Closer to the Big O

The Oscars feel like the annual exams donrsquot they We mean for audiences especially desis with a listed syllabus mdash nominated films start hitting theatres one by one The race to wrap up at least all the Best Picture nominees there are 10 is realWe burnt the midnight oil last night in the theatre hence just to remeasure the incredible fuss over Everything Everywhere All at Once mdash having watched it earlier on a preview screener meaning cellphoneYou risk social isolation to say anything that isnrsquot but everything is fine with the scifi family dramedy Everything Everywhere The critics to start with have rendered the AmericanChinese production criticproofEverything Everywhere All at OnceEnough that itrsquos apparently set to sweep the Academy Awards on March 12 2023 as we speak If that happens it might be the first for an altogether absurdist pic mdash and that may be a good reason for the Oscars to go that directionBesides the obvious That is Itrsquos been eight years since the OscarsSoWhite inwardlooking movement mdash minutely observing the colour of its annual slate even in terms of its voting membersEverything Everywhere we suspect wouldrsquove been nowhere on the scene even until a decade ago In terms of greenlighting funding critical reception of this scale canrsquot be planned anywayAlso Read Jr NTR on walking the Oscars red carpet We are going to carry the whole nation in our heartsAll Quiet on the Western FrontBesides diversity the big issue the Oscars face is audiences mdash its ratings have been on a sequential decline Not even the tight slap on host Chris Rock straight from a desi soap opera could save the show last year Theyrsquod have to work on the noms to ensure the Oscars arenrsquot an OTT awards after allWhile cruising on aircraft simulation along with Tom Cruise did you think that Top Gun Maverick would be up for Best Picture Avatar The Way of Water too The latter yes The former no The two films together account for 84 per cent boxoffice collections from among Best Pic nomineesBut the Oscars arenrsquot a boxoffice award Theyrsquore foremost the creative compass for American cinematic output every year Looked through that prism it wasnrsquot a particularly great year for HollywoodLetrsquos face it mdash I know everyone went gaga over the gently provocative thoroughly pertinent conflict in The Banshees of Inisherin mdash lsquocould you get bored with a friendrsquo Itrsquos equally possible to find the film overrated if not get bored with it once the point has been deliveredAnd you might wonder why of the two movies emanating directly from the postpandemic depression mdash entirely about a man who wants to kill myself mdash The Whale and A Man Called Otto the former made it to the Oscars the latter didnrsquotIs it because Brendan Fraser in The Whale was way bleaker than anything yoursquove seen on the big screen while Tom Hanks merely reminded us of our own mortality mdashgiven all whorsquove grown up on Forrest GumpBest Actor statuette nonetheless might simply follow the old Oscar formula of lauding the biopic mdash Elvis is Agrade As for biopics none better for a film buff than The Fabelmans noIN PICS Deepika Padukone looks like an absolute boss lady as she leaves for Oscars 2023This is Steven Spielberg 76 telling you all too cinematically how he became the worldrsquos greatest director For one by picking up great diverse material since he doesnrsquot write himselfHersquos writtendirected The Fabelmans Best Director Oscar for his memoir would be better than a lifetime achievement award any day Because thatrsquos how you watched his film mdash like a novel turning his lifersquos pages Wouldrsquove worked just as well on the small screenWhich is just not the sort of immersion that All Quiet on the Western Front is designed for mdash a full canvas devastating war drama that draws you to death and futility of war in ways that are both subtle and obvious But on NetflixGiven the world there should be a major antiwar film competing for the golden statuette every year Or isnrsquot that so already mdash wasnrsquot another WWI masterpiece 1917 killing it at the Oscars with seven awards including Best Pic only in 2019Then therersquos the massive surprise awaiting desis of course mdash the track Naatu naatu from RRR competing for the top song gong Which makes sense given how good Indian film music has always been It seems normal for the kinda run RRR has had Nobody couldrsquove predicted it when the film opened in IndiaWhatrsquos better still mdash if The Elephant Whisperers or All That Breathes or both win Documentary Oscars What if there are three desi wins Forget all of the above This could be the greatest year for India at the Academy Awards HuhBest PictureMight win Everything Everywhere All at OnceIf not All Quiet on the Western FrontOur pick longshot Triangle of SadnessBest DirectorMight win Kwan amp Scheinert Everything EverywhereOur pick Steven Spielberg The FabelmansBest Lead Actor MaleMight win Austin Butler ElvisIf not Brendan Fraser The WhaleBest Lead Actor FemaleMight win Michelle Yeoh Everything EverywhereNot seen yet Cate Blanchett Tar