Jump to content

Eric Atreides

Best Animated Feature 2018 - Predictions

Recommended Posts

17 hours ago, CoolioD1 said:

full list of eligible films

 

for predictions i'll say:

 

Early Man

Incredibles 2

Isle of Dogs

Spider-Man

Wreck-It Ralph 2

 

i dunno what the cool foreign indie animation is supposed to be this year though. whatever it is, that over Wreck it ralph 2 which i'm least confident in from that five.

The Academy's very biased towards Disney productions. You really think something like Early Man is safer for a nomination than Ralph?

Link to comment
Share on other sites



29 minutes ago, CoolEric258 said:

The Academy's very biased towards Disney productions. You really think something like Early Man is safer for a nomination than Ralph?

Aardman, though. Only way Early Man misses is if it was too much of an early year flop for them to care.

Link to comment
Share on other sites





I'd be surprised to see Isle of Dogs win. Incredibles 2 was a well-liked smash hit and that goes a long way here. It's also hard to imagine the "I voted for it because my kids/grandkids love it" contingent going for a PG-13-rated Wes Anderson joint.

  • Like 1
  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I read the shortlist and looked into the films I didn't know about, and I have to say, I think this is a very compelling shortlist. What's just as compelling is the amount of films that could've been on this list, but suspiciously aren't; Big Fish & Begonia and Tehran Taboo are two films that could've been selections on the list, but ultimately aren't, and will likely never be able to make a submission list ever again. Then there's some films that looked pretty interesting when they appeared at this year's Annecy Film Festival and Animation Is Film Festival, including Another Day of Life, Funan (the grand prize winner of both festivals), The Last Fiction, Pachamama, and Seder-Masochism; I am sure that those films are still attempting to secure distributors, so that they can be a part of the shortlist for the next year's awards.

 

But back to this set of films. I'm going to make a shortlist of my own here. I'll take twelve films from all the selections, and I'll talk about why I think the given film has more of a chance than most of the other films in contention. That can be found in the spoiler tag:

 

Spoiler

Early Man

This film was a flop early in the year, but that's not necessarily to say it's a bad film. From what I've seen of it, it's very nicely animated.  I almost feel like if the Academy loved Aardman that much, they had the perfect opportunity to nominate Arthur Christmas back in 2011 and didn't take it. Nevertheless, I would not be surprised to see this pleasant stop motion feature secure a spot the way The Boxtrolls did--I'll have everyone know, that's the film I blame as the one that's occupying The LEGO Movie's rightful slot.

 

Have a Nice Day

This film is quite an anomaly. It's a visceral, R-rated 2D animation from China. I'm definitely not expecting it to get a nomination, but I've seen that some films have gotten a nomination just for being different from the rest in a notable way. We'll see what happens.

 

Incredibles 2

This smash-hit is a lock for a nomination. Similarly to Finding Dory, this film operates as a worthy sequel to its predecessor without overshadowing it. There are certain shots in this film that I could personally point to in order to say why this film not only will get the nomination, but deserves it, too.

 

Isle of Dogs

Speaking of films guaranteed for a nomination, we have this gem of an Anderson flick. This film was certainly worth the wait for animaniacs; the attention to detail in this is simply stunning. I don't think I can say anything else about this film that's already been said before, though I will say that this is the film I'm rooting for to win.

 

Maquia: When The Promised Flower Blooms

This anime fantasy epic about motherhood hit me extremely hard when I saw it in theaters. I know that a nomination would only be wishful thinking, especially with Mirai gaining the most 'anime slot' attention this year, and with the relative inexperience that Eleven Arts has as a distributor. (I mean, they also had A Silent Voice, and I'm willing to bet that it would've beaten Boss Baby to the punch if the distributor had been able to give a little more of an effort.) But it would be remiss of me to suggest that the film didn't deserve it. Plus, this would also be a great, unexpected way to reward a female director.

 

Mirai

Gkids is being extremely smart to prioritize this one for an Oscar nomination. Mamoru Hosoda is a animation legend, not just in Japan, but in the wider industry scope. And is the film great enough to be recognized? Reviews certainly seem to suggest that. Suffice to say, if there's a definite indie/foreign frontrunner, it definitely feels like this is the one.

 

On Happiness Road

Here is another anomaly of a film. The majority of this production was based in the country of Taiwan. This is a personal film about a young Taiwanese girl, well, growing up in Taiwan. I don't expect this to get a nomination, but the film is definitely worth looking into. Here's a link to an interesting read about the film: https://www.scmp.com/culture/film-tv/article/2148245/happiness-road-taiwanese-animation-tells-cruel-and-dark-story

 

Ralph Breaks The Internet

I feel like this film could go either way. Do I personally want this film to be nominated? To be honest, I really don't; I would rather have the slot go to one of the foreign films. But Pixar and Walt Disney Studios films can certainly run together, so we'll just have to see how the reviews treat this film. Disney definitely has the capability of getting this nominated.

 

Ruben Brandt, Collector

Interestingly, this film's director is a Hungarian artist, who was inspired to make his film in the style of Picasso's paintings. But here's where things get more interesting: this is an action film about a thief who steals valuable paintings from prestigious museums, and it's Sony Pictures Classics (PaprikaPersepolisThe Illusionist) that's handling distribution. If there's anyone who's able to get a non-Ghibli, non-Cartoon Saloon foreign film into the mix (besides Gkids), it's definitely those guys.

 

Smallfoot

Warner Bros Animation made something that's as good a nomination as Ferdinand was last year, and the technical triumphs of the film might be able to push it through, as it pushed through The Croods in 2013. I wouldn't count out this film just yet.

