1001plus: Roma

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Just in Time for the Next Set of Nominations

Film: Roma
Format: Streaming video from NetFlix on basement television.

What can I say about Alfonso Cuaron’s Roma that hasn’t already been said at least a couple of dozen times. The only thing I can say that I haven’t seen anyone else say is that watching this movie completes me for my set of 2018 Oscar nominations and also finishes off the most recent incarnation of the 1001 Movies list for me. Go me! Anyway, Roma is a film that captured a lot of imaginations, but I never really heard why. People talked about it and discussed how important and meaningful the film is, but having watched it, I can’t say I was blown away. I wanted to be; I just wasn’t.

But again, what can I say about it that you don’t already know? The film gave Cuaron his third and fourth Oscars, including his second for directing. It was also the movie that seemed to announce to the world that streaming services like NetFlix were legitimate players in the movie business. There had been nominations for such movies before (Mudbound from the previous year, for instance, was also a NetFlix film), but Roma became the new poster child for telling the more traditional studios that the times, they are a’changing. Roma didn’t just get a nomination for its screenplay, after all, but also for Best Picture, Best Actress and Supporting Actress, and won for Best Cinematography, Best Foreign Language Feature, and Best Director. No other set of nominations or wins have so legitimized the streaming services in the eyes of the glitterati. Seriously, this was Oscar-winner Alfonso Cuaron working for freakin’ NetFlix!

Friday, October 23, 2020

Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Actress 2018

Friday, May 29, 2020

Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Director 2018

Monday, May 4, 2020

Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Picture 2018

Monday, March 9, 2020

Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Original Screenplay 2018

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Just in Time for the Next Set of Nominations