In case you hadn’t been paying attention, the Academy Awards will air this Sunday night. Often, many people use the last few days before the ceremony to catch up with the Oscar nominated movies they missed. How many of this year’s crop have you seen?
The following poll contains all of the movies nominated for Best Picture, Best Director or any of the four acting categories. If you want to tell us about a movie nominated in some other category, feel free to do so in the Comments section below.
The intent of this poll is not to gauge which movies you think will win the trophies, or which you think should win. We simply want to know how many you’ve seen. Vote for as many as apply.
Loading ...For me, this is perhaps the least exciting Oscar selection in recent memory. Of this list, I’ve only seen ‘Fury Road’, which, to the consternation of some of our readers, I wasn’t much impressed with.
Unlike most years, I don’t even feel like I’m missing out on much. I have a passing interest in eventually watching ‘Bridge of Spies’, ‘Brooklyn’, ‘Creed’, ‘The Martian’, ‘Room’ and ‘Spotlight’, but not enough to have caught any of them in the theater or to buy them on Blu-ray. I’ll be fine renting or waiting for them to show up on Netflix.
Current awards frontrunner ‘The Revenant’ holds virtually no appeal for me at all.
Am I missing out on something great here? Are you actively rooting for any of these movies to win on Sunday night?
HuskerGuy
I’ve seen the following:
Creed
Mad Max
The Martian
The Revenant
I loved all of them except the Revenant. The movie bored me and I honestly wanted to walk out halfway through, but figured there would be a good payoff at the end. Not really.
HuskerGuy
Meant to add that I’d really like to see Bridge of Spies and The Big Short as well, but probably won’t until they wind up on Netflix or HBO.
Chris B
This may seem like an odd question, but were you playing Destiny on Xbox One earlier today? I was running raids and I swear I was playing with someone who’s gamertag was “Huskerguy”, you by any chance?
HuskerGuy
Nope, it wasn’t me. I don’t have a Xbox One and use a different online handle 🙂
charles contreras
I haven’t seen anything on the list, but I would like to check out Creed and The Martian sometime soon. On a side note, as I was thinking about this last night, how cool would it be if the Oscars could be hosted by Samuel L. Jackson? The timing would’ve been right for this year, but I’d wait until next year if they could pull it off.
Mark Elinsky
From that list, I’ve only seen Mad Max, The Martian and Creed.
I hated Mad Max just as much as you did. Probably even more so.
The Martian didn’t impress me at all (though I LOVED the book).
Creed was fantastic. You really should check that one out.
I agree, none of the rest really interest me. I’d watch Brooklyn or The Big Short. but I really don’t care if I miss ’em.
Shannon Nutt
I’ve seen:
Mad Max
Spotlight
The Revenant
The Martian
Creed
I’m hoping to rent Bridge of Spies before the ceremony on Sunday.
Shannon Nutt
Oh Josh – you should really see The Revenant. I didn’t like Birdman all that much, but thought The Revenant was fantastic…and I pretty much hated the trailers for The Revenant – friends talked me into going.
Chris B
I’ve only seen Mad Max and The Revenant, may try an squeeze in The Martian before sunday night. I’m mostly rooting for The Hateful Eight to win for the 3 categories it’s nominated in, best movie of 2015 IMHO. A shame it didn’t receive more nominations.
Bolo
Oscar nominated films that I have seen:
-Carol
-Creed
-Room
-Bridge of Spies
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Martian
-Sicario
-The Hateful Eight
-Anomalisa
-Amy
-Cartel Land
I never really feel any need to see my own taste validated by the Oscars, but they’re a fun curiosity. Of all the nominees that I saw, I felt ‘Sicario’ was by far the best, yet it’s been shut out of most the main categories. I felt it deserved several more nominations than it got. I think it should’ve been nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor (Benicio del Toro). So I’ll root for it in the categories that it is nominated.
I don’t plan on watching the Oscars, but I’ll catch DiCaprio and Stallone’s speeches the next day on YouTube. I’m curious as to what they’ll say when they win.
Bolo
Oh yeah, I also saw ‘Straight Outta Compton’ and ‘Spectre’.
Forgot about those two.
Lord Bowler
Did ‘Hateful Eight’ qualify? I think it was supposed to open at Christmas, but didn’t in our area until a week later.
That was an excellent movie!
I also want to see Sicario.
Josh Zyber
AuthorHateful Eight had a limited release at Christmas. That’s enough to qualify for this year’s Oscars.
Lord Bowler
Looks like it should have waited until 2016 since it didn’t get nomination for Best Picture.
It was better than I thought and reminded me a lot of John Ford’s Stagecoach, except with a lot more violence and a little too much fake blood.
That long opening scene was excellently shot.
Josh Zyber
AuthorThe risk of waiting to release the movie only in January is that Oscar voters will forget about it when they get around to nominating 2016 movies a year later. Also, there’s no guarantee it wouldn’t get similarly snubbed in favor of a different batch of movies next year anyway.
Bolo
I tend to think Jennifer Jason Leigh (Supporting Actress) and Ennio Morricone (Score) will win for ‘The Hateful Eight’.
