By: Sandra M. Ríos, creator of www.CineVistaBlog.com
Tomorrow is the Oscar awards ceremony and from Los Angeles EL NUEVO SIGLO, through CineVista, spoke with Néstor Bentancor, vice president of the Hollywood Critics Association, in addition to being co-producer of six award ceremonies of this Association and journalist for entertainment since 2009.
ENS: How have you viewed, generally speaking, the 2022-2023 awards season?
NB: As something really quite anomalous, in the sense of having at this point a candidate like “Everything at once everywhere”, which has really set the trend, sweeping and triumphing in the most important awards, except, perhaps, the Bafta.
ENS: Since the choice of “Parasites”, do you notice any change in what the Academy chooses?
NB: We are seeing a bit of this trend of more independent films, which arrive like black horses to gain a lot of energy, a lot of good will and have that ‘momentum’ of provoking visceral reactions in the audience, with something tremendously fresh, accompanied with a certain amount of diversity or that they do not follow certain pre-established molds of what an awards film should be, as does, for example, “The Fabelmans”. I think, like “Parasite”, they end up showing that the Academy voters want to reward all of that. It happened last year with “Coda”.
ENS: So will “Everything at Once Everywhere” end up prevailing over the other nine nominees for Best Picture of the Year?
NB: To this day, if you have to bet, I think it would be crazy to bet against. She is the firm candidate. That movie is having more promoters in its favor than Brokeback Mountain had at the time, which was perhaps, if we go back to the recent past, the most surprising thing, because everyone was betting on “Crash.”
ENS: With the #OscarSoMale, discontent has been expressed over the lack of women in the categories of best film and best direction. What do you think about that?
NB: This is a problem that the Academy has, which is entrusted. She had been recognizing women directors like Chloé Zhao (“Nomaland”) and Jane Campion (“The Power of the Dog”) for two years. Both had established themselves as strong favorites before their arrival at the Oscars, so it would have been almost scandalous if they were not nominated. The Academy has that problem when it comes to changing trends. When he does something very inclusive, it’s usually because others have already done the work for them, barring the best picture nominee “Black Panther” (2019).
ENS: Isn’t it curious that this doesn’t change when there is more diversity in its members and more international participation?
NB: Beyond everything you have done to increase the diversity quota within your own ranks, and add hundreds of people of different ethnicities, sexual identities, races, religions, geographic locations, etc., you still have that problem to change trends. If you decide to extend the number of nominees for best picture to ten, not increasing the number of nominees in the best director category is totally contradictory. Those movies don’t direct themselves. This is such an obvious solution, so merit-based, and so coherent, that the Academy hasn’t seriously considered it since it began expanding that category, over a decade ago, is truly incredible to me.
ENS: Women stood out last year, what other artists were needed?
NB: Gina Prince-Bythewood, Viola Davis and in general “The King Woman” were totally ignored. At some point I came to think that the Academy was mature enough to realize that something so successful and celebrated should be in the conversation no matter what. Also to Danielle Deadwyller, who did an amazing job on “Till.” All of this literally communicates to us that there are changes that still have to be made and it alienates the audience a bit and those who are moving this issue from the box office.
ENS: And in the technical part?
NB: The Chilean Claudio Miranda, photographer of “Top gun: Maverick”, is incredibly not nominated for an Oscar. At the Association awards we had a smaller, prior ceremony called Creative Arts, where we recognized different categories of the technical part and included Claudio with the Best Photography award.
ENS: Is the nomination of “Top gun 2” and “Avatar 2” an accolade for their contribution to the recovery of the box office?
NB: Let’s remember that the expansion from five to ten films comes after “Batman: The Dark Knight” had been shelved. Later, there was this eagerness to recognize productions that are popular, but that may also be in some way raising or exemplifying the high artistic level that exists in cinematographic creation. So this year, the fact that for the first time we have ten fixed, obligatory films, it seems to me that it is quite coherent. At the moment in which the industry in general is, what happened with the pandemic and everything that has to do with the exhibition part, there is a connotation now and it is that a film is not limited simply to the quality of its script, the quality of its performances, but also how remarkable it is in a particular year.
ENS: What do you think is the most competitive category of this edition?
NB: I think Best Supporting Actress, because no one could say it’s a surprise if Angela Bassett, Kerry Condon or Jamie Lee Curtis win, because all of them have been winning awards, not just having nominations. So I think that today, and especially after the SAG and the Bafta, those question marks have opened up. I suspect that Bassett (“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”) is still the favorite.
