By Haydn Elmore
(Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
This past week, the nominations for the 94th Academy Awards have been announced and the end result has been a mixture of good, surprises, and snubs. So here’s a bit of the rundown of the nominations in all of their glory.
“The Power of the Dog” led the pack with 12 nominations including Best Picture, Best Director for Jane Campion, Best Actor for Benedict Cumberbatch, Best Supporting Actor for both Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smit-McPhee, Best Supporting Actress for Kirsten Dunst, and Best Adapted Screenplay. This makes it the potential frontrunner to take home several Oscars come award night (especially in the Best Picture and Director categories).
Other noticeable films up for Best Picture include “Dune” (which is nominated for 10 categories), “West Side Story” (with 7 total nominations), “Belfast” (also with 7 nominations), “Drive My Car” (with 4 total nominations), “Nightmare Alley” (with 6 nominations), “King Richard” (with 6 nominations), “CODA” (with 3 nominations) and “Licorice Pizza” (with 3 nominations). This makes them worthy choices as some of the best films of 2021.
In terms of highlights of the nominations, some of which include Kristen Stweart getting nominated for Best Actress for her role as Princess Diana in “Spencer.” “Drive My Car” was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best International Feature. As well as recognizing films that don’t tend to get nominated at other awards like “The Tragedy of Macbeth” (with 3 nominations at hand) and “The Worst Person in the World” (with 2 nominations, including Best Original Screenplay).
However, there are some notable snubs in terms of what wasn’t nominated. One notable snub can be found in the Best Actress category with performances like Lady Gaga for “House of Gucci” and Rachel Ziegler for “West Side Story,” despite their appearances at other award circles like the Golden Globes and the Critic’s Choice Awards. While “Licorice Pizza” was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay, it was snubbed for several categories that would have helped its chances of winning Best Picture. Like Best Actress for Alana Haim, Best Supporting Actor for Bradley Cooper, and Best Film Editing. As well as other films that got shut out of the nominations in general like “The Last Duel,” “Pig,” “Passing,” and “Titanie.”
But the most shocking snub in terms of the nominations is Denis Villeneuve not being nominated for Best Director. Despite that “Dune” is up for 10 nominations including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay, and it's shocking that the man behind it all didn’t get recognized for his talents.
Overall, it’s a very solid lineup of nominations. It will be very exciting to see who will be taking home the big prize come Oscar night. It will be filled with a lot of surprises and upsets, but it will still be an entertaining show for film fans to enjoy.
The 94th Academy Awards will air on Sunday, March 27th at 8 p.m., only on ABC