Cinematography is a tight race, but I think ‘Sicario’ will win out in that category.
Bolo
A few more I missed when skimming the list:
-When Marnie Was There
-Ex Machina
Clemery
“I never really feel any need to see my own taste validated by the Oscars, but they’re a fun curiosity.” – what an awesome line, and I totally agree!
That said, I am pretty excited for this years Oscars, as I have seen most of the major nominees, even if many ore not amongst my favourites of the year. I am surprised that Josh has barely seen or shows any interest in any of the nominees… do you not like movies or something? Kinda ironic reading the article on a home video site! 😛
Mad Max Fury Road was jaw-droppingly awesome for me, a masterclass in imagination and world-building. But I would never expect it to win Best Picture (although I am hopeful that Miller may scoop the director prize), and my second favourite of 2016, The Hateful 8, was not even nominated.
I think what excites me most about this year is not only that I have seen the vast majority, but many were unexpected surprises. I knew very little about Room going in, just the basic premise of a boy whos lived in a Room for 5 years gets into the open world… but in no way was I prepared how moving and memorable the film would be to me. Its not perfect, but I certainly wouldn’t mind if it won either (highly unlikely). And Bridge Of Spies was also surprising, in that I typically don’t enjoy modern Spielberg films that just don’t have that magic for me anymore, but BoS certainly held my interest and even echoed Schindler’s List for me at times.
I m not really sure what I think will win. I am assuming it will be Inarritu’s year again for both director and picture, but like others I didn’t think it left a lasting impression on me. I really like it (mainly due to the technical achievements), but it doesn’t make my annual top ten. Spotlight was a competent film about investigative journalism, yes… but there was nothing really special or shocking about it. The Martian was pretty vanilla for me all the way through, and same with Creed (both entertaining, not amazing). I was intrigued by both Steve Jobs and Joy, but again don’t rate either too highly.
Regardless of who wins or loses or who makes the biggest awards faux pas… It doesn’t affect my personal opinion on any movie I like or dislike, and I still always enjoy the ceremony as a piece of entertainment and a general celebration of movies.
Clemery
Just to add, films I haven’t seen yet include The Big Short, Carol, Brooklyn, The Danish Girl… but really only eager to see The Big Short amongst that list.
There are also popular films that I have seen but actually didn’t really care for, including Sicario (yes, really) and Ex Machine (yes, really). Ex Machina was ok, but I was far from amazed and definitely felt that it was overhyped. Sicario I found to be pretty boring… admittedly I’m not typically a fan of Villeneuve (although Enemy was great), so lets just leave it at that.
Deaditelord
I’ve seen Fury Road and Creed and like both of them a lot, although I don’t think either are worthy of a best picture win. I’m quite interested in watching Bridge of Spies, Spotlight, and The Revenant. I’ll probably watch The Martian and Steve Jobs at some point. I don’t see myself checking out the other nominees.
EM
Of that list, only Fury Road. However, I have seen all the nominees for animated short!
John Heuer
Josh, do you not like movies?
Josh Zyber
AuthorYes, I like movies. But I do not like every and all movies indiscriminately.
Timcharger
And we’re not talking about “every and all movies
indiscriminately.” There is much overlap with the SAG nominated films,
Golden Globe nominated films. So it is a small list of films. And the
expectation isn’t that you like/love them, but that you’ve seen them.
And not even that you’ve seen them all, but 1 out of 15 is bad, Josh.
Julian
Josh has twins to raise. Give him a cinematic break 🙂
Josh Zyber
AuthorThe day Tim gives someone a break is the day I worry that his account has been hacked and somebody is spoofing him. 🙂
Timcharger
That’s one way to interpret it. Perhaps another is
that I’m helping Josh convince Mrs. Z to let him out of the house
more. The poll certainly aids in convincing Wifey. “Look Honey,
everyone else has seen more than 1 out of 15.”
And the “cut him a break” part? I totally get it, if Josh only saw a
third of the 15 or a quarter of the 15. Should I “cut him a break” to
expect only 0.5 out of 15? And many would certainly argue that
Josh ONLY watched half of Mad Max Fury Road. Josh certainly
didn’t “see” what makes it worthy of critical acclaim.
Am I really too hard on saying, 1 out of 15 is bad? I gotta give Josh
a break? Or is the real purpose of this poll to convince someone
else to give him a break? 🙂
Josh Zyber
AuthorOh, trust me, I’ve seen all of Fury Road. In fact, I’ve been using the Blu-ray as bass demo material when testing a new subwoofer, so I’ve seen the movie more than enough for a lifetime. I still don’t think it’s very good, sorry.
If the selection of Oscar nominated movies had been more compelling, I would have found a way to watch more of them by now. This just seems like a really weak year to me.
Julian
Well, Tim, I have also seen 1 out of 15 movies (‘Fury Road’, as well). And I don’t have kids to raise! There’s no excuse. I’m ashamed of my apathy.
Timcharger
Hi Julian,
And you don’t need an excuse. You don’t write a blog about film.
And I appreciate the nuance of what you added. You proclaimed
apathy.
