Jude Magnotti ‘26
EE Staff Writer
2023 was, without a doubt, one of the biggest years that the film industry has seen in quite some time. Headlined by summer blockbusters Barbie and Oppenheimer, and rounded out by psychological thrillers such as Poor Things and Killers Of The Flower Moon, over 7 different movies topped 900 Million at the box office and two of them hit the 1 billion mark.
With such an impressive catalog of films in 2023, the Academy Awards came not without a higher level of anticipation then even movie fans are used to. People from all kinds of different backgrounds and film tastes tuned in to see what recognition their favorite movies would receive. This allowed the Oscars to rebound from what was a stagnant 2022 as they amassed their highest number of viewers in over five years.
With all this being said, the Academy Awards would not be what they are if not for a little controversy; this year proved to be no exception. Coming in, Lily Gladstone’s performance in Killers Of The Flower Moon was considered by most people to be a slam dunk for best actress. However, Emma Stone’s performance in Poor Things came out of nowhere and swept best actress away from Gladstone earning Emma Stone her second best actress Academy Award (the first one being for La La Land).
With this milestone accomplishment, Stone has become the sixteenth actress ever to win multiple best actress awards. As if Emma Stone was not already beloved enough, she has now solidified her place as one of, if not the best actress of her generation. Gladstone may have put forth an incredible performance, but there is no doubt in mind that the award deserved to go to Stone at the end of the day.
Similar to best actress, best actor came with its fair share of surprise as well. Entering the Oscars, there was no clear frontrunner for best actor like there normally is. The award was up for grabs, and anyone from Jeffrey Wright to Bradley Cooper had a shot to take home the prize. Unfortunately for the aforementioned actors, Cillian Murphy’s performance in Oppenheimer edged out the competition and started a tear that would leave Oppenheimer with seven different Oscars at the end of the night.
These additional awards included not only best supporting actor for Robert Downey Jr. and best director for Christopher Nolan, but best picture, best original score, best cinematography, and best film editing. Needless to say, the hype generated before and after Oppenheimer now has not only validated itself, but now has seven Oscars to show for it.
However, Oppenheimer dominating the Oscars was expected. What fans were completely and utterly unprepared for was the lack of Oscars attributed to Barbie. The cult classic received recognition for Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” but at the end of the night Barbie’s trophy case was looking decidingly empty.
How could a film like Barbie that not only grossed a billion dollars, but made such a tremendous impact on the culture of our society have not even won something as simple as best costume? Well the reality is that this trend stems from the Academy Awards long-running and completely unfounded bias against comedies.
Throughout history, only a few comedies have ever won best picture or received any sort of Oscar recognition at all. The reason for this is that the voters at the Oscars have always held dramas to a higher recognition than comedies. Something like Barbie has made more of an impact, but the Oscars look more favorably upon complicated dramas like Oppenheimer that explore themes such as human nature.
However, the fact of that matter is, this bias is complete and utter garbage! Dramas may deliver more of an emotional impact than comedies, but when you look closer at the films, comedy is far harder. Contrary to popular belief, being able to replicate the genuine emotions of a character is easier than making someone laugh out loud. The actors are putting in just as much effort as those in comedies and the Oscars disqualify them for the fact that they are not as “serious”.
No one is denying that Robert Downey Jr.’s performance was incredible, but there is also no one in their right mind who would say that they enjoyed watching him more than Ryan Gosling as Ken. The Oscars need to get off their high horse and finally award well-made comedies like Barbie the respect they deserve.
Apart from these gripes, most fans were relatively happy with the awards given. While Oppenheimer may have received more accolades then we’re accustomed to, overall it deserved most of the Oscars it won and still serves as a gruesome warning of the dangers of possible nuclear war.
Poor Things proved to be far more entrancing than anyone expected and the makeup and production artists who worked on it received the recognition that they earned. With another year of Oscars in the books, and another year of movie fans throwing their remotes at the TV, movie fans now look forward to what films 2024 will bring. We will laugh, we will cry, but at the end of the day all we can do is sit back together and enjoy the emotional roller coasters that movies like Barbie bring on us, and hope that maybe, just one day, they receive the respect that they deserve.
Photo Credit: Emma Stone holds her Best Actress Oscar for ‘Poor Things’. PHOTO: MICHAEL BUCKNER/VARIETY VIA GETTY IMAGES