ENS: The Daniels or Spielberg in the Best Director category?
NB: I feel that this category is still in contention, because there is a great affection for Steven Spielberg. Sometimes it happens that one wants to recognize someone, even though his work does not deserve it so much. “The Fabelmans” has gone down very well with part of the Academy that is of the same religion as Steven, Jewish. For me, it would not be a surprise if he won, although everything indicates that it would be for the Daniels.
ENS: Will Brendan Fraser beat Austin Butler?
NB: I think so, because although there is no consistent or direct correlation between what happens at SAG and what happens at the Academy, you have to remember that most of the members are actors.
ENS: And the battle between Michelle Yeoh and Cate Blanchett?
NB: I think it’s a head-to-head fight and I feel like Michelle Yeoh is going to continue with this growing momentum, this wave, this tsunami of “All at once everywhere”. I think she’s going to be doing it in her favor that she’s won recent awards, the same thing that she’s been through with Fraser, and that she’s given such moving speeches.
ENS: Guillermo del Toro and “Pinocchio”. Netflix vs. Disney Pixar. How do you see that other pulse?
NB: There is something curious and that is that at the time some colleagues and experts in the field of awards wanted to position this head-to-head race between “Pinocchio” (Netflix) and Pixar’s “Turning red”. I always disagreed. For me, after “Pinocchio” comes “Puss in Boots” and in third place “Marcel the shell with shoes on”. We must take into account the love that Guillermo del Toro arouses and the prestige that he has managed to capitalize on and add to his name and to everything he touches. If you look closely, “Pinocchio” is possibly the most Del Toro film that exists, because it combines all his intentions, his taste for the fantastic world, what has to do with his scathing criticism of fascism, discrimination, his desire to put ahead to those considered weaker.
ENS: Do you see possibilities for “Argentina, 1985”?
NB: Personally I feel that he is not the strongest exponent that has come from Argentina in recent competitions, but again there is a spirit of giving some recognition for the treatment that is given to a relevant topic and there I feel that he is part of the which is why “Argentina, 1985” is there. Although it is not one of my favorite films of the year, I am very fond of Ricardo Darín and if he goes on stage and has an emotional moment, obviously he will be touching me, although I don’t know if he will be at the ceremony, because I think he feels that it could be a bad omen, because when he was not there, they won.
ENS: What other artist or movie would you be excited to see win?
NB: The entire cast of “Everything at the same time everywhere”. Definitely Ke Huy Quan has entered all of our hearts. And also Guillermo del Toro, who is someone I deeply adore and with whom I have been lucky enough to interact on more than one occasion. Every recognition he has, every prize, every speech he gives, is something that affects me a lot and I sincerely wish him the best.
ENS: Is the German “All Quiet Front” the strongest in the international category?
NB: This war film, anti-war, comes with more force than ever. He was breaking records and sweeping the Bafta. Beyond the fact that it also got a nomination for Best Film of the Year, I think its fans have the option of saying: “Okay, I can show my love by voting for it for Best International Film and for best film I go for ‘ Everything at once everywhere.’”
ENS: What do you think of “The Triangle of Sadness” and its three nominations?
NB: The European contingent has given you great support, but I have the impression that this impetus that “Everything at once everywhere” brings, this energy that it brings, similar to that of “Coda”, will prevail. I think that “The King Woman” could perfectly have entered instead of this film, which, although it is closer to what one associates with these awards, I think that what it was contributing is not much superior to other films that have explored this division. of classes as “Parasites” did at the time.
ENS: Do you watch the ceremony at home or cover it from the Dolby Theatre?
NB: I have had to work on Oscar day and I have had to work at the Oscars. I was covering, not necessarily the red carpet, but the previous one. I have several colleagues who are very happy to cover, on the one hand, the red carpet, and others are going to cover the press room where the winners’ conference is held. It really makes me zero envy, because it is a very important day for me and for many fans of the seventh art. Having the possibility of fully absorbing and enjoying that ceremony, from the comfort of home, I think there is no comparison.
ENS: How long have you been in the film industry?
NB: Since 2009, when I created my own movie site, called DesdeHollywood.com, and my YouTube channel. I was covering a full-time job on something that had absolutely nothing to do with this. Little by little I start to knock on doors to have access to different events and I begin to access press screenings, red carpets, festivals, etc. The site grew and shortly after I started working, for a time, as a Hollywood correspondent for international media such as NTN24, with whom I discovered junkets and conducted interviews with the most important personalities.