There once was a fox who wrote a blog about grapes. During grape
awards season, 15 grapes were nominated. That fox tried 1 grape.
He didn’t like it. And it stood to reason that the other 14 didn’t
appear delicious. Otherwise, the fox would have tasted them. So
he concluded that it must be a sour season.
I’ll never win an HDD contest. 🙂
Csm101
Did you get a new sub, Josh? If so, what did you get? Will you be posting about it like the other equipment? Do tell.
Josh Zyber
AuthorI’m working on an article about it that I hope to run soon.
Thulsadoom
It’s scary when I just realised I’ve only seen The Martian! Though I will be seeing Mad Max and Creed at some point (Just haven’t got round to it yet).
Clark
Wow, I have just realised I saw them ALL. Some of them, like Mad Max, The Martian and The Revenant, I have seen more than once!
As a movie lover, I am impressed that you didn’t see and is not interested in any of these movies. How are you not psyched about all the great reviews Spotlight got? Or about a new Spielberg movie (Bridge of Spies)?
Josh Zyber
AuthorWhile I’m sure that Spotlight is an excellent film, as a parent of two very young children, the prospect of sitting through a movie about a child sex abuse scandal, no matter how well made, is a really hard sell for me right now.
As for Bridge of Spies, I’ve been burned enough times by Spielberg that I can’t get too excited for any new movie he makes. While this one does look interesting, even the people I know who’ve seen and liked it haven’t exactly been enthused about it. The sense I get is that it’s a very solid, all-around decent and good movie that never really hits the next level of greatness. I’m sure I will watch it eventually, but I can wait for Netflix or HBO.
StaksOnStaks
Spotlight was really great in my opinion for two reason: (1) it kept me engaged and wanting more the entire movie (hard to do in general, but especially hard to do with just character acting…shows how good the actors, writing, and directing were); and (2) it is a culturally important movie to bring the story of how it was discovered to the masses. While it certainly wasn’t a feel-good movie, it was certainly good.
I am also a father of two small children (2 and under and one more on the way). I was glad that I saw it. It shows me that, while the world is wonderful and magical, it is also dangerous in so many deep, dark ways. It is a reality I need to face and prepare/protect my children.
Timcharger
I certainly share similar sentiments about watching films
about child abductions. I’ve avoided watching some of them. And in
some cases, I’ve had to pause the blu-ray, and go check on my kids
sleeping upstairs. I get it. But Spotlight doesn’t fit that bill. A child
kidnapping can occur unexpectedly in a shopping mall. But I don’t
think one will accidentally be an altar boy interacting with priests in a
Catholic Church. While sexual abuse can occur in many unexpected
sources, the setting for Spotlight should negate that personal aversion.
But then again, you are in Boston, and that might be a little too close
for comfort for the story in Spotlight. Thought the story is really
nationwide (and global).
Lord Bowler
I’ve only seen ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ and ‘The Martian’. Both were excellent films.
I want to see ‘Bridge of Spies’, ‘The Revenant’, ‘Creed’, ‘Steve Jobs’, ‘The Big Short’, and ‘Trumbo’
I have little to no interest in ever seeing the following:
’45 Years’
‘Brooklyn’
‘Carol’
‘The Danish Girl’
‘Spotlight’
‘Joy’
‘Room’
Isn’t ‘Room’ the worst movie ever made? You’d think they would have picked a better name.
Josh Zyber
AuthorYou’re thinking of ‘The Room’.
Lord Bowler
I know.
For awhile I thought it was the same and questioned why a famously bad film would get so much buzz. But, when I saw it was not the same, I just why would they would name the film something so close to a famously bad movie?
Bolo
They kept the title from the novel that served as its source material. They could’ve changed it, but I guess they figure Tommy Wiseau’s film doesn’t cast that long a shadow.
Clemery
This explains a lot actually… I wasn’t aware of “The Room” and was also wondering why so many people were calling one of my favourite films of the year one of the worst of all time! 🙂
Clark
45 Years is great! But this one doesn’t really need to be seen in a movie theater.
photogdave
Only seen Mad Max. Allow myself to copy myself from another post:
Well, I was on board with the whole “Mad Max was a great movie but not Best Picture material” sentiment but I just re-watched it on Blu-ray.
Now I’m thinking “why can’t it be Best Picture?” What makes a Best Picture? Does it have to be ultra-serious? Does it have to be maudlin? Uplifting? Does it need to convey a message?
Mad Max does all this plus it’s super exciting. It has great performances, unbelievable design, cinematography and editing. It has strong themes about the environment, social oppression and the roles of the sexes in society.
So now I’m all for Mad Max for best picture!
StaksOnStaks
While I did see a good amount of the movies, I really enjoyed the Martian and Spotlight. I’d love for them to get the recognition they deserve. I also do get the idea of waiting to see them until they come available to watch at home. But not all of us have a home theater of any real magnitude to rival a theater experience.
Plus, having a new Dolby Cinema nearby makes it that much more enticing to see movies there that might really stand out as far as audio/visual.
Sergio
I’ve seen all the films on the list.
For me the Best PIcture Film (2015) is,
The Revenant
Regards,
SC