band Queen.

I was so blown away by Malek’s performance that before I even left the movie theatre I texted my friend, Carmen, who is a big fan of Queen and told her that not only should Malek be nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his iconic performance at the Oscars this year but that he should also win.

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That’s Malek on the left, during my favorite scene in the movie, and the legendary Mercury on the right.

I had never even heard of the actor Rami Malek before watching Bohemian Rhapsody but I grew intrigued after seeing the film and did a little research. I watched a few YouTube videos of him being interviewed and his general presence is so endearing. What a humble and grateful guy. His humility alone makes me want him to win Best Actor.

Admittedly, the Best Actor race is pretty tough this year. Among them we have the likes of Christian Bale, who did an amazing portrayal of Vice President Dick Cheney in Vice and the always immaculate, absolutely gorgeous Bradley Cooper, who plays an unkempt, washed-up Country singer suffering from alcohol addiction in A Star is Born.

Cooper himself has been nominated for the Best Actor Oscar a total of 4 times (including this year’s nomination) and to date has never won. He is also the first actor to be nominated 3 years in a row, with a nomination in 2013 for Silver Linings Playbook (among my top 5 favorite movies ever), in 2014 for American Hustle and again in 2015 for American Sniper. I wouldn’t be upset if Malek lost to Cooper since Cooper, who is an incredibly brilliant actor, has gone home empty-handed so many times, but my money is on Malek.

The other 2 Best Actor nominees are Willem Dafoe, who was fantastic, I mean really fantastic playing the tormented and troubled painter Vincent Van Gough in At Eternity’s Gate and Viggo Mortensen, whose most famous roles were in The Lord of the Rings and Captain Fantastic (another movie I loved), where he was also nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

Lady Gaga has been bestowed with the honor of a nomination for Best Actress for her leading role alongside Cooper for A Star is Born. There is no doubt that there was undeniable chemistry between Gaga and Cooper in the movie, but steamy love scenes and impeccable vocals are not enough for her to take home the coveted Best Actress statue this Sunday. Don’t get me wrong, I love Gaga, she is an incredibly talented musician and she played the hell out of Ally, her character in the movie, but compared to the other ladies she is up against in the Best Actress category I honestly don’t think her role was the best performance.

I would like to see either Glenn Close, who is nominated for her role in The Wife, which I reviewed in a past blog post you can read it here Let’s Go to the Movies! or Olivia Colman, who is nominated for her role as the eccentric Queen Anne, who was the Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1702 to 1714, for her role in The Favourtie.

Both actresses, Close and Colman, gave stellar performances in their respective movies, but if I had to pick just one I would go with Close since I have been a fan since she tormented the duplicitous and unfaithful Michael Douglas back in 1987’s Fatal Attraction. Close was a force to reckon with then and now 30 plus years later she’s still a force to reckon with. She is an accomplished actress, who has been nominated for an Oscar 7 times but still hasn’t taken home the coveted statue. If Lady Gaga gets an Oscar before Glenn Close I would not be pleased.

Glenn Close and Lady Gaga at The 2019 Critics’ Choice Awards, where they both won the Best Actress award. It was a tie.

Olivia Coleman, despite being an accomplished actress herself is pretty new to me. Further research has shown that she’s a British actress that came on the scene in 2000 with her most well-known role being that of the more mature Queen Elizabeth II in Season 3 of the popular Netflix series The Crown.

The other contenders for Best Actress are the newcomer, Yalitza Aparicio for Roma and the very funny and popular Melissa McCarthy. McCarthy has been nominated a few times and has won an Emmy for her role as Molly in the CBS hit sitcom Mike and Molly but this is only her second Oscar nomination, her first being for Supporting Actress back in 2012 for her laugh out loud, hilarious role in Bridesmaids, another one of my faves. McCarthy is nominated this year for her work in Can You Ever Forgive Me? A very gripping tale, the true story of Lee Israel, a reclusive, bestselling novelist who had to resort to illegal activities just to pay her rent when she was no longer able to get published. An excellent biographical film, which I truly enjoyed.

