The world of cinema holds its breath a few hours before the Oscars ceremony on Sunday evening in Los Angeles.
On the eve of the Oscars ceremony scheduled for Los Angeles on Sunday March 12, two questions are on everyone’s lips. First, a film as crazy as Everything Everywhere All At Once, given as a big favorite, can he really win the statuette for best film? It’s not win…
In addition, will the page be turned after the scandal of last year? After the shock caused by Will Smith’s unexpected slap in the face of comedian Chris Rock, the Academy has created a “crisis team” to deal with any eventuality. However, this should not prevent some guests from going there with their little joke to lighten the atmosphere.
Eleven nominations for “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
Except thunderbolt, the 95th ceremony, presented this year by comedian Jimmy Kimmel, should therefore focus on the films in competition. Everything Everywhere All at Once, nominated in 11 categories. In this film, which notably mixes science fiction and comedy, an overworked laundromat owner finds herself immersed in a multitude of parallel universes.
Last hope of humanity, this Chinese immigrant played by Michelle Yeoh must face a super-villain who threatens the entire “multiverse”, and turns out to be the exuberant alter ego of her depressed daughter. The exploration of different worlds then slips into a delirious journey, where some humans have hot dogs in place of fingers, rocks are endowed with emotions and sex toys find unsuspected uses.
Success in theaters but misunderstood among members of the Academy
This independent and resolutely crazy film met with great success in theaters, with 100 million dollars in revenue. Its plot, centered on a moving reflection on family love and carried by a brilliant cast, mainly Asian, enabled it to win most of the prizes awarded before the Oscars.
The announced triumph could however come up against the voting system for the Oscar for best film, which tends to penalize polarizing works, he recalls. However, many members of the Academy “just don’t understand“the enthusiasm around this quirky film directed by a duo of thirty-somethings.
This misunderstanding could benefit the German adaptation of the pacifist novel In the west, nothing is newadapted from the antimilitarist novel from 1929 by Erich Maria Remarque, or Tom Cruise’s blockbuster Top Gun: Mavericka popular box that allowed the public to finally reconnect with dark rooms after the pandemic.
After competition on the side of actresses and actors
The competition between actors promises to be tight. “I do not remember a year (…) where three of the four categories of actors were really quits or doubles“, observes Scott Feinberg, specialist columnist for HollywoodReporter.
The Oscar for best actress is played out between Cate Blanchett, a ruthless conductor in Tarand Michelle Yeoh, the heroine ofEverything Everywhere All At Once. The latter could become the first winner of Asian origin to win this prize.
For Best Actor, Austin Butler (Elvis), Brendan Fraser (The whale) and Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin) are neck and neck. Just like Angela Bassett (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Jamie Lee Curtis (Everything Everywhere All At Once) and Kerry Condon (The Banshees of Inisherin) for the statuette of the best female supporting role. Only Ke Huy Quan, former child star ofIndiana Jones and the Temple of Doom forgotten by Hollywood for more than 20 years, seems almost certain to win the Oscar for best supporting actor, after racking up awards for his touching portrayal of husband in Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Objective: to provide entertainment
The shadow of the famous slap in the face last year by Will Smith to comedian Chris Rock, after a joke about his wife’s lack of hair, also hovers over this ceremony. The episode should generate some inevitable banter, but Oscars executive producer Molly McNearney clearly wants closure. “We will acknowledge the event (…) and move on“, she declared in front of the press.
Last year, the Academy was criticized for letting Will Smith receive his award for best actor on stage after his assault. He has since been banned from performing for 10 years. This year, the objective of the organizers is “to provide entertainment” and let the ceremony be watched. Because despite the rebound in audience figures last year, interest in the Oscars has waned considerably since the golden age of the 1990s. In 1998, 57 million viewers (an absolute record) attended the triumph of titanic, rewarded with 11 statuettes. This time, the ceremony counts on the presence of the suites of Top Gun And Avatar, two major blockbusters, to attract attention. “But if viewership doesn’t grow from last year, the Academy will be in big trouble.“, points out Scott Feinberg.