The Oscar nominations have been announced for the 2017 Academy Awards. We have 3 Oscar nominated films you must see.
Hidden Figures:
The first movie I want to recommend is Hidden Figures. In addition to Best Picture, is was also nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Octavia Spencer. I liked this film because it is a classic triumph of the human spirit story. I loved the film because this is a story that has never been told and is just as significant as the Jackie Robinson Story, 42; Red Tails; or Glory Road.
Hidden Figures tells the true story of a group of African-American female mathematicians that served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations NASA ever undertook; to launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, and guarantee his safe return.
In a reversal to many nominees in years past, Hidden Figures is rated PG with only a few mild swears.There is however, a lot of tension around the racism and discrimination that existed in the 1960’s. It is a great reminder to us that we should regard people for their character and their accomplishments, and not for their race or gender.
Arrival:
Arrival has been nominated for 8 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography and awards for sound mixing and editing. It stars Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner as a team charged with communicating with the alien visitors that have touched down across the globe.
Here is what I loved about Arrival; we get first contact within 20 minutes of the film starting. As the team tries to determine the intentions of the extraterrestrials we start to discover that this film isn’t about aliens. It is about time and the burden of knowledge. The final moments over the movie make this clearly evident.
Arrival is rated PG-13 for some frightening scenes as well as one F-word exclamation. I wish I could say more than that, but I will say that I have spent a lot of time pondering the meaning of eternity as a result of seeing this movie.
La La Land:
Finally, we get to the musical darling, La La Land. This film not only won every Golden Globe it was nominated for, but also it has been nominated for a record breaking 14 Academy Awards! Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling star as struggling performers in present day Hollywood. (Even though it feels like it takes place in 1950’s)
La La Land won the Golden Globe for Best Musical and it is nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Original Song as well as a nomination for Best Score. The music scenes in La La Land find the perfect balance of real and surreal. They begin grounded reality and soon take us into the fantasy and dreaminess of new found love.
While there is some debate on the movie’s final 15 minutes, it still remains that this is a beautiful film.
La La Land has a few minor curses and what seems to be the obligatory PG-13 F-Bomb. There is some allusion to premarital sex but none of that takes place on screen.
Summary:
So those are the 3 Best Picture Nominees that you need to see before the Oscars. It was great that many of the nominees this year were rated PG-13 or even PG. With so many options, you might have a difference of opinion. If you feel there is a nomination that should have been on this list, let me know below. Or maybe there is an excellent film you feel was snubbed by the Academy Awards. Let’s discuss it in the comments.