Richard E. Grant, McCarthy’s co-star in Can You Ever Forgive Me, is up for Best Supporting Actor. I like Richard E. Grant from his days of playing Simon in Downton Abby and I thought his performance as a lying yet endearing copycat and imitator in Can You Ever Forgive Me? is worthy of the Oscar nomination he has received, but I would like to see Mahershala Ali win for his role as the pompous, classical pianist Don Shirley in Green Book.

Mahershala Ali, who first came to my attention as Remi in the Netflix series House of Cards, has been on the rise ever since and was the Oscar winner just 2 years ago for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Moonlight. I am hoping he does it again and delivers one of his insightful, very appreciative thank you speeches.

Sam Rockwell, who currently holds the most recently awarded Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, is nominated again this year for his portrayal of George Bush Jr. in the movie Vice. If he wins this year then he would be the second actor in the history of the awards ceremony to win consecutive Oscars for Best Supporting Actor. The only other actor to have done so was Jason Robards, remember him?

The 2 other contenders for Best Supporting Actor is Adam Driver from HBO’s Girls fame, who is nominated for his performance in BlacKkKlansman and Sam Elliot for A Star Is Born.

I am disappointed that Driver’s fellow co-star in BlacKkKlansman, John David Washington, son of Denzel Washington, did not pick up a nomination for his brilliant leading role in the movie. I thought for sure he would have been nominated for lead actor.

For Best Supporting Actress the contenders are Amy Adams, who gave a masterly performance as Lynn Cheney in Vice. I am a huge fan of Adams and was rooting for her the other 6 times she was nominated for an Oscar, especially for her nominations for Doubt and American Hustle but this year I am going with my girl, Regina King, for her candid Mama Bear performance in If Beale Street Could Talk. Loved the book, liked the movie, loved Regina King in the movie.

Regina King happily accepting her Golden Globe earlier this year for her role in “If Beale Street Could Talk”.

I have been a fan of King since her days on the TV sitcom 227 and later on when she played the annoying next-door neighbor in the hit movies Boyz in the Hood and again in Friday. King has been cleaning up on the awards circuit this year bringing home both the Golden Globe and the Critics’ Choice Awards for her Beale Street role, here’s hoping she does it again on Sunday night at the Oscars.

The other nominees for Best Supporting Actress are Marina de Tavira, whom I have never heard of but liked her acting in Roma and Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz both of whom played alongside Olivia Colman in the historical period piece, The Favourite. Stone and Weisz are extremely talented actresses in their own right, Stone has been nominated for an Oscar 3 times already and has won once, for her role in La La Land, a movie I thoroughly hated. I like Stone though and think she should have been nominated last year when she played the role of tennis great Billie Jean King in Battle of the Sexes. While Weisz won an Oscar for her 2005 supporting role in The Constant Gardener, a movie I still haven’t seen.

There are 8 movies nominated for Best Picture this year, all of them very good films, despite being very different from each other. This year we have our first superhero film nominated for Best Picture, it was the highest grossing film of 2018 and perhaps the most popular film of 2018. I loved Black Panther, saw it in the movie theater not once, not twice but three times. In as much black pride as I was filled with watching Black Panther I don’t think it deserves to win Best Picture, simply because it’s a movie about make-believe and fantasy in general.

BlacKkKlansman, the true to life story of a black man who was able to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan is the movie that deserves the Best Picture award. Brilliantly acted, well written, with some laugh out loud funny lines, and relatable experiences permeate the entire plot of this must-see film. Spike Lee, who is one of the producers and the director of BlacKkKlansman, has been in the movie-making industry for decades and this is his first nomination from the Academy. It would be a joy to watch him take home both the Best Picture and Best Director statutes on Sunday night, if not both, then one or the other.

Spike Lee is nominated for his first Oscar this year.

My other favorite to win Best Picture is The Favourtie. Period pieces are some of my favorite films and this was a remarkable movie. This film had 3 powerhouse actresses, Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz sharing equal screen time playing off of each other in a very dramatic story filled with unbelievable twists and turns, which made The Favourite a very entertaining film. It’s up for Best Director as well and leads this year’s Oscars with 10 nominations alongside Roma, that also has an equal 10.

