Anora The Big Winner of the 97th Oscars
Sean Baker‘s Palme d’Or-winner dramedy Anora won the 97th Oscars, taking home five statues for Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Director, Best Actress for Mikey Madison, and Best Picture. In his acceptance speech for Best Director, Sean Baker called for preserving the theatrical movie viewing experience.
Movie theaters, especially independently owned theaters, are struggling, and it’s up to us to support them.
Sean Baker duing his Oscar Speech
While not an unexpected development, Mikey Madison’s Best Actress win came at the expense of Demi Moore, who was heavily expected to receive a career-achievement Oscar for her role in the body-horror film The Substance. In an ironic twist, 62-year-old Demi Moore losing to 25-year-old Mikey Madison mirrors The Substance‘s themes surrounding ageism and beauty standards. The Substance only ended up winning one of its five nominations, picking up the Oscar for Best Make-Up and Hairstyling.
It was a disappointing night for the two leading nominees of Emilia Pérez and The Brutalist. Embroiled in a viewer backlash and a controversy surrounding racist tweets by star Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez only won two of its 13 nominations, picking up Best Supporting Actress for Zoe Saldaña and Best Song for “El Mal.” Of the film’s ten nominations, The Brutalist only walked away with the awards for Best Cinematography and Best Original Score, and Adrian Brody won his second Oscar for Best Actor. Brody tested the patience of some by giving the longest speech of the night, though he ended it with a very poignant message.
I’m here once again to represent the lingering traumas and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression and of anti-Semitism and racism and of othering. And I believe that I pray for a healthier and a happier and a more inclusive world, and I believe if the past can teach us anything, it’s a reminder to not let hate go unchecked.
Adrien Brody during his Oscar Speech
Rounding out the rest of the major winners of the 97th Academy Awards, Kieran Culkin won Best Supporting Actor for A Real Pain, Conclave winning Best Adapted Screenplay, the Latvian animal adventure Flow won for Best Animated Feature, and I’m Still Here won for International Feature Film. Arguably the most politically charged win of the night was No Other Land winning for Best Documentary Feature. During his speech, co-director Yuval Abraham called for an end to to conflict between Israel and Palestine.
When I look at Basel [Adra], I see my brother, but we are unequal. We live in a regime where I am free under civilian law, and Basel is under military laws that destroy his life and he cannot control. There is a different path, a political solution, without ethnic supremacy, with national rights for both of our people. And I have to say, as I am here, the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path. And, you know, I, why? Can’t you see that we are intertwined, that my people can be truly safe if Basel’s people are truly free and safe? There is another way. It’s not too late for life, for the living. There is no other way.
Yuval Abraham during his Oscar Speech
![Dune: Part Two - 4K Ultra HD (Bilingual) [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71fIi8zfIdL._AC_SL1500_._SL160_.jpg)
![A Real Pain [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81H79lelRgL._AC_SL1500_._SL160_.jpg)
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In my personal tally, I got 15 out of the 23 categories correct in my predictions. My biggest misses came from being swayed from the recent SAG Award wins where Timothée Chalamet won Best Actor and Demi Moore won Best Actress, neither of which ended up translating to Oscar wins. Also, while it was my personal pick, I was not fully convinced that the Academy would choose No Other Land for Best Documentary Feature, so I instead went with Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat. I also missed in all the short film categories, with the expectation of Documentary Short, which went to the biography The Only Girl in the Orchestra.
