I concur with many of the eight films nominated for Oscar’s Best Film of the Year. In relative order of preference, Spotlight, Brooklyn, The Big Short, Mad Max: Fury Road, Bridge of Spies, and The Revenant are among my own selections of best films of the year. Since it was an especially good year for film, I thought it would be fun in lieu of a Year-End Best List to rank films and performances that were not nominated by The Academy Awards.
In the film category, I omitted three films that I highly admired–Amy, Son of Saul, and Amomalisa–since they were nominated, respectively, in the Best Documentary, Best Foreign Film, and Best Animated Film categories
In the acting categories my overall favorites for Best Actor (Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs), Best Actress (Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn), and Best Supporting Actress (Rooney Mara) were indeed nominated. Yet many performances went crying for recognition.
My Dozen Best Oscar Snubs:
Carol – https://cinedork.com/2015/12/31/review-carol/
Sicario – https:/cinedork.com/2015/10/02/review-sicario/
Ex-Machina – https://cinedork.com/2015/05/01/review-ex-machina/
Clouds of Sils Maria – https://cinedork.com /2015/04/17/review-clouds-of-sils-maria/
About Elly – https://cinedork.com/2015/05/11/review-about-elly/
Wild Tales – https://cinedork.com/2015/03/13/review-wild-tales/
Youth
Tangerine
The Hateful Eight – https://cinedork.com/2016/01/09/review-the- hateful-eight/
Phoenix – http://cinedork.com/2015/08/24/review-phoenix/
The Assassin – https//cinedork.com/2015/11/16/review-the-assassin/
Dope
Honorable Mention:
Timbuktu – https://cinedork.com/2015/02/23/review-timbuktu/
James White – https://cinedork.com/2016/12/04/review-james- white
Mommy – http://cinedork.com/2015/01/30/review-mommy/
Heaven Knows What
Love & Mercy – https://cinedork.com/2015/06/05/review-love-and-mercy/
The End of The Tour – https://cinedork.com/2015/08/17/review-the-end-of-tour/
Steve Jobs – http://cinedork.com/2015/10/16/review-steve-jobs
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Victoria
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl – https://cinedork.com/2015/06/19/review-me-and-earl-and-the-dying-girl
White God
45 Years
Favorite Actor Performances Snubbed:
Steve Carrell, The Big Short; Christopher Abbott, James White; Tom Hanks, Bridge of Spies; Michael Caine, Youth; Samuel L. Jackson, The Hateful Eight
Favorite Actress Performances Snubbed :
Juliette Binoche, Clouds of Sils Maria; Nina Hoss, Phoenix; Mya Taylor, Tangerine; Teyonah Parris, Chi-Raq; Emily Blunt, Sicario
Favorite Supporting Actor Performances Snubbed:
Michael Keaton, Spotlight; Michael Shannon, 99 Homes; Oscar Isaac, Ex-Machina; Paul Dano, Love & Mercy, Benicio Del Toro, Sicario
Favorite Supporting Actress Performances Snubbed:
Kristen Stewart, Clouds of Sils Maria; Cynthia Nixon, James White; Kitana Kiki Rodriguez, Tangerine; Alicia Vikander, Ex-Machina (although she was nominated for The Danish Girl); Jane Fonda, Youth
Most Underrated Films:
The Gift, Stations of the Cross, What We Do In The Shadows, Unfriended, Truth, Joy, Gabriel, 99 Homes, Human Capital; 10,000KM
Most Overrated Films:
The Martian, Experimenter, Duke of Burgundy, While We’re Young, Girlhood, Queen of Earth, The Mend
Best Documentaries:
Amy; Steve Jobs: Man in The Machine; Going Clear: Scientology and The Prison of Belief; Where To Invade Next; Best of Enemies; The Look of Silence; The Wolfpack
Best of 2016 Seen So Far:
Dheepan, Ixcanul Volcano, The Club, My Golden Days, Viaje