Coverage of Oscar 2016
The Academy Award ceremony took place on 28th February,
2016. What I find rather interesting is that many of the films that are awarded
or nominated this time can be categories into 2 key themes – of course there
are exceptions. These themes can be seen as relevant given the cultural and
political climate most of us have experienced throughout the last year.
The first theme is ‘Survival’. Films like ‘The Revenant’,
‘The Martian’ and ‘Mad Max’ have a common theme of lone survival in a harsh and
uncompromising situation. This type of film seems to be rather popular and
award-worthy in recent years – look at ‘Gravity’, ‘Lone Survivor’, ‘Unbroken’
and ‘All is Lost’ as further examples. When one is in solitude, there are
certainly a lot of opportunities to reflect on and give some thoughts about
one’s existence, and, like what I have said about in ‘The Wages of Fear’
before, only at the most extreme of circumstances will inspire the truest and
most provocative human behaviors. In the cinema, the audience can observe the
hero’s ordeal from a safe distance, without getting the bear clutches that
DiCarpio’s character is getting – just a joke. Yet, with inspiring messages, the
audience will be able to gain something from these films, not of guidelines to
survive, but of wisdom to exist.
On a lighter side, some other films involve making grave
decisions, and having the courage to be different from the status quo.
‘Brooklyn’, ‘The 100 Year-Old Man’ and ‘Room’ are all about facing problems
that require commitment and self-assurance that you can get things right.
‘Carol’, ‘The Danish Girl’, and ‘Straight Outta Compton’ are about doing things
that can be seen as revolutionary or even taboo for the characters’ era. The
lightest experience of life can be the greatest adventure, and what is common
between the two is a confidence to stand firm to what you believe in.
The second theme is ‘Conspiracy’. Many great films in 2015 are
about the paranoid feelings that someone is fishy, or about the uncovering of
conspiracy. ‘The Hateful Eight’ is the most intense example, and it nicely
captures the paranoia, prejudice, and distrust among strangers. ‘Spotlight’ and
‘The Big Short’ are about the dilemma of exposing conspiracy or crisis, when
the inevitable result will be devastating to many.
If you are idealistic and you know you can place bet on
justice, the film ‘Sicario’ challenges, then is there really a clear division
between black and white? In ‘Joy’, the protagonist works very hard to a status
she truly deserves, yet throughout her ascent to the top of the world, the
masks of family members and friends are fallen off, and their own motivations
are painfully revealed. A comrade today can become a nemesis by the sun rises
the next day. To a certain extent, ‘The Revenant’ can also be categorized here.
Even ‘Inside Out’ is about getting into someone’s mind!
Paranoia is often associated with the Cold War, and it is
rather fascinating to see a number of the films are about the 1950s (which also
includes ‘Brooklyn ’). ‘The Bridge of Spies France to make the ultimate heist
film ‘Rififi’. Indeed, only a number of brave directors, especially Nicholas
Ray, Anthony Mann, and Otto Preminger, were willing to make critiques on this
undesirable climate for creativity in their work. Their films would eventually
inspire the ‘New Wave’ movements around the world in the following years. A
film that comes to my mind, which is one I like a lot, is Fred Zinnemann’s
‘High Noon’ – the film which Gary Cooper has to face the bad guys alone, and no
one in town is willing to help. The film is famously referenced in the first
‘Die Hard’ film, yet what it represents is an allegory of the political climate
of the 1950s. Putting inside an existential framework, the fact that it is so
challenging to stand up for one’s own beliefs (even when no one is willing to
buy your view), and the desperation for the laymen to avoid censure (the
‘escapist’ cinema of the 1950s), is what makes the Gary Cooper character so
heroic and inspiring.
So, lesson learnt – times may be tough, yet the only
sensible way to carry on is to be yourself. All the best for the rest of the
year, and hope you enjoy the great films to come in 2016!
by Ed Law
1/3/2016
Film Analysis
