Excuse the Intermission
Alex and Max take you on a journey through film with this discussion podcast about movies.
Excuse the Intermission
2025 Oscar Aftermath: Reactions and Revelations
This episode dives deep into the aftermath of the 2025 Academy Awards, exploring everything from unexpected wins to emotional acceptance speeches. We discuss the standout moment when *Enora* surprised everyone by taking home the Best Picture award, highlighting the film’s essence in the context of today's rapidly changing film landscape.
Conan O'Brien's impressive hosting managed to balance comedy with poignant commentary, providing a fresh contrast to prior ceremonies that sometimes feel stuck in their ways. Our discussions include the notable absence of traditional Hollywood stars, focusing instead on celebrating lesser-known talents and independent filmmakers, showcasing their stories on the big stage.
As we analyze the Academy's evolving relationship with independent cinema, we also touch on audience perceptions and reactions, emphasizing how viewership ratings suggest a hopeful resurgence for the Oscars. Listen in as we also reveal predictions for the future, including which films and artists might make waves in the upcoming Oscars.
Join us for a lively analysis of the Academy Awards, and don’t forget to subscribe for more insights and exciting discussions in the world of film!
In this podcast, three longtime friends revisit the movies they grew up with to...
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How's it? I'm Alex McCauley. I'm Max Fosberg.
Speaker 2:And I'm Erica Krause.
Speaker 1:And this is Excuse the Intermission a discussion show surrounding the results of the 97th Academy Awards. What a night it was, as we witnessed history for Sean Baker in the film Enora, monumental wins for actors, for countries, for physical media and movie theaters, and our very own, erica Krause. Our full analysis of the Big Evening is just around the corner, on the other side of this break. Okay, guys, we're recording this episode about 48 hours removed from the 2025 Academy Awards. How are we feeling now that the dust has settled and you've been able to reflect on the night? Was this a year that we will look back on and say the Academy got it right?
Speaker 2:I don't know. I actually I rewatched it yesterday because you know as the whole telecast. I did yeah.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love the work Available on Hulu, right yeah yeah, yeah, I know Hulu.
Speaker 3:Did it cut out early again. I didn't notice it did that was a big, I guess, on Oscar night it cut out after best actress.
Speaker 1:Oh, I think, like during the presentation of best actress, is what my my mom told me, and and that just it's the perils of streaming, cause I'm sure that Hulu and ABC had an agreement to run the telecast from, you know, the four o'clock PM window to the 7 30 PM window, and that's Pacific time, of course, and then it's seven 30 when the show is still going. You know, the, the contractor, the agreement is over with and it just cuts out, and so, but I do think that on the, on the recording, whatever you can rewatch now is the full presentation.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I didn't, I didn't notice that, um, but you know, since we were at the grand, which was so great, you know we were, we, you know we were kind of straining our necks to watch, so I did. Well, I wanted to, like you know, I was I was saying the whole time on Sunday like I'm having a great time, but I can't wait to go home and put my PJs on. So I did give myself that gratification yesterday to, like you know, make myself a nice dinner and watch the whole thing in front on, and there was definitely things that I missed and so it was nice to revisit it. But, you know, as far as did they get it right? I don't really know. I mean, I think we can get into that with this episode, because I do have opinions, but I surprisingly feel good about this year's ceremony watching, very inspired, if anything. And, um, I have like a really like deeper love for, if that's even possible, for cinema, you know, and just like the, the industry itself.
Speaker 2:I think there was a big emphasis on, like just the people who make it happen, you know, and um yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 1:I'm excited to talk about it though that I mean on the surface, that like a win, because if you think about it in totality, that's what a night like this, a culminating event, is supposed to do.
Speaker 2:I actually agree and I think that, like, overall, I left feeling like this was actually like I really liked this. You know, I liked some of the messages that were being presented. I think the vibes were good as far as some of the wins go. I don't know that like. I personally agree with some of the wins, as we all know. I think we all kind of feel like there's certain things that got snubbed, but I think the vibes were good overall, like better than they have been before, at least.
Speaker 1:How's it been sitting with you, Max?
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's. I mean I think overall the show, the presentation, the telecast, conan, like the, the Oscars, I think it was a good show. Yeah, I think it was one of the better shows that we've had in a while. I thought Conan just killed it, as, as the host he is very much, I think you know, as a millennial like I've just had a relationship with conan a long time I can't believe he had never done it before.
Speaker 1:That surprised me as well.
Speaker 3:I felt like he had at some point and he seems like just kind of the perfect guy to do it. I love that he didn't really hold back. You know, I mean we we threw some punches, whether it was at the U S government or the or the whole Amelia Perez controversy, or Amazon and Netflix, uh, and streaming in general, like um, so I really, really loved that and appreciated him, uh, getting us through the night. Um, I thought, you know, I I thought it was a huge win for indie film, independent film, yeah, um, I think also, it really kind of goes back to I think 2016, when moonlight won over la la land.
Speaker 3:The oscars have become much more independent film driven right, like, and I think there's there's a bunch of factors in that. But I think studios are not taking chances on films and filmmakers and don't really care about awards because their own, because all the studios are owned by tech companies, so all really care about awards because their own, because all the studios are owned by tech companies, so all they care about are numbers and money and and streams. Where now the again since 2016,. If you look, you know, moonlight, parasite, coda, nomad land, everything everywhere all at once, like it's a lot of neon.
Speaker 1:It's a lot of a 24.
Speaker 3:They're small small everywhere all at once, like it's a lot of neon, it's a lot of a24. These are small, small, um, yeah, small, small movies and independent movies and that's that's really exciting because I mean, it's just it's kind of opening up a new door and international films as well. Right, like it just opens up new avenues to different films and different filmmakers. Um, but yeah, I, I, I thought it was, I thought it was good I, you know, did they get it right?
Speaker 1:I don't know, you know, I, I think we talked about this on the on our preview when we met our picks like dune 2 is probably going to be the movie that lasts the test of time and we spoke about that in the theater with our, our audience and it seemed like that was a pretty popular opinion amongst our crowd at least, where at the end of the decade and I was talking to, you know, friend of the podcast, Heath Triller, about this as well when we were kind of decompressing and and discussing the nights or the events of the night and I said, you know, I couldn't help but feel in the moment this underappreciation for Dune part two and even part one, because I I agree I mean we're all in agreement here that in 2030, when you look back at the best movies of the 2020s, Dune part one and two, I think, are in the conversation of top 10, top 12, top 15 movies, and that's with about half the decade still to come.
Speaker 1:So who knows what we might get. But, like during out of the first five years, Absolutely.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you know, it's also really interesting to think that something like Oppenheimer from last year is maybe the like outlier of a Best Picture winner now, as we move forward into this, this new era of of the Academy and the Oscars and big universal production right.
Speaker 1:Right, huge studio movie from a big, big filmmaker Well known. Yeah, almost like old guard.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so, um, yeah, it's really interesting. You know, I I love Anora. Anora is great. Anora won best picture. That is really good. Uh, but again, doom, part two, the substance, nosferatu, like are these are? Am I going to own those three films before I own Anora? Probably, um, so I don't know. But then also, when we ranked the last 25 or 24, uh, best pictures, there's a lot of of mid throughout throughout the the history of best picture winners agreed.
