OVP: Best Sound Editing (2015)
The Nominees Were...
Mark Mangini and David White, Mad Max: Fury Road
Oliver Tarney, The Martian
Martin Hernandez and Lon Bender, The Revenant
Alan Robert Murray, Sicario
Matthew Wood and David Acord, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Oliver Tarney, The Martian
Martin Hernandez and Lon Bender, The Revenant
Alan Robert Murray, Sicario
Matthew Wood and David Acord, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
My Thoughts: 2015 was an unusual year in terms of Best Picture, because, despite recent protests to the contrary, the Academy does choose blockbusters for its big race, and in particular we see a trio of Best Picture nominees here alongside a gigantic blockbuster and a critically-acclaimed action film. As a result, while I personally wouldn't argue all of these films are good (I think critics grossly over-praised one of these films in particular), none of these films enter the level of Transformers or Deepwater Horizon where they're clearly here for only one reason...one could argue that all of these films are here due (in part) to a halo effect.
That's particularly true for The Revanant, arguably the film with the least relevant sound effects work. The film is arguably the most seamless of this group, with the sound effects work melding pretty simply into the actual soundtrack and mixing for the picture. Look at things like the opening battle scene where the soundtrack feels like an additional character in the movie. The problem for me here is that it's difficult to decipher which is which with the sound (not the fault of Hernandez/Bender), but perhaps more damning is that it feels too repetitive, too reliant on tropes (here it's more their fault). The film uses its score to overcome moments where silence would work more effectively, and the heavy-breathing feels a bit cliched even before it becomes repetitive. I think, the opening battle sequence aside, there's nothing here that feels particularly special and much like its visual effects nomination, this comes across as more for one scene than for actually achieving sustainable greatness.
The Martian has a similar problem in that select sequences of the film feel much more intertwined with quality sound work than others. The Revenant relies on the same tricks to lessening effect as the movie progresses, while The Martian seems to have sound work that is a bit patchier. I am perhaps in the minority here, but I hate when sound works becomes "authentic" but you can't actually hear what is going on in the film, like at the beginning of the movie when they are fleeing from Mars. I know that some call this immersive, but I think it just becomes a cacophony, and the latter halves of the film (where he's just dangling in the Martian atmosphere) feels entirely like it hands over the sound editing work to the composers rather than letting us feel the film, suddenly letting go of what was so important to be "authentic" in previous scenes. Still, the gadgetry sounds cool.
A movie that does succeed in terms of its sound editing is Mad Max: Fury Road. The movie, like Martian & Revenant, has a score that plays a strong role in its filming, but here it does so as an aid to the film, rather than overpowering it. I loved the nasty whirl of the desert vehicles, as well as the desperate rock crashes of the chases, making you feel the heat of the characters through the crashing of metal & stone. The movie probably has slightly less sound editing than you recall (upon further reviewing it, it's more a sound mixing highlight), but just because you're really good at one thing doesn't mean you aren't great at two things, and Mad Max earns this nomination in the way that its sound work becomes a unique identity to the film.
Sicario received its third and final nomination we're going to profile for the OVP with Sound Editing, and I'm a bit mixed about its inclusion. Sicario's best scene feels more a byproduct of strong sound mixing & scoring, when they are at the Mexican border, and Emily Blunt's Kate is introduced to the true danger of the world she's just entered. However, there's some good work to be had here, especially during the fight sequences and Villeneuve, regardless of how you examine is plotting in films, always puts together a well-crafted picture.
The final nomination is one for a franchise this category knows quite well-the Star Wars pictures. Star Wars in many ways invented modern sound effects work, with the whirling gadgets, flights, and crashes all basically taken out of the LucasFilm textbook. As a result, it's surprising that the effects work here doesn't feel repetitive or overdone, and is instead quite refreshing, especially compared to some of the other nominees. I loved the initial chase sequences involving Rey & Finn, and the way that the director seamlessly folds John Williams' signature score with the spaceships, robots, and gadgets on-display. Admittedly there are moments of "most" sound editing rearing its head, but they're fewer than you'd think, and this comes across as a sleekly-designed return of the franchise.
That's particularly true for The Revanant, arguably the film with the least relevant sound effects work. The film is arguably the most seamless of this group, with the sound effects work melding pretty simply into the actual soundtrack and mixing for the picture. Look at things like the opening battle scene where the soundtrack feels like an additional character in the movie. The problem for me here is that it's difficult to decipher which is which with the sound (not the fault of Hernandez/Bender), but perhaps more damning is that it feels too repetitive, too reliant on tropes (here it's more their fault). The film uses its score to overcome moments where silence would work more effectively, and the heavy-breathing feels a bit cliched even before it becomes repetitive. I think, the opening battle sequence aside, there's nothing here that feels particularly special and much like its visual effects nomination, this comes across as more for one scene than for actually achieving sustainable greatness.
