Blame it on John Williams NOT composing a film score in 2016 (Actually, he did-"The BFG"!) Yet still, the Academy made THREE glaring omissions this year:
Outrage #s 1 & 2: While the Academy didn't exactly SNUB Denis Villeneuve's excellent ARRIVAL (8 nominations), in typical fashion, they overlooked the two most-vital contributions to that film's success: Lead Actress Amy Adams (Hello!) and composer of the eerie, otherworldly score by JOHAN JOHANSSON (I am obsessed with Best Original Score nominations!) I don't want to nit-pick on the five Best Actress nominees who stole Amy's spot--but does Meryl Streep really need a 20th nomination?? I will gladly pick-on the undeserving composer, though: a likely formulaic, derivative Thomas Newman score for the forgettable "Passengers." (I say 'likely' because, full disclosure, I have not seen the movie nor heard the score).
Outrage #3: the (virtual) shut-out of Martin Scorsese's "Silence." With only a nod for Best Cinematography, it received the same number of nominations as "Trolls." Marty deserves better than this--he's a national treasure! I blame the studio and their crazy release schedule: the general public had no way to see it before January 13th. Thus, it has zero award-show momentum.
I recently saw it myself just last night: it is brutal and punishing for all of its 2 hour-40 minute running time. It is also a work of art.
#OscarsSoLame
