One nomination that should've happened (but I wasn't expecting) was "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" for Cinematography.

Good cinematography doesn't require shots of beautiful landscapes or constant camera movement. Sometimes less is more. It was creative, had a great look and the framing was precise.

Especially when we had films that got plaudits for good acting roles by African-Americans in Straight Outta Compton and Creed. I really enjoyed Michael B. Jordan's performance in Creed.

Lesson learned: don't play a superhero who's traditionally white. But seriously, I still need to see Creed. I really dug Fruitvale Station.


And I think Stallone knows he's made a lot of crappy movies. I heard him on the red carpet at the Golden Globes, talking about his daughters not liking him in any of his other movies. I think that was a pretty self deprecating statement, so I don't think Sly thinks he necessarily deserves to win.

Really, no love for Everest? That movie was pretty amazing.

Rock is going to have a field day with all this hoopla... no way he drops out, he'll have the stage and be the center of attention for 3-4hrs. For the first time in years, I am genuinely interested this time.

For all the too-White talk, besides a useless BP nomination for Straight Outta Compton, were there any legitimate snubs for people of color? I know Idris Elba was great in Beasts of No Nation, but I think that "snub" was more because it was a Netflix movie instead of a legitimate cinematic release. No way the AMPAS wants to honor a Netflix movie. I don't think any other performance by a non-white actor jumped out as Top-5 in category , award-worthy this year.

That's the thing...maybe you could make a case for swapping Damon for Smith, but that's entirely subjective. And when a film is reviewed much more favorably (and grossed so much more) of course it's going to get the edge. There really wasn't any snubs you could point to imo... the issue is not the academy, but not having a varied enough landscape of films. Stallone - the very definition of old, white guy... was one of the few that gave a young black director and actor the chance of a lifetime.

Which is also a representation "problem" - that there are fewer non-white* parts, even among interchangeable faces. But it's a making (casting) problem, not (so much) an awards problem.

*See also female and older actors.

Agree 100%, he overacts way too often for my taste.

Leonardo DiCaprio Hopes He Screamed And Cried Good Enough In ‘The Revenant’ To Win Oscar

Yeah, because Oscar winners never overact. I'm reminded of Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood, where he simply does a John Huston impression and yells things like "I abandoned my child!!!" and "I DRINK YOUR MILKSHAKE!!!" It does pay off to overact sometimes, no?

This! Why is Elba (as great as he was) even considered for an Oscar in the first place if this was a Netflix movie? The same thing happened to Linda Fiorentino for "The Last Seduction". It aired on HBO first, so she was disqualified for an Oscar. Back to other black performances. I think Jada Pinkett Smith's YouTube performance was far superior than Will's in "Concussion". And last, Samuel L. Jackson doesn't deserve a nomination just because he is is Samuel L. Jackson. "The Hateful Eight" is not a great film (IMO). Samuel was best in "Jackie Brown" and (should have won the Oscar for) "Pulp Fiction".

Beasts did screen in L.A. and N.Y. for a week first so as to be technically eligible for an Oscar. The rules can be weird. Some documentary (I forget which) got nominated for an Oscar AND an Emmy last year.
But just because they make it eligible doesn't mean that the voters have to acknowledge the performance as a theatrical motion picture if they think it's really a TV movie.

Those racist Oscar voters giving 12 Years A Slave best picture and best actress to Lupita Nyong'o in 2014 which was only 2 years ago.

For everyone who says there should have been a Concussion, Creed and Beasts of No Nation nomination in the name of diversity ( 3 great films btw), I say there should have been a Sicario, Hateful Eight, Me And Earl and the Dying Girl, A Most Violent Year, Ex Machina, Love & Mercy, The Gift ,Far From a Madding Crowd, Black Mass, Knight of Cups nomination. and on and on. There were a ton of great films and artists that didn't get any awards recognition either, probably more films with caucasion cast and crew than any other race. The plain fact is that African American's are a minority in America and as a result a minority in the film industry. When 13 % of the population is African American and 77% are caucasion, the Academy Awards are going to reflect that. The idea that any minority should be shoe horned into an awards show under the umbrella of diversity takes away any and all credibilty these shows have.(which is admittedly low as it is). And its not as if there hasn't been any nominations or wins for people of color either. Just in the last decade off the top of my head Halle Berry, Morgan Freeman, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Hudson, Lupita Nyongo, Octavia Spencer, Monique, Steve McQueen and John Ridley have all won Oscars. Along with dozens of nominations for others. It just doesn't add up. The Academy is just about as liberal as it gets. I see no conspiracy here. There are a lot of great films and great work by artists every year and only a handful get recognized, while scores of very deserving others don't. Could Sam Jackson, Michael B Jordan and Idris Elba have been nominated this year? Damn right they could have. I would love to see Sam Jackson get an Oscar.Thats just the luck of the draw though. This whole thing sounds like rich people sour grapes more than anything to me. Plus at the end of the day, who in the sweet blue hell gives a flying fuck about an entertainment awards show.I mean cmon now. Instead of focusing her attention on which millionaire gets a pretend golden statue, how about focusing on the militarization of the American police force and the systemic racism, brutality and murder that is being perpetrated against black America by a corrupt, broken down law enforcement agency. I'm all for supporting discriminated minorities of all race, religion, sex and sexual orientation when their rights are being taken away, but not nominating a multi millionaire for a golden ego statue does not count as discrimination. Especially when its not really even happening.

Knight of Cups? Hardly anyone has seen that and I doubt those that did even remember it, that Cannes screening was ages ago.

It depends on the style and tone of the movie. All I know is that I rarely see Leo really disappear into a character, and instead see Leo abandon subtlety in favor of playing to the cheap seats.

Knight of Cups will be a 2016 release in the US, its awards season will be next year. The reason I say that is because Chivo's cinematography was the highlight of that movie, and I can see him getting another nomination for it.

Also they seem to be ignoring the fact that Mexicans are the front runners for two major categories this year. And if you listen to politics, they're the ones people are actually rallying against.

I'm speaking out for my Hispanic brothers Benicio Del Toro & Oscar Isaac who should have been nominated for best supporting actor instead of Yo Rocko!!!

Three of the BP nominees start with the letter "B." Two start with "M," two start with "R" and one starts with "S." This discriminates against the other letters.

62 of the 87 Best Picture winners start with letters from the first half of the alphabet (A-M). That’s almost ¾ of the total. That discriminates against the second half of the alphabet.

And no Best Picture winners start with "J," "Q," "X" or "Z." What, Zatoichi movies aren't good enough for the Academy? I cry foul.

No, he deserved it because he was better than at least one of the best actor nominees.

Yeah and Oprah's rich.

The Academy has a hard on for stuff like slavery and the holocaust.

But they don't.

Inside the Academy: Introduction

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment...miumvideo.html

Aunt Viv agrees: http://variety.com/2016/film/news/ja...tt-1201682705/

Thank you for this post.

A nomination or award should be earned based on how well a person performed, not by race. Two 2015 films that had a primarily black cast, "Beasts of No Nation" and "Tangerine," had decent performances, but nothing stood out to me as Oscar worthy. They're both worthwhile films, though, and should be sought out (Tangerine is on Netflix Instant). Being nominated for a major award shouldn't be a barometer.

Also, what exactly is the solution? Have a spot reserved for a minority?

I think you have to ask yourself a simple question this year. Is Stallone's nomination simply for his work in Creed or for his entire body of work? And was he better in his part than Jordan was in his? Seems like they can always find room for a "lifetime nomination" and if they can do that why is it so hard to find a minority nomination?

^ you can nominate all you want, if they don't win they will still bitch.