 

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

really want to see the reviews for this.  I really want this film to be great, and I really want families to see it in droves. Because as surefire of a nominee this may look and sound, keep in mind that Sony Pictures Animation has only been nominated twice, for Surf's Up and The Pirates! Band of Misfits (the latter being more of an Aardman film). 

 

Tito and the Birds

This film just might be able to pull a The Boy and The World. It's from the same country, Brazil. It's got Shout! Factory, the distributor of In This Corner of the World. And it utilizes a very painstaking animation choice: paint-on-glass. This was a Toronto Film Festival selection, so I wouldn't count this film out just yet.

 

 

My Nominee Predictions:

 

The Incredibles 2

Isle of Dogs

Ruben Brandt, Collector

Mirai

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites







Saw Tito and the Birds (review here) a few days ago at Manchester Animation Festival and I actually wouldn't be surprised if it got an outside shot at the 'Token Foreign/Indie Nomination' slot. It's a pretty decent movie and has a unique enough animation style that I could see the Academy going for it. It reminded me a lot of Loving Vincent (in regards to the animation, not the story) in more than a few ways.

 

Admittedly, if it was up to me, it probably wouldn't get in (simply because there are a lot more films shortlisted that I prefer), but then again, that's true of many things regarding this category. I'm still ultimately hoping for Mirai, but I wouldn't be too surprised if this managed to sneak in.

 

Also, this means I've now seen over half the shortlisted animation nominees. Go me.

 

 

 

 

 

(Side note:, I also saw Funan while I was in Manchester and I can only hope it gets a shot at the Oscar next year because damn that movie was heavy.)

Edited by rukaio101
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites



14 hours ago, SchumacherFTW said:

I'd be gutted if Mirai got nominated for this, it's the weakest Hosoda film that I've seen so far even if the animation is gorgeous and creative. 

Agree to disagree on that one. I'll admit it doesn't have the usual climactic emotional 'oomph' that Hosoda's movies usually have, but I'd call it a lot more consistent in quality than The Girl Who Leaped Through Time or The Boy and the Beast. And there are a lot of low-key things I really adored about it. It's a pleasant and funny slice-of-life and it doesn't feel like there's enough of those these days.

 

Admittedly, if it was down to me, I'd most like to see The Night is Short, Walk on Girl nominated, but I'm pretty sure there's not a snowball's chance in hell of that happening, so Mirai would be a good consolation prize.

 

 

 

(I am just wondering though, did you see the dubbed or the subbed version of Mirai? Because the dubbed version I did actually think was significantly weaker than the original when I saw it.)

 

Edited by rukaio101
Link to comment
Share on other sites



4 hours ago, rukaio101 said:

Agree to disagree on that one. I'll admit it doesn't have the usual climactic emotional 'oomph' that Hosoda's movies usually have, but I'd call it a lot more consistent in quality than The Girl Who Leaped Through Time or The Boy and the Beast. And there are a lot of low-key things I really adored about it. It's a pleasant and funny slice-of-life and it doesn't feel like there's enough of those these days.

 

Admittedly, if it was down to me, I'd most like to see The Night is Short, Walk on Girl nominated, but I'm pretty sure there's not a snowball's chance in hell of that happening, so Mirai would be a good consolation prize.

 

 

 

(I am just wondering though, did you see the dubbed or the subbed version of Mirai? Because the dubbed version I did actually think was significantly weaker than the original when I saw it.)

 

Unless it's DBZ or Pokémon, I don't do dubs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites









1 hour ago, CoolEric258 said:

That would be amazing if Spider-Verse did win. But I still feel like Incredibles is the likely scenario. Disney bias still reigns supreme amongst Oscar voters.

 

Maybe it'll get the Globe tho

But Disney's gonna be focused this year on Panther and Poppins.

 

And TBH, if they did have to push something I would rather them push Ralph than Incredibles.

 

Incredibles - after a couple month of the NEW and SHINY wearing off - was such a generic and superficial film.  Nothing felt fresh or even heartfelt.  I still liked it, because I love mid-century modern aesthetic (I want their kitchen, it was the best kitchen) and a Michael Giacchino score is always a gas.  As for character work? Eh. All out the window.

 

Ralph was so much more layered, with great messages/moral for boys AND girls. Who doesn't love a movie where the only real villain is male insecurity and undiagnosed mental health issues?  Plus: PRINCESSES.

Edited by captainwondyful
wearing off not of
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites



Well, I saw Mirai last night, and I'm really glad I did. I'm trying to decide whether I prefer this or Maquia, and I'm honestly leaning towards the latter, but this is a film that's worth nominating, if only to gain Mamoru Hosoda a bigger audience.

 

I remember: the last anime film to be nominated for Best Animated Feature was The Red Turtle, which won the slot over Your Name. This was likely because the academy was more acclimated to the artistic style of The Red Turtle. And I feel like, when comparing Mirai to many of the other anime films, or at least to Maquia, I see that there's not as big of an entry barrier to Mirai for voters that do not regularly watch anime films. The theme that Mirai discusses is truly universal, and the way Mirai discusses it is refreshingly abstract in terms of its artistry.

 

This is the very first Mamoru Hosoda film I've seen, to be honest. And you know what? I'm rooting for the film to get a nomination. I've said it before and I'll say it again: a nomination will likely widen the worldwide audience that Mamoru Hosoda has. And from what I've heard, Hosoda really deserves it.

 

Gkids was really smart to emphasize this.

Edited by Slambros
Link to comment
Share on other sites



Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Guidelines. Feel free to read our Privacy Policy as well.