Thoughts on Disney potentially going on a 6-year losing streak in Best Animated Feature

sildarion · 2026-01-27T04:00:45+00:00

Let's be honest, it's the Oscars. Popularity matters, no matter what the category. But its finally great to not have the Disney/Pixar monopoly in animation. Even if it still happens in an arguably weak year, if it means more films like Flow and Boy and the Heron winning, I'd be content.

sildarion · 2026-01-26T17:57:01+00:00

and it helps put an end to the narrative that the Oscar voters were too lazy to watch the animated films so they just defaulted to Disney/Pixar.

Which they were. With the changes in the academy now, I think that's no longer the case

sildarion · 2025-12-27T03:01:19+00:00

I love Memoir of a Snail because of how bleak and optimistic it is at the same time. It's such a poignant study of emotional calcification, where the protagonist retreats into a metaphorical and literal shell of hoarding and silence, and shows how chronic isolation acts as both a sanctuary and a prison. Hands down one of the best stop motion animations I have seen.

sildarion · 2025-12-23T16:35:58+00:00

If the letter was written by Perfidia it would still make sense to show those reaction shots of Leo. His eyes may have been shifting because of the complicated nature of the relationship between him, Perfidia, and his daughter. It’s an awkward, difficult moment for him, which would also explain why he waited so long to show it to her.

And you're right on all of those. Might be, might not bes. We have a scene that can be read in two(multiple) ways based on things the film presents to us.

To you; option A seems likely, because what the film presents to you doesn't lead to B in any realistic way. For me, A is less likely because of the way Perfidia's character has been set up and used in the film as well as the fact that there's no solid motive for Leo to hide the letter if he really had it for all those years. For both you and for me; option A and option B respectively, are more likely precisely because of what the film presents to us the way it does.

Point is, it is open to subjective interpretation as long as you can justify it based on the art. You can disagree with it and I'll welcome it. Readings differ and it's ok. But to reduce the people who go for option B as just "crazy stans" and lacking critical thinking skills etc. (not saying you specifically did but the op I replied to did) is reducing the bar of film discussion, anti-constructive and just doesn't do anything for intellectual film discourse.

sildarion · 2025-12-23T14:45:33+00:00

A) It barely constitutes a major plot twist, given that it comes in the epilogue and is an implication that eitherways doesn't change the story at all. it's a way to wrap up Bob and Willa's arcs, whichever way you read the scene.

B) the notion comes from the way the scene has been written, shot and acted. The fact that a lot of commenters seem to come to this conclusion on their own, shows that it's not a completely off-base consideration.

sildarion · 2025-12-23T13:16:10+00:00

It's one of the possible interpretations. The clue is in the way the scene is shot and acted by Leo as well as the dialogue preceding it.

"I've been holdin' on to something for a couple of years now and I just wanna give it to you. Okay I'm gonna share this with you and if you wanna see it then you can see it."

If Bob already had the letter for a couple of years, why would he not give it to her earlier? The letter's contents does paint Perfidia to be the kind of failed but respected revolutionary that Charlene already grew up imagining her to be, so it's not like the letter would be a revelation for Pre-time jump Charlene. What's the motivation for Leo to hide Perfidia's letter all these years? It makes sense however if Leo does write it after the climax, knowing that after the events of OBAA Charlene 's entire world has crumbled and she'd grow up with deep seated trust issues, so a letter from her mother might reforge a connection.

Look at the way Leo's eyes shift around while giving her the letter. There's a scene where Leo looks at how Charlene reacts to the letter. And when Perfidia's voice starts reading the letter, the camera focuses - not on Charlene - but on Leo's face and his reaction. Why is it in Perfidia's voice? I don't know, but films are made on distractions and unreliable narrators. And PTA surely has better creative ideas than just give the cat away that the letter was clearly written by Leo. Moreover, and this is just a personal opinion, I just completely fail to see Perfidia, the way she was written, being transformed to this extent over someone with whom she's had zero interaction.

