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11 amazing facts about the Academy Awards
It's that time again! For the fourth year running we're celebrating the snubbed and overlooked, the too commercial or not commercial enough, with Digital Spy's alternative Oscars.
Many great movies missed out on an Academy Awards nominations in 2015, so read on below to see who we think are the best of the rest.
Best Picture
The Babadook
What to Read Next
Foxcatcher
Nightcrawler
Gone Girl
Guardians of the Galaxy
The LEGO Movie
Under the Skin
Wild
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Nightcrawler!
Materialising seemingly out of nowhere last Autumn, Dan Gilroy's directorial debut Nightcrawler hit the sweet spot between LA noir thriller and razor-sharp media satire.
Buoyed by sensational performances from Jake Gyllenhaal (sociopathic as Lou Bloom) and Rene Russo and a moody James Newton Howard soundtrack, this story of ruthless ambition and fluctuating media morality says more about our greed-driven culture than any other film in recent memory.
This was by far the most startling omission from the Best Picture lineup this year, although admittedly far too cool-for-school for silver-haired Academy voters. We, however, loved every second of it.
Best Director
Damien Chazelle (Whiplash)
Ava DuVernay (Selma)
Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler)
Jonathan Glazer (Under the Skin)
Jean-Marc Vallée (Wild)
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Damien Chazelle for Whiplash!
It's not every director who can produce a stone-cold masterpiece as their second feature before they've even turned 30. Chazelle's omission from the Best Director field was disappointing but unsurprising, and it was a no-brainer to award him our alternative prize for Whiplash, his blistering portrait of a jazz drummer driven beyond his limits by a sadistic mentor.
Chazelle channeled his own experience as a musician into Whiplash's script, and by his own admission shared some of his protagonist's ruthless tunnel vision during the film's production â€" unsurprising, given it was shot in a mind-boggling nineteen days.
Best Actor
Channing Tatum (Foxcatcher)
Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler)
David Oyelowo (Selma)
Miles Teller (Whiplash)
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Jake Gyllenhaal for Nightcrawler!
Jake Gyllenhaal produced a career-best turn as the despicable Lou Bloom, a role in which he is almost unrecognisable.
It's more than just the impressive physical transformation. Gyllenhaal is incredibly fascinating to watch, as Lou - finding his calling as a freelance news cameraman - descends into moral bankruptcy in an already slimy industry.
You can see just from his eyes how cold and calculated he is, as well as the drive and motivation inside of him to rise above his competition at any cost. Gyllenhaal conveys the twisted mind of Lou so convincingly, it's easy to forget you're watching the same guy who played the Prince of Persia.
Best Actress
Jennifer Aniston (Cake)
Essie Davis (The Babadook)
Scarlett Johansson (Under the Skin)
Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Belle)
Jenny Slate (Obvious Child)
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Scarlett Johansson for Under the Skin!
The reaction to Under the Skin was fairly divisive, but it's hard to fault Scarlett Johansson, who plays an extraterrestrial serial killer.
We awarded Johansson an Alternative Oscar last year for her voice-only part in Her, but playing the alien here could not have been more on the opposite side of the spectrum. Though dialogue is kept to a minimum, she uses every moment on screen to create a lasting impression as her character shows signs of being touched by humanity.
Johansson should also be commended for her bravery, taking to the Scottish cold and having unscripted conversations with actual people on the street. It brought a powerful sense of authenticity that really added to the picture.
Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin (Inherent Vice)
Tyler Perry (Gone Girl)
Andy Serkis (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes)
Tom Wilkinson (Selma)
Michael Fassbender (Frank)
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Josh Brolin for Inherent Vice!
"Motto panukeiku! MOTTO PANUKEIKU!"
Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice might be the most divisive film in the director's back catalogue to-date, but one thing is certain: Josh Brolin is absolutely fantastic in it as cop "Bigfoot" Bjornsen.
From moonlighting as a TV extra to ferocious munching on phallic-shaped foods, Brolin jolted Inherent Vice to life every moment he was on screen. You just never knew what he was going to do next.
Best Supporting Actress
Jessica Chastain (A Most Violent Year)
Carrie Coon (Gone Girl)
Carmen Ejogo (Selma)
Rene Russo (Nightcrawler)
Kristen Stewart (Still Alice)
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Carmen Ejogo for Selma!
Much has been made about David Oyelowo being overlooked in this year's Best Actor field, but what about his Selma co-star Carmen Ejogo?
As Coretta Scott King, the British actress delivers the kind of understated turn that so often gets overlooked during awards season but is a crucial counterweight to a more showy performance.
Oyelowo's King was at home delivering rousing speeches but completely lost when it came to his home life - it's these more intimate scenes that lent Selma real emotional weight, and this wouldn't have worked had Ejogo not been a match for MLK.
Best Original Song
Chvrches - 'Dead Air' (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1)
Will Arnett - 'Untitled Self Portrait' (The Lego Movie)
Lana Del Rey - 'Big Eyes' (Big Eyes)
Lorde - 'Yellow Flicker Beat' (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1)
Sia - 'Opportunity' (Annie)
And the Alternative Oscar goes to... Will Arnett for 'Untitled Self Portrait' from The Lego Movie!
Sure, everybody loves 'Everything Is Awesome', but the actual Best Song in The Lego Movie (whose Best Animation snub we're still not over) is Batman's gloriously straight-faced musical self-portrait, which is exactly the type of angsty performance poetry you can imagine the adolescent Bruce Wayne writing in his mansion.
With Ben Affleck's upcoming version being tipped as even more dark and brooding than the Dark Knight trilogy's take, the caped crusader was more than overdue for a bit of ribbing.
"Darkness," Arnett's Batman growls. "No parents… continued darkness…" before going on to riff some more on things that are black and dark. Consistently laugh-out-loud funny, and surprisingly catchy.
Contributions from Simon Reynolds, Emma Dibdin and Ben Lee
