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Now on BBC News, it's time
for a Talking Movies Oscars Special. | 0:00:01 | 0:00:05 | |
Hello from California,
I'm Tom Brook, and welcome to this | 0:00:28 | 0:00:32 | |
special edition of Talking Movies
where we look back at the 90th | 0:00:32 | 0:00:35 | |
annual Academy Awards. | 0:00:35 | 0:00:41 | |
A recap of what happened
on the big night. | 0:00:41 | 0:00:43 | |
We hear from those who took
home top Oscar prizes. | 0:00:43 | 0:00:45 | |
I'm going back home
with these babies. | 0:00:45 | 0:00:50 | |
Director Guillermo del Toro's film,
The Shape of Water, won | 0:00:50 | 0:00:52 | |
four Academy Awards,
more than any other picture. | 0:00:52 | 0:00:55 | |
We bring you his thoughts
on his Oscar-winning movie. | 0:00:55 | 0:00:59 | |
The idea was to make a movie
about love and cinema. | 0:00:59 | 0:01:03 | |
It was a night of
inclusion at the Oscars. | 0:01:03 | 0:01:08 | |
We hear how the Chilean picture
A Fantastic Woman made history | 0:01:08 | 0:01:10 | |
when it won the best
foreign-language film trophy. | 0:01:10 | 0:01:18 | |
And we ask why does the Academy keep
giving its top best picture prize | 0:01:18 | 0:01:23 | |
to little scene films. | 0:01:23 | 0:01:24 | |
Why doesn't it embrace blockbusters? | 0:01:24 | 0:01:28 | |
All that and more in this special
review of the Oscars | 0:01:28 | 0:01:30 | |
edition of Talking Movies. | 0:01:30 | 0:01:34 | |
The Academy Awards really engage
the film-making community | 0:01:37 | 0:01:39 | |
here in Hollywood and this year
there were a lot of unanswered | 0:01:39 | 0:01:42 | |
questions going into the ceremony. | 0:01:42 | 0:01:43 | |
Everybody wanted to know which film
would win best picture | 0:01:43 | 0:01:46 | |
and what impact would the Time's Up
movement have on the proceedings. | 0:01:46 | 0:01:49 | |
Let's take a look
back at the evening. | 0:01:49 | 0:01:53 | |
It was not an Oscars in which any
one picture made a major sweep. | 0:01:54 | 0:01:58 | |
The Shape of Water came away
with the most trophies, | 0:01:58 | 0:02:01 | |
four in all, for best picture,
original score, production design | 0:02:01 | 0:02:04 | |
and for best director. | 0:02:04 | 0:02:06 | |
This story of a mute cleaning lady
who becomes involved with an aquatic | 0:02:06 | 0:02:10 | |
creature had a boldness
of vision, a vision that | 0:02:10 | 0:02:12 | |
came from its director,
Guillermo del Toro, a man clearly | 0:02:12 | 0:02:15 | |
delighted by his victories. | 0:02:15 | 0:02:18 | |
My next stop is going to see my mum
and my dad this week. | 0:02:18 | 0:02:22 | |
I'm going back home
with these two babies. | 0:02:22 | 0:02:26 | |
At Oscar viewing parties in
Hollywood there was the expectation | 0:02:28 | 0:02:31 | |
that The Shape of Water would win. | 0:02:31 | 0:02:34 | |
Loved the movie, not surprised
at all, wonderful film. | 0:02:34 | 0:02:36 | |
One of my favourites in a long time. | 0:02:36 | 0:02:41 | |
I knew it was going to be Shape
of Water, I would have preferred | 0:02:41 | 0:02:44 | |
for it to be Three Billboards
but I loved Shape of | 0:02:44 | 0:02:47 | |
Water, it was great. | 0:02:47 | 0:02:49 | |
So this is one of those
silly Academy things | 0:02:50 | 0:02:52 | |
where they spend a fortune... | 0:02:52 | 0:02:56 | |
Veteran awards expert and movie
lover Anne Thompson had been backing | 0:02:56 | 0:02:59 | |
The Shape of Water all along
as the best picture winner. | 0:02:59 | 0:03:03 | |
This is a case where
you have a beloved director | 0:03:03 | 0:03:07 | |
in Guillermo del Toro but it's also
a movie that happens to tie | 0:03:07 | 0:03:11 | |
in with the political narrative
