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# JR, van Gogh, The Square, and the Streep Among 2018 Oscar Nominees
- URL: https://hyperallergic.com/2018-oscar-nominations/
- Published: 2018-01-24T19:05:09.000Z
- Updated: 2025-11-24T16:25:36.000Z
- Description: The films vying for Academy Awards this year include the Swedish art world satire The Square, a hand-painted animated film about Vincent van Gogh, and an irreverent documentary by Agnès Varda and JR.
- Author: Tanner Tafelski
- Tags: In Brief, Oscars, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-18 14:37 (2018)
Meryl Streep in The Post (courtesy 20th Century Fox)
It isn’t an Oscar nominee list if Meryl Streep isn’t on it. Yesterday, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced the [Oscar nominees](http://oscar.go.com/nominees?ref=hyperallergic.com) for the 90th annual awards, which Jimmy Kimmel will host in Los Angeles on March 4, and with a slot in the Actress in a Leading Role category for her role in *The Post*, Streep has now been nominated 21 times. Aside from a few missing titles here and there, these nominees were to be expected given the hoopla surrounding them.
Most readily apparent from the nominations, and what has been the case for several years now, is that films by indie distributors streak the list. [A24](https://a24films.com/?ref=hyperallergic.com), whose [*Moonlight*](https://hyperallergic.com/349715/a-film-shows-how-important-it-is-to-name-ones-desire/) won Best Picture last year, has a total of seven nominations across the 24 categories, so too does Netflix. Cohen Media Group has two and Grasshopper Films and MUBI both have one.
A scene from Get Out (courtesy Universal Pictures)
Despite its predictability, the list features a few welcome and much appreciated inclusions. Jordan Peele’s [*Get Out*](https://youtu.be/sRfnevzM9kQ?ref=hyperallergic.com) is one of those rare horror films that get a Best Picture nomination. And it’s a shock to see [*Phantom Thread*](https://youtu.be/xNsiQMeSvMk?ref=hyperallergic.com), a good Paul Thomas Anderson film, get so many nominations (Best Picture, Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Director, Best Costume Design), one of which is most assuredly crucial: Best Score. Jonny Greenwood’s swirling, haunting music is integral to *Phantom Thread*, providing the emotional undercurrent to the social and romantic jousting between Alma (Vicky Krieps) and Reynolds Woodcock (Day-Lewis).
A scene from The Shape of Water, featuring Doug Jones and Sally Hawkins (courtesy Fox Searchlight Pictures)
A few surprises, all of them unpleasant, are on the list. For [*Dunkirk*](https://youtu.be/%5Fcmgiys2n1o?ref=hyperallergic.com), another one of Hans Zimmer’s overwhelming, overbearing, and overdone scores gets a nod — his eleventh. [*The Shape of Water* ](https://hyperallergic.com/416999/the-shape-of-water-guillermo-del-toro-film/)undeservedly racks up 13 nominations. Playing both the arthritic Nova Scotian artist Maude Lewis in [*Maudie*](https://hyperallergic.com/386885/a-biopic-tells-the-unlikely-story-of-folk-artist-maud-lewis/) and a mute janitor in Guillermo del Toro’s film, Hawkins was gunning for an Oscar nomination when clearly her best, most reserved and restrained performance is in [*Paddington 2*](https://youtu.be/52x5HJ9H8DM?ref=hyperallergic.com). (Released in the UK last year and in the US this month, alas it didn’t make the cut. Here’s hoping for a nomination next year though.)
It boggles the mind why [*Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*](https://youtu.be/Jit3YhGx5pU?ref=hyperallergic.com) has gotten so much acclaim. With half-formed ideas and an unearned ambiguous ending, this cruel-for-the-sake-of-cruelty film is sorely in need of a second or third draft. Carter Burwell’s score is a retread of *Carol* (2015) and a patchwork of orchestral and country music that saps whatever mood *Three Billboards* is trying to sustain. Nominated for Supporting Actor, Woody Harrelson’s performance in Martin McDonagh’s film is a diluted combination of the ones that he played in *The Edge of Seventeen* (2017) and *No Country for Old Men* (2007). Perhaps the biggest shock of all is seeing Christopher Plummer on the list in the Supporting Actor category for [*All the Money in the World*](https://youtu.be/KXHrCBkIxQQ?ref=hyperallergic.com). Good on Ridley Scott for replacing Kevin Spacey, [re-shooting his scenes](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/christopher-plummer-talks-reshooting-kevin-spacey-scenes-all-money-world-1058972?ref=hyperallergic.com) with Plummer at the last minute, but he phones it in as tightwad angry old J. Paul Getty.
