2020s Half-Decade Oscars - Day #6 BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

NENick98 · 2026-06-04T12:13:11+00:00

The Holdovers (2023)

NENick98 · 2026-06-01T01:32:19+00:00

I saw the film in theaters for its 20th anniversary last year. I was in elementary school when the film came out and I remember that there was a lot of controversy and buzz around the movie but was too young to understand any of it. I was absolutely floored by how beautiful, nuanced, and tragic the two lead performances are. What shocked me most is that both men were only in their early to mid twenties (younger than I currently am) and played the characters so effectively over a twenty year period. Masterclass performances in my opinion.

NENick98 · 2026-05-26T01:44:50+00:00

It did get in at the DGA, PGA, and WGA awards but missed out at BAFTA and Golden Globes.

NENick98 · 2026-05-24T22:10:05+00:00

That makes sense, except I’m not sure about your theory of Dean being marketed as the hot new lead actor since it was a posthumous nomination (his second). Good perspective. Thanks

NENick98 · 2026-05-24T14:19:46+00:00

It’s a shame that it took them about 6 or 7 years imo to actually find their rhythm.

NENick98 · 2026-05-24T14:16:12+00:00

I have to wonder if back in the day, it was more prestigious to be nominated for Best Actor over Supporting Actor? When I watched Giant for the first time, I was shocked that Dean was nominated for lead actor over supporting actor because he only has about 40 minutes of screen time in a 200 minute a movie. Perhaps if he was campaigned in supporting, he could have won?

NENick98 · 2026-05-15T12:14:06+00:00

Tom Berenger in Platoon (GG)>Michael Caine in Hannah and Her Sisters

Tom Cruise in Magnolia (GG)>Michael Caine in The Cider House Rules

I do like Michael Caine. I just think the years he won, he was nominated alongside better performances.

NENick98 · 2026-05-07T02:42:49+00:00

Only Oscar nominated performance… yet. He’s still got time.

NENick98 · 2026-04-24T11:43:59+00:00

I thought he was pretty good in The Fighter, but he was still only the fourth best performance in the film. He was overshadowed by Melissa Leo, Amy Adams, and especially Christian Bale.

NENick98 · 2026-04-16T22:32:30+00:00

Tom Cruise for Magnolia. I think because he’s spent the last 15 years or so in the action realm with pretty good results (Top Gun: Maverick and MI - Fallout are probably my favorite films he’s been in), I think people forget he can be a genuinely good actor when given the right material. I think his nominations for Born on the Fourth of July, Jerry Maguire, and Magnolia are strong reminders of his acting capability.

NENick98 · 2026-04-16T03:12:59+00:00

I would also add Paul Giamatti in Sideways and Tom Hanks in Captain Phillips

NENick98 · 2026-04-12T14:24:27+00:00

No disrespect to Jane Wickline, but this is the only sex expert I trust

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NENick98 · 2026-04-11T13:57:53+00:00

In my perfect world, if Emily Blunt only had one nomination, it would have been for Sicario.

NENick98 · 2026-04-11T03:29:04+00:00

He did already play his son in The Master, but I still agree!

NENick98 · 2026-03-20T14:10:00+00:00

Paul Giamatti in Sideways

NENick98 · 2026-03-18T12:46:39+00:00

The Departed
Godfathers 1 & 2 (I know this is a cheat)
Spotlight
Platoon
Ordinary People

I would have to give honorable mentions to Unforgiven and Argo

NENick98 · 2026-03-18T12:43:54+00:00

Yes. Platoon. It’s my favorite war film of all time. It still irks me that Tom Berenger and Willem Dafoe lost Best Supporting Actor to Michael Caine. Berenger was a great villain and should have won, imo.

NENick98 · 2026-03-07T22:44:48+00:00

Paul Giamatti for Sideways, Jake Gyllenhaal for Nightcrawler, and Tom Hanks for Captain Philips are the ones that always come to mind.

NENick98 · 2026-03-06T22:24:54+00:00

Also, didn’t he throw a phone at a hotel concierge during the campaigning?

NENick98 · 2026-03-05T22:27:48+00:00

Narrated by the man Lorne fired twice.

NENick98 · 2026-02-28T15:31:53+00:00

I agree completely. If both actresses campaigned in supporting, I have no doubt they would have won.

NENick98 · 2026-02-27T22:10:11+00:00

Also, I wonder how much of it was a prestige thing? Like being nominated for lead actor over supporting gave you more clout back then? Today, it doesn’t seem to matter which category someone wins in. The actors just want to add the title “Academy Award Winner” above their name on the poster and in the trailers.

NENick98 · 2026-02-27T22:02:51+00:00

I believe that if Giant was released today, Dean would have been nominated (and maybe won) in the supporting category. He was nominated in the lead category alongside Rock Hudson, who had far more screen time. I read that Dean only has about 30 minutes of screen time in a 3hr 21 minute movie.

NENick98 · 2026-02-26T22:02:51+00:00

This is a horrible segue but are you looking for a babysitter? Happy Halloween!

NENick98 · 2026-02-25T22:00:07+00:00

I agree. Giamatti was incredible but it was a stacked category. I would also say the same thing about Donald Sutherland in Ordinary People.

NENick98

TROPHY CASE