of the day and so you have a Mexican | 0:03:11 | 0:03:15 | |
director, he made a movie
that was a fairy tale, | 0:03:15 | 0:03:17 | |
it was sincere, it was romantic
and it was inclusive | 0:03:17 | 0:03:22 | |
in the sense that it was
about outsiders who would | 0:03:22 | 0:03:24 | |
ordinarily be marginalised. | 0:03:24 | 0:03:25 | |
It fit everything and it was
gorgeously made and all the crafts | 0:03:25 | 0:03:29 | |
loved it and so that's why it got
so many nominations and four wins. | 0:03:29 | 0:03:34 | |
The best actor prize went,
as expected, to Britain's Gary | 0:03:34 | 0:03:37 | |
Oldman for his skilful portrayal
of the British wartime | 0:03:37 | 0:03:39 | |
leader Winston Churchill
in the film Darkest Hour. | 0:03:39 | 0:03:44 | |
Winning an Oscar for playing
arguably one of the greatest | 0:03:44 | 0:03:50 | |
Britons who ever lived,
to win it for playing Winston | 0:03:50 | 0:03:54 | |
makes it doubly special. | 0:03:54 | 0:03:58 | |
It has been an unforgettable
experience and a highlight | 0:03:58 | 0:04:00 | |
of my career. | 0:04:00 | 0:04:04 | |
And best actress went
to Frances McDormand who gave | 0:04:04 | 0:04:07 | |
a powerhouse performance as a mother
seeking justice for her daughter's | 0:04:07 | 0:04:11 | |
murder in director Martin
McDonagh's dark comedy | 0:04:11 | 0:04:13 | |
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing,
Missouri. | 0:04:13 | 0:04:15 | |
Look around, everybody, look around,
ladies and gentlemen. | 0:04:15 | 0:04:19 | |
Because we all have stories to tell
and projects we need financed. | 0:04:19 | 0:04:24 | |
McDormand gave a memorable
acceptance speech in a show | 0:04:24 | 0:04:26 | |
of solidarity, asking all female
nominees to stand. | 0:04:26 | 0:04:30 | |
The plight of women in the film
industry, their experiences | 0:04:30 | 0:04:32 | |
with sexual harassment,
the rise of the #MeToo | 0:04:32 | 0:04:34 | |
and Time's Up movements,
were referenced at different | 0:04:34 | 0:04:36 | |
occasions during the ceremony. | 0:04:36 | 0:04:37 | |
It was very much an
Oscars of inclusion. | 0:04:37 | 0:04:41 | |
We had Time's Up represented
on the stage as part of the show | 0:04:41 | 0:04:44 | |
and the fact that the Academy
integrated that into the show, | 0:04:44 | 0:04:54 | |
the monologue, addressed
a lot of what has been | 0:04:58 | 0:05:00 | |
going on in Hollywood,
I think it was really important | 0:05:00 | 0:05:02 | |
that the Academy and the Oscars
acknowledged this this year. | 0:05:02 | 0:05:05 | |
But there are those who think that
politics at the Oscars telecast may | 0:05:05 | 0:05:08 | |
have turned off some TV viewers. | 0:05:08 | 0:05:09 | |
I almost wonder if the political
cast of it was a good idea. | 0:05:09 | 0:05:12 | |
They leaned in. | 0:05:12 | 0:05:13 | |
I understand why, I understand that
in Hollywood everyone wants this | 0:05:13 | 0:05:17 | |
kind of women's agenda,
Time's Up, #MeToo, inclusion, | 0:05:17 | 0:05:20 | |
they really do, but you know what
are the Oscars are supposed to be? | 0:05:20 | 0:05:24 | |
They're supposed to be
an advertisement for the movies. | 0:05:24 | 0:05:26 | |
And back to the movies. | 0:05:26 | 0:05:28 | |
Jordan Peele, Get Out. | 0:05:28 | 0:05:31 | |
One highlight of the evening
was Get Out winning best | 0:05:31 | 0:05:34 | |
original screenplay. | 0:05:34 | 0:05:36 | |
This film, a clever fusing
of a racial satire with a horror | 0:05:36 | 0:05:39 | |
movie, has been a critically
lauded huge hit. | 0:05:39 | 0:05:41 | |
The Oscar went to the man who wrote
and directed it, Jordan Peele. | 0:05:41 | 0:05:44 | |
These are exciting teams
