An Alternate Oscars 2019 – One Week Later

By Jack Wilson

The Oscars don’t always get it right, and so now a week on from the awards we’ll take a look at how different it could’ve been, starting right back at when the nominations were announced and creating our own alternate path.

The only rule therefore is that in order to be eligible for the Alternate Oscars 2019, you cannot have even been nominated for that category at the actual Oscars. Ending up with a list to match the real thing, I suggest you go check out any of the following films and performances that you haven’t yet seen.

Disclaimer: I didn’t see every film but what I can tell this is all absolutely correct.

Best Actor – Ethan Hawke (First Reformed)

In First Reformed, Ethan Hawke plays a minister whose concern with the moral issues of the present day, catalysed by a troubled past, lead him to a place of emotional turmoil and bitterness towards the ongoings of our modern times – and he does so like a man worthy of an award on a blog post. You only have to watch one of his interviews to realise how cool Ethan Hawke is, and this film only made me like him more. His performance is suitably understated, with the progression of his outward emotions perfectly timed with his character arc and the development of the plot. I really struggle to see why he and this film in general didn’t get more hype at the Oscars, but more on that can of worms later.

Best Actress – Toni Collette (Hereditary)

Whilst I didn’t really grasp the rest of the plaudits surrounding Hereditary, Toni Collette did stand out. The way she flickers between the loving mother and the crazy unhinged mother roles so seamlessly not only replicates my own dear mother, but also makes for a very believable portrayal of her character’s psychosis. The dream sequences in the film still stick out in my mind after months, and that’s down to her ability in them to contour her facial expressions into shock with gargoyle-esque levels of protrusion.

Best Supporting Actor – Hugh Grant (Paddington 2)

In probably the most competitive category of snubs, this award could obviously have gone to Timothée for Beautiful Boy, or Steven Yeun for Burning for that matter, however if we started down the valley of giving out awards to Mr Chalamet we could be progressing down a very slippery slope. Therefore on this occasion the award for Alternate Supporting Actor is going to go somewhere less conventional, and that is to Hugh Grant for Paddington 2. The role in the film as a washed up vein actor, that was initially sent to him as something as a joke, ended up being a showcase of his comedic timings and acting range, and unsurprisingly ended up as Grant’s favourite of his own films.

Best Supporting Actress - Thomasin McKenzie (Leave No Trace)

A surprise star of 2018, Thomasin McKenzie’s performance is possibly the most believable of the year. Playing a young girl who’s denied a normal upbringing down to her father’s troubles and desires to live a naturalistic lifestyle, she is the epitome of showing the audience something rather than telling them it. Well done Thomasin, enjoy the award.

Best Documentary - Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

Dir; Morgan Neville

Just when I thought I’d seen the most wholesome film of the 2019 Oscar snubs in Paddington 2, this film came around and took the crown. Widely thought as a frontrunner to take home the award pre-nominations, it came as one of the biggest shocks when it was ignored entirely, and it is understandable why. Centred on the story of Fred Rogers, host of the children’s show Mister Rogers’ Neighbourhood, this documentary comes about at a time when his messages and ideals would be shockingly relevant. His messages on the necessity of children expressing their emotions and embracing their individuality in order to maintain their mental wellbeing would not go amiss in this age of social media, and his subtlety in pushing forth values of equality to children amidst political turbulence would also feel suitably apt all these decades later. Just going to show that being as good as a man as Mister Rogers was is timeless.

Best Foreign Language Film – Burning

Dir; Lee Chang-Dong

The best foreign language film category was one of the more impressive at the Oscars, and so this film’s exclusion was slightly less offensive than some of our other winners, nevertheless this meandering and brooding mystery was still well worthy of some extra accreditation which our awards are more than willing to provide. To call this film ambiguous would very much be an understatement, you only have to look at the fact that it’s entire plot centres on the idea of cat-sitting a perhaps non-existent cat to see this, and yet this somehow only enhances it. It has impressive performances all round, not least from Steven Yeun, and a sustained intrigue throughout that leaves you questioning and thinking over every shot and line of dialogue, making for a real treat of a slow-burn thriller.

Now we’ll just go through a few quick fire awards as to not drag out proceedings too long, therefore maintaining our separation from the actual Oscars.

Best Cinematography – Suspiria

Dir; Luca Guadagnino

Best Editing - American Animals

Dir; Bart Layton

Best Original Screenplay – Searching

Dir; Aneesh Chaganty

Best Visual Effects – Paddington 2

Dir; Paul King

(Had to win something)

Best Director – Lynne Ramsay (You Were Never Really Here)

In a year where there wasn’t a single female nomination for Best Director at the Oscars, the pick for the Alternate Oscar is Lynne Ramsay, for her work on the visually gritty yet stylish You Were Never Really Here. The film is keen not to give away too much too easily, and the directing feels like it pushes you into the psyche of Joaquin Phoenix’s character, forcing you to concentrate on what is going on inside of him and merely taking note of what you’re being shown going on around him.

Best Picture – First Reformed

Dir; Paul Schrader

The big one, and the award goes to… First Reformed, obviously. Both my personal favourite film of the year and in my opinion the best film of the year. Everything about this film was impressive; it’s visually amazing, Ethan Hawke is amazing, the pacing is perfect and the plot strikes just the right balance of thought provoking dialogue and action. I also really liked where this film went, the political undertones came very unexpected to me at least, and the Taxi Driver side of Paul Schrader starts to come out just at the perfect time in the film. The best of the year.

So there's some films for the watchlist, and whilst they may not have got what they deserved from the Oscars, at least that wrong has now thankfully been put right with this far more important acknowledgement.