OVP: Best Production Design (2019)
The Nominees Were...
Bob Shaw & Regina Graves, The Irishman
Ra Vincent & Nora Sopkova, Jojo Rabbit
Dennis Gassner & Lee Sandales, 1917
Barbara Ling & Nancy Haigh, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Lee Ha Jun & Cho Won Woo, Parasite
My Thoughts: We will close out our look at the visual categories of 2019 today with the Best Production Design category. Once again (sorry, but it's a refrain worth echoing), this lineup features very little stray from the Best Picture category-all five of these films were cited in the top category (in fact, with the exception of Jojo Rabbit in favor of Joker, it's also the Best Director field). I've complained about this a lot, but I'm going to leave it be for now as we enter this field, and assume the best-maybe the Best Picture nominees were the Best Production Design of 2019?
After all, you'd be hard-pressed to find a more inspired choice for this category than Parasite. The movie isn't what you'd normally assume here-it's not the recreation of a fantasy world nor of a period film set (like all of the other nominees), but instead a look at modern metropolitan Korea, and specifically one completely modern home. Parasite wouldn't work if the aspirational, beautiful house (and its dark secrets) at the center of the picture weren't something that was instantly luxurious for the audience, but something that feels "just out of reach" (even though none of us could ever afford it). The house itself becomes almost its own character in the movie, and since it works brilliantly in the picture, this is the most inspired nomination of this bunch.
That's not true, however, for Jojo Rabbit (if you've seen both of these films, you're aware that they have something bizarre in common regarding their production design, but I don't want to say it in case you haven't seen both films...suffice it to say, Parasite does it better). The movie's sets are sparse & not interesting-the houses are quaint, but conventional, and the large expansive offices don't feel realistic enough (the walls are too clean). Realism is a problem at the center of Jojo, where the film doesn't always know whether or not we're seeing this film through the lens of our young protagonist or through his mother's eyes, and that shows in the inconsistencies of the actual set. This is exactly up Oscar's wheelhouse (World War II cities), so I get why this was nominated, but it feels kind of cheap in comparison to something like...
1917. We have two World War pictures here, but with completely different goals to their Production Design. Jojo Rabbit merely wants to make you aware you're in Europe, while 1917 wants it to be an immersive experience. 1917 thus has painstaking recreations of the trenches of World War I, giving the audience a feel for the actual claustrophobia of war. I also want to commend for the way that houses were done here, making them feel like strange oases or standing tombs rather than just convenient sets for quieter conversations in the film. 1917 is a movie that garners most of its power from its unceasing realism (not always violence, but always anxiety-induced realism), and the sets are a big pillar of that strength.
The Irishman gets the nod of this bunch for the "most" production design, and I don't necessarily mean that as an insult (as it definitely could be one). It's just that with three hours of movie, Irishman is a mountain of sets, spread over decades & with continual changes to the scenery our protagonists are standing within. This works-there's a detail here that's admirable, but it's not quite as impressive as it could be. We spend so much of this movie pondering the age of these actors, but not enough detail is put into making it feel like their homes & workplaces age, and I honestly think that could've been a way to ground the film's wandering time frame. Still-this is well-crafted & nothing wrong with what we're getting.
The final nomination is for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Here we have another period film, one that doesn't spread over time so there's less worry about grounding our (movie star) characters. I loved some of the touches here. The movie theater with its magic bright-lights marquee is glamorous (both 1960's, but also just a little bit dated, which feels right), and the entirety of Spahn Ranch (I keep going back to this, but it's my favorite scene in the movie), is well-crafted. I don't think there's enough personality in the homes of DiCaprio & Robbie's characters (it feels more like you're trying to capture the LA aesthetic of the time than hinting at the personality of the people living there), but this is nitpicking-Hollywood is one of Tarantino's best-looking films since Kill Bill.
Other Precursor Contenders: The Art Directors Guild breaks up its nominees into Contemporary, Fantasy, and Period. Contemporary, as you can imagine, obviously gave its trophy to Parasite, besting A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, John Wick: Chapter 3: Parabellum, Knives Out, and Us, while Period gave its trophy to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, over 1917, Ford vs. Ferrari, Jojo Rabbit, Joker, and The Irishman. Weirdly there were no nominees for Fantasy with Oscar this year, so we have a slew of non-AMPAS names here with Avengers: Endgame besting Ad Astra, Aladdin, Dumbo, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. BAFTA gave their prize to 1917, and other than swapping in Joker in place of Parasite, went with a carbon copy of the Oscars lineup. While the Academy tends to like at least one fantasy film in this category, I think Joker (with its precursors & its Best Costume Design nomination) was the sixth place finisher.
Films I Would Have Nominated: This isn't a bad lineup, even if it's Best Picture heavy, but I would've found room for at least two more nominees. Weirdly, one of those was a different Best Picture nominee, one I liked overall less than any of these films, and that's Ford vs. Ferrari; the recreations of the cars in that movie were incredibly detailed, and I loved the touches on the various race tracks (and the way the designers differentiated them). I'd also find room for the other-worldly sets of Ad Astra, which has the gargantuan task of finding a futuristic Earth, Moon, & Mars, and does so with realism & beauty.
Oscar’s Choice: This was a genuine race, and we saw Hollywood get the trophy over close competitors Parasite and 1917.
My Choice: I'm going to go with 1917, as it's one of the most immersive experiences I've had at the movies in a while. Close behind is the personality of Parasite (which in a normal year would've won), followed by Hollywood, Irishman, and Jojo
Those are my thoughts-how about yours? Are you more in AMPAS's neighborhood with Hollywood, or do you prefer the World War I realism of 1917? Can anyone think of another nomination quite like Parasite's in recent years? And which fantasy film was the closest to a nomination? Share your thoughts below!
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