for black film-makers. | 0:05:44 | 0:05:52 | |
I'm so proud to be part of a time,
the beginning of a movement, | 0:05:52 | 0:06:00 | |
where I feel like the best films
in every genre are being brought | 0:06:00 | 0:06:06 | |
to me by my fellow black directors. | 0:06:06 | 0:06:08 | |
Call Me By Your Name. | 0:06:08 | 0:06:12 | |
Also winning for screenplay
was the gay romance | 0:06:12 | 0:06:14 | |
Call Me By Your Name. | 0:06:14 | 0:06:17 | |
89-year-old James Ivory was awarded
the best adapted screenplay trophy | 0:06:17 | 0:06:20 | |
for his work on the film. | 0:06:20 | 0:06:25 | |
He is now the oldest
Oscar winner ever. | 0:06:25 | 0:06:27 | |
Gay romance this film might
be but Ivory sees it | 0:06:27 | 0:06:29 | |
as a story of first love. | 0:06:30 | 0:06:31 | |
It's a universal situation,
first love and how we feel about it. | 0:06:31 | 0:06:34 | |
Whether it has made us unhappy
or joyous or whatever, | 0:06:34 | 0:06:40 | |
that is universal and that is
subject matter that everyone | 0:06:40 | 0:06:45 | |
everywhere can identify with. | 0:06:45 | 0:06:49 | |
The British war epic
Dunkirk did well, winning | 0:06:50 | 0:06:52 | |
three trophies in sound
and film editing categories. | 0:06:52 | 0:06:55 | |
The Oscars was not
without omissions or snubs. | 0:06:55 | 0:06:58 | |
Lady Bird, a strongly
liked coming-of-age story | 0:06:58 | 0:07:00 | |
starring Saoirse Ronan,
had five nominations. | 0:07:00 | 0:07:01 | |
The film, which marked
the directorial debut | 0:07:01 | 0:07:03 | |
of Greta Gerwig, was seen as a big
success story but it | 0:07:03 | 0:07:10 | |
the Oscars empty-handed. | 0:07:10 | 0:07:17 | |
Overall it was an Academy Awards
ceremony with few surprises | 0:07:17 | 0:07:20 | |
with the big prizes generally
going the way Oscar experts | 0:07:20 | 0:07:22 | |
had been predicting. | 0:07:22 | 0:07:27 | |
For Guillermo del Toro the Oscars
provided a great night. | 0:07:27 | 0:07:33 | |
Not only did his film win the best
picture trophy but he also | 0:07:33 | 0:07:36 | |
won for best director. | 0:07:36 | 0:07:37 | |
So let's hear from the man himself
and take a look at his Oscar-winning | 0:07:37 | 0:07:41 | |
picture in greater depth. | 0:07:41 | 0:07:42 | |
If I told you about her,
the princess without | 0:07:42 | 0:07:44 | |
voice, what would I say? | 0:07:45 | 0:07:47 | |
The Shape of Water is set
in Baltimore in 1962. | 0:07:47 | 0:07:50 | |
Much of the action taking place
in a top-secret government | 0:07:50 | 0:07:59 | |
laboratory where a mute cleaning
lady played by Sally Hawkins falls | 0:07:59 | 0:08:02 | |
in love with an aquatic creature
from South America being held | 0:08:02 | 0:08:04 | |
in captivity at the facility. | 0:08:04 | 0:08:09 | |
Part of the reason for the film's
Oscar successes is its ambition. | 0:08:09 | 0:08:12 | |
It draws from many different genres. | 0:08:12 | 0:08:14 | |
Fantasy, horror, Cold War,
noir thriller, science-fiction. | 0:08:14 | 0:08:15 | |
Guillermo del Toro
welcomed the challenge | 0:08:15 | 0:08:19 | |
of bringing it all together. | 0:08:19 | 0:08:21 | |
I thought the movie could be very
risky because it combined, | 0:08:21 | 0:08:28 | |
comedy, melodrama, musical theatre,
creature feature, you know. | 0:08:28 | 0:08:30 | |
It is all these things
at the same time and I thought, | 0:08:30 | 0:08:32 | |
that's difficult but that's why
you should make it. | 0:08:32 | 0:08:35 | |
Is she deaf? | 0:08:35 | 0:08:36 | |
Mute, sir, she can hear you. | 0:08:36 | 0:08:39 | |
The film's silent star attraction
is Sally Hawkins who, | 0:08:39 | 0:08:43 | |
except for one singing scene,
doesn't utter a word | 0:08:43 | 0:08:45 | |
