Just to set the stage, 2016 was a good year for film and a bad year for American democracy and human decency. As atypical of me as it sounds, I struggled to take much of an interest in movie-going (or much of anything, honestly) because of it, especially since Election Day. But as we've seen in the past couple of months, we must persist. I've given myself until today to release my best-of-2016 lists and to catch myself up on some of the titles I missed last year. Even extending my deadline to the tail-end of April didn't give me the chance to catch up with Certain Women, Closet Monster, From Afar, I Am Not Your Negro, Ixcanul, or Tikkun, so these lineups are subject to change.
In order to cut down on the verbiage and to speed along the process of getting my ballots out, I'm devoting 16 words to each nominee in honor of the calendar year of their release. Let's kick things off with the sound categories:
Best Sound Mixing
Arrival (Bernard Gariépy Strobl, Claude La Haye, et al.) - High-stakes tension, precarity, and global panic in low-key, ambient sonic strokes, layering and confounding film’s enigmas.
Christine (Coll Anderson, et al.) - Plays The Scene with less abstraction than expected, but artfully conveys Chubbuck’s psychological descent and alarm.
The Fits (Gillian Arthur, et al.) - Rewards gamble on elliptical simile with vigorous energy of routines and mysteries of its quotidian details.
Moonlight (Chris David, Chris Giles, et al.) - Using naturalist/abstract sounds to paint an empathetic portrait of Chiron and to slip inside his head.
Silence (Tom Fleischman, et al.) - Surprising restraint from a director who loves to turn up the bombast; haunted stillness, waves, voices.
Runners-Up: Jackie, Aquarius, The Handmaiden, Sing Street, Cemetery of Splendor, The Witch, Embrace of the Serpent, and Moana.
Matches with Oscar: 1/5.
Best Sound Editing
Arrival (Alan Robert Murray, et al.) - For minimalism of the heptapods and stark echoes of the ship, as border and olive branch.
Elle (Gwennolé Le Borgne, et al.) - Capable standbys (crash, stab, glass) with key elements (sticking door, shutters, video game) leaving biggest impact.
The Jungle Book (David Chrastka, Ken Fischer, et al.) - Loveliest work with animals and nature since Life of Pi with Shere Kahn serving as standout.
Sully (Bub Asman, Jason King, et al.) - Reverting back to the crash with as many sonic variations as Elle does with the assault.
The Witch (Adam Stein, et al.) - “Wouldst thou care to live deliciously?” Black Phillip a haunting presence as goat and as omen.
Runners-Up: Captain America: Civil War, The Shallows, Star Trek Beyond, Zootopia, The Birth of a Nation, Moana, The Handmaiden, and Rogue One
Matches with Oscar: 1/5.
Arrival (Alan Robert Murray, et al.) - For minimalism of the heptapods and stark echoes of the ship, as border and olive branch.
Elle (Gwennolé Le Borgne, et al.) - Capable standbys (crash, stab, glass) with key elements (sticking door, shutters, video game) leaving biggest impact.
The Jungle Book (David Chrastka, Ken Fischer, et al.) - Loveliest work with animals and nature since Life of Pi with Shere Kahn serving as standout.
Sully (Bub Asman, Jason King, et al.) - Reverting back to the crash with as many sonic variations as Elle does with the assault.
The Witch (Adam Stein, et al.) - “Wouldst thou care to live deliciously?” Black Phillip a haunting presence as goat and as omen.
Runners-Up: Captain America: Civil War, The Shallows, Star Trek Beyond, Zootopia, The Birth of a Nation, Moana, The Handmaiden, and Rogue One
Matches with Oscar: 1/5.
Best Original Score
Arrival (Jóhann Jóhannson) - Hewing to a familiar Sicario vibe while opening different emotional possibilities for Villeneuve and the story.
Jackie (Mica Levy) - Renders First Lady’s grief and standoffishness as Under the Skin-ish Rorschach of mood, mindset, and mettle.
La La Land (Justin Hurwitz) - More impressive and accomplished as orchestration than lyrics; bonus points for dazzling, rich, tricky "Dream Ballet".
Moonlight (Nicholas Britell) - Keying in so artfully to the demands and complexities of a given scene or character detail.
The Neon Demon (Cliff Martinez) - Indelible even amid its most familiar compositions; the one aspect in which Refn’s films consistently deliver.
Runners-Up: Love & Friendship, Elle, Hell or High Water, Captain Fantastic, Moana, Mekong Hotel, Julieta, and Neruda
Matches with Oscar: 3/5. (Not a banner year, but these five achievements were considerable.)
Arrival (Jóhann Jóhannson) - Hewing to a familiar Sicario vibe while opening different emotional possibilities for Villeneuve and the story.
Jackie (Mica Levy) - Renders First Lady’s grief and standoffishness as Under the Skin-ish Rorschach of mood, mindset, and mettle.
La La Land (Justin Hurwitz) - More impressive and accomplished as orchestration than lyrics; bonus points for dazzling, rich, tricky "Dream Ballet".
Moonlight (Nicholas Britell) - Keying in so artfully to the demands and complexities of a given scene or character detail.
The Neon Demon (Cliff Martinez) - Indelible even amid its most familiar compositions; the one aspect in which Refn’s films consistently deliver.
Runners-Up: Love & Friendship, Elle, Hell or High Water, Captain Fantastic, Moana, Mekong Hotel, Julieta, and Neruda
Matches with Oscar: 3/5. (Not a banner year, but these five achievements were considerable.)
Best Original Song
Moana ("How Far I'll Go") - Lots of repetition, yes, but in ways that are informative of character and attuned to circumstances.
Moana ("You're Welcome") - Infectious pageantry; ace matching of Maui’s overpowering size and swagger to The Rock’s showmanship and charisma.
Pete's Dragon ("Nobody Knows") - Wistful, tender, surprising, and emotionally complicated; does for Disney what Karen O did for Maurice Sendauk.
Sing Street ("Drive it Like You Stole It") - Fetching tribute to the importance of knowing yourself, and a kitschy ‘80s ode to the ‘50s.
Zootopia ("Try Everything") - Doubles as empowering pop melody for Judy and a nod to the film’s own nifty ambitions.
Runners-Up: "The Ballad of Wiener-Dog" from Wiener-Dog, "Audition" from La La Land, a bunch of songs from Sing Street and Moana.
Matches with Oscar: 1/5. (Why would they pass up Sing Street???)
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