Oscar 2023 – Best Director: In “Auteur Theory,” the director is revered as the ‘Author.’ Like a piece of literary work reflects the artistic sensibilities and capabilities of the writer, the cinema reflects the same for the filmmaker. The cinema screen becomes the canvas. The director uses a camera as the writer would use a pen. It is called caméra-stylo (“camera pen”).
The discussion on “Auteur Theory” could hijack this entire article. Without digressing further, it is safe to say that even if you are not a proponent of the “Auteur Theory” (like Pauline Kael), you might still feel that the director is the key figure when it comes to cinema. The five nominations at the 95th Academy Awards reflect the pinnacle of filmmaking. Let us go through the five contenders first and then try to find why this category this year is particularly competitive.
Fun Fact: All these five nominees are nominated in the “Best Original Screenplay” category too.
Steven Spielberg (The Fabelmans)
Spielberg’s impassioned semi-autobiographical homage to the cinema is heartwarming. It’s the kind of film that would move the Academy voters. This is Spielberg’s ninth nomination. He is the second most nominated director in Academy history (tied with Martin Scorsese and behind William Wyler with 12). If he wins, it would be his third win. He would be the second most successful director at the Oscars (with Frank Capra and William Wyler).
Related to Best Director at the Oscars 2023 – The Fabelmans (2022) Review: Spielberg Weaves His Most Uplifting Film From Heart-Breaking Memory
Todd Field (Tár)
Like Spielberg, Field also dove head first into the soul of an artist. But with a radically different result. Lydia Tar, a virtuoso, is at her artistic peak. Field examines the power that comes with dexterity, and it is an extraordinarily riveting examination.
This is Field’s first nomination in the ‘Director’ category. Before this, he had two screenplay nominations, and his 2001 debut feature “In the Bedroom” did get a “Best Picture” nomination.
Related to Best Director at the Oscars 2023 – Tár (2022) Movie Ending Explained
Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin)
McDonagh is a master at dark comedies. Each of his past three works (In Bruges, Seven Psychopaths, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) was sublime. His fourth work brings him back to his Irish roots with his “In Bruges” cast of Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson.
“The Banshees of Inisherin” is McDonagh at his finest. His examination of friendship in front of existentialism is fascinatingly beautiful. Like Todd Field, this is McDonagh’s first nomination in the “Best Director” category. He also had two screenplay nominations before this year.
Ruben Östlund (Triangle of Sadness)
From one dark comedy master to another. Ruben Östlund has enthralled us with his tour de force “Force Majeure” and “The Square.” His latest work is no different. With “Triangle of Sadness,” the internationally renowned Swedish filmmaker made his English-language debut. The best synopsis of “Triangle of Sadness” was given by Östlund himself. A satire on the uber-rich, where beauty is currency and appearance is capital.
Like his last work, “The Square,” “Triangle of Sadness” received the coveted Palme d’Or along with a standing ovation. This is Östlund’s first Oscar nomination as director. “The Square” had a nomination in the “Best Foreign Language Film” category.
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, collectively known as Daniels (Everything Everywhere All at Once)
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” is everything that the cinephiles everywhere claim it to be. The director duo made their debut in 2016 with the absurdist and eccentric comedy, “Swiss Army Man.” The same humor is here, with equally absurdist action set pieces and an endearingly existentialist story. This is the director duo’s first nomination at the Academy Awards; they could very well win it.
Why is the Best Director category at the 2023 Oscars so competitive?
Nominations in other categories: Generally, it is a positive sign if the “Director” nominee also gets a nomination in the “Best Picture” and “Screenplay” categories. And all five nominees this year have gotten a nod in both the other categories.
If we venture to “Cinematography” and “Editing” awards, then we find some frontrunners. “Tar” has both nominations. It is the only film from these “Director” nominees to have both these nominations. “The Banshees of Inisherin” and “Everything Everywhere All at Once” have “Editing” nominations. If Spielberg or Östlund wins this, it would be the first time since Robert Redford’s win for “Ordinary People” in 1981 that “Best Director” would go to a film that has no nomination in the editing or cinematography department.
The World Cinema Appreciation: The Oscars juries have been open to rewarding world cinema in recent times. The attempt at inclusiveness by the Academy has opened the doors for many Non-English films in the supposedly main categories, as opposed to the usual “Foreign Film” category reserved for those. The Director category especially has seen some winners as such.
Alfonso Cuaron won the top direction award for his “Roma” in 2018. “Roma” had won the Golden Lion award (the top prize of the Venice Film Festival) before that. Similarly, the following year, the Palme d’Or (top prize of the Cannes Film Festival) winning Parasite won its director Bong Joon-Ho the best director award. In 2020, the Golden Lion-winning Nomadland also had director Chloe Zhao win the Oscar.
This year, the Palme d’Or winning entry is Ruben Östlund’s “Triangle of Sadness.” Not only in the Director category but also in the “Best Picture” category, it has garnered a nomination.
Other awards: The other significant awards like the Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and Critics Choice are often the precursor indicators for the Oscars. However, even here, there is no clear favorite.
This year, Daniels won Critics Choice awards, but Steven Spielberg bagged the Golden Globe. BAFTA awarded Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front), who was not even nominated at the Oscars.
With all these considerations, let me try to predict the winner.
The Predicted Winner: Daniels (Everything Everywhere All at Once)
The not-so-distant second favorite: Steven Spielberg (The Fabelmans)
My Pick: Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin) [I would be equally thrilled if Daniels wins as my prediction says so]
The 95th Oscars will be televised and broadcast on March 12, 2023.