in this two-hour film. | 0:08:45 | 0:08:46 | |
Del Toro wanted his leading lady
in this romance to be | 0:08:46 | 0:08:49 | |
a complex and real character. | 0:08:49 | 0:08:52 | |
She's not a pure princess
waiting for the prince | 0:08:52 | 0:08:54 | |
to kiss her for the first time. | 0:08:54 | 0:08:56 | |
She has a life. | 0:08:56 | 0:09:00 | |
Sally is a woman that is beautiful
and luminous but at the same time | 0:09:00 | 0:09:04 | |
you can find her on the street. | 0:09:04 | 0:09:08 | |
Inspiration for The Shape of Water
came from the 1954 film | 0:09:11 | 0:09:14 | |
Creature From The Black Lagoon. | 0:09:14 | 0:09:15 | |
Part of Del Toro's
childhood memories. | 0:09:15 | 0:09:18 | |
That movie had an amphibious
humanoid monster. | 0:09:18 | 0:09:22 | |
The director wanted his monster
to be a more developed, | 0:09:22 | 0:09:24 | |
multidimensional being. | 0:09:24 | 0:09:26 | |
If you do a monster monster,
all you need is for it to be scary | 0:09:26 | 0:09:30 | |
or creepy in one or two scenes. | 0:09:30 | 0:09:31 | |
But here you have a guy
who is going to be sad, | 0:09:31 | 0:09:37 | |
vulnerable, innocent,
brutal, fierce, an animal, a god, | 0:09:37 | 0:09:39 | |
all these things he needs to be. | 0:09:40 | 0:09:42 | |
You need to give the tools to your
actor to create this creature. | 0:09:42 | 0:09:48 | |
The Shape of Water provides
a critique of militaristic Cold War | 0:09:48 | 0:09:51 | |
era America and its patriarchal
culture, which is seen | 0:09:51 | 0:09:53 | |
to marginalise women,
African Americans and gay people. | 0:09:53 | 0:09:56 | |
By contrast, Del Toro has put
together a very inclusive work. | 0:09:56 | 0:10:05 | |
The idea was to make a movie
about love, and cinema. | 0:10:05 | 0:10:12 | |
So I wanted about loving the other
because right now everybody | 0:10:12 | 0:10:15 | |
says the other is guilty
of your unhappiness. | 0:10:15 | 0:10:17 | |
The immigrant, whatever
you want to call it, | 0:10:17 | 0:10:19 | |
they point fingers and I find
it very difficult. | 0:10:19 | 0:10:24 | |
Compared to his previous films such
as Pan's Labyrinth or Crimson Tide, | 0:10:24 | 0:10:27 | |
Guillermo del Toro strikes a more
optimistic tone in The Shape | 0:10:27 | 0:10:29 | |
of Water with a powerful love story,
one that clearly satisfied | 0:10:29 | 0:10:32 | |
Oscar voters. | 0:10:32 | 0:10:35 | |
The movies I've done,
nine movies before this, | 0:10:35 | 0:10:41 | |
are movies about nostalgia and loss. | 0:10:41 | 0:10:43 | |
They are tinged with a sadness. | 0:10:43 | 0:10:45 | |
This movie is the first movie
that is almost life affirming, | 0:10:45 | 0:10:50 | |
you know, it like full of beauty. | 0:10:50 | 0:10:55 | |
You come out of the movie energised
to face the real world | 0:10:55 | 0:10:59 | |
as opposed to sort of heartbroken
and destroyed because the real world | 0:10:59 | 0:11:08 | |
destroyed something precious. | 0:11:08 | 0:11:10 | |
I think it's the first time
I dared to be hopeful. | 0:11:10 | 0:11:12 | |
Eliza, honey. | 0:11:12 | 0:11:13 | |
He's coming for you. | 0:11:13 | 0:11:16 | |
What's it like to be a nominee
from a distant land and come | 0:11:16 | 0:11:19 | |
to Los Angeles to participate
in Hollywood's biggest | 0:11:19 | 0:11:21 | |
night of the year? | 0:11:21 | 0:11:24 | |
Well, to find out, we asked
two German film-makers | 0:11:24 | 0:11:26 | |
and their Kenyan production team
to document their trip | 0:11:26 | 0:11:28 | |
to the Oscars. | 0:11:28 | 0:11:30 | |
They have been nominated
for the live short action film | 0:11:30 | 0:11:35 | |
Watu Wote, All Of Us. | 0:11:35 | 0:11:39 | |
My name is Katja Benrath,