Speaker 1:I was thinking about that as well, and not that anora's mid, but no, anora for me is definitely in the top half. Yeah, having just done that exercise and having it be so fresh, I think it's somewhere around 11 or 12 for me now from this century so far, since the 2000s. So yeah, I'm excited about where movies stand right now, what I've seen on social media, the Internet's reaction to the Academy Awards I've yet to pull up the Nielsen numbers to see what viewership was like. I don't know if those have been published yet or not. See what viewership was like, I don't know if those have been published yet or not.
Speaker 1:Conan did say something really interesting at the beginning of the telecaster, after maybe the first or second commercial break where I turned to you, erica, and we had kind of commented on it, because he said tonight's Oscars will be viewed by over 1 billion people worldwide, and he said it earnestly. It was not like some sort of joke, it was. It was a proclamation of achievement, some sort of accomplishment, and I've talked to a bunch of different people about this, and what do you think he meant by that? Does that mean that one?
Speaker 3:I think it was a joke.
Speaker 1:I don't think it was. If you go, you've watched it twice. Did you clock that moment the second time? Does that ring a bell when he said that? Because I feel like maybe one billion people worldwide is like how many. How many countries were telecasting it? How many countries have hulu available or are broadcasting it on their cable networks and and so it's like accessible to roughly a billion people worldwide, but certainly not a billion people are watching the oscars. That'd be the most viewed television event of all time, yeah so I don't know why.
Speaker 1:Maybe it was a joke, but it just it. There was no pause for laughter, there was nothing. I don't know. That was a weird moment.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I didn't think of it as a joke. I thought it was kind of like a like it was it. It felt kind of like a. You know, I'm bragging about like yeah, there's a lot of people are tuned in tonight, kind of thing, and let me just give you the numbers and I think that we all kind of went well. But I don't really pay attention to that kind of stuff because, like I wouldn't have, but I do remember you guys kind of talking about, you know, viewership being down, and what I pay attention to on social media is just, I know, like, especially like our generation and even younger people, just don't give a shit about the Oscars.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean and, like I, even the people like that I'm close to, they're like oh yeah, I don't really pay attention, you know, to that kind of stuff because it's always really boring or I haven't seen half the movies or whatever. And and I don't disagree, like I'm, I love the oscars because it's something I've watched like ever since I was a kid and I used to just like obsess and like fantasize there's a pageantry, yeah I mean, and it's like, it's like the biggest night in hollywood which I it is, but is it the most like respected night in hollywood?
Speaker 1:no, and like I mean as far as like maybe like fans go like I don't think a lot of like normal moviegoers, like really like actually I mean I don't know I think moviegoers still like it and and watch it, and that's where you still get the you know viewership and then the teens of the millions, but I don't think the general public cares anymore and that's, I think what you're getting at. Erica, is that, like when we were in middle school and high school and it's 2006, you could come to school the next day, on a Monday, and mention something that happened on the telecast and chances are most people in your classroom or most people that you talk to at the grocery store, whoever it was, most people at your job would understand it as well, like I knew who my two people were in this school, who I could talk to about the Academy Awards the next day is shout out to our librarian and then one other paraeducator.
Speaker 1:But I was just like. I know no one watched this, but I want to talk to somebody about it and so I have to go seek these people out.
Speaker 3:Well, thanks to the World Wide Web. Yes, according to Disney, the company that owns Hulu and. Abc the Oscars viewership for 2025 hit a five-year high, so it's the highest in the last five years, with 19.7 million. That's up 1% from last year.
Speaker 1:Interesting, so I wonder if the streaming availability the streaming availability has to have everything to do with those numbers, because last year's films were much more popular amongst the general public when you had things like barbie and oppenheimer competing interesting well, yeah, so we're on a trajectory going up the oscars are back, and I do well, and I do believe that disney and hulu have a contract with abc and the academy until 2027, I think and so we will see two, at least two more streaming broadcasts for the academy awards, which, if viewership numbers are up, that bodes well for gaining popularity totally, um, okay, so I I'm trying to think if I have any kind of general thoughts other than the, the lack of appreciation for dune part two, I did feel the absence of one more art house, yet also like sort of like mass appeal film that they could have really rallied some people and just added more diversity to a few categories, like I've.
Speaker 1:I felt the absence of challengers, yeah, that you know, during during the not having Zendaya there and not having Luka there and not having Trent Natticus in best score Something just didn't feel, it felt wrong when the nominations came out and then something just really didn't feel right about it in the moment. So there were a few more things like that, I think also like I think overall, the amount of star power was lacking.
Speaker 3:I would agree with that as well. You know, I mean you didn't have Matt and Ben there, right?
Speaker 1:You didn't have uncle Steve or grandpa Marty, yeah, Denzel was not nominated for something like gladiator two, and so he's not going to be there.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean like Julia Roberts, meryl Streep, like some of the like.
Speaker 1:George Clooney, your old guard, and we're going to get to this. Obviously we have to like the old guard. The way it was represented was in someone like Demi Moore, yeah, and I don't know, because we were craning our necks trying to watch the screen, mostly interacting with our crowd in the theater at the Grand Cinema. Trying to watch the screen mostly interacting with her crowd and the theater at the grand cinema I don't know, on on replay where, where it was kind of quote unquote, celebrity row in the front there featured more prominently was to me getting a lot of screen time the Jack Nicholson seat.
Speaker 1:She was, she was. She was like front and center, or maybe off to the right a little bit, but like anytime someone walked up to do their acceptance speech, you would see her in that dress, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was. I mean I don't know, I wasn't really like totally tapped into the crowd, but I mean I noticed that to me was like right up front, and then we had like Coleman Domingo right up front.
Speaker 1:Just protect that man at all costs, guy.
Speaker 2:Pearce, I know Coleman is so cute. And then Ariana Grande was up front with Cynthia and yeah, I mean so cute. And then ariana grande was up front with cynthia and, um, yeah, I mean, I, I, yeah, I didn't.
Speaker 3:it's like interesting to point out like I didn't really notice that any of the bigger people that you normally see, like like leo, was. You know, leo wasn't there. Big jim, yeah, it wasn't I mean interesting.
Speaker 2:I always wonder how like that kind of stuff works. Like are they actually? Are they there? But they're just, you're obviously we're not going to focus on them because they're not like. Why focus on people that?
Speaker 3:are nominated, you know, and I guess yeah, I guess this is it just kind of shows like overall this year, like a lot of the movies that did not feature your a-list celebrities and a-list. Yeah, that's okay.
Speaker 2:I mean, which is fine yeah I mean, I think my whole thing is I I felt like this was a very fresh oscars where there was a lot of people that we don't normally see, um, being recognized. It just felt like a fresh crowd and so maybe that's. But when you think about it you're like, oh yeah, those people weren't normally there, but that's probably a good thing. Like it's other people's turn, you know to experience that it is.
Speaker 3:It is kind of a.
Speaker 1:It might signal a, a definite passing right of of the guard I would agree with that, okay so. So we of course had our in-house Oscar ballot competition, which congratulations to Erica Krause. One for one, she's batting 1,000. She dethroned Max who. You had a poor showing.
