MovieMuse
Every year we challenge ourselves to watch all of the films nominated in the major categories at the top awards ceremonies. This year that has given us 34 films to peruse and deliberate over…
Awards Nominated Films – 2016
So as the curtains finally close on 2015’s year in film, it is time for us to look at the eventual winners of the winners and losers, compare them against our own informed choices and to give the respective Academy members some feedback on their performance as Judge Judy and Executioner.
We will rank all of the films later on in this piece, but a simple ‘out of 5’ score doesn’t necessarily mean a film should have won one of the 14 awards that are up for grabs. So using the combined nominations from the British and American Academies, here are the official MovieMuse Academy Awards for 2016.
First up, we bring you our choices for the music and ‘craft’ awards…
Best Original Score
Winner: The Hateful Eight
Nominees: Bridge of Spies, The Revenant, Sicario, The Hateful Eight, Star Wars The Force Awakens, Carol.
What we said: “We were a little disappointed with Morricone’s Hateful Eight Score. Not that we disliked his work for the film, we loved his main theme and the rest of his pieces are just fine, but it appears that the claim of his first Western score for over 30 years was all hyperbole as Morricone provided just 50 minutes of original work for a film just shy of 3 hours, with the rest of the score made up of three unused tracks from The Thing, a theme from Exorcist II: The Heretic and songs from other performers. However, it is still clearly the best in its field and finally gives Morricone the Oscar he so richly deserves.”
Runner Up: The Revenant
Oscar Winner: The Hateful Eight
BAFTA Winner: The Hateful Eight
Special Visual Effects
Winner: Star Wars The Force Awakens
Nominees: Mad Max Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant, Ex Machina, Star Wars The Force Awakens, Ant Man.
What we said: “The special effects and action sequences are naturally breath-taking and almost relentless. CGI effects are of course used for the battle sequences, but not to excess, and the much-lauded practical effects bring a level of realism that means the world created by JJ Abrams is just as lived-in and believable as the one created by George Lucas in 1977. In no place is this more evident than in the form of the utterly adorable BB-8. It would have been far easier to computer-generate this lovable droid, but the fact that the producers invested time and money to create such a unique and technologically ground-breaking character speaks volumes about their commitment to the film.”
Runner Up: Ex Machina
Oscar Winner: Ex Machina
BAFTA Winner: Star Wars The Force Awakens
Best Cinematography
Winner: The Revenant
Nominees: Bridge of Spies, Carol, The Revenant, Sicario, Mad Max Fury Road, The Hateful Eight.
What we said: “The Revenant paints a stunning picture of the winter wilderness and whilst Leonardo DiCaprio will rightly claim many of the plaudits for a brilliant performance as the film’s lead, it is not just an actor that we should be revering. Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki has scored Oscar wins for two years running for his work on Gravity and Birdman, so there should be no surprises if he takes the hat-trick for easily his best work from all three of those films.”
Runner Up: Mad Max Fury Road
Oscar Winner: The Revenant
BAFTA Winner: The Revenant
Best Production Design
Winner: Mad Max Fury Road
Nominees: Bridge of Spies, Mad Max Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant, The Danish Girl, Carol, Star Wars The Force Awakens.
What we said: “The beauty of Fury Road isn’t just in the simple but engaging story or the fine performances from a well picked cast. The beauty comes from the amazing world that Miller has created with his very able Cinematographer John Seal and visionary Production Designer Colin Gibson. Whilst Seal came out of retirement to shoot a new farewell movie in saturated shades of yellow, red and burnt orange, Gibson devised futuristic yet low-fi sets and some of the most amazing movie vehicles you will ever see. Add this to Miller’s eccentric punk-western characters and ability to convey the speed of the chase without losing any of the detail and you have a perfect recipe for one of the best action films of modern times.”
Runner Up: The Martian
Oscar Winner: Mad Max Fury Road
BAFTA Winner: Mad Max Fury Road
Best Costume Design
Winner: Mad Max Fury Road
Nominees: Carol, Brooklyn, The Danish Girl, Mad Max Fury Road, Cinderella, The Revenant.
What we said: “Working with Miller’s vision of the post-apocalyptic wasteland and complementing Cinematographer John Seal and Production Designer Colin Gibson, Jenny Beavan has created some of the most stunning post-punk costumes that somehow mixed minimalism with over-indulgence.”
Runner Up: The Danish Girl
Oscar Winner: Mad Max Fury Road
BAFTA Winner: Mad Max Fury Road
In part two we will share the winners in the writing and supporting categories…