OVP: Best Original Screenplay
The Nominees Were...
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids
J.C. Chandor, Margin Call
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Asghar Farhadi, A Separation
My Thoughts: Though it doesn't always feature the Best Picture nominees, Original Screenplay is generally my favorite of the two writing categories. I think it's because, traditionally, my favorite films have been directly made for the screen-or maybe it's just that I like the idea of a totally from scratch, unique creation in front of me. Whatever the reason, the Original Screenplay category is my preferred of the two, and with this bunch, I got a lovely handful of nominations.
I've typically ended with The Artist in these reviews, and so with this review, I'm going to start with it. Now, for many people, there's going to be a bit of a question as to why a silent film is included at all in this category-without dialogue, where's the screenplay? While it is a bit of a handicap, there's the dialogue, and then there's also the story behind it, and The Artist definitely has a compelling story. It's a story, however, that has been told time and time again-it's essentially A Star is Born with a much happier ending. There's nothing that seems bold or well-crafted or interesting in this script (and this is not a handicap just because it's a silent film-see The Crowd or Intolerance or City Lights for beautiful silent film stories)-while one can find positive things to say about the acting, the directing, or the technical aspects, I'm at a loss with the banal screenplay. Sorry, but I'm not buying.
To redeem myself, I'll go with the other Best Picture nominee, which does merit inclusion here. Woody Allen owns Original Screenplay-he's received a stunning fifteen nominations in this category, considerably more than any other person. Here, he gives that sparkling wordplay we expect from a Woody Allen movie (but, let's face it, haven't always gotten in the last decade), plus a unique look at nostalgia and how the world is constantly looking back with rose-colored glasses. Woody is particularly at his best when he's layering his sharp dialogue with a little bit of cheese-the monologues of Hemingway and the entire Salvador Dali scene are delights. Also, and it needs to be mentioned somewhere so I'm going to just say it here for posterity-I loved the trailer to this movie. It didn't give away the surprise of the film (like I just did, but at this point you should know that spoilers are coming in these write-ups) and instead had us wanting to go into the movie and be shocked. That's what trailers are supposed to do-bring us guessing into the movie, not give away the entire damn thing. That is the end of this rant, but thankfully, not the end of Woody's long career-like the swallows at Capistrano, he'll be back again next year with another film.
One of the fun things about Original Screenplay is that, since Adapted Screenplay tends to rely upon Best Pictures, this category gets to stretch into some more unique styles of films: the foreign language movies, the sturdy, under-seen dramas, and the breakout (and smart) hit comedies. This year, it happened to include entrants from all three of these styles of nominees. A Separation, as we already discussed in Foreign Language film, is a work of art. A complex, multiple-character study that absorbs you so readily into the plot it's almost the end before you look at your watch (I always look at my watch...well, actually cell phone hidden underneath my sweatshirt so the light doesn't distract anyone during movies, but either way that's a big compliment). The movie's genius lies in its ability to constantly keep the audience guessing. The audience actually sees the pivotal scene of the film-where Nader shoves Razieh down the stairs, causing her to miscarry-and yet we are still questioning what has happened. It's a sense that we never completely know all of our surroundings, and it's a great choice for a thriller-what's more thrilling than questioning what you already think you know? The dialogue is sharp and the plot is dense but winning. Like the overall picture, the screenplay is a triumph.
Margin Call is, of the five films listed above, probably the film that you haven't seen. The other four either had big Oscar runs or is Bridesmaids, and therefore you're already more than familiar. The film probably turned off some audiences who didn't want to relieve the "Nero Fiddled" moments of the 2008 financial crisis. That's a shame, because this is a tight and "keep them guessing" sort of thriller. It's odd, because you know how it's going to end, but you don't know who is going to get screwed over in the process. It's a world dominated by amounts of money most of us cannot even fathom-I distinctly remember the great dialogue between Demi Moore and Stanley Tucci as they're getting paid millions of dollars to sit in an office for a day, not whistle-blowing the financial armageddon this firm is unleashing on Wall Street. There are moments that the film gets a bit technical for a non-documentary, but even then you have a stellar actor like Kevin Spacey or the dreamy Zachary Quinto selling them well, and even if you don't have a Masters in Finance, you're not going to be lost for long in Chandor's taught script.
The final nominee is one of those "this got nominated for an Oscar?" surprises that should surprise no one, because the script is terrific: the massively successful tale of Bridesmaids. There were a lot of comparisons between this movie and The Hangover, but I don't think that's fair, because Bridesmaids is considerably better. Now, don't get me wrong, there's a lot to love in the first Hangover (I was laughing along with everyone else), but Bridesmaids is truly about a time in all of our lives. Sure, the focus may be on Melissa McCarthy having some unfortunate time in the sink of a bridal shop or Kristen Wiig doing a penis impression, but it's more about that period in our lives when our friends become more successful than us or their dreams work out and ours don't. It's a moment we all have to live through-realizing that it's not going to look like we hoped-the perfect house, perfect romantic partner, perfect job-and Wiig and Mumolo show that in the rawest of ways-look at the ways that the characters played by Wiig, Rose Byrne, and Melissa McCarthy are trying to overcompensate in their lives for their lack of true friends or true love or true success. They lie to themselves, they accept facsimiles of their dreams-it's a telling, sometimes melancholy movie between the laughter, and I think the reason that it resonated with audiences was just as much about that truth in its script as it was the wonderful chemistry between the six women brought together by a wedding.
Other Precursor Contenders: Once again, let's check in with the WGA, HFPA, and BAFTA. As mentioned previously, the Golden Globes don't split out between adapted and original, so only Midnight in Paris (their victor) and The Artist made it in the original field. The BAFTA's preferred something a tad more British, opting for the homemade The Guard and The Iron Lady rather than Margin Call or A Separation (The Artist won the prize). And the WGA, going with a bit of a trend and also giving its trophy to Midnight in Paris, skipped The Artist, A Separation, and Margin Call in favor of the cancer comedy 50/50, the wrestling dramedy Win Win, and the reliving high school in Diablo Cody's Young Adult.
Films I Would Have Nominated: There used to be a time when the occasional romantic comedy would sneak into this category, so it seems a pity that the Academy didn't take advantage of the sparkling midlife crises on display in Crazy Stupid Love.
Oscar's Choice: Though The Artist was probably in the running, an Academy favorite like Woody scoring a massive critical and commercial comeback was too big of an opportunity to pass up-Woody took his third in this category (fourth overall), and we all wonder what he does with the trophies (I want to say that they're in a storage unit on the Lower East Side, but that's just me).
My Choice: This is a stumper-The Artist is obviously my fifth, and Margin Call isn't quite up to the other three, so it just misses the medals. All three scripts have their merits, but I'm going to give this trophy, after much hemming and hawing to A Separation, which has the biggest scale and balances the most complex story structure. Second place is probably Bridesmaids, with Woody getting a close bronze.
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