Such a strange tension exists between not caring one bit about the Academy Awards and caring so deeply that you are compelled to tweet endlessly about how angry they’ve made you with their various “snubs.” For an awards show that so many insist doesn’t matter, it sure does create a lot of personal animosity. Then again, most of the outrage occurs on Twitter, which is a hyperbolic medium of expression anyhow, so any ed emotion about the nominations for the 86th Annual Academy Awards should be received through a bit of a muted filter.
Most people focus on what’s left off the ballot after the nominees are announced, and this is understandable. By and large, those included in the Oscar ceremony get some amount of a publicity push, attaining a certain credibility in the eyes of the general public. Those that are excluded aren’t exactly damned to obscurity, but it does kind of suck to see some of the best work that’s been put out in the past year in movies go unrecognized by what’s perceived as the most prestigious award ceremony in the industry.
That being said, it’s still worth noting some of the pleasant inclusions in this year’s Oscar group. American Hustle’s stellar cast was recognized, even though I might have slightly preferred Jeremy Renner’s performance to Bradley Cooper’s. Her and The Wolf of Wall Street had surprisingly strong showings. The Act of Killing and 20 Feet From Stardom are deserving nominees in the documentary category. And as a populist pick, Philomena gets into the top nine Best Picture nominees, which is certainly more praiseworthy than previous such entries like The Blind Side or The Help.
Overall, it’s as good a group of nominees as can be expected. Nevertheless, here are 10 surprising and/or notable names that were left out of contention for this year’s Academy Awards.
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Published: Jan 16, 2014 12:35 pm