From the 2017 archive:
What does “Moonlight,” which won Best Picture at the 2017 Oscars, have in common with “Argo” (2013), “12 Years a Slave” (2014) and “Spotlight” (2016)? All three films won Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
Otherwise, they didn’t receive many awards: “Moonlight” only received three in total, including, in addition to the “Best Film”, the not unimportant but also not the main actor category for the “Best Supporting Actor” (Mahershala Ali), as well as the “Best Adapted”. Script”. Ben Affleck’s “Argo” also received three, including best editing and best adapted screenplay.
“Argo” was the first film to be named “best” without even being nominated for directing (Ben Affleck). “12 Years A Slave” was also considered according to a similar pattern: “Best Film”, “Best Adapted Screenplay” and “Best Supporting Actress” (Lupita Nyong’o).
Best Film: Political discussions addressed
“Spotlight” even took the cake: more awards than ever before for a “best” Oscar film. In addition to the “Best Picture”, only the “Best Original Screenplay”.
This reinforces the Academy’s tendency to award films in the theoretically most important category that would have fewer chances in other categories. Possibly all political decisions: “Moonlight” and “12 Years A Slave” dealt with racism. “Argo” Iran. “Spotlight” the work of newspapers in times of “lying press” accusations. The “Best Pictures” often do not reflect specific achievements by individual participants, but are, like the Golden Bear winners at the Berlinale, recognition of works that reflect the respective era.
When will there finally be a big winner again?
But the question can also be: Shouldn’t the one that wins the most statues be honored as “Best Film”? A decision would have to be made beforehand as to whether the film is a best one because it received the most Academy Award votes (in various categories). Or whether he should send a political signal to the outside world. Then you don’t end up with “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” which received eleven Oscars in 2003. But in “Spotlight” with two.
It’s been almost ten years since the magical barrier of seven Oscars was broken. In 2008, Danny Boyle won eight Academy Awards with his “Slumdog Millionaire.”
In recent years there has been an increasing number of voices accusing the Academy of one-sided assessments. “Oscars So White” was the name of one – justified – criticism: the jury did not sufficiently recognize black filmmakers. Perhaps the Oscar Club’s tendency to award at least a few awards to as many different films as possible is also a result of this. So the big winner gets less.
It helps to take a look at the films that were awarded the – in reality more important – directing Oscar in the same years. In this category there were Academy Awards for works that were perhaps a bit too technical, revolutionary – or simply too foreign for the jury that decides on the “Best Film”.
The year of 12 Years A Slave, Alfonso Cuarón won for Gravity – which was sci-fi, so couldn’t get an Oscar for Best Picture. This year, Damien Chazelle’s musical “La La Land” beat director Barry Jenkins’ “Moonlight.” In the “Argo” year, Ang Lee was considered for “Life Of Pi”, a fantasy film. “Spotlight”, on the other hand, had to admit defeat to Alejandro G. Iñárritu and his directing performance in “The Revenant”.
By the way, Ang Lee is familiar with the situation. His high-class drama Brokeback Mountain lost Best Picture in 2005 to Paul Haggis’ LA Crash (also a Best Picture with only three awards: Best Original Screenplay and Editing), but at least he got his first directing Oscar. Everyone agrees then and now that “Brokeback Mountain” didn’t win Best Picture solely because of its subject matter: homosexuality. It was simply too uncomfortable for the jury.
History: A few Oscars for “Best Film” are also not uncommon
There have been a few “Best Films” in the past that received fewer Academy Awards than competitors in the same year (“Moonlight” lost with three to “La La Land” with six). However, the prizes were always in high-ranking categories:
“Rocky” only received three statuettes in 1976, in addition to “Film” and “Editing” but also “Directing”. The boxer drama beat out “Taxi Driver”, “Network” and “All The President’s Men” in one of the toughest years in Oscar history. If the awarding of the “Best Film” had been made politically, “Rocky” would probably not have ended up on the winner’s podium, but would have ended up last.
“The Godfather” also won three Oscars in 1973. In addition to the “film” there is also an “adapted screenplay” and, at least, not a supporting actor but a main actor (Marlon Brando). Bob Fosse’s “Cabaret” won eight that same year, including Best Director.
Maybe it’s a good thing that Francis Ford Coppola, director of the “Godfather” films, received his directing Oscar in 1975 not for the first part, but only for the second part. Coppola was 35 at the time, the youngest winner in the discipline. The current winner in the category, Damien Chazelle for “La La Land,” is now only 32, making him the youngest winner of all time in that category.