Speaker 1:I'll just come out right now and say that yes, I did, and you can take us through what happened and where it all went wrong here in a moment. Erica beat me by by one, which we kind of predicted, that whoever ends up atop this competition as the winner might not have what and what, because what's happened in the past they might not have a bracket or a ballot. That is like 19 out of 23 or even 20 out of 23. You ended up with seven wrong, I think. So yeah, and still one, and so good, great on you. Um, you, it really came through at the very end. It was a nail biter. You ate wrong, okay, um, you got both best lead acting categories correct, which is really what won it for you. So, looking over your picks, is there anything that you're most proud about believing in and picking right? And then, of those, do you have any favorite winners from the night?
Speaker 2:Well, you know, and I've said this multiple times, like when I went into picking this, I as I even said that I would be happy to lose this competition because there's so many of you know the nominees that I want to win, but I know I just didn't really feel like they would. Um, but if I was you, you know, in the Academy and voting, I would have voted differently. But I think that I'm most proud about my best actress, like pick, even though I obviously would have really no hate to Mikey Madison. I think that she's amazing, but I obviously really wanted to meet to win that, but I just was going off of like, just like patterns, I think, and then I was just kind of doing a little bit of research but also my gut was just telling me to pick that and that's, I think, really what won it for me. But and so I am proud of my, like my little intuition going off on that one.
Speaker 1:I mean, I just I think we should come to a full stop right there before you go any further, because that was the moment of the night Nora was building so much steam headed towards a best pitcher win. But I still don't think very many folks outside of the Academy voters and maybe there was some rumblings within the room there or the tea leaves, you know whatever but general consensus was that Dem demi more, based off all the precursors, all the other award shows that had already happened, aside from maybe, I think, the baftas was gonna walk away with best actress and then mikey pulls the upset and really, when you look at everything now that happened for Nora this last Sunday night, that is like the cherry on top to an incredible night for Sean Baker in the film, but to also have best lead actress attached to it as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um, but you know, looking over like, do I have any favorites? Um, honestly no, and I and I really didn't want to come on today and and like sound like I'm an anora hater. I just don't get the hype. I I liked the movie. It's, it's fine, it's totally like right up my alley. I just don't think the movie had a lot of depth to it and I I don't understand, like why people think it's this like beautiful story of anora. I'm like half the movie is them chasing after the, the fuckhead that like abandoned her. And I don't see it as a love story hardly. I think it's a very shallow love story if. If it is, um, so I didn't really get it. But I do really love sean baker and I'm really happy for him.
Speaker 2:I feel very torn about like the Enora success because I'm Sean like really captured my heart at the Oscars. Just every time he got up on stage was different and he used it as like a really great platform to like support independent films and like promote you know our theater going experience and like I I'm like the right guy. It felt like the right guy won for sure. I just there were better movies out there, but then I'm like. I think mikey madison's performance in an aura was spectacular. It was a really hard year. There was some really strong contenders in every single category. I could build a pretty solid case for everybody nominated.
Speaker 3:I think it comes down like Anora and Neon and the powers that be behind that film ran an awesome campaign. I mean, they were calling it Cinderella with a twist, right. And I think another big winner from this night was the Cannes Film Festival, because now I believe the winner of the Cannes Film Festival has won Best Picture, I think.
Speaker 1:I think it's five times total. Now Five out of the last six years to palm dior, yeah yeah, palm dior.
Speaker 3:Yeah, excuse me um. And and neon.
Speaker 1:Neon has also won I think, well, they've won.
Speaker 3:They won for parasite, parasite this didn't they, weren't they nomadland too?
Speaker 1:I don't quite remember who is, nomadland perhaps, but it's basically like we kind of said at the top, it's flip-flopped back and forth, with Oppenheimer and Universal being the one outlier. Everything everywhere all at once 824. Right, you know, going back to something like Moonlight, that's 824. So it is. It is the smaller studios and they are definitely learning how to play with the big dogs in these rooms, at these parties, at these gala affairs, where you do have to do some level of campaigning, right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, cause you know, I, I, I kinda I totally get where you're coming from, erica, and totally agree with you. I think Anora is a really great movie, but shallow is probably something that would also be in the description of it as well.
Speaker 1:Well, we discussed it when it came out as some goofy hybrid mix between like the Hangover and Uncut Gems and Pretty Woman yeah. And it's like would you ever think, if you mix those three movies together in a pot, that you would get a best picture? Probably not, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so yeah would get a best picture? Probably not, yeah, yeah. So yeah, I have a problem with the way that the movie is really sold to people as like number one, the love story, part of it all, and then just like a nora, you know, and I'm like, but we are literally focused on the guy like her boyfriend the whole time and how he abandoned her so willingly, and then she's really just like into him because he's rich, you know, I mean, and she's convincing herself that she's into him, but then when you watch like some of their like sexual scenes, she's obviously like doesn't take him seriously. I could go on and on about like why this is so not the movie to like idolize or like even like I just there's no depth to it and I think a lot of things I've read kind of validate me in that feeling and so I am confused. But like it also is not a bad movie, like there's some really strong scenes, there's a really strong performance.
Speaker 2:I just wanted more from her and not so focused on like this weird, like little, like you know where's waldo bullshit, like with the fucking kid, you know, like it's just that's so a big part of the movie and it took away from her story and her, like you know, the opportunity for us to explore more of like who she is and um, so I was, I felt a little misled by the movie, to be totally honest. And um, and when I think of other nominees, I'm like so many of these other movies that were nominated have so much more depth and like heart to it, and that's maybe that's, that's just personal preference, that's what I look for in a film, you know, and that's what I deem as a best picture. To me is like something that just feels like there's layers and layers and, and I don't know that I felt that about Nora, but I don't know. I mean again, sean Baker. It's a good for him, that's it. I am happy for him.
Speaker 1:Well, and that's where I stand, because I think that, respectfully what the themes that Sean Baker has been really focused on and returning to over and over film after film after film so far in his career have been, I think, maybe misconceived as shallow on the surface at times and really they're exploring a deeper, uh, they're trying to take a deeper look at, perhaps, maybe like an Anora, the American dream really, and like using you know, we, we meet this woman who has who, who has nothing really. We see her living with um, a roommate and like split level, and she's trying to make it work. She's gotten so used to this life where she has her body as her main currency really to try to get things and to get what she wants, and it's still not really working for her. And then she does have this triumphant moment of like striking gold in the old west and thinking that she's going to make it, and then what we see is this nightmare of her slowly understanding and realizing that like this fleeting moment is going to leave her and it is going to be over and it will not end well, it is going to be like a tragic fairy tale, and so I I, the more I think about it, the more I think about the experience that I had with Nora the first time.
