Top 7- Unsung Heroes of the 2018 Awards Season
We're now done with the 2018 Awards season and it's been a hell of a ride. Sure, I only ended up getting one prediction wrong with my Oscars predictions but there was admittedly a lot to like. Even with that though, there are plenty of films and people who deserved much more attention, not just at the Oscars but throughout the rest of the season. That's where this list comes in as I try and show some love to those who didn't get as much as they deserved. To clarify, any entry on this list will only be here if they had some attention over the season so films like Ingrid Goes West or Wind River, both of which were brilliant, aren't eligible as they were overlooked entirely.
7. The Boss Baby
Haha, no, not even close. This film got way too much praise and it only works to be a joke (like here). To the real heroes!
7. Lady Bird
Despite not winning anything at the Oscars, Lady Bird can't really make it much further than number seven because it won Best Comedy at the Golden Globes and Greta Gerwig did get a slightly undeserved nomination for Best Director at the Oscars. That said, it's still a film that didn't win as much stuff as it deserved to, being a truly delightful time. Many are praising the show politically for bringing to the forefront stories about young women that most often remain background plots in other movies at best, completely absent at worst. Not being a young woman though, that aspect isn't as interesting to me. What does interest me is a story about growing up that manages to be genuinely universal, running the gamut from hilarious to heartbreaking, making you laugh through tears. If you haven't seen Lady Bird, WHY? A lot of the films I recommend here can be a little niche but I genuinely believe you will struggle not to enjoy Lady Bird.
6. Martin McDonagh
Again, this may seem like and odd choice considering that McDonagh is the writer and director of Three Billboards, one of the biggest heavyweights of the season. It isn't so odd when you consider that at the Oscars, while the script was nominated, McDonagh did not get the director nomination despite other singular writer-directors like Greta Gerwig and Jordan Peele receiving both. Unlike those two though, I feel like McDonagh really has crafted a genuine directorial achievement here, being able to cross tone and genre quicker than either Peele or Gerwig (much as I love their work). The cynical part of me knows that McDonagh didn't get nominated to allow diversity to reign although the divisive nature and trickiness of Three Billboards can't have helped. What always gets overlooked in this conversation though, and the reason McDonagh belongs here, is that that is deliberate. There are no easy answers here deliberately and while not everyone digs it, I continue to be in awe of McDonagh as a filmmaker.
5. Sally Hawkins
I shouldn't feel sympathy for someone who managed to get nominated at pretty much every awards show this year but for Sally Hawkins, I do. The sympathy comes from the fact that Hawkins had to share a year with an absolutely unstoppable (and deservedly so) Frances McDormand. In any other year, this performance would destroy all other competitors as Hawkins is able to do just with her gestures and facial expressions what some actresses would need perfect dialogue and five movies to reach half of. See, if you haven't actually seen The Shape of Water yet (and I highly recommend you do), what makes Hawkins so astonishing is that she is completely silent from start to finish. Sure, many will praise Saorise Ronan and say she was the Best Actress nominee who was robbed but when you compare that work to an actress who is giving one of the best performances of the decade, there's no real doubt how snubbed Hawkins has been.
4. Call Me By Your Name
It won one Oscar but remains unsung because Call Me By Your Name was the very best film nominated at this years Academy Awards. Luckily, I did get to write a review on this film and if you want to check that out, please do but I'll repeat a couple of the highlights here. It's a film that is sumptuous and easy to completely lose yourself in, yet never skimps on emotional truths. It speaks not just to the homosexual experience but to a more universal one, to an experience of simply growing up and searching for the right version of yourself that is fleetingly out of reach by locating yourself in the hearts of others. If you haven't seen the film, it's out now on DVD and I cannot recommend it enough. Still, it did win one Oscar so it must sadly stay at number four.
