Best Picture Nominees

By Patricia May P. Catan

 

THE highest honor any filmmaker will probably receive is winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards. To earn such recognition serves as testament and validation of his work as film producer. And in this year’s roster of Best Picture nominees, everyone is in high hopes of securing the most sough-after award. But before we dive into Oscars glamour and sit nervously on our seats as we await the announcement of winners tomorrow, let’s recap on the nine nominees for Best Picture.

Call Me by Your Name

Directed by: Luca Guadagnino
Produced by: Peter Spears, Emilie Georges and Marco Morabito

Film Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Elio Perlman lives in Northern Italy with his translator mother and professor father, who welcomes American doctoral student Oliver to help with his work for the summer. The cultured yet shy Elio is impressed with the confident Oliver, and their friendship blossoms into a relationship that transforms his life.

Academy Award History:

These are the first Academy Award nominations for Peter Spears, Luca Guadagnino, Emilie Georges and Marco Morabito.

Darkest Hour

Directed by: Joe Wright
Produced by: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Lisa Bruce, Anthony McCarten, and Douglas Urbanski

Film Synopsis: Controversial politician Winstown Churchill is appointed prime minister during the early days of World War II and is faced with the momentous choice of continuing to fight or trying to parlay with Hitler. With the fall of France imminent and the possibility of a German invasion of Britain looming, Churchill knows his decision will affect the entire free world.

Academy Award History:

This is the fifth Academy Award nomination for Tim Bevan. Also, this is the sixth Academy Award nomination for Eric Fellner and the second Academy Award nomination for Lisa Bruce. For Douglas Urbanski, this is the first Academy Award nomination.

Dunkirk

Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Produced by: Emma Thomas

Film Synopsis: In the Spring of 1940, hundreds of thousands of British and Allied troops are trapped by German forces on the beaches of Dunkirk in northern France. The terrain precludes the use of large ships, compelling the military to request that civilian boats join the rescue efforts. While soldiers endure attacks and wait in fear, the RAF provides cover for the hundreds of small boats sailing the 26 miles from Britain.

Academy Award History:

Including his nomination this year for Directing for Dunkirk, this is the fifth Academy Award nomination for Christopher Nolan. This is the second Academy Award nomination for Emma Thomas.

Get Out

Directed by: Jordan Peele
Produced by: Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum and Edward H. Hamm Jr.

Film Synopsis: Photographer Chris Washington is nervous about meeting his girlfriend Rose’s parents for the first time, especially when he learns that she has not told them that he is black. Their awkward behavior, along with the oddness exhibited by their two African-American servants, puts Chris on alert but even so, he is unprepared for the family’s true motivations.

Academy Award History:

These are the first Academy Award nominations for Sean McKittrick and Edward H. Hamm Jr. Including his nominations this year for Directing and Original Screenplay for Get Out, this is the third nomination for Jordan Peele. Also, this is the second Academy Award nomination for Jason Blum.

Lady Bird

Directed by: Greta Gerwig
Produced by: Scott Rudin, Eli Bush and Evelyn O’Neill

Film Synopsis: Strong-willed teenager Christine McPherson, who has dubbed herself Lady Bird, yearns to leave her hometown of Sacramento and attend college on the East Coast. Her equally opinionated mother, Marion, who is struggling to provide for her family, tries to prepare her daughter for life’s inevitable heartbreaks while also encouraging her to be her best self.

Academy Award History:

This is the ninth Academy Award nomination for Scott Rudin.
For Eli Bush and Evelyn O’Neill, these are their first Academy Award nominations.

Phantom Thread

Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson
Produced by: JoAnne Sellar, Megan Ellison and Daniel Lupi

Film Synopsis: In 1950s London, middle-aged couturier Reynolds Woodcock is at the height of his fame and creative powers. His sister Cyril helps to manage his precisely ordered world, but when he falls for a younger, high-spirited waitress, Reynolds finds that his new muse has transformed his life in more ways than he thought possible.

Academy Award History:

This is the second Academy Award nomination for JoAnne Sellar. Including his nomination this year for Directing for Phantom Thread, this is the eighth Academy Award nomination for Paul Thomas Anderson. For Daniel Lupi, this is the second Academy Award nomination

The Post

Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Produced by: Amy Pascal and Kristie Macosko Krieger

Film Synopsis: In 1971, Washington Post owner Kay Graham, the first female publisher of a major newspaper, and executive editor Ben Bradlee debate whether they should publish the top-secret, politically sensitive Pentagon Papers. Facing certain legal action, the pair must decide if their duty to inform the public is more important than protecting their careers and the paper itself.

Academy Award History:

This is the seventeenth Academy Award nomination for Steven Spielberg, who also received the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in 1986. This is This is the first Academy Award nomination for Amy Pascal and the second Academy Award nomination for Kristie Macosko Krieger.

The Shape of Water

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro
Produced by: J. Miles Dale

Film Synopsis: In 1962, janitor Elisa Esposito works at a classified government laboratory that tests new technology to help defeat the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Isolated and lonely, the mute Elisa finds her life changing forever when she uncovers the truth about the facility’s most unusual and top-secret project.

Academy Award History:

Including his nominations this year for Directing and Original Screenplay for The Shape of Water, this is the fourth Academy Award nomination for Guillermo del Toro. This is the first Academy Award nomination for J. Miles Dale.

Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

Directed by: Martin McDonagh
Produced by: Graham Broadbent and Pete Czernin

Film Synopsis: Several months after the rape and murder of her teenage daughter, Mildred Hayes is so furious that the case remains unsolved that she commissions three billboards questioning the town’s respected sheriff. The prickly Mildred’s actions escalate tensions throughout the town, provoking intense reactions from all involved.

Academy Award History:

These are the first Academy Award nominations for Graham Broadbent and Pete Czernin. Including his nomination this year for Original Screenplay for Three Billboards, this is the fourth Academy Award nomination for Martin McDonagh.