Speaker 1:I've only grown to appreciate it more. I am just surprised that that's the movie, and I know that the Academy voters have gotten younger, they've gotten more diverse. It's gotten more international, and so there is, I think, a greater appreciation for films that are more provocative and pervasive in some of their sexual overtones and some of the violence depicted on screens. Like you don't have to just be, you know, this kind of sleepy costume drama anymore to really compete at the Academy Awards. You also don't have to be some big historical epic to compete at the Academy Awards. You can be an independent gritty movie, which is exactly what Inora is, and I love it for that, but when it's just going up against something that is really classical, like the Brutalist, I'm surprised, even though I picked a Nora, I am surprised at the big night that the film had.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, I think you know. If we're looking at my ballot, I mean that's where I went wrong right. Like I got one of six for the big six right, which was Kieran Culkin, which was probably the easiest thing to pick. But putting so many of my eggs in the Brutalist basket is probably where I went wrong throughout the night. And it is really interesting that the Brutalist really what they won three awards, two awards, one, two really what they won?
Speaker 1:three awards, two awards um one, two, two awards score, yeah, scoring cinematography.
Speaker 3:So three then because of brody, and brody, yes, of course. Um, so yeah, I don't know. It is really interesting. It's just an interesting year. And is that because the brutalist was three and a half hours within intermission? I mean, people were complaining about how long dune 2 was right, did?
Speaker 1:you know. But then it begs the question do people even start the movie? Do they even watch the film? Because the first two, within the first two minutes, the opening credits of anora are stripper trap music playing, as we have a one-er running through a strip club with naked women everywhere. So our old, older academy voters like tuning in for that. Are they staying till the second act to see what happens? I don't know. Does that scare them off more than a four-hour runtime? Who knows? I have no idea.
Speaker 3:Well, I, I don't know if we'll ever know, and that's, that's part of the uh, the strain with the oscars it is, it is uh I would just like to go on record.
Speaker 2:This has nothing to do with an aura, but kieran colkin is my new lover boy I just want to like go on record and say that man is making me fall in love with him.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and, like you know, and respectfully so because he is married and happily married and and I love that for him. Him and his wife are so fucking cute. But I'm just like, do I have a crush on this guy? Like he is so charming and I'm so happy for his win. I mean, it's not it was not shocking in any sense, but um well-deserved win for kieran and just well-deserved hype around him for the last couple years just with, you know, his success on what?
Speaker 1:is it succession?
Speaker 2:and then um, and then now, with a real pain, which I absolutely loved, the movie, I'm just so happy for them and, uh, the success of that film, um, but yeah, I just love that man.
Speaker 1:I just had to say that I know I'm glad you did that because I think that that between not only him and his best supporting actor award, but also zoe saldaña and her best supporting actress award the two most telegraphed, I think, moments of the night as far as awards presentations went and for those two speeches to still feel as important and as impactful as they were and I know that Kieran and Zoe deliver, they delivered their, their personal messages, in very different ways. Zoe deliver, they delivered their, their personal messages in very different ways. Kieran was kind of he seemed simultaneously like like goofy and I'm just going to wing it and kind of whatever, but then he clearly had this like plan to tell the story about his wife, which was really funny. Um, I thought at times. And then Zoe goes up there and she is so passionate about being the first actor of Dominican heritage to um to win an Academy award and what a big deal that that meant for her and and just what this entire year meant for her and you think about all her contributions to especially big blockbuster moviemaking in the 21st century and for her then to be recognized by, I think, the artistic side and and crowd of hollywood.
Speaker 1:You could see that very clearly, um on her face and in her speech, and so, although we knew those moments were coming, I was still pleasantly surprised by them, whereas sometimes, when that's the case, you, you are a little checked out, almost because you've heard this speech five times before at the, the different academy or at the different award shows that have come before it. Yeah, um, I'm looking at I'm still looking at your picks here, erica, and one where you got a leg up on max nine this was a little bit earlier in the night, but an increasingly bigger and bigger award here it's still one of, like, the main feature film awards is best international and you went with I'm still here, whereas max and I were still thinking that maybe amelia perez had some momentum in this category. So what went into that? Nothing shot in the dark like to you guys.
Speaker 2:I mean, I'm not gonna give you some like. Oh yeah, it was really calculated and I've seen this. I haven't seen it and I haven't seen any of them was it just enough of the amelia perez backlash it was maybe like out of spite, if anything.
Speaker 2:But no, I I did read quite a bit of articles about this movie and and honestly, I'm like it's on my watch list for this week to to visit it because, um, it sounds very like. It sounds like something I would enjoy, to be honest. But no, it's kind of a shot in the dark at just after reading some predictions online and just some people's feedback, and I'm like, and then also taking into like consideration all of the, the drama surrounding amelia perez, and just paying attention to what you know people have been talking about online and and so I was like I don't know, maybe all of this like the, the backlash with all of that might hinder, um, their chances at winning this award. And and also I'm still here, just kind of like I, I don't know it had the look of an oscar film too. So I mean, that's really like what went into that. I would. It wasn't like I haven't seen it and I and I feel bad saying that like my pick, I didn't even watch, but yeah.
Speaker 1:I think this, the strategy, is still sound in your reasoning. However, and especially seeing the Fernanda Torres real. She had a real strong kind of like 11th hour campaign as far as maybe the third horse in the race for best actress, and so seeing the appreciation for her performance in that film, I think is something that maybe Max and I should have paid more attention to, whereas Amelia Perez's star just kept falling and falling and falling. Um, you know, I'm looking at, I'm looking at your list, max, and is it weird that maybe one of the wins that you should be most proud of is is a wicked win for production design?
Speaker 3:yeah, yeah, I think, yeah, no, I listen, I again, I I think I said it, I said I definitely said it. The grand I know I said it on the preview show, but like when you have a movie that builds big sets like that and are colorful and poppy and is an imaginary world, whimsical feeling to it, the Academy likes that and so, yeah, getting that opposed from what you went with Doom Part 2, which also, you know, whimsical in its own way, right, like we are creating a world here in its own way, right, like we are creating a world here, um, but you know, I, I think wicked just plays more to that that voter base and which is crazy, because is doom part two's better, maybe me.
Speaker 3:I mean it is a question yes, in in that category it is yeah, also, you know, I do want to shout out that, oh, I'm looking at it right now You're two for two. Two years in a row I've called the best documentary short, the Academy loves a story about music.
Speaker 1:It loves music in schools. Yep or whatever. Will they go through If there's one next year? I'm riding that train with you.
Speaker 3:You have to go down with it. It's so crazy. I can't believe I got that right. But uh, but yeah, other than that, I I mean you know ariana grande for best supporting that was going out on a limb I had to have a lot of other stuff go right for that to you know not look like a idiotic move. And then also, nickel boys.
Speaker 1:But at the same time just to and you know, erica, you're always free to talk about wicked on this show but just to sort of, you know, put a pin in its performance and its presence on the academy awards this year, because I think it will be back in a big way with part two and that's something we can talk about maybe here in a little bit. But the way that the show started not having some sort of prerecorded bit, almost like an SNL cold open that featured Conan O'Brien or any other type of um, you know, kind of like arrival to the stage, sort of it just was a musical number with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, and we all turned and looked at each other and thought is this an early indicator? Is this signifying that this is going to be a big wicked night? And so in the moment as the show started in real time up until Ariana Grande lost that award, it was like it's very much on the table.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and she was front row and, like you know, camera cut into them and with her eyebrows.