The other Best Picture nods are A Star Is Born, which in my opinion shouldn’t win since it lacks originality. This is the 4th time A Star Is Born has been made. I enjoyed the movie but enough already. We also have Vice, which is an excellent political drama. It’s very one-sided in its liberalistic story-telling but a good movie nonetheless. Bohemian Rhapsody, Green Book and Roma round out the Best Picture list, of which Roma has also been nominated for Best Director.

Roma, a Netflix movie, was the last of the nominated films that I watched. It’s a subtitled Spanish film done entirely in black and white, with excellent cinematography. It tells the story of Cleo, a Mexican maid (the role is played by Yalitza Aparicio, nominated for Best Actress), and the trauma she endears in 1970s Mexico City. The story also parallels the life of her white employee played by Marina de Tavira, who is nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Roma, which is directed by Oscar-winning Alfonso Cuaron, has been doing well on the awards circuit this year and I wouldn’t be surprised if they also cleaned up at the Oscars. Despite being a decent film it’s not my favorite to win in any category. The Academy has been known to blaze its own trail and not necessarily follow the choices of the Golden Globes, The Critics Choice or even the SAG awards. Let’s hope this rings true for this year as well as it relates to Roma.

The movie-junkie in me is excited for Sunday night and I can’t wait to see who this year’s winners will be. Let’s hope I won’t be as disappointed as I was last year when, as my friend so eloquently puts it “the movie about the strange fish in the water” won for Best Picture. She was referring to the Shape of Water. Oh, what a stupid movie that was!

Published by Racquel

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94 thoughts on “My Oscar Favorites”

  3. I haven’t seen any of those movies. The last one I saw was Gary Oldman’s and he got that Oscar.

    Mahershala Ali has been around a lot longer. He was awesome on the series The 4400 as a Korean War vet that got abducted & returned. It was on when The Dead Zone was still on.

    Rami was downright creepy in Mr. Robot. I understand that they found a singer to do Mercury’s voice.

    Gaga is a fascinating woman. No doubt.

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    1. Gary Oldman deserved that Oscar. He was phenomenal as Churchill.

      No wonder Mahershala Ali is such an excellent actor, clearly he has a wealth of experience. However, I referred to when he first came to MY attention, I didn’t indicate that he hadn’t been around prior to “House of Cards.”

      I have never seen “Mr. Robot”, learnt of it afterwards. I thought they used Mercury’s own singing voice and Malek lip synced. No?

      I like Gaga. She is a wonderful New Yorker. 😉

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      1. No. You did NOT indicate that he hadn’t been around, before. Thank you so very much for the correction.

        And, gee. I thought we were having a lovely conversation and I was just sharing some information. Silly me. I won’t make the same mistake, again.

        Congratulations, counselor. You win.

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  4. Hey girlfriend! I just wanted to tell you I was finally able to see Bohemian Rhapsody! OMG. I loved it so much! Rami was great! It was amazing how he had Freddie’s mannerisms down pat! I’m glad they used Queen’s actual music and Freddie’s voice. I watched it for the second time with my Dad. He likes Freddie’s voice but said he didn’t know anything about Freddie or Queen except for what I told him. I was shocked that even he liked the movie! He hates everything…and I mean everything! Ha! Fantastic movie! 😀

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    1. Ahhhhh, I’m sooo glad you got a chance to watch it. Yessss, Deb, it was absolutely fantastic. A well-deserved Oscar for Rami who became Freddie. I watched it again recently and I still looooove it.

      LMAO @ you saying that your Dad hates everything. I’m sure that’s not true. He loves you. 😉

      Thanks for checking back with an update, Deb. You’re a woman of your word.

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      1. Yeah, you’ve got a point there. My Dad does love his children and grand children. And junk food. Lol.

        Rami definitey deserved that Oscar! I am going to have to buy this movie for my collection. I don’t buy many new movies. Mostly old ones. 😉

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      2. “Bohemian Rhapsody” deserves to be purchased. Rami’s performance is a masterpiece.