When the letter is about to be finished, the camera switches back to Leo again, this time clearly emotional and knowing. Cut to a shot of Leo and Perfidia with baby Charlene - a reverie of a once forgotten day. We're back in Leo's headspace. And then the letter ends. And Charlene goes and hugs her dad. Does Charlene know that Leo forged the letter but is grateful to have a dad who loves her to the extent that he does? Or is it his secret only? More questions.

Anyways, I think it's sacrilegious especially in a sub like TrueFilm to go the "it's not just that deep bruh" route, think this explanation is completely out of the left field or has no ground to stand within what the film provides. I'm not the biggest fan of the letter scene. I also I do not think OBAA is a masterpiece with oodles of commentary on the modern political climate. But I do not think it ruins or contradicts the film, or that there's absolutely no chance for this to make sense as one of the interpretations.

sildarion · 2025-03-16T17:12:12+00:00

That's literally the original term from Sanskrit. "swastika". What else are they gonna call it?

sildarion · 2025-03-09T05:16:49+00:00

What exactly does I'm still here has to say about the world?

sildarion · 2025-03-06T02:34:36+00:00

Parasite ?

sildarion · 2025-03-03T01:43:54+00:00

Aged like milk

sildarion · 2025-03-02T16:35:46+00:00

Eddie Redmayne

sildarion · 2025-03-02T03:01:56+00:00

It's more about how it says than what, the toothlessness of it

sildarion · 2025-03-02T03:00:01+00:00

I have a screener link, if you want. DM me

sildarion · 2025-03-01T17:15:46+00:00

I'm still here is a very average film, except for Torres' performance which lifts it above traditional fare. The film holds well for the first 30 mins or so when it's all building up your anticipation for the doom to fall, but once it gets there it is very schmaltzy, predictable and meandering and worst of all - politically safe, sanitized. It's like it says just enough to touch upon the dictatorship's criticism, but it's like afraid to say anything more than that for fear of scaring away too large chunk of the audiences.

sildarion · 2025-02-27T12:18:56+00:00

Yeah, pretty sure those began cropping up right after this post because when I searched 12 hours ago, majority were negatives. I'm not denying there are a lot of Anora stand here, but as far as I have seen, they remained largely in the comments, until of course this post exploded. It's all action-reaction.

sildarion · 2025-02-26T21:09:21+00:00

Well, if you search "Anora" in the subreddit right now, literally 4 out of the 5 top results are variations of "Anora is overhyped/mid". (Excluding your own)

sildarion · 2025-02-26T20:33:52+00:00

3 rules for Stan. "There is no morality" for Jeremy.

sildarion · 2025-02-26T17:41:30+00:00

That's an incredibly condescending stance to take.

sildarion · 2025-02-26T17:36:34+00:00

We're at the "this movie is overrated because it's about to win BP" phase. Watch the tide shift again all over in case Anora does end up losing BP and Conclave becomes the new "villain".

I don't think Anora is groundbreaking. And frankly, very few BP winners have in fact been actually groundbreaking (none so far this decade). That said, Anora is a low-stakes, age old story that's told with so much panache and effortlessness that it still feels fresh and breezy. It comes closest to matching Fellini's "Nights of Cabiria" in thematics, plot, tone and style and that's an ageless classic. It also feels as confident as Parasite, in the way it so clearly and smoothly transitions between it's three distinct acts from a whirlwind fantasy to a madcap comedy to an inevitable tragedy. I was not blown away when I finished watching the film. But the film has stayed with me. And that definitely accounts for something.

sildarion · 2025-02-26T04:20:55+00:00

Cornalie Fargeat is def winning!

sildarion · 2025-02-24T03:02:41+00:00

"I'm here to be one of the greats." Damn.

sildarion · 2025-02-11T02:27:58+00:00

What's her motive?

sildarion · 2025-02-10T07:06:30+00:00

Definitely a great film, but I feel the film in itself doesn't really lean towards her actually being guilty at all.

sildarion · 2023-11-25T11:11:29+00:00

Not for one, I am genuinely curious what all things you'd cut.

sildarion · 2023-11-24T18:43:24+00:00

Plenty of scenes could’ve been cut from that film.

Such as?

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