3. Laurie Metcalf
The second of three acting nominees who were completely overlooked for their competitor, Laurie Metcalf is just incredible in Lady Bird and won not a single thing for her work. She was constantly up against Alison Janney for I, Tonya who sure, was good, but she played it broad. Metcalf's performance could never be called anything close to broad as it gently touches on all kinds of emotion. The reason that Metcalf hasn't got recognised so much though is exactly because of that, that her emotional breadth is so subtle that often, you just don't realise it's working on you. Ronan deserves praise for being the lead and handling much of the work of Lady Bird but for me, Metcalf was where all the hardest hits of emotion came from and I can only wish she got more respect for her work.
2. Michael Stuhlbarg
This beautiful man right here had three filmic roles to be nominated for this year (I'd put forward his role in Fargo season 3 as award worthy too) but managed to be Oscar nominated for absolutely none of them. First off, he had a brief role in The Post and was great for the three or four scenes he was in, although in fairness that wasn't exactly Oscar worthy. Following that though, he had a wonderfully compassionate role in The Shape of Water as a Russian spy going undercover to spy on the creature. I know that role sounds like a stereotype but thanks to the work Stuhlbarg puts in, you care about this man and root for him throughout. If you know me at all though, you'll know the role I'm rooting for him in is as the father in Call Me By Your Name. To describe his performance as compassionate would be an understatement and I legitimately am trying to live my life by that monologue he gives at the end of the film. I can understand people not thinking he was the best supporting actor of the year but the fact that he wasn't even nominated is absurd. I love this man and I guarantee you've already seen him give a great performance in a film you love. Now though, it's the time to notice him.
1. Timothee Chalamet
He may have been nominated for more things than other people lower down the list but Timothee Chalamet has genuinely stolen my heart this year. As a a smaller thing, he was in Lady Bird, playing just the worst kind of guy but in the absolute best way possible but that's not why we're here. No no no, we're here for his enchanting performance as Elio in Call Me By Your Name. At no point did I see an actor acting. At no point did I see someone's performance. At no point do you ever not believe in this character. Chalamet is just embodying this role perfectly, in a way that I can't express in words. If you watch the film, you'll understand as he is utterly perfect. Gary Oldman finally has an Oscar which is great for him but this wasn't the best performance of the year. In fact, I'm terrified there may not be another performance like this this generation. I'm not the only person who thinks that but I'm not even close to a majority opinion and that's a damn shame. Give my boy Timmy love, please. He's a dreamboat, based just on his acting.
7. The Boss Baby
Haha, no, not even close. This film got way too much praise and it only works to be a joke (like here). To the real heroes!
7. Lady Bird
Despite not winning anything at the Oscars, Lady Bird can't really make it much further than number seven because it won Best Comedy at the Golden Globes and Greta Gerwig did get a slightly undeserved nomination for Best Director at the Oscars. That said, it's still a film that didn't win as much stuff as it deserved to, being a truly delightful time. Many are praising the show politically for bringing to the forefront stories about young women that most often remain background plots in other movies at best, completely absent at worst. Not being a young woman though, that aspect isn't as interesting to me. What does interest me is a story about growing up that manages to be genuinely universal, running the gamut from hilarious to heartbreaking, making you laugh through tears. If you haven't seen Lady Bird, WHY? A lot of the films I recommend here can be a little niche but I genuinely believe you will struggle not to enjoy Lady Bird.
6. Martin McDonagh
Again, this may seem like and odd choice considering that McDonagh is the writer and director of Three Billboards, one of the biggest heavyweights of the season. It isn't so odd when you consider that at the Oscars, while the script was nominated, McDonagh did not get the director nomination despite other singular writer-directors like Greta Gerwig and Jordan Peele receiving both. Unlike those two though, I feel like McDonagh really has crafted a genuine directorial achievement here, being able to cross tone and genre quicker than either Peele or Gerwig (much as I love their work). The cynical part of me knows that McDonagh didn't get nominated to allow diversity to reign although the divisive nature and trickiness of Three Billboards can't have helped. What always gets overlooked in this conversation though, and the reason McDonagh belongs here, is that that is deliberate. There are no easy answers here deliberately and while not everyone digs it, I continue to be in awe of McDonagh as a filmmaker.