Speaker 1:Her eyebrows were back. Good to see Jesus camera cut into them and with her eyebrows.
Speaker 3:Her eyebrows were back. Good to see jesus that opening.
Speaker 2:After watching it, we're re-watching it.
Speaker 2:Yesterday, I mean, I cried like I'm not even gonna, I'm, I'm, but, and, and it wasn't even I mean, it was absolutely their, their musical number. But like the montage, I didn't really I didn't see this when we were at the grand, but they do this whole montage at the very beginning of like all these clips from movies that all take place in Hollywood, right, and, and the whole thing you know. And then it cuts to Ariana. She's dressed as a Ruby slipper. I mean, she literally has the shoe on the back of her dress. She's singing somewhere over the rainbow.
Speaker 2:It the whole thing felt so old hollywood I was dying. I mean, I was just crying at home yesterday watching this and this is what wicked, what wicked did you know? Like to it's it. There is something I, I will literally die on this hill.
Speaker 2:Something spiritual and magical happened on that set. With that, those people I I'm, I'm not even kidding and you can feel it with their, the cast, energy and the way they all support each other and the looks that they give each other. It's not fake, it's not like for show, like, I don't think any of them care that they haven't won any like big awards for this. It's very well deserved. But like, I just think that like it's a beautiful movie and like um, so I, I loved that they opened with that and then, like so I was, I I mean I don't know that I watched them perform that and thought like oh, does this mean that they're going to win something?
Speaker 2:I just was mostly shocked because there was an interview, that, or just like a little red carpet interview with Cynthia and someone asked her if she was going to be performing any Wicked songs at the Oscars and she just like looked at them and she's like no, why would we do that? Like absolutely not. And she was so serious about it and of course, all these people like wrote all these articles about it, and so I was more like excited to see that and just to see that like psych we are. And she performed Home from the Wiz, which I thought she sounded incredible and then divine gravity. It was just like you know, there's a lot like a really beautiful message to wicked and um and pairing that with, like the hollywood montage, it was very like that and it kind of set the tone for the night with all these like independent film art, film creators and stuff, and I don't know, I just was, so I loved it.
Speaker 3:It was magical, you know there was quite a bit of musical performances, yeah, throughout this broadcast. Uh, how do we feel about that, do we? Because at some point it did kind of start feeling like the Tonys right, like when we're doing the James Bond dance number, followed by three different performances of like an elongated chunk of whatever song.
Speaker 1:Older Bond songs Listen. Lisa can go up there and do whatever she wants. I'm not going to say anything bad about that. I was surprised that Skyfall was chosen to be one of those.
Speaker 3:Bond songs, and it wasn't Adele.
Speaker 1:And it was not Adele.
Speaker 3:What's Adele doing on?
Speaker 1:Oscar night Beats me Waiting at the Vanity Fair party for the real fun to start. I don't know. Doja Cat singing Diamonds Are Forever. Like the older songs, that's what I'm saying. Like Lisa and Doja Cat doing older songs made sense to me, trying to like, but also, why are we?
Speaker 3:Honestly, it felt like a funeral for Bond.
Speaker 1:It 100% did. I was very. It wasn't a 50th, it wasn't no.
Speaker 3:I was very it was.
Speaker 1:It wasn't a 50th, it wasn't a no 60th it did feel like a take him out to pasture moment yeah, I was very like they dressed it up and made it look great though yeah, I was very like why are we talking about the Bond movies right now?
Speaker 2:I was so confused. I was like I mean I understand, like what happened, but I'm like hello. Like I mean I understand, like what happened, but I'm like hello, are we honoring these movies tonight? No, like, let's move on. Like let's talk, like save that for another time. Like I don't know. I felt like it kind of took away from like we're talking about movies that aren't even being nominated for anything. It was just confusing to me where I was like, okay, what are we doing? Like I don't know, and then we're doing this whole musical number for it. I'm like, ok, like, like I said, I understand that, like there's news that they sold the you know rights to it or whatever the hell happened, but I'm like why are we talking about this right now? I don't care.
Speaker 1:It was weird that there was so much music in a year where they did not allow the performers of the songs that were nominated for best original song to perform. Like, if you're gonna have musical performances, if you're going to and I don't think you should at the academy awards, but if you're going to have musical performances, that's what the musical performance window should be dedicated to. Yeah, yeah, so that that did not make any sense to me. And then we still had to go through and I don't want to quite get to like the airing of grievances yet, but like some of the things that just happened around music, um, and what did the woman go up there? Amelia Dude.
Speaker 2:I'll have to show you guys, one more time, amelia. She just kept going she kept going Amelia.
Speaker 3:She thought she was starting a sing-along in the crowd, no, those French people, man, they, you know, listen, those French people. They go to the beat of their own drum. Yeah, the secondhand embarrassment I felt watching that I had to. Started cracking up. I turned away from the screen and put my head on my mic because I couldn't.
Speaker 2:I was just shocked that it kept going for as long as it did and, and you could tell, the guy standing next to her was just kind of like his her husband oh god bless his soul. Similarly, okay.
Speaker 1:Similarly and I do, you know, I max, you and I both had timothy chalamet in best actor, and I think we probably overthought that or maybe even just went with our hearts a little too much there, because adrian brody is phenomenal. In the brutalist, the man does nothing but bear his emotions, cry, show us his soul really just full, send into that character for three and a half hours. And so it's not surprising, and especially as and it doesn't happen all that often now he is in rarefied air as a two-time best actor winner so it doesn't happen all that often but as a previous os winner, I think we just should have. We should have seen that coming earlier. I think we overthought that one. Similarly, though, the reactions to Killian Murphy standing behind Adrian Brody for what was like a seven minute long acceptance speech. Have you seen those videos? Because those are quite funny.
Speaker 2:No, I haven't.
Speaker 1:Killian is always just thinking like I'd rather be in ireland he would rather be at home, and he's literally said that, and he's literally like I don't like to do things like outside and I'm like honestly he's a mood like I get it oh, his micro expressions, just the way he was kind of rocking back and forth and like looking around and just we're still going, I'm still up here like that shit and I'm like I don't, I don't blame him, I'm like god that's, I would be so exhausted, yeah that that was a funny moment, but really not nothing viral I would say from the night.
Speaker 1:Um, I did love to see and we all had this on our ballots and so didn't really come to any surprise. But I think it also is just echoing what we're saying here about the rise of independent cinema at the Academy Awards and just the recognition that it's giving. But the win for flow and best animated feature, which happened pretty early on in the night, that was huge for that small little picture to take down the Goliaths of DreamWorks, of Disney and Pixar, the decade long IP of Wallace and Gromit, you know like really, really awesome moment for everyone on that team.
Speaker 3:15 people worked on that movie. Remarkable In a program called Blender that is free to download. That is something that is taught at the school. Download Blender if you want to be a digital artist and start working on it there you go. It's absolutely insane.
Speaker 1:So that was a huge moment To me. That's the one that was the category that I was most emotionally invested in, just because of how much I cared for flow last year and still continue to care about that movie. You know, I cannot wait to see what criterion and John's films do now with their physical release of this movie. That is going to be because they've already announced that they will be releasing it as part of either a John's contemporary or it just inducted straight into the Criterion Collection. So really, really excited about the win for Flow and then we all had this across our ballot too but also best sound and best visual effects going to Dune, part 2.
