Completed Category: Sound

 Another category I completed by watching The Zone of Interest was Sound, the category it has an excellent chance to win! 

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We have definitely reached the point in Oscar season where I am tired, and having a busy work week. So let's get on through this, shall we? 

THE CREATOR:  On Nominations Day, I was one of the ones who said, "What's that?"  That's me, just over here being ignorant of sci-fi, fantasy, action, and other spectacles at the movies! Ha. I didn't not like this movie, but I also didn't really ever get super-into the whole "We are A.I. and we were wronged!" thing. It was all kinds of creepy. A.I. is like time travel -- people never quite know what to do with it in movies, because there is always some gaping logic hole if you think too much about what's going on. Anyway, Allison Janney showed up, which I was into. But we're here to talk about Sound. There was a lot of it! 

This probably won't win. 

MAESTRO: This has a lot of nominations. In addition to the so-called big ones, here we are in Sound. While there was of course music in this flick, there surprisingly wasn't that much. Honestly this was so much more about an interpersonal relationship than anything else.  This probably won't win. 

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - DEAD RECKONING PART ONE: One of my hobbies during Oscar season has been typing out and/or speaking the full title of this movie, every time I mention it, just 'cause. There's so much of it! There was also so much Sound. But, there were even more visual shenanigans. Still, there was a lot going on, and so supremely executed, and you know, let's dream big for Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, shall we? This has a small chance to win. 

OPPENHEIMER: What does it sound like to detonate murderous nuclear bomb tests in the desert, terrifying, torturing, and killing thousands and thousands of animals?  Goddamn humans. This movie has a chance to win, because there is a chance for Oppenheimer  to sweep everything, kinda like a bomb blasts away everything in its path, except the latter is much more painful for the living things on the ground than an Oscar ceremony. Humans are legitimately the worst and I hope every Oppenheimer acceptance speech mentions that. 

THE ZONE OF INTEREST: But see, to win this category a film would have to beat this. And this was a uniquely powerful use of Sound. As you have probably heard by now, this film conceptual art project depicts a shiny happy evil Nazi family living their best life in a house next to Auschwitz, which you hear but never see.  It's really well done and certainly remarkable. I didn't care for this movie, which I thought failed on lots of levels, but not on this Sound level!  This has an excellent chance to win. 

And so. Remember the good ol' days when Sound Mixing and Sound Editing were two separate awards?  If that were still true the Academy could give Sound Mixing to The Zone of Interest and Sound Editing to Oppenheimer. Alas, they'll have to make a choice. 

Order I want them to win: 

I'm fine with The Zone of Interest here
Mission:Impossible -Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer

Maestro (I feel bad for Bradley and I do want his movie to win some stuff) 

The Creator (Don't forget it's an honor to be nominated.) 

Order I think they will win: 
The Zone of Interest
Oppenheimer
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Maestro 
The Creator

How does that Sound to you?