        Don’t you just love the way he called everyone “Darling!” I giggled every time he said it.

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  6. This is a great post that I didn’t see in my feed but since you liked my post I went and found it . 😊 Ou know I don’t go to the movies but I watch them on Netflix so I’ll have to go check these out. Black Klansman I did see and loved it . Now I have to go find out who won. And then start looking these up in Netflix and vudu .

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    1. How come you’re not getting my new posts in your feed, Paula? What’s up with that? 🙂 Are you sure you’re following me? Did you subscribe to my Blog?

      “Green Book” won. I wasn’t happy about that. 😕

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  8. Girrlll, The Shape of Water made me extremely angry lol I couldn’t, for the life of me, understand why it was such a hit. A lady falls in love with a water man and feeds him boiled eggs? No thank you. And the “sex scene.” No thank you. lol you just riled me up again mentioning that film. Hope you were pleased with the outcomes!

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  13. I seldom get time to watch an entire movie and if I do it’s usually on Netflix and not a new release. I don’t do television at all. Your article is well written, you should be writing for a newspapers entertainment section. 🙂

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  14. I’ve actually seen several of the nominated movies this year before the Oscars, which isn’t usually the case. I used to watch the Oscars regularly until about 5 years ago when I fell out of the habit of watching TV at all. I sometimes catch some of it, but don’t make a point to watch it anymore. I do usually read recaps of the winners and make mental notes of which films to add to my must see list. Because I haven’t seen all the films nominated, I rarely have a strong opinion about who should win…but I do enjoy seeing folks win for films that I have already seen.

    Enjoy your viewing party! Do you get all dressed up and hand out swag bags?! 😉

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      7. Bohemian Rhapsody, Vice, and A Star is Born. We have Green Book here to watch, but haven’t watched it yet. I really want to see all the others nominated too. I’m sure we will at some point.

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  15. Haha I didn’t even know the Oscars were coming up. It’s right in the middle of the night here in Europe, so I won’t be watching it live. But I’ll keep an eye on who won etc. I think the last couple of years I haven’t found most of the main winners very interesting at all. Like La la land and Shape of Water… 😛

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  16. Hey Rakkell, good predictions! Overall I want for Spike Lee to win, not only because it’s long overdue. But because the movie Blackkklansman is an awesome movie. I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who wasn’t keen on the film LaLa Land, lol.
    Glenn Close needs to win here, but I’m torn between her and Regina King.

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    1. Hey Huntress, Glen Close and Regina King aren’t nominated in the same category. Close is nominated for Best Actress and King is nominated for Supporting Actress. 🙂

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      1. Thanks for clarifying that (that’s how much I pay attention to the categories, lol). Either way both are amazing actresses, I also remember King in 227, man am I dating myself or what? I forgot to mention Bohemian Rhapsody, that is a great movie, and Malik needs to win! He channeled Freddy Mercury to the tee! I don’t think the original actor chosen would have come close to how Malik portrayed him. Sasha Baron Cohen dropped out in the early stages of production and Im glad he did. One) because I wouldn’t have seen the film had he stayed, I don’t care too much for him and two) I don’t think the film would have been as successful with him as Mercury.

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      2. Huntress, I thought I read that Sasha Baron Cohen was supposed to be one of the producers not the actor playing Mercury? I had no idea….I’m gonna have to read more on that. If he was in fact slated to play Mercury I am oh so glad he didn’t. I can’t see anyone but Malek in that role. He nailed it.

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      3. I just read it, Huntress, you’re right!!!! Wow!!! So glad he pulled out….Apparently Cohenwanted to make an outlandish movie highlighting the over-sexualized part of Freddie’s lifestyle but the band (Queen) didn’t approve of that. Good! It was a great movie without all that other “stuff” in it.

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  17. Watch movies much Racquel?? 🙂 Seriously…I think its so awesome that you have not only watched the nominated movies but that you are able to critique them so well. I can’t tell the last time I watched the Oscars and the only reason is that I can’t seem to find the time because I am either prepping for Monday, busy foing something else or I am fast asleep. Will try to catch it this time around though…hopefully.

