Categories One-by-One: Cinematography

[Mister Tee]

Not many seem to be taking the ASC bait on Elvis -- and, yeah, the fact that All Quiet wasn't there to compete complicates the matter. But I remind everyone, we all scoffed when Mank won ASC 2 years ago, and damn if AMPAS didn't follow suit.

[Sabin]

dws1982 wrote
It's on HBO Max as of this week.

Thanks. Caught it on HBO Max.

I've been staring at the screen for about twenty minutes trying to figure out how to say why Empire of Light never quite worked for me without just saying "Sam Mendes needed a co-writer." It's really just a small melodrama that's birthed from a workplace that tries to wrap its arms around a lot. One gets the sense that Mendes fell in love with adding ideas and more things it was about rather than refining what was there. And new ideas are just plopped in constantly. On a personal level (as someone who worked in a movie theater), I think it leaves a lot on the table in not exploring these peoples' lives more. But in speaking to the movie that Mendes made, so much of it hangs on a romance that I just didn't find believable. It's perfectly cast in Colman and Ward who try to flesh out the gaps in Mendes' script. I didn't see what Ward (who remains an abstraction for too long) saw in Colman and it wasn't helped that it was couched in a part of the film (involving a wounded bird) that I liked the least. It's a movie that never quite got out of the idea stage for me.

It works best in scattered moments of calm which are gorgeously shot by Deakins. The film's color palette is exquisite. The two of them pop against the plainness of the beach sand or when they chat in that empty dining hall with different colored glass behind them. Gorgeous to the point where I almost feel as though the film isn't quite drab enough at the beginning. I don't think it has much a chance of winning but... I don't know, if it had more nominations I'd definitely think it had a better chance of winning, if not a real shot at winning. It's a gorgeous collection of shots and Sam Mendes has three films that have won Best Cinematography in the past as well as a fourth that probably came reasonably close (Skyfall).

As it is, it seems destined to survive the test of time pre-show features that precede your movie at AMC or in Academy montages.

[dws1982]

No idea when Empire of Light drops online so I'm not sure I'll get a chance to see it before the Oscars.

It's on HBO Max as of this week.

[Sabin]

No idea when Empire of Light drops online so I'm not sure I'll get a chance to see it before the Oscars. Full disclosure, I watched about thirty minutes of Bardo on Netflix before convincing myself it was more of a theatrical experience. But it's a gorgeous film. I might watch it before the Oscars. What I saw was extremely impressive visually. At this point, I'd say it's my choice to win for two reasons, one of which I already stated and the other because Darius Khondji holds a special place in my heart. The first year I lost it at the movies, he was pretty much the greatest cinematographer alive having lensed Se7en and The City of Lost Children back to back. Afterwards, it's been nothing but diminishing returns but over the last decade or so he's been coming back with increasingly impressive and high-profile work. Now that we've given Deakins and Lubeszki their due (together they've won half of the last decade's worth of Oscars in this category) it's time to get around to Khondji especially now that he's showing up to work.

Tár's nomination in this category was one of the best surprises for me. I see no precedent for a win. It's too low lit a thing but it probably has the best framing of any of the nominees. The incredible shot from underneath Lydia as she conducts. Tár is probably the movie of 2022 where every component of filmmaking just came together for me. It deserves awards for its cinematography and editing for all the reasons neither will win.

But like Tee says, it's probably down to All Quiet on the Western Front and Elvis which will continue a trend of Best Cinematography = Best Production Design that recently explains how Mank managed to triumph over Nomadland. That's the only explanation for Pan's Labyrinth over Children of Men. Only Birdman has bucked the trend of that pairing with a feat of cinematography so undeniable there was no way around honoring it. But both categories feel pretty up in the air at this point with Best Production Design capable of going in any which direction at this point (I'm least confident of a winner in that category since Lincoln) and both All Quiet... and Elvis having as many pros and cons.

Our best insight will be the BAFTA because it's the only award where both films are nominated. They've done a reasonably good job of forecasting the eventual winner, siding with the Academy nine times out of the last awards, differing only Nomadland (the previous two winners were True Grit and The Artist). But it's not as though many of those winners were really in doubt. I also expect the ASC to muddy things up by giving it to Bardo or something. So, we're left to snap judgments on what usually wins.

One element that I don't think should be overlooked is that Elvis is shot by a woman and there is a movement to honor a woman in this category. I think that helps Elvis' chances a bit. But more in All Quiet on the Western Front's favor is a trend in this category to honor the greatest "feats" of cinematography. Whatever the most visible task is usually the best bet. All Quiet on the Western Front may not have the stunt quality of 1917 but it looks like the hardest shoot so I think that helps it.