The Martian has a similar problem in that select sequences of the film feel much more intertwined with quality sound work than others. The Revenant relies on the same tricks to lessening effect as the movie progresses, while The Martian seems to have sound work that is a bit patchier. I am perhaps in the minority here, but I hate when sound works becomes "authentic" but you can't actually hear what is going on in the film, like at the beginning of the movie when they are fleeing from Mars. I know that some call this immersive, but I think it just becomes a cacophony, and the latter halves of the film (where he's just dangling in the Martian atmosphere) feels entirely like it hands over the sound editing work to the composers rather than letting us feel the film, suddenly letting go of what was so important to be "authentic" in previous scenes. Still, the gadgetry sounds cool.
A movie that does succeed in terms of its sound editing is Mad Max: Fury Road. The movie, like Martian & Revenant, has a score that plays a strong role in its filming, but here it does so as an aid to the film, rather than overpowering it. I loved the nasty whirl of the desert vehicles, as well as the desperate rock crashes of the chases, making you feel the heat of the characters through the crashing of metal & stone. The movie probably has slightly less sound editing than you recall (upon further reviewing it, it's more a sound mixing highlight), but just because you're really good at one thing doesn't mean you aren't great at two things, and Mad Max earns this nomination in the way that its sound work becomes a unique identity to the film.
Sicario received its third and final nomination we're going to profile for the OVP with Sound Editing, and I'm a bit mixed about its inclusion. Sicario's best scene feels more a byproduct of strong sound mixing & scoring, when they are at the Mexican border, and Emily Blunt's Kate is introduced to the true danger of the world she's just entered. However, there's some good work to be had here, especially during the fight sequences and Villeneuve, regardless of how you examine is plotting in films, always puts together a well-crafted picture.
The final nomination is one for a franchise this category knows quite well-the Star Wars pictures. Star Wars in many ways invented modern sound effects work, with the whirling gadgets, flights, and crashes all basically taken out of the LucasFilm textbook. As a result, it's surprising that the effects work here doesn't feel repetitive or overdone, and is instead quite refreshing, especially compared to some of the other nominees. I loved the initial chase sequences involving Rey & Finn, and the way that the director seamlessly folds John Williams' signature score with the spaceships, robots, and gadgets on-display. Admittedly there are moments of "most" sound editing rearing its head, but they're fewer than you'd think, and this comes across as a sleekly-designed return of the franchise.
Other Precursor Contenders: The Golden Reel Awards separate their nominations into three different categories: feature film, animation, and foreign film. The feature film nominees included all five of the Oscar nominees (they cite eight films), as well as Southpaw, Jurassic World, and Ant-Man, with a tie emerging as the winner between Mad Max and The Revenant. The Animated nominees had the victorious Inside Out besting Anomalisa, Minions, Hotel Transylvania 2, Shaun the Sheep Movie, The Good Dinosaur, and The Peanuts Movie, while Foreign Film went to Son of Saul over Days of Grace, Northmen-A Viking Saga, and Unfreedom. In terms of sixth place, I kind of think I'd go with either Bridge of Spies or Inside Out, the former being a Sound Mixing nominee (so it had to be close) while the latter was critically-acclaimed Pixar movie, and occasionally those strike here.
Films I Would Have Nominated: I think I'd keep at least two films here, and make room for maybe three more. For sure I'd have Ex Machina, which should have won this category with its showy gizmos and the way it incorporates sound into the performance of Alicia Vikander. Inside Out crafts its own world onto itself and the actual "brain station" of the film is some of Pixar's best work here since WALL-E. Finally, boxing movies basically require strong effects work that also feels seamless, so Creed deserved the final nomination (though, I'll note that the Golden Reel-cited Southpaw was one of the few precursor films I wasn't able to catch so it might be even better-share your thoughts in the comments if you have them).
Oscar’s Choice: Oscar was on a bit of a kick with Mad Max: Fury Road, so it seems preposterous to propose anyone other than this film winning.
My Choice: I know I'm returning from a long hiatus, but that's not the reason I am going to be contrarian and go with Star Wars over Mad Max-it's just that I think it's a tad bit more impressive than what Mad Max is accomplishing (both good stuff though). I'd follow with Sicario, Martian, and Revenant.
Those are my thoughts-what are yours? Are you with me in picking Star Wars, or is everyone pretty much rallying around Mad Max? Is The Revenant just one of those movies that gets in based on slim work, or am I missing something here? And what is it going to take for Pixar to get arrested again in this category? Share your thoughts below in the comments!
No comments:
Post a Comment