Speaker 1:And that film's still picking up more than one Oscar win this year, whereas, yes, it was top heavy with a Nora, especially because of the weight of the categories that that that a Nora ended up walking away with. You know, when you win best picture, best actress, best original screenplay, best director, it's going to feel like a really dominating night, and it was. But it's not like it walked away with eight or nine awards, you know, like everything was still spread pretty. I don't know, fairly is the right word to say, but when I look at something like Dune Part 2, and I think you know Dune Part 2 only received one less oscar than the brutalist.
Speaker 3:I still kind of feel okay about that yeah, yeah, well, and I mean also, though, like what else would have won those?
Speaker 1:I mean, well, wicked, right, and that's where you do see, wicked when, like wicked wins costume design and production design, yeah, and so just to kind of see that split amongst the craft categories in it and nothing really being too one-sided, I feel good about it because, again, I feel like the Academy did a decent, if not good, job of recognizing the real finer details of what kind of separates those craft categories and giving something like you made a great point in the theater Max I've been thinking about, like costume design for Wicked does make a little bit more sense than costume design for something like Dune, because of all the movement and not that Dune is not an incredibly physically challenging film, but of all the singing and all the dancing and all the movement that these characters have to be doing in their costumes for Wicked, for wicked, and so that was another deserving win, and especially when you listen to that acceptance speech, um, the winner being the first black man to ever receive the Academy award for best costume design, just another really nice moment for the telecast.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I totally agree. Um, also listen. The substance didn't go home blanked. No, picked up uh best makeup and hairstyling. That's going to be cool to see on the cover of your Blu-ray of the Substance Oscar winning. You know the Substance.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:However, I will say, was Caroline at the fucking ceremony? I did not see her once on the telecast.
Speaker 1:I mean, I remember seeing her only when she was nominated for Best Original Screenplay and Best Director. Those are the only times I think they cut to her.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I felt like in general the crowd shot like I didn't really see. I guess we saw Brady quite a bit, especially when Adrian won.
Speaker 1:We saw Timothy and Kylie Jenner a lot. We saw Timothy.
Speaker 3:I don't think I saw James Mangold once. No, I don't think I saw James Mangold once. No, I didn't see Caroline. I didn't see Corley, I didn't see. Uh, you know, just, it's really interesting that you don't. I didn't see Margaret quality other than up there dancing for the bond thing. Um yeah, just really odd.
Speaker 1:It's the conclave team, the team that maybe got the most screen time. Yeah, I saw Rafe, really odd it's the conclave team, the team that maybe got the most screen time. Yeah, I saw rave uh a couple times and lethgow had a little bit.
Speaker 3:Yeah, um, but yeah, I think it was like colman domingo, demi moore, timothy chalamet were probably the three most seen, and again, who cares about that? But like, I don't know, it's just interesting that like you are a best director, you know nominee and like we're not showing who these people are and show who they are and again put them up towards the front. Why is Sean Baker?
Speaker 1:so far back and I agree with that peculiar the categories that they chose to show clips for, versus the categories that they had be introduced by either the actors that worked on the films, if it was like for a craft category. You know, like in costume design, lily Rose Depp went up and spoke about what it was like to wear the costumes in Nosferatu. I like that, I, I like that and I think once, once those speeches really got going in the presentation was kind of like firing on all cylinders, like a quarter and I could be wrong about this having re-watched it I'm sure you could correct me, erica but like in the corner of maybe the bottom left hand corner, were they showing clips while the people were talking? Because still, it would have been. You know like no, they had like concept art, is that like?
Speaker 3:behind them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, okay, um well, I knew that yes yeah, on on the stage at the academy awards, but so I can remember oscar's past, where it's, like you know, it would be the person doing the voiceover. This year I guess it would have been nick offerman doing the voiceover for, like you know, costume design, nosferatu, and it would be the people like in the lab, you know, cutting fabric, stitching things together, dressing it with people, just like, basically little behind the scenes, clips, love that.
Speaker 1:I want that more than I want you know someone l fanning telling me about the corduroy that they got to wear.
Speaker 3:You can have it both ways, though you you put the actors out there. Yeah, they start talking and then you go to the clips and they're they're talking over the clips like why not um?
Speaker 1:also, and then, like I'm pretty sure we leaned over and mentioned like the cinematography award did not have clips attached to it you're literally awarding how the movie looks yeah, it's, it's ridiculous.
Speaker 3:Well, also like splitting the actor categories, where you you had, for the supporting actors, you had one actor come out and talk about each actors, yes, each five nominees, yes, with no clips. And then for the acting awards, you had like an actor come out and just introduce the clips. Yeah, just like. Why are we? Why are we doing it both ways? Like again, we are awarding people for their acting on screen. Can I see what? What the clip is that made someone be like I want this person to be nominated for their acting it just feels way too choppy when there isn't a consistent pattern to it all yeah, and also like, do we have to say something nice about everybody?
Speaker 3:like, come on, they are nominated for fucking oscars. I don't need robert downey jr up there telling me why he liked each of the nominees yeah, kieran, you are a ray of sunshine or whatever, like, like, I just you're so charming. Yeah, you know shit, it's Kieran Culkin. Yeah.
Speaker 2:I felt the same way. I was like especially, um, when, uh, what's her name from the holdovers?
Speaker 3:divine divine.
Speaker 2:Uh, when she did her thing for the supporting actors supporting actresses, um I actors, or supporting actresses, um I yeah, I felt the same way.
Speaker 1:I was like okay let's go like I was just like okay, we're good, I mean that's, that's it's really sweet and endearing and but yeah, I'm like okay, that's where you can trim a three hour and 40 minute telecast down to just over or under three hours. I think it's like us trying to. Honestly, though, I get it like it when we try to plan an assembly at school, shit never goes right.
Speaker 3:But this is the fucking oscars like come on, we try to play the live podcast. Nothing ever goes right. Yeah, yeah I mean it's just.
Speaker 2:It's like it kind of goes back to what I was saying, like about like the whole bond number, like why are we wasting time by doing this? Yeah when we could be focused on the actual movies that are being honored tonight and then same with the whole, like I mean I really loved conan, but the whole, like I will not waste your time. I mean it was funny, but it was like that was just like like you're joking but at the same time.
Speaker 3:I'm like, but you are like I mean, obviously you are. I mean that's the whole joke.
Speaker 2:But the bond thing for me like felt like a big waste of time, the little like like speeches about everybody and then, like you know, these are like these are real people up there like reading off their own script to say these things about the nominees and I'm just like, oh my god, it's like watching it just was, it was just I also have a suggestion, like if we're going to take away something like the bond or the quincy jones um, which, again, like quincy jones, huge figure in movies, especially behind the scenes for scores I don't I'm you know, correct me if I'm wrong I don't think quincy jones ever won an oscar, okay, and and so we take those away.
