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Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Academy to Name 10 Best Picture Nominees
If there are 10 Oscar nominees, will it dilute the importance of a nomination, enrich the coffers of the producers, or both?

Update:

With today's news that in February, the Oscars will field 10 best-picture nominees, the horserace that is the Academy Awards promises to look a lot more like - a horserace.

"This year [when Slumdog Millionaire emerged victorious], five formidable films were nominated, but The Dark Knight, Iron Man and WALL.e were not," Academy president Sid Ganis said yesterday by phone. "We've felt for a while that we should widen the net of nominees."

In truth, it's a back-to-the-future move. During the 1930s and 1940s, the Oscars boasted 10 best-picture nominees. But it's been 65 years - when Casablanca took the top prize - since 10 films were in contention.

Read more.

As I previously reported:

This just in from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: Next year there will be 10 nominees for best picture. Have a call into AMPAS and don't  know yet whether those 10 nominees will include animated pictures or not. In recent years I don't think there have been that many nominatable pics, do you? What I do know is that Oscar nominees get to use the Oscar logo on DVD and advertising merchandising and it's proven that a nomination boosts box office and ancillary revenues. I think this move is likely to dilute the honor of a nominee while enriching the coffers of the producer.

Your thoughts?

Posted by Carrie Rickey @ 1:51 PM  Permalink | 16 comments
Comments   
Posted 01:38 PM, 06/24/2009
Ellen Dunkel
Wow! It's hard enough for me to see five best-picture nominees in time. I hope they're not all late-in-the-year releases.
Posted 01:49 PM, 06/24/2009
jonc
Carrie, I think there is a precedent for this: back in 1939 there were more than five nominees (although that was a very good year). I'm wondering if the academy will nominate 10 Directors?
Posted 01:50 PM, 06/24/2009
Bob Ross
It's all about marketing. The Oscar "brand" is worth millions. In a year or two they'll expand the other major categories as well. Of course it will cheapen the product, but it will enrich the owners.
Posted 01:51 PM, 06/24/2009
ccjroberts
Carrie: I agree with you that it's a very bad decision. However, I don't think that it will greatly increase producers' coffers because it will ultimately have a negative effect on the Oscar telecast ratings (the awful, unmanageable show will become more awful and unmanageable) and dilute the reputation and value of AMPAS and the awards. As someone who worked in the video business for most of his career, while it's helpful to have the Oscar reference on box art and advertising, if it becomes ubiquitous, people will cease caring about it.
Posted 02:13 PM, 06/24/2009
MichaelZoe
no, wrong. is it not likely to dilute the honor of a nominee; it will force more producers, directors and studios to seek out the great material by writers to make more great films and less "reliable" or bankable projects based on key demographic data. it will shift the focus back to story.
Posted 02:13 PM, 06/24/2009
Peter Mucha
One big problem: Some movie loved by a small minority, but hated by everyone else, could wind up winning. Then again, maybe blockbusters would worry more about dialogue and characters and plausibility if it could mean an Oscar nod. Why not add comedy and action movie categories instead?
Posted 02:22 PM, 06/24/2009
ChristopherL
Now instead of me shaking my head every year and wondering "They couldn't find anything better than these five movies to nominate," I'll be wondering how they couldn't find anything better than these ten. I think this was a much needed move though. The Oscar broadcasts are far too short as is.
Posted 02:24 PM, 06/24/2009
Paul Steinke
In my household we serve a five course meal to a party of invited guests, each course themed to a Best Picture nominee. This latest move will put a real strain on our kitchen! Not to mention having to squeeze in 10 films by Oscar night.
Posted 02:53 PM, 06/24/2009
deerone
AS other have mentioned, there were years with ten best picture nominees, mid-30's through mid-40's, I belive. If we could count on years of pictures of the caliber of the 1939 nominees (Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Goodbye Mr. Chips, Babes in Arms, Ninotchka, Stagecoach, Mr Dmith Goes to Washington, Dark Victory, Love Affair and Of Mice and Men), then the idea makes perfect sense. Common sense dictates that isn't getting ready to happen. If you want to get to the truth, follow the money. Since the association with the Academy and the Oscar logo can give studios a license to print money, I'd guess that the studios are paying the Academy to do this.
Posted 02:58 PM, 06/24/2009
tom1234
What a bad move. There usually are not 5 great films let alone 10! Last year there were maybe 2 worthy of being nominated. It will barely be an honor. Wow my film was nominated with 9 others! It longer is special, with more nominations. MichaelZoe's comments appear to be so off base. This just means that more bad films will be nominated. They are not going to be forced to step up their game and make better films. Ultimately people will become less interested in the oscars the more convoluted it becomes. If they feel a need to honor more films or people then have add another category.
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Posted 03:16 PM, 06/24/2009
jreese
I bet Michael Bay is behind this. But he lobbied for 25 entries.
Posted 03:27 PM, 06/24/2009
Scott B.
Carrie, you are right on. To make the final five pictures was special; 10, not so much. And I also agree some years there are 1 or 2 really good ones, 1 good one, and one you can't believe was nominated. I try to see all five nominees before showtime; this will make that so much harder. There just aren't enough good scripts around any more. Maybe they should base this on budgets? Best movie under 1 million? Best movie over 100 million? Best movie of the month according to astrological signs of the directors? Paris Hilton's best movie of the year would be HUGE!
Posted 04:15 PM, 06/24/2009
Paul B
Terrible idea-it's like expanding the playoffs in pro sports over the years. Try this on for size: Oscar Nominee "Paul Blart-Mall Cop". The mind reels.
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About Carrie Rickey

Carrie Rickey has been The Philadelphia Inquirer’s film critic for 21 years. She has reviewed films as diverse as Water and The Waterboy, profiled celebrities from Lillian Gish to Will Smith, and reported on technological breakthroughs from the video revolution to the rise of movies on demand. Her reviews are syndicated nationwide and she is a regular contributor to Entertainment Weekly. Rickey’s essays appear in numerous anthologies, including The Rolling Stone History of Rock & Roll, The American Century, and the Library of America’s American Movie Critics.

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All blog items posted before May 23, 2008, can be accessed at http://blogs.phillynews.com/inquirer/flickgrrl/.

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