Shine And Poverty Of Oscars 2018

Hollywood has turned back to sensitive and dreamy, though rather overcooked fantasies where a mute cleaner falls in love with a sea creature, and named its ultimate winners - The Shape of Water and its director Guillermo del Toro. Nominated for 13 Oscars in total this film swept four awards and won the competition against the other great movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, which has already been recognized at the Golden Globes and BAFTA.

The 90th Oscar Award ceremony brought no surprises. All major categories had their favorites in advance and practically none of them failed. Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) beat her lady colleagues at the Best Actress nominations, while Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour) confidently won the Best Actor Award. Allison Janney (I, Tonya) became the Best Supporting Actress and Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) - subsequently the Best Supporting Actor.

It's a pity that an incredible Timothée Chalamet's performance in Call Me By Your Name left him just in a list of the Best Actor nominees, and the film itself got only one Oscar for the Best Adapted Screenplay. Not to mention James Franco in The Disaster Artist and its astonishing character of Tommy Wiseau, all of it swept under the table due to #metoo accusations. Moreover, what about a horror movie (Get Out) winning the Oscar for the Best Original Screenplay? Was it really so original to beat Lady Bird or Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri?

However, the biggest disappointment was absolute or nearly absolute exclusion of really worthy films from the Oscars. A smart and gripping Wind River wasn't on any Oscar lists meanwhile The Florida Project, which definitely deserved being nominated as the Best Picture (and probably it really was the best in 2017) landed only among the Best Supporting Actor nominees with Willem Defoe whose performance was one of the most memorable last year (with all respect to Sam Rockwell).

With only a decade left to the centenary celebration of the Oscars the event recedes from the highest recognition of the pure filmmaking and becomes a manifestation of all kinds of political values popular at the given moment. Unfortunately it distorts the true mission of the Awards, throwing overboard the ones who are not in line or in shape with the main flow. Is being politically correct much more important than being talented and creative?

The complete list of Oscar Award winners:

Best Picture: The Shape of Water

Best Director: Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water

Best Actor: Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour

Best Actress: Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Supporting Actor: Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Supporting Actress: Allison Janney, I, Tonya

Best Original Screenplay: Get Out

Best Adapted Screenplay: Call Me by Your Name

Best Foreign Language Film: A Fantastic Woman

Best Animated Feature: Coco

Best Visual Effects: Blade Runner 2049

Best Film Editing: Dunkirk

Best Animated Short: Dear Basketball

Best Live Action Short: The Silent Child

Best Documentary Short: Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405

Best Score: The Shape of Water

Best Song: Remember Me from Coco

Best Production Design: The Shape of Water

Best Cinematography: Blade Runner 2049

Best Costume Design: Phantom Thread

Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Darkest Hour

Best Documentary Feature: Icarus

Best Sound Editing: Dunkirk

Best Sound Mixing: Dunkirk