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The travesty of it all: WHERE, I ask you, was "Oscar and Lucinda"? And "The Ice Storm"?
And "Titanic" got 14 nominations? We might as well kiss quality films goodbye with this monstrous crime against human nature that the academy nominations has committed. I mean, what hope do intelligent, intimate and entertaining dramas stand in the face of big time studios being rewarded with nominations for throwing tonnes of money into the making of manipulative and shallow drivel? What we need right now is a huge backlash to build up against the film that will miraculously cause the scales to fall off the eyes of everyone involved and shun it.
Apart from this, everyone got something, much like the Golden Globes - everyone, that is, except Steven Spielberg. But who can blame the academy? The very thought of watching "Amistad" made a lot of people I know feel physically drained. Dawson Leary probably thinks Spielberg was robbed, again. What was nice was the inclusion of Greg Kinnear in the Supporting Actor category; in a film of superlative performances, his work represents the most improvement an actor has made in a brief span of time. They should bar Burt Reynolds from receiving any nominations on account of rude and ungracious behaviour. Also nice to see Minnie Driver's inclusion in a category that SHOULD be won by Julianne Moore for her courageous performance as the very heart and soul of "Boogie Nights" - the last time she was nominated, it was also for a performance that was almost too true and real to watch. If they give it to Gloria Stuart, I'll know James Cameron personally bribed everyone in the academy (no offence ot Ms Stuart, but she barely registered a presence in the marathon movie).
Matt Damon for best actor? Yeah, right. Helen Hunt's unique position as the only American nominee in her category gives her an edge, but although I like her lots in a very winning performance, Dame Judi Dench more or less has this in the bag. Helena etc earned her nomination fair and square, but she's got time yet if she manages to perform up to the standard she displayed in "The Wings of the Dove" (by the way, Hossein Amini's screenplay for the film would have stood a good chance if only Atom Egoyan's "The Sweet Hereafter" and "LA Confidential" were not also running this year).
Directorial nods: this much I'll tell you - Lee Ang was ROBBED! James Cameron should NOT be given anything for inflicting his grandiose delusions upon us. Give it to Curtis Hanson for making crime so sexy and cool, and eliciting a handful of fine performances, and making a complex story understandable. Or to Atom Egoyan for making a film that genuinely cared about the tragedy that forms the center of its story. As for best picture, well, what's "The Full Monty" doing there? I loved the film, but hey, let's get real - it deserves to win more than "Titanic" deserved anything, but life's not fair now, is it? Which is why "Titanic" will probably win loads, but you, dear discerning reader and film-goer of impeccable taste, can take comfort in the knowledge that many people secretly hate the film, but just don't say so. Now if only all of them would speak up, a miracle may happen: "Titanic" may do what it should have done when it first opened - sink.