I'm from Hamburg, Germany and I'm | 0:11:47 | 0:11:50 | |
here in LA because we got nominated
for an Oscar for our short film, | 0:11:50 | 0:11:54 | |
Watu Wote, for the short film Oscar. | 0:11:54 | 0:12:01 | |
The story is about about
a terrorist attack. | 0:12:01 | 0:12:03 | |
A bus was travelling to the border
region of Kenya to Somalia | 0:12:03 | 0:12:08 | |
and the al-Shabab attacked the bus
with the aim to kill the Christian | 0:12:08 | 0:12:12 | |
passengers on the bus. | 0:12:12 | 0:12:13 | |
And on the bus there
were Christians and Muslims. | 0:12:13 | 0:12:18 | |
During the attack the Muslims just
gave hijabs to the Christian women | 0:12:18 | 0:12:21 | |
and clothes to the Christian men
so that they could not | 0:12:21 | 0:12:24 | |
be divided any more. | 0:12:24 | 0:12:25 | |
And they said to the terrorists,
kill all of us or none of us. | 0:12:25 | 0:12:28 | |
Until the terrorists
fled at the end. | 0:12:28 | 0:12:31 | |
You know, when we found out
we were nominated for an Oscar | 0:12:33 | 0:12:37 | |
we were showing the short film
for the first time in Kenya, | 0:12:37 | 0:12:40 | |
a lot of the cast members
were there and we watched | 0:12:40 | 0:12:43 | |
the announcement together
and what was the reaction? | 0:12:43 | 0:12:46 | |
I think it was screaming,
jumping, flipping! | 0:12:46 | 0:12:48 | |
It was crazy and it was amazing
because there were so many people | 0:12:48 | 0:12:51 | |
in the room who were part of this
and it was a challenging process. | 0:12:51 | 0:12:54 | |
Congratulations, congratulations. | 0:12:55 | 0:13:01 | |
For me it means to be nominated
for an Oscar that it's especially | 0:13:01 | 0:13:05 | |
an honour to the whole team and crew
who worked on the project. | 0:13:05 | 0:13:09 | |
The time we spent here
in LA is like we... | 0:13:12 | 0:13:15 | |
It's the craziest time
I've ever experienced. | 0:13:15 | 0:13:20 | |
We had a lot of interviews,
you have to promote your film, | 0:13:20 | 0:13:23 | |
you have to do campaigning. | 0:13:23 | 0:13:24 | |
I also have a few appointments
because some companies want to speak | 0:13:24 | 0:13:27 | |
with me because they liked
the short film. | 0:13:27 | 0:13:30 | |
The film already opened doors for us
where we never ever thought | 0:13:30 | 0:13:33 | |
about knocking on them before. | 0:13:33 | 0:13:39 | |
Now they are open and going
to the Oscars now, mainly for us | 0:13:39 | 0:13:42 | |
it is kind of really a great honour,
especially to the team. | 0:13:42 | 0:13:47 | |
It was just amazing
being there on the red carpet. | 0:14:12 | 0:14:14 | |
Really experiencing everything. | 0:14:14 | 0:14:15 | |
It was great. | 0:14:15 | 0:14:16 | |
Also the preparations before
were amazing because we had a lot | 0:14:16 | 0:14:19 | |
of fun with hair and make-up
and so many people running around, | 0:14:19 | 0:14:22 | |
very chaotic but great. | 0:14:22 | 0:14:25 | |
Despite not having won the Oscar
it's great being nominated, | 0:14:31 | 0:14:33 | |
it's just winning as well. | 0:14:33 | 0:14:38 | |
The one thing I realised
during the last days, | 0:14:38 | 0:14:40 | |
it's totally possible,
it totally possible to just make | 0:14:40 | 0:14:47 | |
good films and tell good stories
to receive that honour | 0:14:47 | 0:14:49 | |
because people are interested
in films like that and stories | 0:14:49 | 0:14:52 | |
like that so just think
about the next story, | 0:14:52 | 0:14:54 | |
the next film. | 0:14:54 | 0:14:55 | |
I was a little bit surprised how
little at all I was disappointed. | 0:14:55 | 0:14:59 | |
It's just, I'm the same Katja
as before and it's great | 0:14:59 | 0:15:02 | |
we were nominated and I will be
