by Ben Miller
For the third year, Nathaniel has been nice enough to let me rank the Oscar clips. I was so excited to write this heading into Oscar night, until I saw the first clip package. The Academy decided to shake things up and present a montage of clips for the group of nominees, so we have to work with what they gave us. Presenting, the 2019 Oscar clips (sort of), ranked by quality.
That’s…a choice
Don't you EVER talk to your mother like that!
If something were to happen to my boss's car, well then I'd get in trouble."
20. Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
19. Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
Both of these star turns had a plethora of material to go with and they went for two bizarre scenes. Everything that makes those performances lovely and memorable (Scarlett’s warmth, Brad’s unending charisma) are non-existent in these particular clips. Frustrating.
I mean, I guess…
Mr President, please clear my son's name."
You do understand I have to be above this, right?
18. Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell
17. Charlize Theron, Bombshell
On the flip side, I really enjoy clips that tank because there isn’t much to go on with the performances. When you see these clips, you automatically think, “Why were they nominated in the first place?”
Large and In-Charge
We need unity. We need SOLIDARITY!"
What have you EVER done that would make anyone want to listen to YOU."
16. Al Pacino, The Irishman
15. Renee Zellweger, Judy
God was watching but my feet was my own -- running, bleeding, climbing
14. Margot Robbie, Bombshell
13. Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
Every day I wake up and I hope you're DEAD."
The world will forget that you ever lived. No one will forget Jo March."
12. Adam Driver, Marriage Story
11. Saoirse Ronan, Little Women
This category is also known as the Al “SOLIDARITY!!” Pacino award. While Pacino and Zellweger's clips are representative of the performances, Robbie and Erivo did a lot more with their characters, but got similarly BIG acting clips during the ceremony. Driver and Ronan went deep with their performances, so it's a shame that respective screaming outbursts highlighted those two clip packages.
Less is More
You might be showing a failure of appreciation."
I ask you. Are you sure you still wish to be a priest?
10. Joe Pesci, The Irishman
9. Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes
8. Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes
I don't know why everyone is so rude. I don't know why you are. I don't want anything from you."
He's coming to terms with being slightly less... useful."
7. Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
6. Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood
Pryce and Hopkins had some shout-ier moments, but the Academy was wise to select restraint for the clips. Pesci’s opening clip was odd, but the one advantage of the new clip format was the chance for Pacino and Pesci to play off each other, which benefitted Pesci. I was pleasantly surprised with both Phoenix and DiCaprio, as I expected yelling to be a significant factor.
Valiant Effort
He truly didn't see me. He didn't see me as something separate from himself."
We love them for their faillibility but people absolutely don't accept the same things in mothers."
5. Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
4. Laura Dern, Marriage Story
3. Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory
2. Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
I appreciate the restraint in picking Johansson’s clip. She might have suffered a similar fate as Driver, but this was a welcome surprise. Dern’s clips highlighted everything that was great about the performance (which is admittedly easier to do with short performances). As for Hanks and Banderas, much of their greatness is enhanced by the atmosphere the film surrounds them with, so it would have been very easy to find badly judged out of context clips of them, but instead, these clips highlighted the strengths in their subtleties.
All Hail the Victor
Don't sit there and tell me that marriage is not an economic proposition, because it is.
1. Florence Pugh, Little Women
Pugh’s art studio speech was the only example this year where I saw the film and immediately said, “This is the Oscar clip”, and the Academy did not disappoint. Congrats to Pugh, who joins an esteemed list of actresses including Lesley Manville, Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz and Olivia Colman with the best Oscar clips of their seasons.
See you next year!