The 1st Annual “Andys”
They're like the Oscars but way more chill.
Hey folks, so every year when the Oscars come around I play this game where I make my Oscar picks in each category (well, most of them) but my only rule is I have to pick something that wasn’t nominated (ex: would probably go with Amanda Seyfried in Mank for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, but since she was actually nominated I gotta pick something else).
Basically it’s a way to soak up some of that Oscars SEO juice while also kind of sticking it to the Academy ‘cause as we all know they seldom get shit right, mostly cause the, like, “prestige” of the brand or whatever necessitates an exclusion of the most interesting and worthwhile film work of the year (sure you get a Parasite or Moonlight here and there, but for every one of those there’s about a hundred Green Books ya know?).
So without further adieu, here are the winners of the 1st annual Andys.
Best Picture: Possessor
Because it’s the aptest statement on our times (check out my blurb in Nightmarish Conjurings’ Best of 2020) and the most visually impressive film of 2020.
Director: Joel Haver, Pretend That You Love Me
Because no-budget, authentically independent filmmaking is the future of the medium (or at least, I’m trying to do my part to will that into the universe), and Joel Haver made, as I put it in a plug last year, “the most emotionally stunning and technically innovative film [of 2020], and Hollywood couldn’t have pulled off anything close to it in a million years with all the money and talent in the world.”
Actor: Mads Mikkelsen, Another Round
Because you really see everything Mads is good at in this role and he’s always magnificent to watch in a Danish flick.
Actress: Betty Gilpin, The Hunt
Because I’m just a huge fan of hers (RIP GLOW, Netflix I’ll never forgive you), just a fuckin’ fierce actor, and though this is an ensemble piece it really cooks when it hands the reins over to her.
You can rent The Hunt from whichever platform you use to rent shit.
Supporting Actor: Delroy Lindo, Da 5 Bloods
Because this is just the right pick and I can’t believe he didn’t even get a real Oscar nomination, still smh over that shit, what the fuck.
Supporting Actress: Margot Martindale, Blow the Man Down
Because she’s been on a fuckin’ run and this is a real cherry on top of all her great TV work as of late.
Animated Feature: Trolls World Tour
Because I’m a chaos agent and I was zooted as hell when I watched this and it was absolutely mesmerizing colorful nonsense that justifies its existence with anarchic humor (both intentional and unintentional, I think) and design.
Cinematography: The Vast of Night
Because cinematographer M.I. Littin-Menz’s work here is essential to what makes this movie such an exceptional “indie” title.
Costume Design: Tenet
Because the non-literal yet precise application of the style and suitings of the old James Bond movies was really not lost on me.
You can stream Tenet on HBO Max starting May 1st.
Documentary: You Don’t Nomi
Because it’s a great documentary about movies that dissects Paul Verhoeven’s trashterpiece Showgirls from every possible angle and paints a portrait of cult art as a liberating force against the status quo of “good taste.”
You can rent You Don’t Nomi from whichever platform you use to rent shit.
Editing: Steven Soderbergh, Let Them All Talk
Because Soderbergh shot and edited this deep, delightful, and dare I say spiritual movie guerilla-style on an actual cross-Atlantic cruise, goddammit like that’s filmmaking ya know?
International Feature: La Llorona
Because if there is such a thing as “elevated horror” this fits the bill in the best possible way.
Production Design: Possessor
Because the look and feel of this movie both champions and breaks from the retro-futuristic trends of contemporary sci-fi cinema.
Music: Tenet
Because Ludwig Göransson’s moody, propulsive, fuckin’ dynamite Bond-meets-Blade Runner score is infinitely more interesting than anything Hans Zimmer ever did for a Chris Nolan joint.
Original Screenplay: She Dies Tomorrow
Because talk about capturing a vibe amirite?
Adapted Screenplay: Bad Education
Because Mike Makowski’s screenplay turns a New York Magazine article about the largest public school embezzlement in American history into an absolutely riveting dark character study.
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