a nominated director | 0:15:02 | 0:15:04 | |
for my whole life. | 0:15:04 | 0:15:08 | |
The Chilean film A Fantastic Woman
made history at the Academy Awards | 0:15:18 | 0:15:21 | |
by becoming the first Oscar-winning
picture to be led by | 0:15:21 | 0:15:23 | |
a transgender actress. | 0:15:23 | 0:15:29 | |
It also marked the first time that
Chile won in the best | 0:15:29 | 0:15:32 | |
foreign-language film category. | 0:15:32 | 0:15:35 | |
Tristan Daily reports. | 0:15:35 | 0:15:38 | |
Set in Santiago in Chile, Marina
is at the centre of this picture. | 0:15:38 | 0:15:44 | |
Her older boyfriend
has died suddenly. | 0:15:44 | 0:15:51 | |
As a transgender woman,
she faces hostility | 0:15:51 | 0:15:53 | |
from doctors and the police. | 0:15:53 | 0:15:54 | |
Her partner's family rejects her,
they don't want her at the funeral. | 0:15:54 | 0:15:57 | |
She retains her dignity,
she holds her ground | 0:15:57 | 0:15:59 | |
and she doesn't give in. | 0:15:59 | 0:16:00 | |
Marina is portrayed
by the transgender Chilean | 0:16:00 | 0:16:02 | |
actress Daniela Vega. | 0:16:02 | 0:16:03 | |
She plays a woman who inhabits
a world very different from her own. | 0:16:03 | 0:16:06 | |
Of course I'm transgender but my
life it's completely different. | 0:16:06 | 0:16:09 | |
I have the opportunity to study. | 0:16:09 | 0:16:10 | |
My family supports me,
my friends support me. | 0:16:10 | 0:16:12 | |
And I have a lot of love around me. | 0:16:12 | 0:16:16 | |
And I think it's
completely different. | 0:16:16 | 0:16:20 | |
Not only has A Fantastic Woman won
an Oscar and received | 0:16:25 | 0:16:27 | |
accolades from critics,
but it's brought inspiration to | 0:16:27 | 0:16:29 | |
the transgender community as well. | 0:16:29 | 0:16:33 | |
To see a trans identified woman
portraying a trans identified | 0:16:33 | 0:16:40 | |
character in a movie that took
the storyline seriously | 0:16:40 | 0:16:42 | |
is ground-breaking. | 0:16:42 | 0:16:48 | |
Honestly, I related from it I think
right from the beginning and that's | 0:16:48 | 0:16:51 | |
just one of many experiences
of trans women out there. | 0:16:51 | 0:16:58 | |
To be able to sit in a movie theatre
and watch a movie with a trans woman | 0:16:58 | 0:17:02 | |
about a trans woman and be able
to connect with it right away, yes. | 0:17:02 | 0:17:06 | |
Daniela Vega sees the movie
as asking more questions than it | 0:17:12 | 0:17:15 | |
does supply answers. | 0:17:15 | 0:17:16 | |
Who is normal and what is normal? | 0:17:16 | 0:17:18 | |
What kind of bodies you can inhabit? | 0:17:18 | 0:17:25 | |
And what kind of love you can live
and what kind of love you cannot | 0:17:25 | 0:17:30 | |
and who says that or not? | 0:17:30 | 0:17:31 | |
While A Fantastic Woman may pose
questions, it also presents | 0:17:31 | 0:17:34 | |
audiences with a piece of cinema
that is hard to categorise. | 0:17:34 | 0:17:38 | |
There are moments of
fantasy amid reality. | 0:17:38 | 0:17:40 | |
Admirers see it as a
very satisfying film. | 0:17:40 | 0:17:43 | |
I like to think as a trans-genre
film about a transgender character. | 0:17:43 | 0:17:46 | |
So the film flirts with... | 0:17:46 | 0:17:51 | |
It's like a romantic film that
becomes a thriller that | 0:17:51 | 0:17:54 | |
becomes a ghost story,
it has moments of fantasy and it | 0:17:54 | 0:17:59 | |
sounds like a musical. | 0:17:59 | 0:18:03 | |
And then it's a character study,
something about a woman, | 0:18:03 | 0:18:07 | |
a film about humiliation and revenge
but at the heart of everything | 0:18:07 | 0:18:10 | |
it is a document of someone real. | 0:18:10 | 0:18:20 | |
In recent years the box office
