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Here is the most accurate representation of our Oscar Votes. In my original notes I had Little Women for Costume (I agreed with that nomination and win) as well as Laura Dern for Best Supporting Actress. But whether I was vocal and clear about that on the podcast is another story. Either way I had 10/20 or 12/20 while Steve definitely had 12/20 correct. Collectively we had 14/20 or 16/20 if you count my Little Women and Dern vote. 2019 was a fantastic fucking year for film, one of the better years we've had in awhile. The reason I even got so worked up and involved with Oscars (which I haven't done in quite some time) was because I naturally saw and enjoyed a lot of these movies. There were a few films I went out of my way to see prior to doing the podcast with The Nerd Cantina, but for the most part..these were my films. Bong Joon Ho is someone I've been following for years. I've seen every single one of his available movies. I'm actually a really big fan of South Korean filmmakers in general (Chan Wook Park is one of my all-time favorites - I have a quote from Oldboy tattoo'd around my wrist "Even Though I Am No Better Than A Beast Don't I Have A Right To Live"). The Handmaiden by Park is a film that should have been on the Oscars radar the year it came out. 2018's film Burning by Chang-dong Lee was another film that should have been recognized by the West. But ultimately, Parasite received the recognition it did and did the trick because the Themes of Class Division and our struggles in Capitalism is UNIVERSALLY understood. Anyways, EDGAR WRIGHT did a beautiful job of organizing a great list of films from South Korea (I've seen them all and can't recommend them enough). Bong Joon-Hos earlier works: The Host (Creature Feature, highly praised by Tarantino). Memories of Murder and Mother (Crime Fiction), except Memories is based on real events. OKJA and Snowpiercer are the most accessible to Americans (Both on Netflix, both have English and aren't fully subtitled). Snowpiercer is based off a comic, and OKJA is a fun film that will make you think twice before eating pork. Chan Wook-Park is a Director/Writer I've been following for years. I have a quote from Oldboy tattoo'd on my wrist (one of my oldest tattoos, and I got it well before Spike Lee basterdized and botched an American remake..thankfully he didn't have the sense to use that amazing quote from the Korean version). Anyways Chan has a lot of great films about Revenge with deadly twist that will psychologically fuck with you. The Handmaiden is one of his more recent works, and just beautifully done. TRAIN TO BUSAN (is a creatively fresh Zombie film) there is this one and an animated prequel available on netflix/amazon, don't sleep on this.. Especially if you're a zombie fan. BURNING (2018) was an excellent film that should have been on the Oscars radar. Chaser, Bedeviled.. A lot of these are some of the best PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLERS you will ever see. The story is always so damn GOOD. South Koreans are MASTER storytellers. Trust me, their influence on us is there and will continue to be so, especially after this win. Americans are studying and adapting from them, just as they study and adapt from our greats. In essence.. we were LONG overdo to give recognition and credit to South Korean films and Parasite broke through for a reason. The themes of Class Division and CAPITALISM were universally understood. Not just South Korean, not just American.. Almost every developed country can understand and relate to this theme. The timing for this film was excellent... I wont get into the politics and don't worry I'm not advocating for or against Capitalism and neither is this film preachy about it. P.S. Special Thanks to THE NERD CANTINA, especially its creators, the dynamic duo Steve and Ken Vingua. Special thanks to Jon Burke for providing this beautiful image and accurate representation of our Oscar picks. Be sure to subscribe and follow their podcast, I tune in weekly. Come join the Facebook group and say hi.
"Goooood Day Nerds."
Ken & Steve the two brother's behind the Nerd Cantina Podcast were kind enough to allow me to come onto their show and participate in our own Oscar picks in anticipation of this upcoming Sunday's Oscars on February 9, 2020, 5:00 PM PST.
2019 was an excellent year for films..It was the closing of a decade, but it felt like a crescendo of the last century. If I had to sum up this years Oscars in one word, that word would be “historical.”
We went through WW1 (1917) to WW2 (Jojo). We saw the 1950’s through the 1970’s (The Irishman). Then we hung out in the Golden Age of Hollywood (Once Upon a Time..) and ended up in the #MeToo movement of 2016 (Bombshell).
We had films by 2 well known Giants (Tarantino & Scorsese), and an overseas giant, who grew up studying their films (Bong Joon Ho). Speaking of which, the first time a South Korean has ever been nominated for Best Director and first time a South Korean film has ever been nominated for Best Picture. Scarlett Johanasson received 2 nominations this year, being only 1 of 12 ever (since 1938) to receive the honor. This could be her first Oscar.. Historical for her. This could be the year Brad and Joaquin win their first Oscars as actors. Historical for them. Al Pacino & Deniro in a Scorsese flick for the first time ever, with Joe Pesci coming out of retirement to join in on the fun..
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