5. Sally Hawkins
I shouldn't feel sympathy for someone who managed to get nominated at pretty much every awards show this year but for Sally Hawkins, I do. The sympathy comes from the fact that Hawkins had to share a year with an absolutely unstoppable (and deservedly so) Frances McDormand. In any other year, this performance would destroy all other competitors as Hawkins is able to do just with her gestures and facial expressions what some actresses would need perfect dialogue and five movies to reach half of. See, if you haven't actually seen The Shape of Water yet (and I highly recommend you do), what makes Hawkins so astonishing is that she is completely silent from start to finish. Sure, many will praise Saorise Ronan and say she was the Best Actress nominee who was robbed but when you compare that work to an actress who is giving one of the best performances of the decade, there's no real doubt how snubbed Hawkins has been.
4. Call Me By Your Name
It won one Oscar but remains unsung because Call Me By Your Name was the very best film nominated at this years Academy Awards. Luckily, I did get to write a review on this film and if you want to check that out, please do but I'll repeat a couple of the highlights here. It's a film that is sumptuous and easy to completely lose yourself in, yet never skimps on emotional truths. It speaks not just to the homosexual experience but to a more universal one, to an experience of simply growing up and searching for the right version of yourself that is fleetingly out of reach by locating yourself in the hearts of others. If you haven't seen the film, it's out now on DVD and I cannot recommend it enough. Still, it did win one Oscar so it must sadly stay at number four.
3. Laurie Metcalf
The second of three acting nominees who were completely overlooked for their competitor, Laurie Metcalf is just incredible in Lady Bird and won not a single thing for her work. She was constantly up against Alison Janney for I, Tonya who sure, was good, but she played it broad. Metcalf's performance could never be called anything close to broad as it gently touches on all kinds of emotion. The reason that Metcalf hasn't got recognised so much though is exactly because of that, that her emotional breadth is so subtle that often, you just don't realise it's working on you. Ronan deserves praise for being the lead and handling much of the work of Lady Bird but for me, Metcalf was where all the hardest hits of emotion came from and I can only wish she got more respect for her work.
2. Michael Stuhlbarg
This beautiful man right here had three filmic roles to be nominated for this year (I'd put forward his role in Fargo season 3 as award worthy too) but managed to be Oscar nominated for absolutely none of them. First off, he had a brief role in The Post and was great for the three or four scenes he was in, although in fairness that wasn't exactly Oscar worthy. Following that though, he had a wonderfully compassionate role in The Shape of Water as a Russian spy going undercover to spy on the creature. I know that role sounds like a stereotype but thanks to the work Stuhlbarg puts in, you care about this man and root for him throughout. If you know me at all though, you'll know the role I'm rooting for him in is as the father in Call Me By Your Name. To describe his performance as compassionate would be an understatement and I legitimately am trying to live my life by that monologue he gives at the end of the film. I can understand people not thinking he was the best supporting actor of the year but the fact that he wasn't even nominated is absurd. I love this man and I guarantee you've already seen him give a great performance in a film you love. Now though, it's the time to notice him.
1. Timothee Chalamet
He may have been nominated for more things than other people lower down the list but Timothee Chalamet has genuinely stolen my heart this year. As a a smaller thing, he was in Lady Bird, playing just the worst kind of guy but in the absolute best way possible but that's not why we're here. No no no, we're here for his enchanting performance as Elio in Call Me By Your Name. At no point did I see an actor acting. At no point did I see someone's performance. At no point do you ever not believe in this character. Chalamet is just embodying this role perfectly, in a way that I can't express in words. If you watch the film, you'll understand as he is utterly perfect. Gary Oldman finally has an Oscar which is great for him but this wasn't the best performance of the year. In fact, I'm terrified there may not be another performance like this this generation. I'm not the only person who thinks that but I'm not even close to a majority opinion and that's a damn shame. Give my boy Timmy love, please. He's a dreamboat, based just on his acting.
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