The 2023 Oscar nominations were announced on the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 24, revealing a list of both blockbuster and underground films that shaped a year dominated by streaming services.
Some of the nominations include “Elvis” and “Tár” for best picture, as well as Ana de Armas and Michelle Yeoh for best actress.
For students like international relations freshman Carson Perz, many of the nominated films were unrecognizable.
“I thought a lot of the movies nominated ... I didn’t really know about them,” Perz said. “I don’t really know much about them (Oscar nominations). I see them circulating on Twitter and stuff, but mostly I don’t really dive into it.”
Perz expected one movie to make the best picture list: “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” the sequel to Marvel’s “Black Panther” film. He said the cinematography, music and success in theaters seemed Oscar-worthy.
Creative advertising freshman Jasmine Miller said she predicted the nomination of Disney’s animated “Turning Red” movie.
“I was happy to see that,” Miller said. “I just personally connected with it at certain points, because I’m half Chinese. So, a lot of things they showed in the movie, especially in her family, I sort of resonated with.”
Though “Wakanda Forever” and “Turning Red” both received nominations across multiple categories, leading the pack with eleven nominations was “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” directed by Daniel Kwan with Daniel Scheinert.
The comedy sci-fi film follows Chinese American Evelyn Quan, played by Michelle Yeoh, as she discovers parallel versions of herself and works with her husband Waymond Wang, played by Ke Huy Quan, to save the multiverse from a powerful being.
The film received exceeding acclaim from critics and audiences alike, particularly for its depiction of themes like existentialism, generational trauma, nihilism and Asian American identity. Recently, at the 80th Golden Globe Awards, Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan received awards for best actress and best actor, respectively.
“I’ve heard nothing but praise,” Miller said. “I think (the movie) contributes a lot, because films that center around Asian people and Asian Americans … the fact that it got so many awards and nominations, I think will lead the way for people to pay attention to other films that are made (by) and that feature Asian Americans.”
In the best picture category, “Everything Everywhere All at Once” goes up against blockbuster films like James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” and Christopher McQuarrie’s “Top Gun: Maverick.”
Oftentimes, fan-favorite blockbuster films fail to break into the realm of Academy Awards, the prime example being Marvel films. Despite critical and audience acclaim, many award show followers have noticed that the Oscars, in particular, have developed a trend of not granting them wins.
“I feel like if the movie is so popular and brings in so much money and is widely acclaimed to be a good movie, it should get a nomination,” Perz said. “But on the other hand, I feel like that would become very redundant over the years. Marvel comes out with movies very often, so they would kind of dominate the nominations every year. It is nice to get some of these movies that I haven’t heard about to diversify … (and) offer different perspectives.”
Political science junior Peyton Mosley said ideally, there would be separate categories for blockbuster and heavier, lesser-known films.
“I think (blockbusters) are deserving of awards, but it would be great not to step on (smaller) directors in the process,” Mosley said.
At the end of the day, Mosley added, movies are supposed to be entertaining.
“I think it’s important to balance the two,” Mosley said. “Both (film types) are important, and both have a place at the Oscars.”
In the best international feature film category, four of the five nominees were from European countries. Mosley said this directly reflects on the culture of diversity and representation within the Academy Awards.
“It’s not a secret that the Oscars predominantly lack people of color,” Mosley said. “I think that’s not something they’re trying to hide. Obviously, some steps are being taken to diversify the Oscars, but we clearly have a long way to go, based just on the international nominations.”
Similarly, Perz said the majority white films reinforces an overtly Eurocentric and non-diverse nomination list across all the other categories, as well.
“I’ll be so honest, I think (the Oscars) are overrated sometimes,” Perz said. “Movies that win Oscars, of course they’re good, but I think there is this sense of superiority with directors that have multiple Oscars. I feel like it’s hard for really great and more diverse … harder hitting movies to make an impact on the film industry because they aren’t ‘Oscar worthy.’”