Speaker 3:Let, how about this? How about we? How about we? Do like a super cup cut of stuff that's coming this year? Yeah, get people excited, right. So then there's we're, we're already, there's already campaigning, there's already anticipation for the, the ceremony next year, because we're going to show you a super clip of all the big movies that are coming out this year that might, might, be up here next year yeah, I would, yeah, like just stay on brand. Yeah, I mean like the movies. Yeah, in the moment.
Speaker 2:Right, why are we selling? Why are we talking about bond right now? Like nothing, it's like it's just so weird. And then I mean like I mean the, the Quincy Jones thing, I mean I don't know, I mean honoring his life, I do appreciate that, but I do agree. Do agree like let's just stay on brand, you know well.
Speaker 3:And if if we are going to do something like quincy jones, that needs to be for david lynch, totally. The fact that david and I love that morgan freeman came out and talked about gene hackman I thought that was great very last minute, I'm sure, and you know because gene what passed away last week and gene hackman is a two time Oscar winner. He was a huge, huge figure in Hollywood for decades. But guess what? David Lynch also was a monumental figure who has had been nominated many times twice before for best director.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but his movies also like are just more important.
Speaker 1:They have one of the biggest imprints anyone else? Yes, um.
Speaker 3:So the fact that he didn't get and and I did see laura dern there in the crowd- with isabella rosalini, yeah, who was wearing blue velvet. So guess what have them both come up? Right, because Isabella is a nominee. So that's great. Lord Dern is a longtime collaborator and, like, best friend of David Lynch, and a legend and a legend and someone who is loved in the industry, as is her father.
Speaker 1:What are we doing?
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, have them come out and talk about David Lynch.
Speaker 1:Listen, that whole part and I have an article pulled up here that I was reading earlier because that whole moment I had my third cup of coffee in hand at 6 o'clock or whatever, when the In Memoriam segment rolled and they were shaking and it was nice, but it felt a lot less than what it should have been. It felt a lot less than what it should have been. That whole segment was just confusing to me. I don't like who's putting that together. This is going to sound morbid. Are there requirements to make the cut?
Speaker 3:here. Tony Todd wasn't on that Listen.
Speaker 1:Tony Todd, michelle Trachtenberg, who just passed away, shannon Doherty, a couple of big ones Ken Page, olivia Hussey, our queen, our queen I mean Margaret Kidder is the queen, but, like Olivia Hussey, what are we doing? Not recognizing her? My guy, alain Delon, yeah, sir Ripley, les Samurais, so many things that are, like, again, monumental that they were contributors to monumental films and moments in international and domestic cinema, and so I'm just. That whole part was weird to me.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they got to rethink that. Clean that up. Yeah, retool it, they got to rethink that, clean that up. Yeah, retool it. And again, if we're not doing Bond tribute dance numbers, we can have more time with that and make sure we get it right.
Speaker 2:I agree, because that's more important than fucking.
Speaker 3:No offense than Lisa coming out and singing Live and Die another day or whatever that was Agreed Live and Let Die.
Speaker 1:Invite Lisa to everything, though. So so I don't know. I'm looking at I mean, I'm looking at the rest of my wins and losses here. There's really not too much that I I have a problem with other than you know. Demi more. I think we all are very disappointed for demi more Moore and her not walking away with the Best Actress Award for the night, and maybe this is I don't know, it's a conversation maybe for an entire another podcast. This is a good time to have it, though, right now, because it is interesting to me.
Speaker 1:I've spoken to a few people about how it seems like the Academy has this tendency to they're more inclined to honor and acknowledge a young female performer in a quote unquote star making role than they are for a male actor.
Speaker 1:Again, talking to our friend Heath about it, it he put it a perfect way, where he said the male actors have to earn their dues and the older actresses can never receive their flowers.
Speaker 1:And I just thought that was so well said, because if you're gonna say, adrian brody's gonna get this now because of his career arc, and he started here and now he's gotten back to here and it's an amazing thing and it might not ever happen again for him, and then Timmy will be back. If that's your reasoning, then guess what? Mikey will be back and it's time to give Demi her flowers, and so I don't know if there is any sort of like no-transcript. You can see a double standard there in some years, and I think this is a great example of it where on one side of the coin, we are recognizing the young, new, exciting talent, but by doing that we are snubbing someone who might not ever be back here again. And then on the other side of that coin, we are recognizing someone for putting in their work and doing all this other stuff, because we think that their most stiff competition will just be back some other year.
Speaker 3:Right Gosh. Any more grievances. Wicked, for you know justice for W for wicked, but justice for ariana grande. Actually, I think alex touched on this earlier.
Speaker 1:I think wicked 2 will will return and I don't think dune 3 will return. And that's another thing where it's like were they banking on a return of the king moment for that film? I don't think that's happening. I don't think that's another thing where it's like were they banking on a Return of the King moment for that film? I don't think that's happening.
Speaker 3:I don't think that's going to happen. I think Wicked 2 will return and yeah, I mean listen. If Dune Part 2 isn't there, does Wicked pick up best sound, best visual effects Perhaps?
Speaker 1:And then it's a four-time Oscar-winning film, yep, and if Wicked's not there, dune part two still almost leaves as like that it wouldn't be the biggest winner but as far as like awards in total, that's what happened with the first film, the first film. I think the biggest award that it took home was greg frazier's cinematography, but it still left that night, I believe, with eight wins. Dune part one, because it completely swept all the undercard um what was?
Speaker 2:what else was up for?
Speaker 3:uh, visual effects, dune wicked alien romulus kingdom of the planet of the apes a real genre heavy category.
Speaker 2:Yeah, actually I remember erica, you leaning over and being like this is a cool category this year I mean, I think all of the the craft like the craft categories were amazing and some very like. I think for me the cinematography category that's always like one of my favorites, something that's like my favorite aspect to film already, and so I get really hyped on that.
Speaker 2:Um, I think I was like kind of pulling for nosferatu there because I just visually, that movie was stunning, but it was a really strong category. Like a lot of the technicals were super strong this year. I don't know that I would have given best visuals, though, to Wicked. I think, like there's so much practical effects happening, there's so much like the set and everything is all mostly all practical. Those flying monkeys though yeah, I mean, but like I don't know, I didn't like but they are.
Speaker 1:Are they better than the sandworm playing playing harp?
Speaker 2:absolutely yeah, I mean dune. That was very well deserved for dune. But you know what, what stands out to me with wicked is is really like the performances, especially just what went into their performances to the prep that the girls did, especially ariana grande, um, for that role. So that's what I'm like really advocating for and like wish people could like really see more of that, like just what she did to get there, um and so. But yeah, I think, like as far as like the craft categories, I'm like I think the right people won um I do think it's only going to be a matter of time before a robert edgar's film does win best cinematography.
Speaker 1:This is twice now. It's been the lighthouse and now nosferatu, where perhaps werewolf, his director of photography, perhaps perhaps not, where his where his director of photography, has been nominated, and so I I think we see that sometime this this decade, hopefully. I hope so.
Speaker 3:How about a way too early prediction for Oscars 2026? Do we have anything that we just want to put a pin on on this day here that we can look back at a year and be like I, I sniff this out?
