Awards season is around the corner, with opponents ready to duke it out in the ring of swanky luncheons and Hollywood hobnobbing. In this corner, the reigning heavyweight champ: a version of every Oscar-baiting, prestige movie you’ve ever seen. And in the other corner, the mighty underdogs: Nathan Fielder and some guy from YouTube.
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In the past, films that generate big online buzz haven’t always translated to Oscar contenders. The Academy still likes to maintain some distance between the cinema and the hot movie du jour. But this year, voters may find it difficult to ignore the massive awards campaign being mounted for “Obsession” — born from the world of online creators, pivoting to filmmaking — and the internet-breaking, feed-clogging brilliance of Fielder’s surprise Elizabeth Holmes documentary, “You Can See Everything.”
Both of these films are wild cards in their own right. “Obsession” garnering a nomination for anything other than Inde Navarrette’s performance would be a stretch — even that is starting to push it, with the lead acting categories already filling up with potential competitors. Fielder’s documentary, though, is a fascinating case. With huge public interest in the film from all sides, A24 is pushing for the doc to be considered in the best picture category, which would be a first in Oscars history. And with Fielder as the film’s brainchild, Holmes as its complex subject, and a three-hour runtime, even a nomination would be exactly the kind of genre-and-expectation-defying push the Oscars is seeking in an uncertain future.
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While some films’ merit is debatable, it’s refreshing regardless that the conversations around what qualifies as an “awards movie” are in flux. Predictability is the antithesis of a great cinema culture. And short of guaranteeing that someone gets slapped across the face every year, count on the Oscars to try to regain its distinction while courting viewers however possible. Maybe Elizabeth Holmes can still heal the world, after all.
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