Christopher Plummer as J. Paul Getty in All the Money in the World (courtesy TriStar Pictures)
As usual, a few Oscar-worthy films slipped through the cracks this year. Frederick Wiseman’s three-hour [*Ex Libris: The New York Public Library*](https://youtu.be/0UsglJmevFM?ref=hyperallergic.com) didn’t make the cut. Then again, none of the great documentarians films are ever nominated. (Wiseman [did receive](https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/names/2016/09/06/cambridge-filmmaker-wins-honorary-oscar/JMUNEeeB53lJoixp3f59LM/story.html?ref=hyperallergic.com) a 2016 Academy Honorary Award that acknowledged his existence and importance in the film industry.) No nominations for Noah Baumbach’s caustic and most mature work yet, [*The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)*](https://youtu.be/MYzFieit8dI?ref=hyperallergic.com), which contains standout performances by Adam Sandler, Dustin Hoffman, Ben Stiller, and Elizabeth Marvel, as well as punchy and punch-line inducing editing by Jennifer Lame. [*Good Time*](https://youtu.be/upsR80YmwWc?ref=hyperallergic.com), [*The Lost City of* *Z*](https://youtu.be/wwjtdOqTmrA?ref=hyperallergic.com), [*The Unknown Girl*](https://youtu.be/caKLk-LizyI?ref=hyperallergic.com), and [*A Quiet Passion*](https://youtu.be/T3SyPbUTEeU?ref=hyperallergic.com) — all worthy of the Oscars, all snubbed.
A scene from The Square, a Magnolia Pictures release (courtesy of Magnolia Pictures)
A smattering of art and art-related films wound up on the final list. Having already snagged the lofty Palme d’Or, Ruben Östlund’s [*The Square*](https://hyperallergic.com/413594/the-square-film-dark-comedy-art-world/) — a skewering of art, the art world, and the cultural elite — is a frontrunner for Best Foreign Language Film. Marketed as the [first fully painted feature-length film](https://hyperallergic.com/279272/bringing-van-goghs-life-to-the-big-screen-at-12-oil-paintings-per-second/), Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman’s [*Loving Vincent*](https://youtu.be/Gy0RVDM1sNA?ref=hyperallergic.com) is a conventional retelling of Vincent van Gogh’s death, but with its ever-shifting palette and gleaming colors, looks nothing like the other entries (which were made using CGI and cell animation) in the Animated Feature category. And then there’s Agnès Varda (who [received](http://www.indiewire.com/2017/11/varda-academy-john-bailey-honorary-oscar-1201896809/?ref=hyperallergic.com) one of those Academy Honorary awards last year) and JR’s [*Faces Places*](https://hyperallergic.com/402564/agnes-varda-and-jr-take-a-trippy-twee-road-trip/), which is up for a Best Documentary Oscar. “Academy Award nominee JR” just rolls off the tongue for the polished and hip art darling. *Faces Places* is partly a travelogue and partly a free-ranging essay on mortality. Bittersweet, light, and airy — it’s the perfect Varda film to nab an Oscar.
JR and Agnès Varda in JR’s photo booth van. Their film, Faces Places is nominated for a Best Documentary Oscar. (courtesy Cohen Media Group)
Here is the full list of 2018 Oscar nominations:
**Best Picture**
*Call Me by Your Name*
*Darkest Hour*
*Get Out*
*Lady Bird*
*Phantom Thread*
*The Post*
*The Shape of Water*
*Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*
**Actor in a Leading Role**
Timothée Chalamet, *Call Me by Your Name*
Daniel Day-Lewis, *Phantom Thread*
Daniel Kaluuya, *Get Out*
Gary Oldman, *Darkest Hour*
Denzel Washington, *Roman J. Israel, Esq.*
**Actress in a Leading Role**
Sally Hawkins, *The Shape of Water*
Frances McDormand, *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*
Margot Robbie, *I, Tonya*
Saoirse Ronan, *Lady Bird*
Meryl Streep, *The Post*
**Actor in a Supporting Role**
Willem Dafoe, *The Florida Project*
Woody Harrelson, *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*
Richard Jenkins, *The Shape of Water*
Christopher Plummer, *All the Money in the World*
Sam Rockwell, *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*
**Actress in a Supporting Role**
Mary J. Blige, *Mudbound*
Allison Janney, *I, Tonya*
Lesley Manville, *Phantom Thread*
Laurie Metcalf, *Lady Bird*
Octavia Spencer, *The Shape of Water*
**Director**
*Dunkirk*, Christopher Nolan
*Get Out*, Jordan Peele
*Lady Bird*, Greta Gerwig
*Phantom Thread*, Paul Thomas Anderson
*The Shape of Water*, Guillermo del Toro
**Animated Feature**
*The Boss Baby*, Tom McGrath, Ramsey Ann Naito
*The Breadwinner*, Nora Twomey, Anthony Leo
*Coco*, Lee Unkrich, Darla K. Anderson
*Ferdinand*, Carlos Saldanha
