I created this short montage of some of my favorite Oscar nominated films of 2016 to look back and ponder on their impact. This Award Season, people have asked me if I watched so and so movie. I would respond in a moment of silence, feeling instant heartbreak or grief recalling these films. Their impressions have lingered in my mind for months. This year’s nominees exposed this profound sadness and beauty that have haunted me ever since I watched them. What ties many of these films together is the deep exploration of characters trying to make sense of their circumstances whether it’s through their own personal struggle or coming into terms with tragedy. It explores the human condition, the way we thrive and flourish, flounder and crumble, hope and despair.
Fences recognizes the hardwork and sacrifices we make for our family and marriage through a Black working class family. It acknowledges familial love with its pain and joy that both keep and push people away.
Arrival teaches the importance of communication to connect us all while also illustrating the significant relation between the past, present, and future.
Jackie divulges a moment in time of an iconic woman we cannot ever truly know. With editing that constantly jumps time, the film informs the audience that the best way we can know an icon is through the pieces of information and perspectives we have to build a resemblance of a whole human being.
Hidden Figures reveals the unsung sheroes of NASA in the face of inequality. The film encourages perseverance for recognition and for the opportunity to use one’s personal gifts in order to better the world, regardless of gender or skin color.
The Lobster portrays the artificiality of connection due to obligation. The film asks what we are all willing to do for love and the sacrifices and comprises we are willing to make for it while questioning if they are really worth it.
Manchester by the Sea expresses grief and the way in which the past can eat away at our present. As overwhelming as grief can be, it takes love and humor to get through it.
La La Land is a film about dreamers and the possibility of accomplishing those passions we hold dear to our hearts. What is often overlooked is that universal dream to find that one person, the love of our lives, who will change our lives and influence us to be who we were meant to be. The misfortune is that sometimes those dreams, whether an aspiration or a person, can be out of our reach.
The lyrical film Moonlight shows the significance of finding one’s own ever changing identity and how our connections with others and the lack of it help shape one’s identity. It’s the film I hope will win the Oscar for Best Picture. Moonlight is an important film as it poetically gives a voice to several marginalized cultures. Even the film’s score and cinematography elevates an often disregarded aspect of American life in cinema, the low income struggle of a Black community. Moonlight brings humanity to a drug dealer and a drug addict as it also admits the vicious cycle of drug use and selling. In addition, the film deals with a Black man’s understanding of his homosexuality and the urgency of performative masculinity as a means of survival.
These films of 2016 have shown the endurance of the human spirit under such challenging circumstances. Through art, we have the ability to see how we all connect although we come from different backgrounds and experiences. Last year’s films were incredible in expressing this, especially through adversity where we truly find our humanity and the true value of things.
