OVP: Best Cinematography (2021)
The Nominees Were...
Greig Fraser, Dune
Dan Laustsen, Nightmare Alley
Ari Wegner, The Power of the Dog
Bruno Delbonnel, The Tragedy of Macbeth
Janusz Kaminski, West Side Story
My Thoughts: 2020 was arguably one of the weakest years for Best Cinematography (links to that race, and all past races, listed below) in the history of the Academy. Low-budget does not always equate to low quality, but in a world where cinematography frequently is melded with visual effects, it's hard not to notice that a year bereft of effects films got us an underwhelming Cinematography lineup. That wasn't the case in 2021. This is one of the best lineups in this category in a while (even for the branch of the Academy that has arguably the best taste overall), and it did, of course, come with multiple films that prominently feature special effects.
None more so than the glorious beauty of Dune. I struggle to grade Cinematography when it's so influenced by the visual effects team. Initially I felt like I should count points off for it, since the visual effects team is doing some of the heavy lifting, particularly when it comes to a film that is (in part) built around sets & worlds that don't actually exist. After sitting through DC & Marvel garbage effects and lighting the last couple of years, though, I think this is just a different, not lesser, skill set. Dune is beautifully lit, playing with shadow & camera angles, frequently indulging in the aesthetics-over-everything approach of Villeneuve's picture (i.e. the comparisons to a perfume ad during Zendaya's scenes). It is everything you want out of a blockbuster like this-memorable & fascinating, and proof why you need a good cinematographer to get your special effects lit.
The Power of the Dog does not rely upon special effects to get the most out of its New Zealand (err, Montana...yeah, right, Montana) landscape. The movie plays with a lot of western lore when it comes to its cinematography, clearly borrowing from John Ford's The Searchers, particularly the final shot, as well as Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West (Benedict Cumberbatch's Phil is lensed quite often in the same fashion as Charles Bronson's Harmonica). This gives us a lot of quick western lore as we start to upend it, inserting an intense sexuality (Cumberbatch has never been hotter, and the camera wants you to know it as it lingers over him, begging the audience not to intertwine with his complicated lust) into a film that you don't realize needs one. The vistas, the way that the interior shots are lensed with so much care & occasional malice...it's good stuff.
West Side Story is an unusual case for me. I definitely liked parts of it, don't get me wrong. There are scenes that are beautifully shot, particularly the famous scene at the gymnasium, and the use of color (those costumes are something else, aren't they?) is well-utilized. I will say in a lineup this good, it's hard not to get picky, and parts of the film feel too heightened (I'm thinking of "Cool" and "Officer Krupke" specifically) to a point that feels a bit ridiculous, and there isn't as much playfulness in "America" as I wanted. If you're going to make a movie remake of a film this iconic, you have to bat a grand slam to beat it by comparison, and a lot of the cinematography (and repetitive choreography) plays like base hits or the occasional homer, not a grand slam.
The same can be said for another remake, Nightmare Alley. This is a weird film because I liked it a lot better than most until it got its surprise Oscar nominations and then it felt more in-line with where I landed. The gothic cinematography is good, no question, but it sometimes feels a little bit too clinical. The weird thing about this movie, and maybe this is the only Guillermo del Toro film I could ever say this about, but the weird thing is that the visuals are kind of "fine" compared to the best-of-his-career work Bradley Cooper is doing in the lead role. That is the special effect here, and I don't think the inventive, difficult work he's doing is matched by an otherwise strong, but expected aesthetic to the film.
Our final nominee is The Tragedy of Macbeth, a similar film with a great lead performance, but it rises to the occasion of its look. The cinematography is the film's best asset, highlighting the minimalist stage design and overusing the bright light of the black-and-white cinematography. You feel less like you're watching an Ingmar Bergman movie (which this is clearly meant to evoke) and more like you've walked onto the actual set of an immersive staged version of Macbeth, where each scene is being acted out around you. That is totally on Delbonnel, giving us the screen's most glorious Shakespearean recreation.
Other Precursor Contenders: The American Society of Cinematographers picked Dune as its winner, besting the entire Oscar lineup save for West Side Story, which here was subbed in for Belfast. BAFTA also gave it to Dune and also skipped West Side Story, but instead of Belfast they picked No Time to Die. In terms of sixth place, I feel like it was Belfast. Black-and-white films are catnip to the Cinematographers' branch, and before Belfast it had been decades since a black-and-white Best Picture nominee missed with cinematography (even Nebraska got in), so I assume it was very close.
Films I Would Have Nominated: I said I wouldn't mention it every time, but if we want to recognize Dune for the way that it melds effects & cinematography, it's impossible not to also call out the other film from 2021 that does that, The Green Knight shot as if it's been plucked from the pages of an illuminated manuscript it so loves color and light amongst the darkness.
Oscar's Choice: Dune continued its strength in the tech categories in 2021, taking this probably in a walk given that none of the other nominees seem like super strong rivals.
Oscar's Choice: Dune continued its strength in the tech categories in 2021, taking this probably in a walk given that none of the other nominees seem like super strong rivals.
My Choice: I am going to go with Macbeth, which I think is one of those once-in-a-lifetime sort of films, and honestly given Delbonnel has never won, feels a shame not to give it to him knowing that Dune 2 was on deck (for the record, OVP rules say I only judge the films at hand, so I'm not assuming Dune 2 is in the wings when I say Macbeth is truly my favorite of these five nominees on their own). Behind it is Power of the Dog, Dune, West Side Story, and Nightmare Alley.
Those are my thoughts-how about yours? Are you more enthralled by the sandy dunes of Arrakis, or are you more inclined to hide among the mores of Scotland with me? How do you differentiate between effects & natural cinematography? And how did Belfast do so well overall but miss here? Share your thoughts below!
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