Watch this, think back to the lasting excellence of Pixar’s productions, and ask… what will it take for one of their films to be treated with the kind of respect Juno‘s receiving? More about Pixar’s power here. Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window)Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)Pixar Related Cuss words, James Dobson, John McCain, and DubyaStaub, Wright, Spohr, and Me... It's The Kindlings Muse on the Best Films of 2007!
There is precedent for an animated film being nominated — BEAUTY & THE BEAST. But a win? Never. There will always be too much afoot the view that animated films are not “real” movies or “just cartoons.” Plus, the Best Animated Film award, though it’s obviously good that it guarantees some kind of recognition every year, will serve as a permanently-structured “consolation prize” if an animated film ever again does get nominated and may even work against a BEAUTY & BEAST repeat. After all … when has a documentary ever been nominated?
Hmmm, I wonder if the Best Animated Feature category is more like the Best Documentary Feature category or the Best Foreign Language Film category. Foreign-language films have been nominated for Best Picture every now and then (e.g., Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Life Is Beautiful and Il Postino, to name the first three examples that come to mind — all of which come from just the past dozen years), but I must admit I can’t think of any documentaries that have been nominated for Best Picture.
Incidentally, while Beauty and the Beast does technically have the record for the most Oscar nominations ever received by an animated film, three of those nominations were in the same category (i.e. Best Original Song — just as all three of Enchanted‘s nominations this year are in Best Original Song). So Beauty and the Beast was never eligible for more than four awards (Picture, Sound, Score, Song), whereas Ratatouille has at least been nominated in five (Animated Feature, Sound, Sound Editing, Score, Screenplay) — and at least one of those nominations (i.e. for Screenplay) is surely nothing to sneeze at.
Yeah … foreign-film probably is a better analogy than documentary for the problem of animated films, since foreign films commonly do get nominated in other categories and, the song from Algore’s Powerpoint Presentation aside, I don’t think any documentary ever has.
I should add though that I can think of no reason in principle why directing, editing, cinematography, sound, sfx and score categories should be off limits to documentaries. First example to pop into my head: THE THIN BLUE LINE would have been a worthy nominee for editing and dramatic score in 1988.
But still, to Jeffrey’s question … no foreign film has ever won Best Picture either, and I doubt any ever will. If not CROUCHING TIGER or THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST … what would it take?
Actually, I did some research and found I spoke a little too hastily. WOODSTOCK was nominated for best sound and best editing — deservedly, I might add … I’d probably have voted for it among the five nominees in both categories. It lost both to PATTON, which strikes me as bizarre, though I have not seen the Shaffner Best-Picture-Bandwagon-Winner in a theater.
My general point does stand though.