Oscar Films: Best Animated Feature Nominees

The Oscars are right around the corner and it is that time of year where people are trying to get caught up on all the films nominated at this years Academy Awards. Of course, everybody looks at the Best Picture nominees and wants to watch all of those, but this point, while writing this blog post, I have watched 6 of the 10 Best Picture nominees and I have not been disappointed in any of them. I still need to watch Poor Things, Past Lives, Killer of a Flower Moon, and The Zone of Interest. But we will save that blog post for another date. Let's dive into the Best Animated Feature nominees at this years Oscars.

The five nominees for this years award are:

• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

• Robot Dreams

• Nimona

• The Boy and the Heron

• Elemental
  

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse | 96/100

The expectations for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse were unbelievably high due to the high ratings and massive success of the first film. But, nothing prepared me for what this film had to offer. Only a few times have I left a movie theater being blown away by a film, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was one of those films. With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 95% and an Audience score of 94%, this film is a must watch for anyone who loves animation, Spider-Man, or movies.

The first thing to note when watching this film, is the artistry that is at display. The visuals and colors throughout the movie is something to admire and gush about because it is that extraordinary. The colors and graphics guide the film and provide so much more than something that just visually meets the eye. It tells us the emotion of the characters as they all are on their own journey from beginning to end. Whether we are watching Miles, Gwen, or the Spot, we see how animation and color creates a world where you feel for each character and want to continue to see what happens with each.

So many things go into making a great film, but with this movie, the editing is one to pay close attention to and talk about. The editing of this film is as good as it gets, especially when you see what style of animation they are dealing with. This animation gives the viewer a comic book feel with thought bubbles and layers of color making it that much more difficult to pull off successfully. I do not think I have ever seen a film that is edited better than this one and the editors deserve all the praise in the world.

But, let's talk about the story. Solely, based on the title, you know that this film was going to explore the Spider-Verse or a larger known name for it, the Multi-Verse. This is something Marvel has been trying to implement into all of their stories, both live action and animation, but with little success. This film hits a homerun while introducing so many different Spider-Mans. The story actually begins with Gwen trying to stop Vulture, but this Vulture is from a completely different Spider-Verse and a time long long ago. Gwen then runs into Miguel O'Hara (Oscar Isaac), the big man on campus of the Spider-Verse who can jump from earth to earth to try and stop characters from messing up timelines and events that are supposed to happen. Long story short, Gwen starts working with Miguel O'Hara and his team, but can't put her relationships aside as Miles enters into the story. A great balance between villains, friends, and anti-hero's, this story is one to pay close attention to as so much occurs over the span of a couple of hours. Whether you follow the main villain, The Spot, who quite frankly, comes across as a joke early on, or Miguel O'Hara, someone who is desperate to keep the stories and timelines as they should be that he will do whatever it takes. And lastly, with an ending that will put you on the edge of your seat wanting so much more.

There is still so much to mention about this film, an entire paper could be written on it. Just do yourself a favor and watch it to fully understand the magnitude and accomplishment of this great film. I can't say this film should win Best Animated Feature at the Oscars, but it will most definitely have a chance of winning the award come that night. I find it hard to believe their are 10 better films made this year and it should've been nominated for Best Picture.

Nimona | 86/100

Nimona is a film that I had never even heard of until I saw it nominated for Best Animated Feature. It was released directly onto Netflix and is a classic coming of age story of someone (Nimona) who is not accepted and looked at in a negative light within a community. But what makes it even better is Nimona isn't the only one dealing with the adversity of not being accepted. Her partner, Ballister Boldheart, is going through the same battle. The film is based in a futuristic medieval world where Ballister is meant to be a knight but is accused and framed for a crime he did not commit. He then runs into Nimona, who is also a shapeshifting creature, as they work to prove that Ballister did not commit these crimes while also trying to prove that neither one of them are dangerous and should be accepted, just like the people who do not look like them.

I was pleasantly surprised by this film and it takes you on an emotional journey as you find yourself feeling bad for Nimona and Ballister. The timing of when you learn about Nimon'a backstory is the icing on the cake for this film. It is a gut wrenching, tear jerking couple of minutes that immerses you into the world and mind of Nimona as you learn why her motives are what they are. The character development of Nimona and Ballister is beautiful to watch as they grow alone and together from start to finish. The animation of the film is something that took me a minute to get used to, but once I did get used to it, I realized just how wonderful it looked.

Please take the time to watch this film. Even though it will probably not win, it tells an important story that can relate to our world today. I love going into films not knowing anything and then being able to sit back and enjoy just under 2 hours of heartache and happiness. Be prepared to be pulled in many directions emotionally and know that Nimona gives us a point of view that many people don't have and are not even willing to see.

Elemental | 82/100

Anytime Pixar and Disney market and release a new movie, the expectation is that it is going to be a masterpiece. Pixar is known for so many hits such as Toy Story and Cars. But when Elemental's first trailer was released, I was a little bit disappointed in it. Of course, I still wanted to see the movie, but I felt as if the trailer was dull and lackluster. Then the movie was released into theaters and it wasn't getting much initial love from critics and viewers. It did not take long for all of that to change though. You normally do not see movies rise in Rotten Tomato scores, but Elemental did. At one point it was in the mid 50s and is currently rated at a 74%. Not nearly as high as Spider-Man: Across the Sprider-Verse or Nimona, but better than what it started out with.

I waited for this film to be released onto Disney+ before watching it and I must say, I was pleasantly surprised by it. Ember, the main character of the story, is an adventurous, hard working daughter who just wants to prove to her father that she can run the family store as she knows her father is becoming older and running an entire business can be difficult. She is clumsy and struggles to handle her emotions and that finds her in trouble from time to time. As pipes start to burst in the basement and water goes everywhere, Ember meets Wade, made from the element of water. These two start to spend a lot of time together in the world of all the elements and realize that they may have a lot more in common than they first thought.

The world of Elemental is beautiful, but the story really only focuses on fire and water. We get glimpses of what earth and air look like, but nothing about them relates to the story. Water is portrayed as the rich, popular, most important element as transportation and buildings are made up of it. Fire is looked at as the exact opposite, something that people don't want to be around, are scared of, and ruin everything they come in contact with. But this relationship between Ember and Wade sets out to prove that elements can coexist in the world.

Now, is this movie one of Pixar's best? No. But it does tell an important story and is something that is family friendly, lighthearted, and should still be watched. It is good, just not great. In fact, I was surprised it was nominated for Best Animated Feature. I think Super Mario Bros. is just as good, but Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is significantly better and deserved that spot.

Closing Thoughts

Animated film is one of my favorite categories of film to watch as it has so much to offer. The three animated films that are nominated at the Oscars for Best Animated Feature, that I have seen, are all good and worth a watch. I still need to watch A Boy and the Heron and Robot Dreams, but if I had to pick my winner while writing this, it would have to be Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. However, everyone should spend the time to watch these movies as they are all well done.

Stay on the look out for more blog posts related to the Oscars as it is right around the corner. Next posts will revolve around the Best Picture Nominees as I am close to finishing all 10 of them. Thank you for reading this far and please leave a comment and message me with other blog ideas or thoughts.

Nick Kuster