takings of films that win best | 0:18:22 | 0:18:25 | |
picture at the Oscars have
been relatively small. | 0:18:25 | 0:18:27 | |
The Academy seems
to shun blockbusters. | 0:18:27 | 0:18:28 | |
What is driving this
trend and does it matter? | 0:18:28 | 0:18:31 | |
We have been finding out. | 0:18:31 | 0:18:32 | |
The Shape of Water. | 0:18:32 | 0:18:37 | |
In handing out the best picture
Oscar to The Shape of Water, | 0:18:37 | 0:18:42 | |
the Academy has perpetuated a trend
of often giving the top Academy | 0:18:42 | 0:18:47 | |
Academy Award not to a big,
commercial hit, | 0:18:47 | 0:18:53 | |
but to a less well seen,
independent or arthouse film. | 0:18:53 | 0:18:56 | |
The Shape of Water's
takings have been modest | 0:18:56 | 0:18:57 | |
compared to a blockbuster. | 0:18:58 | 0:18:59 | |
Less than $60 million in the US. | 0:18:59 | 0:19:00 | |
Moonlight, which won best picture
last year, took in just | 0:19:00 | 0:19:03 | |
$28 million domestically. | 0:19:03 | 0:19:04 | |
The year before it was Spotlight
which grossed $45 million | 0:19:04 | 0:19:06 | |
at the US box office. | 0:19:06 | 0:19:08 | |
None of these films
are blockbusters, they are movies | 0:19:08 | 0:19:10 | |
with modest box office ambitions
made on small budgets. | 0:19:10 | 0:19:16 | |
I think that movies that do really
well at the Oscars are original | 0:19:16 | 0:19:20 | |
movies and original movies are risky
and risky movies tend | 0:19:20 | 0:19:22 | |
to get low budgets. | 0:19:22 | 0:19:24 | |
So small budgeted films tend
to do well at the Oscars. | 0:19:24 | 0:19:29 | |
The last time the Academy gave
the best picture prize to a true | 0:19:29 | 0:19:32 | |
Hollywood blockbuster
was with The Lord Of The Rings | 0:19:32 | 0:19:34 | |
The Return Of The King back in 2004. | 0:19:34 | 0:19:38 | |
Many Academy voters work
on Hollywood blockbusters | 0:19:38 | 0:19:43 | |
but perhaps one reason they tend
to vote for smaller films | 0:19:43 | 0:19:46 | |
is because these movies
conform to the image | 0:19:46 | 0:19:48 | |
of what an Oscar-winning
film should be. | 0:19:48 | 0:19:53 | |
It's always best to look
at the awards as a reflection | 0:19:53 | 0:19:55 | |
of Hollywood, as how it wants
to think of itself. | 0:19:55 | 0:19:58 | |
It wants to see itself as socially
and politically engaged. | 0:19:58 | 0:20:01 | |
It wants to see itself
as doing serious acting, | 0:20:01 | 0:20:07 | |
sometimes in all quotes! | 0:20:07 | 0:20:10 | |
It wants to see itself as making
films that will last through time. | 0:20:10 | 0:20:14 | |
Some believe Oscar voters
even harbour a prejudice | 0:20:14 | 0:20:15 | |
towards commercial blockbusters. | 0:20:15 | 0:20:21 | |
They cite Wonder Woman,
critically acclaimed, | 0:20:21 | 0:20:23 | |
it made millions, but failed to get
a single nomination. | 0:20:23 | 0:20:25 | |
The film's detractors would argue
that it just did not | 0:20:25 | 0:20:28 | |
merit Oscar recognition. | 0:20:28 | 0:20:29 | |
But not everyone agrees. | 0:20:29 | 0:20:33 | |
Wonder Woman was the big commercial
movie that should have been | 0:20:33 | 0:20:36 | |
nominated for best picture this year
but it got skunked because it | 0:20:36 | 0:20:39 | |
didn't have snob appeal. | 0:20:39 | 0:20:42 | |
In recent years movies
like Interstellar, The Hunger Games, | 0:20:42 | 0:20:46 | |
should have been nominated for best
picture but they missed out | 0:20:46 | 0:20:50 | |
because voters are still going
for the little snob movies | 0:20:50 | 0:20:53 | |
even though the race has been
expanded to eight, nine, ten films. | 0:20:53 | 0:20:58 | |
The Academy is often accused
of being elitist with its best | 0:20:58 | 0:21:03 | |