I'm also thinking about what Tee points out about what ultimately helped Pan's Labyrinth. It was ultimately the more popular film. I was bullish on Children of Men's chances because it exceeded expectations and pulled in nominations for writing and editing. But Pan's Labyrinth outperformed most Best Picture nominees that year in both nominations and eventual wins. Does anybody doubt that in an expanded roster it would sneak in for Best Picture? I'm not so sure Children of Men would despite being the film of the year. Both Elvis and All Quiet on the Western Front are clearly popular films, almost equally so. But if I'm an Academy voter, how many times do I check one vs. the other? If I love Elvis, my hunch is my attention goes to Best Actor and Best Costume Design. Maybe Production Design. If I love All Quiet on the Western Front, I'm definitely writing it in for Best International Film, but beyond that what is representative of the whole of the achievement? Maybe Best Adapted Screenplay but an equal case could be made that Best Cinematography would be it.

And so I suspect, All Quiet on the Western Front. If Elvis wins the BAFTA and the ASC, that would change my mind, but as I think about the likelihood of that happening in this moment, it feels pretty slim.

[Big Magilla]

I haven't seen Bardo but I will before I weigh in on a personal choice. The cinematography in Inarritu's films is always impressive despite the overall quality of the work. Darius Khnoji was the d.p. on Se7en, Evita, Midnight in Paris, Amour and Armageddon Time so it's bound to be a worthy contender.

I watched the first half or so of Empire of Light last night before I started to doze off around midnight. It's not a good movie but it captures the look and feel of working in a movie theatre like no other film. Deakins' work, as always, is first-rate.

James Friend, the d.p. on All Quiet on the Western Front doesn't have much of a track record, but the cinematography is in the same vein as 1917 for which Deakins won his second Oscar, so it is probably the front-runner given the surprising absence of Top Gun: Maverick.

Florian Hoffmeister, the d.p. on Tár has a bit stronger resume than Friend, albeit like Friend, is mostly known for his TV work, but Tár also has classic cinematography and could be a surprise winner if they want to give it to something other than a war film.

I don't know why Elvis is even nominated in this category but then I don't know it's nominated in most of the categories it's nominated in.

[anonymous1980]

Only three carryovers from the ASC slate, and two of those are viewed as the least-likely to win at AMPAS, each being the only nomination its film has received.

I'll comment on this thread once I see all the nominees (haven't seen Empire of Light) but I got curious so I went to Wikipedia to find out when was the last time a film won Cinematography on its only nomination. The answer is She Wore a Yellow Ribbon which won Best Color Cinematography back in 1949.

[Mister Tee]

I presume this is one people are going to be slow to weigh in on, since full-participation means sitting through two films few have seen or especially want to.

The nominees:

All Quiet on the Western Front (James Friend)
Bardo (Darius Khondji)
Elvis (Mandy Walker)
Empire of Light (Roger Deakins)
TAR (Florian Hoffmeister)

Only three carryovers from the ASC slate, and two of those are viewed as the least-likely to win at AMPAS, each being the only nomination its film has received.

Bardo has all kinds of memorable and beautifully shot moments. It continues Innaritu's streak of getting at least one nomination for every feature he's made. But it doesn't have a chance.

Empire of Light is a pretty terrible film -- one cliched plot point after another, with nothing to much tie it together, apart from some half-hearted stab at The Magic of Cinema. (In the period the movie's set -- right around New Years 1980/81 -- movies were so bad, I found myself snarkily thinking, not a lot of magic in Nine to Five or Stir Crazy...then, to my amazement, a scene from Stir Crazy showed up.) But, damn, Deakins makes the interior of that theatre look absolutely gorgeous. I mean, it glows. Lots of good work from him throughout, as ever. But this one isn't winning him another Oscar.

TAR was a happy surprise nominee, but it doesn't have the sort of visual scheme Oscar voters generally favor, nor the exotic settings that can sometimes suffice. This feels like a happy-to-be-nominated thing.

Two interesting elements about the Elvis nomination: 1) Nailing this (uncertain) nod means Elvis exactly matches the nominations Moulin Rouge got back in 2001; and 2) Mandy Walker is the 3rd female nominee in the category, but the first to be cited for a film not also directed by a woman. Progress?

I can't say I thought of Elvis a much a contender for this category while I was watching the movie; I, in fact, thought this was, by Luhrman standards, rather non-ostentatious work. But it's the most high-profile candidate of those that carried over from ASC, so you have to feel it has a chance.

When, on the morning of the nominations, people absorbed the great news that Top Gun: Maverick had been omitted, there was a pause, then a bewildered but near-universal "I guess All Quiet wins?" All Quiet certainly has the scope of a classic cinematography winner, and it would be a perfectly acceptable choice.

But, let's be clear about what we're predicting: Since ASC started handing out awards over 30 years ago, only two films have won the Oscar without having first secured an ASC nomination: Glory in 1989, Pan's Labyrinth in 2006. Do we really want to be so quick to predict such a rare exception?

It may be that Del Toro's film is the proper antecedent here. That, too, wasn't a Guild performer; its nominations haul came as largely a surprise. And cinematography that year also had a pretty funky slate (The Illusionist, The Prestige and The Black Dahlia all scoring unlikely nods). Most of us predicted Lubezki's Children of Men work that year, at least to some degree because of the ASC precedent. But Pan's Labyrinth, the more popular film overall, snatched the prize away in the end. All Quiet may end up doing the same. But I don't think it's a laydown.

For me, just knowing it won't be Top Gun means I'll be happy with the outcome.