During the weekend, I sent a mass email to hundreds of Oscar voters, members of the Academy, asking them to pick the one film they would vote for Best Picture. Over 60 responded back and the runaway winner was — drumroll please —Martin McDonagh’s “The Banshees of Inisherin.”
This does not at all mean that it is our frontrunner, as there are thousands of Oscar voters, but it’s a fun little survey that might give us a look at what a certain contingent of voters find is the actual film that deserved to win.
The results were as follows:
The Banshees of Inisherin (14 votes)
All Quiet on the Western Front (10 votes)
Top Gun: Maverick (9 votes)
Elvis (8 votes)
TÁR (7 votes)
Everything Everywhere All At Once (7 votes)
The Fabelmans (5 votes)
Triangle of Sadness (3 votes)
Avatar: The Way of Water (3 votes)
Women Talking (1 vote)
I’m surprised by the amount of love for “All Quiet on the Western Front.” However, it’s very much what you’d call a “dad movie” and that figures heavily when, among the 67 who participated in this poll, 52 were male.
All of this to say, discount Edward Berger’s WWI epic at your own risk. Here are a few comments I got from voters.
Male, Screenwriter: I do not have passion for any of the ten nominees. I found “All Quiet on the Western Front” to be the closest to what a Best Picture winner should look like.
Male, Director: My criteria for voting comes down to what film cast the biggest spell on me and none were as hypnotic and mysterious as ‘Banshees of Inisherin.’ It keeps you guessing and pondering throughout its runtime. There’s deep thought running throughout McDonagh’s screenplay.
Male, Editor: There was no more exciting movie for me this past year than “Elvis.”
Female, Producer: Watching “Everything Everywhere All At Once” felt like witnessing the future of movies. I’ve seen it four times now and there’s always something new to discover, whether it’s be the subtle hints in the acting or the way the directors manage to continuously later scene after scene with thematic context, it’s miraculous.
Male, Director: Weak batch of nominees. Hated ‘Fabelmans.’ It felt like a pointless exercise in narcissism. ‘Women Talking’ was atrociously wooden. Could not finish ‘Everything Everywhere.’ Fell asleep during ‘Avatar.’ The only ones that really stand out are ‘Banshees’ and ‘TÁR’ .. My pick is Todd Field’s picture, it was the most exquisitely realized of the bunch. A statement that felt both cinematic and relevant to our times. Scorsese was right.
Female, Actress: ‘The Banshees of Inisherin.’ Tour-de-Force of acting, directing, screenwriting and everything in between.
While James L. Brooks teased last year that "we'll soon be seeing" Jack Nicholson, 89, act again, and that he was "reading scripts," that idea has now been shut down by his close friend Michael Douglas, 82.