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  18. This is a great write-up! I only saw a few of the contenders this year so I gmhave some quick catching up to do before tomorrow night.

    If you like Rami Malek, I definitely recommend the TV show he’s on “Mr. Robot”. He’s absolutely mesmerizing in that show!

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      2. I have the Firefox so I should be able to find “Mr. Robot”.

        Yaaay!!! So glad my article was helpful, took me all afternoon to write, so glad it was worthwhile. 😁😉

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  19. I haven’t seen all the films but agree with you about Rami Malek. I knew who he was and honestly doubted his ability to transform into Freddy, but he nailed it. And as much as I loved Gaga and Star is Born… oh Bradley!!… Glenn Close really needs to take it home on Sunday. Always a bridesmaid can only go on for so long!!

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  20. Fantastic Racquel, it’s so refreshing to read something positive about the Oscars, (lots of miseries over here getting airtime) I too loved Malek along with the film as a whole. Sadly on the day after the BAFTAs I was very annoyed with the snippets of radio news. They kept saying the favourite had won lots of gongs, without saying what the film was, until my wife explained when I got home 😂😂

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    1. Charlie, I’m with you on that. So many people have a slew of negative stuff to say about the Oscars. “No inclusivity, no diversity, blah, blah, blah.” I don’t agree. I think the Oscars are fun, especially when you have seen some of the nominated films. People love to stand on their soap box and preach, I try not to let that mar my views. I love the movies, always have, always will. I’ll be enjoying the Oscar’s on Sunday, hope you will too.

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      1. Great reply Racquel, not enough emphasis put on fun, I sometimes wonder if those people realise they’ll be on their deathbed one day and regret all the time they spent moaning 😂😂

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    1. Thanks, 007! Lots of research coupled with lots movie watching. LOL.

      I have seen a lot of the nominated documentaries and foreign films as well. I have an opinion on those too but I figured I’d leave those out. Didn’t want to bore people. 😂

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  23. I used to watch the awards shows, all of them, back in the day. I don’t anymore. 😮 I haven’t seen any of this year’s movies, but only a couple (a few maybe) interest me. I can’t go to the theater anymore because of the discomfort (being disabled, you know) but the worst is when the theater is crowded and people are pushy and accidentally kick my feet….that sends pain shooting up my legs….I was in tears the last time I went. On my Netflix list is Bohemian Rhapsody for sure!!! I just recently saw Rami for the first time in the remake of Papillon. He did a splendid job! I’m sure he will be great in BR as well. I would also like to see The Favourite and BlacKkKlansman.

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    1. Awww Deb, thank goodness for Netflix and other streaming services so you don’t have to leave the comfort ouf your own home to watch a great movie…I am still hoping you’ll be able to have that hip relacement surgery soon.

      The movies that interest you are really good ones. I am sure you’ll enjoy all 3, especially Malek in Bohemian Rhapsody. When you watch them be sure to let me know what you think of them.

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  24. I have not seen any of the movies either. The closet theater is about two hours away. I enjoy watching the Oscars each year when possible. Thanks to your break down of the movies, the actors and actresses I think the Oscars will be even more enjoyable Rakkelle. Al the best for your picks Sunday night at the Oscars !!

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    1. 2 hours away?! Wow, James, that would be a helluva a ride just to see a movie.

      So glad I could offer some insight into the Oscar nominees so you’ll be able to help me cheer on my faves on Sunday night.

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  25. I love you for hating La La Land. I didn’t hate it, but even mildly disliking it seemed to make me an outcast. Hugs!

    I didn’t see a lot of these because midyear I dumped Movie Pass and refocused on writing and side gigs. I did see Star and thought it was okay. I still want to see Rami and Kathy. Those look good.

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    1. 😂😂😂 Laughing out loud @ “I love you for hating La La Land”. 😂 Yes, one seems to be an outcast for not liking La La Land. Urrgggh

      You will love Rami.

      Kathy? Was that an autocorrect typo?

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