Speaker 1:I mean, is this going to be a year where you have you know, we talked about the lack of star power this year. Now, of course, christopher nolan's big, big, loud film, the odyssey, won't be competing at next year's academy awards, and so you won't have someone like nolan there. You know, I don't think that greta gerwig's narnia movies are necessarily going to be oscar films, and I don't know if we're going to get one of those this year.
Speaker 1:I think that's 2026 so they could almost be competing against each other again which would be interesting, is starting to look like an all-time as far as like big yeah movies, because you've got spielberg, peel, edgers, nolan gerwig um, I believe there's someone else in there too, but there are huge movies coming out in 2026 yeah, I mean, and then and then you are still going to have your, your international independent filmmakers like julia ducarnu is going to have a film in 2026, you know. So the the competition will be stiff. However, in 2025, you know, next year we could be looking at we'll see about mickey 17, we'll talk about that film. Next week we could have a bong joong-ho competing against someone like Paul Thomas Anderson. It could be really exciting. Yeah, that could be very fun.
Speaker 1:So I don't know, I think that PTA film will play really well. I think it's time. I think that the Academy probably wishes they could have recognized a film like Licorice Pizza more. It was COVID. It was a weird time, you know. I think that I think that now this is him getting back to, not that he's ever been a big budget filmmaker, but this is what like 150 million dollar movie, um, so I I do think that, with leo at the center with leo, I do think that that's going to be a real heavy contender next year.
Speaker 3:I think we will see Timothee Chalamet nominated again for Marty Supreme next year.
Speaker 2:Yeah, see, I think that I would love well, I mean I know I would love to see Timmy pick up an award, just not for a complete unknown, like I think that like I mean I haven't seen it, so I think that is a little unfair of me to say I I have only heard incredible things about it. So I'm not at all shitting on the movie, I just think that he is like so dynamic of an actor that like he could win something, or win an award for something like a little bit more profound.
Speaker 1:I feel like I want I don't want to get like struck down for even saying that because like I love bob dylan, but um, well, no, but I mean what's already happened has happened, and I think that a really strong, profound role, like something and call me by your name which he was nominated for and lost for, we have to just wash our hands clean of that moment. A film like Beautiful Boy, which has maybe been his most like endearing and enduring role, like that's the one where people cite, where it's like God, that's when I really realized this guy is incredible and he's not even nominated for that, and so those moments have passed. And so now it's like what can we do going forward? And I do agree with you that, like, had he have won, it would have been cool because it already would have felt like a recognition of a new talent.
Speaker 1:But it's like you hate, you would hate for him to almost have the stench and I'm sorry, erica of a rami malik, freddie mercury, we're playing dress up, we're wearing false teeth and we're doing a voice playing, we're just in costume the whole time. And so I do think that like a more profound, more deserving role is in his future, and if it's an original screenplay and it's, and if it's something where and I'm not sure if Marty Supreme is an original screenplay, but if it is a character that isn't like just pulled out of a biopic. That's going to feel a lot better to us.
Speaker 2:I agree, it almost feels like I want to wait till he's like really peaking as like an actor for him to get that award. I mean, I don't know if that makes sense, but it's like. You know, when I went and saw this band play a couple years ago, I felt like there were so many times in the past before that I had missed my opportunity to go see them. But then when I saw them it was like the height of their career and this is the 1917 or 1975.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And I was like almost so glad that I saw it. I know I've even mentioned this to you guys, but like I was so glad, glad I saw in that moment and experienced this like really big moment they were having, because it felt like they were kind of like at their peak. And so it's like I was thinking about that with Timothy Chalamet and I don't know that he's like it's not that he hasn't already had like really incredible success with his roles, but I think like there's a little bit better to come and then we can recognize him in that moment and then it feels like the celebration of all the roles in the past you know what I?
Speaker 2:mean he has his moment. He's so young, he has a really strong career ahead of him that the kid is booked and busy, he, he. I mean I think we'll see it sooner rather than later. And I and I almost get excited about that because it feels like kind of this, like all right, like what's what, what next?
Speaker 1:it's almost like pushing him harder you know, I agree him playing bob dylan. The bob dylan role is closer to what he did in wonka than it is closer to what he didn't call me by your name that's very true, that's very true, and yet we still predicted that the Bob Dylan role is closer to what he did in Wonka than it is closer to what he did in.
Speaker 3:Call Me by your Name, that's very true, that's very true.
Speaker 2:And yet we still predicted that he would win.
Speaker 1:So again, shame on us and congratulations to Erica. You not only rocked it at the grand and you know. Just kudos to both of you. That is not easy. We had talked about releasing that, that recording, as an episode. However, unless you were actually going to go back, cue us up. Watch the broadcast replay on hulu. It really just wouldn't make sense. Yeah, um, and just more encouragement. If we do it next year, come out and experience the oscars with us live and and get to see us be almost like the analysis that the halftime team. However, it's just like every 15 minutes and we have four minutes to really just like purge our thoughts, reflect on what happened and predict or or anticipate what's coming next. So a really fun event. The two of you were awesome at it and again, erica, congratulations for winning the competition.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you were great too, alex. You, you are always the uh, the steady heartbeat in those moments and and I really appreciate your work.
Speaker 2:The steady heartbeat, but the shaky, caffeinated the.
Speaker 1:BPMs are a lot higher than they should be. That that is for sure. Sure, okay, so Erica will. She'll be getting back to us, and then we can all collectively announce what she is going to do for her winning prize of an episode where she gets to pick the theme and or format, and so that'll be really cool. We can't wait to see what Erica comes up with for that. As for what's next, here on the podcast, we will be covering the release of Mickey 17 and celebrating the career of the maestro, bong Joon-ho. Really excited to talk about Bong's career. His films are few and far between. However. He was working before he really became a household name here in America, and so there's there's a few movies that I still have to go back and experience for the first time, so I'm looking forward to doing that.
Speaker 1:But you know, I've never he's someone whose movies are so they're also compact in their own thing that I've never even thought to like juxtapose something like snow piercer versus memories of a murder you know, and so like I'm really excited for this exercise, yeah, yeah, he is, uh, he he's a man who I think touches all corners of of movie filmography while while staying, like Erica, I'm not sure how familiar you are other than than parasite with his films, but like I think not sure how familiar you are other than Parasite with his films, but like I think, as someone who loves horror films, watching some of these movies for the first time if they are your first time you're going to have a blast, because he is such, he is a genre filmmaker. He is like he. He's like a Guillermo del Toro, he is like a David Fincher, he is like all these other.
Speaker 3:I can't wait to watch mother. I have never seen mother.
Speaker 1:Do you know that one? I do. I'm unfamiliar with that one. I'm excited to watch it too, then. Yeah, um, so can't wait for this episode We'll see about Mickey 17. I, for me, the jury is out, based on what I've seen and even the promotional material. Now, if you have to tell me over and over again that the Rotten Tomatoes score is 89%, certified fresh, I'm untrustworthy out of the gate. And so we'll see what happens with Mickey 17. But really excited to talk about Bong's career next week with the two of you guys. Until then, please follow Excuse the Intermission on Instagram and the three of us on Letterboxd to track what we were watching between shows, and we will talk to you next time on eti, where movies still matter. Thank you.
