LGBT Critics Weigh in On Academy Award Nominations

The Washington Blade reports:

Thankfully, after 2017’s “Moonlight” Oscar victory fiasco, nominations for 90th annual Academy Awards (to be handed out Sunday evening) thankfully reflect more LGBT diversity than ever before. But while this pleases some critics, the choices fall short with others. The Los Angeles Blade talked with film critics about their favorite films.

Brian T. Carney, Washington Blade
Three of the nine movies nominated for Best Picture include gay characters (one’s a spoiler), and many members of the cast and crew of those movies have been nominated as well. One of the nominees for Best Documentary was directed by Yancy Ford, a trans man. For her outstanding work on “Mudbound,” Rachel Morrison, a black lesbian, is the first woman to be nominated for the Best Cinematography Oscar.

Unfortunately, there are some LGBT films and filmmakers who didn’t get the nominations they deserve. Dee Rees should have been nominated as Best Director and Michael Stuhlbarg should have been nominated for Best Supporting Actor. “BPM” and “God’s Own Country” did not make it through the nomination process for Best Foreign Film, and “Wonder Woman” did not get any Oscar love.

Sadly, the best queer movie of the year, Angela Robinson’s “Professor Marston and the Wonder Women” did not even get an Oscar campaign from Annapurna Pictures. Hopefully the brilliant Robinson will find a more supportive studio for her next film.

Beth McDonough, AfterEllen.com
My favorite 2017 film was “Battle of the Sexes,” which I think was hugely overlooked this year during awards season. I did love “Call Me By Your Name” though. “Thelma” and “My Days of Mercy” were really great films that didn’t get enough attention. The documentary, “A Fantastic Woman” was incredible and will hopefully won the Foreign Film award.

Erik Anderson, AwardsWatch
Every year we will see more and more LGBT characters who are their own, fully realized people and not just the props they used to be. This is both because of the positive progression LGBT rights have taken as well as a response to the pushback over the last year from the current regressive administration. Art and the voices that supply it will always stand up and speak louder when told to sit down and keep quiet.

I wish “The Wound” had gotten a nod for Foreign Language Film. I was shocked and heartbroken that “In a Heartbeat” was snubbed in Animated Short. And I was really happy that “Strong Island” made it in Documentary Feature.

Click here to see many more comments from LGBT film critics.