*Loving Vincent*, Dorota Kobiela, Hugh Welchman, Sean Bobbitt, Ivan Mactaggart
**Animated Short**
“Dear Basketball,” Glen Keane, Kobe Bryant
“Garden Party,” Victor Caire, Gabriel Grapperon
“Lou,” Dave Mullins, Dana Murray
“Negative Space,” Max Porter, Ru Kuwahata
“Revolting Rhymes,” Jakob Schuh, Jan Lachauer
**Adapted Screenplay**
*Call Me by Your Name*, James Ivory
*The Disaster Artist*, Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber
*Logan*, Scott Frank, James Mangold, Michael Green
*Molly’s Game*, Aaron Sorkin
*Mudbound*, Virgil Williams and Dee Rees
**Original Screenplay**
*The Big Sick*, Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani
*Get Out*, Jordan Peele
*Lady Bird*, Greta Gerwig
*The Shape of Water*, Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor
*Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*, Martin McDonagh
**Cinematography**
*Blade Runner 2049*, Roger Deakins
*Darkest Hour*, Bruno Delbonnel
*Dunkirk*, Hoyte van Hoytema
*Mudbound*, Rachel Morrison
*The Shape of Water*, Dan Lausten
**Best Documentary Feature**
*Abacus: Small Enough to Jail*, Steve James, Mark Mitten, Julie Goldman
*Faces Places*, JR, Agnès Varda, Rosalie Varda
*Icarus*, Bryan Fogel, Dan Cogan
*Last Men in Aleppo*, Feras Fayyad, Kareem Abeed, Soren Steen Jepersen
*Strong Island*, Yance Ford, Joslyn Barnes
**Best Documentary Short Subject**
“Edith+Eddie,” Laura Checkoway, Thomas Lee Wright
“Heaven is a Traffic Jam on the 405,” Frank Stiefel
“Heroin(e),” Elaine McMillion Sheldon, Kerrin Sheldon
“Knife Skills,” Thomas Lennon
“Traffic Stop,” Kate Davis, David Heilbroner
**Best Live Action Short Film**
“DeKalb Elementary,” Reed Van Dyk
“The Eleven O’Clock,” Derin Seale, Josh Lawson
“My Nephew Emmett,” Kevin Wilson Jr.
“The Silent Child,” Chris Overton, Rachel Shenton
“Watu Wote/All of Us,” Katja Benrath, Tobias Rosen
**Best Foreign Language Film**
*A Fantastic Woman* (Chile)
*The Insult* (Lebanon)
*Loveless* (Russia)
*On Body and Soul* (Hungary)
*The Square* (Sweden)
**Film Editing**
*Baby Driver*, Jonathan Amos, Paul Machliss
*Dunkirk*, Lee Smith
*I, Tonya*, Tatiana S. Riegel
*The Shape of Water*, Sidney Wolinsky
*Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*, Jon Gregory
**Sound Editing**
*Baby Driver*, Julian Slater
*Blade Runner 2049*, Mark Mangini, Theo Green
*Dunkirk*, Alex Gibson, Richard King
*The Shape of Water*, Nathan Robitaille, Nelson Ferreira
*Star Wars: The Last Jedi*, Ren Klyce, Matthew Wood
**Sound Mixing**
*Baby Driver*, Mary H. Ellis, Julian Slater, Tim Cavagin
*Blade Runner 2049,* Mac Ruth, Ron Bartlett, Doug Hephill
*Dunkirk,* Mark Weingarten, Gregg Landaker, Gary A. Rizzo
*The Shape of Water,* Glen Gauthier, Christian Cooke, Brad Zoern
*Star Wars: The Last Jedi,* Stuart Wilson, Ren Klyce, David Parker, Michael Semanick
**Production Design**
*Beauty and the Beast,* Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
*Blade Runner 2049*, Dennis Gassner, Alessandra Querzola
*Darkest Hour*, Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
*Dunkirk*, Nathan Crowley, Gary Fettis
*The Shape of Water*, Paul D. Austerberry, Jeffrey A. Melvin, Shane Vieau
**Original Score**
*Dunkirk*, Hans Zimmer
*Phantom Thread*, Jonny Greenwood
*The Shape of Water*, Alexandre Desplat
*Star Wars: The Last Jedi*, John Williams
*Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*, Carter Burwell
**Original Song**
“Mighty River” from *Mudbound*, Mary J. Blige
“Mystery of Love” from *Call Me by Your Name*, Sufjan Stevens
“Remember Me” from *Coco*, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez
“Stand Up for Something” from *Marshall*, Diane Warren, Common
“This Is Me” from *The Greatest Showman*, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul
**Makeup and Hair**
*Darkest Hour*, Kazuhiro Tsuji, David Malinowski, Lucy Sibbick
*Victoria and Abdul*, Daniel Phillips and Lou Sheppard
*Wonder*, Arjen Tuiten
**Costume Design**
*Beauty and the Beast*, Jacqueline Durran
*Darkest Hour*, Jacqueline Durran
*Phantom Thread*, Mark Bridges
*The Shape of Water*, Luis Sequeira
*Victoria and Abdul*, Consolata Boyle
**Visual Effects**
*Blade Runner 2049*, John Nelson, Paul Lambert, Richard R. Hoover, Gerd Nefzer
*Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2*, Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Jonathan Fawkner, Dan Sudick
*Kong: Skull Island*, Stephen Rosenbaum, Jeff White, Scott Benza, Mike Meinardus
*Star Wars: The Last Jedi*, Ben Morris, Mike Mulholland, Chris Corbould, Neal Scanlan
*War for the Planet of the Apes*, Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, Daniel Barrett, Joel Whist