picture picks but there are other
reasons why it may not give its top | 0:21:03 | 0:21:06 | |
award to big commercial hits. | 0:21:06 | 0:21:07 | |
I think that it's not necessarily
that there is a prejudice | 0:21:07 | 0:21:13 | |
against commercial fair so much
as when you look at a lot | 0:21:13 | 0:21:16 | |
of the commercial films
of the last few years, | 0:21:16 | 0:21:18 | |
the last decade even,
they have been a lot of franchise | 0:21:18 | 0:21:21 | |
films and sequels and reboots
and they have been mostly action. | 0:21:21 | 0:21:23 | |
And I think that, for a lot
of people, that is a separate | 0:21:23 | 0:21:30 | |
category than the best film
of the year in terms of an award is. | 0:21:30 | 0:21:34 | |
The Academy's favouring of less
widely seen pictures creates | 0:21:34 | 0:21:36 | |
a problem in generating ratings
for the Oscars telecast, | 0:21:36 | 0:21:40 | |
vital to its livelihood. | 0:21:40 | 0:21:47 | |
More viewers will tune
in if blockbusters | 0:21:47 | 0:21:49 | |
have been nominated. | 0:21:49 | 0:21:50 | |
I think the Academy would love
to have more popular | 0:21:50 | 0:21:52 | |
films be nominated. | 0:21:52 | 0:21:53 | |
The Academy, the people who run it,
have no control over that | 0:21:53 | 0:21:56 | |
because it's up to the voters. | 0:21:56 | 0:21:59 | |
In their democratic institution,
the people, the films that get | 0:21:59 | 0:22:01 | |
the most votes are the ones that
are selected and they have | 0:22:01 | 0:22:04 | |
no control over that. | 0:22:04 | 0:22:06 | |
Is the Academy going to continue
to bestow best picture honours | 0:22:08 | 0:22:11 | |
on relatively low profile movies? | 0:22:11 | 0:22:18 | |
Industry economics dictate that
to maximise profits and reach | 0:22:18 | 0:22:20 | |
a broad global audience,
blockbusters need to be | 0:22:20 | 0:22:22 | |
artistically cautious. | 0:22:22 | 0:22:23 | |
In other words, films
unlikely to win Oscars. | 0:22:23 | 0:22:27 | |
So as long as that is the case,
more original, smaller movies | 0:22:27 | 0:22:32 | |
will probably continue to take home
Oscars biggest award. | 0:22:32 | 0:22:36 | |
Well, that brings our
programme to a close. | 0:22:42 | 0:22:44 | |
We hope you have enjoyed the show. | 0:22:44 | 0:22:46 | |
Please remember you can
always reach us online | 0:22:46 | 0:22:50 | |
at bbc.com/talkingmovies and you can
find us on Facebook too. | 0:22:50 | 0:22:54 | |
So, from me, Tom Brook,
and the rest of the Talking Movies | 0:22:54 | 0:22:58 | |
production team here in Los Angeles,
it is goodbye as we leave | 0:22:58 | 0:23:02 | |
you with this year's Oscar-winning
best original song. | 0:23:02 | 0:23:05 | |
# If you close your eyes
and let the music play | 0:23:05 | 0:23:07 | |
# Keep our love alive,
I'll never fade away | 0:23:07 | 0:23:09 | |
# If you close your eyes
and let the music play | 0:23:09 | 0:23:13 | |
# Keep our love alive,
I'll never fade away | 0:23:13 | 0:23:18 | |
# Remember me | 0:23:18 | 0:23:22 | |
# For I will soon be gone | 0:23:22 | 0:23:23 | |
# Remember me | 0:23:23 | 0:23:27 | |
# And let the love we have live on | 0:23:27 | 0:23:32 | |
# And know that I'm
with you the only way that I can be | 0:23:32 | 0:23:36 | |
# So, until you're in my arms again | 0:23:36 | 0:23:40 | |
# Remember me | 0:23:40 | 0:23:41 | |
# Que nuestra cancion
no deje de latir | 0:23:41 | 0:23:44 | |
# Solo con tu amor yo
puedo existir | 0:23:44 | 0:23:46 | |
# Remember me | 0:23:46 | 0:23:47 | |
# Que nuestra cancion
no deje de latir | 0:23:47 | 0:23:49 | |
# Solo con tu amor
yo puedo existir | 0:23:49 | 0:23:51 | |
# Remember me #. | 0:23:51 | 0:23:55 |