Excitement Surrounds Nominations for the 90th Oscars

Those in the movie industry waited with baited breath this Tuesday as the nominations for the 90th Oscars were announced, and many GHS students and staff also eagerly awaited the excitement.

One of those people is Literature and Film teacher Kate Wagner.

“I love to watch the nominations live and get very excited for the Oscars. On that night, I make a special fancy dinner, watch the red carpet pre-show and the actual show, a yearly tradition I’ve done for 20 years,” she said.

The Shape of Water, the tale of a cleaning lady at a government facility who discovers a mysterious creature, leads the pack with nominations in 13 of the 24 categories.  Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri has nine nominations, the second-most, telling the story of a mother seeking closure in her daughter’s murder case.

Wagner recognizes the success of both of these films.

“I’m a fan of Del Toro, so Shape of Water is my pick, but I know that a lot of awards will go to Ebbing, Missouri,” she said.

Coming in third place with eight nominations is the story of the rescue of French troops from the Germans during World War II, Dunkirk.

Some of the other nominations came as no surprise, such as those related to Lady Bird, a drama-comedy that follows the relationship of a teenager and her mother over the course of her senior year.

“I really want the girl from Lady Bird to win Lead Actress because I thought her part really spoke to me,” sophomore Alice Whalen said.

Wagner would also like to see Lady Bird take home a statue.

“Lady Bird also looks good, and it would be fun to see a female director win, since there aren’t many in the field,” she said.

Another popular movie among GHS students this year is Pixar’s Coco, nominated for Best Animated Feature.  Accompanying the film in the category is The Boss Baby, the story of a family who adopts a baby who turns out to be a spy.  

Junior Carley Rudd is hopeful for the success of this film.

“Boss Baby was like the best animated movie I’ve ever seen.  It’s so funny,” she said.

The award show itself will be hosted by comedian TV host Jimmy Kimmel, and most people are looking forward to that aspect of the show.

“He’s great-funny and interesting. I hope the show doesn’t go over time by over 30 minutes like last year though.  I almost missed the La La Land mix up because I needed to go to bed!!” Wagner said.

With the recent accusations of sexual harassment hitting Hollywood hard, the topic is sure to come up at the awards, and many argue that the issue has already affected them.

“The James Franco omission is interesting because he most likely would have been nominated if not for recent sexual harassment allegations. He won the Golden Globe, so it was expected,” Wagner said.

Until the awards show on March 4, those in Hollywood and at GHS will have to wait to hear which movies and actors rose above the rest this year.