The 2023 Oscar season is officially over until next year, which means that film buffs will be arguing relentlessly for the next three weeks over the winners and losers. 

  I’ve never paid too much attention to the Academy Awards, but I was really interested this year because I watched several of the movies that were nominated. I was also invested because I’ve actually started watching movies as they come out and not two years later, so I was up to date this time around.

  You might have noticed that “Everything Everywhere All at Once” won a lot. I am super happy with how this movie did at the Academy Awards. Winning seven out of its 11 nominations, I’m glad that this movie is getting the accolades it deserves. “Everything Everywhere All at Once” explores the idea of nihilism vs absurdism in such a beautiful and heartbreaking way. It also has an incredibly unique and original take on the idea of multiple dimensions and alternate universes. The relationships between the characters display some of the best writing and characterization I’ve ever seen. This movie has changed my entire outlook on life.

  Also, Michelle Yeoh was the first Asian woman ever to be nominated for Best Actress and I’m super glad she won because she is the heart of “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” Yeoh delivered such a great performance. She had a way of making her character, Evelyn, so raw and real. “Everywhere Everywhere All at Once” wouldn’t be half the movie it is without her. Yeoh has also been acting since the 80s so this award was a long time coming. I also watched “All Quiet on the Western Front”(2022), which won four Oscars, and all of them were well deserved, especially Best Original Score. I loved the score in this movie, there’s one song that’s prominent throughout the movie. It has a very haunting, loud rattle that is used oftentimes to signify upcoming danger and it puts you on the edge of your seat. The song I’m talking about is called “Remains” and I recommend looking it up. The rest of the film was excellent, though it could’ve probably been a little shorter. The cinematography and acting portrays the horrors of war so well. There’s also a lot of symbolism within the movie that I noticed and as someone who’s not a big fan of war movies, this one almost made me cry. 

  So far, I’ve only seen a few debates on social media on the outcome of the Oscars. The one I’ve seen the most is the belief that Angela Bassett or Stephanie Hsu should’ve won Best Supporting Actress over Jamie Lee Curtis. Which is a valid argument, Bassett gave a very powerful and moving performance in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” She had a lot of great monologues in the movie which gave me chills everytime. Her character also played a very important role both as the Queen of Wakanda and as a catalyst for the later part of the movie. If Bassett had won the Oscar, I would’ve been completely fine with that decision. Hsu was fantastic in “Everything Everywhere All at Once” she played such a tragic character that took on many different forms. I’ve heard from people online that Hsu also portrayed being a first generation child to immigrant parents very well. Like I said before, the characters in “Everything Everywhere All at Once” are so well written and acted and Hsu’s character, Joy, is no exception. 

  But, Curtis was also really good in “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” She played a more comedic character compared to the other two. I enjoyed her character and thought she was funny, it’s definitely not a role we’ve seen Curtis in before. Curtis’ character, Deirdre, also has many different forms in the movie, she played a stern tax auditor, a crazed cult worshiper and a person with hot dogs for fingers. Curtis had less screen time and importance than the other two which is why I think people are upset about Curtis winning. But this was her first Oscar nomination ever after acting in major roles since the 70s. It’s baffling that she’d never even been nominated before this year. So I think that the award was well deserved. 

  Another disagreement I’ve seen is the disappointment that the film, “Elvis” didn’t bring home any awards on Oscar night. While I thought “Elvis” was good, I think compared to the other nominees it couldn’t hold up. “Elvis” was nominated for many awards like Best Cinematography and Best Film Editing, but honestly none of that stuck out to me. I can’t remember any significantly cinematic moments and I didn’t really like the editing. It was also nominated for Best Costume Design and Best Makeup and Hairstyling, but not to sound rude but all the costumes and makeup were just direct copies of what Elvis actually wore, nothing felt original. I thought the story was good, Austin Butler played a good Elvis, but it wasn’t enough for me to claim that “Elvis” should’ve won something.

  So whether your favorites won or were robbed, we can all agree that 2022 was a great year for movies. Some 2023 movies I am looking forward to are “Barbie,” “The Hunger Games: A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” and “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.”