Oscars 2024: 'Oppenheimer' triumphs,

while 'Anatomy of a Fall' wins best

screenplay
Christopher Nolan's biopic won seven statuettes, including best picture, best director, best
actor for Cillian Murphy and best supporting actor for Robert Downey Jr.

Christopher Nolan,
winner of the best director and best picture Oscars for Oppenheimer, and his producer Emma
Thomas JOHN LOCHER/INVISION/AP

Few were surprised when, at the 96th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 10, Oppenheimer
swept the board, taking best picture, best director for Christopher Nolan, best actor for Cillian
Murphy, best supporting actor for Robert Downey Jr, best editing, best cinematography and
best original song. Long ignored by the Oscars, this was Nolan's year, after Oppenheimer
emerged the decisive winner of the "Barbenheimer" box office duel last summer. Barbie
picked up just one Oscar – best song for "What Was I Made For?"

Through its recognition of Nolan, Sunday's Oscars defended the cinema of dark rooms, given
the director left Warner Bros studios in protest at their policy of releasing films on streaming
platforms. In his acceptance speech, he said: "Movies are just a little bit over 100 years old. I
mean, imagine being there 100 years into painting or theater. We don't know where this
incredible journey is going from here. But to know that you think that I'm a meaningful part
of it means the world to me."

On the actresses' side, however, predictions did not come to pass. Lily Gladstone was widely
expected to take best actress for Killers of the Flower Moon, and would have become the first
indigenous American actress to win an award. But it was Emma Stone who won for Poor
Creatures, her second Oscar win after La La Land in 2017. She paid an emotional tribute to
Gladstone, saying: "Lily, I share this with you, I'm in awe of you."
Gladstone's defeat perhaps demonstrates the Academy's difficulties on the path to diversity,
and the victory of African-American Da'Vine Joy Randolph as best supporting actress for The
Holdovers will not be enough to quell the feeling behind the #oscarssowhite hashtag, started
in 2015.

Political statements
French film Anatomy of a Fall, nominated five times, left with the Oscar for best original
screenplay for writer-director Justine Triet and her co-writer Arthur Harari. Triet steered clear
of politics in her acceptance speech, unlike at Cannes, saying on Sunday only that the win
would "help me through my midlife crisis".

However, Jonathan Glazer, the British director of The Zone of Interest, the story of daily life
for the family of the Auschwitz commandant, which won best international film, used his
acceptance to deliver an anti-Zionist speech, to applause. He said: "Right now, we stand here
as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which
has led to conflict for so many innocent people. Whether the victims of October 7 in Israel or
the ongoing attack on Gaza. All the victims of this dehumanization.

On the red carpet, some stars wore a red pin in support of a ceasefire between Israel and
Hamas, while members of the Anatomy of a Fall team sported a Palestinian flag on their
lapels.

Arthur Harari and Justine Triet

receive the Oscar for best original screenplay VALERIE MACON/AFP

The war in Ukraine was not forgotten, with 20 Days in Mariupol receiving the Oscar for best
documentary. Mstyslav Chernov, the film's director, gave a moving speech, saying: "This is
the first Oscar in Ukrainian history. And I'm honored... But probably I will be the first director
on this stage who will say, I wish I had never made this film. I wish to be able to exchange
this for Russia never attacking Ukraine, never occupying our cities." An extract from
Navalny, which won the Oscar for best documentary in 2023, was also shown during the in
memoriam montage which opened the ceremony, honoring its subject, who died last month in
a Russian prison.
In terms of US domestic politics, host Jimmy Kimmel brought Hollywood's favourite villain
into the room, reading out a post from Donald Trump on the former president's Truth Social
page that said: "Has there EVER been a WORSE HOST than Jimmy Kimmel at The Oscars?"
In reply, Kimmel quipped: "Thank you for watching – I'm surprised you're still here. Isn't it
past your jail time?"

In terms of US domestic politics, host Jimmy Kimmel also made room for a French joke,
referring to Messi, the dog from Anatomy of a Fall: "Messi has an overdose scene... I haven't
seen a French actor eat vomit like that since Gérard Depardieu."

Messi the dog from

"Anatomy of a Fall" sits in the audience before the Oscars show at the 96th Academy Awards
in Hollywood, March 10, 2024. MIKE BLAKE / REUTERS

The climax of the ceremony was the performance of "I'm Just Ken" from the film Barbie, by
Ryan Gosling accompanied by Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash, which electrified the room and
brought to a close what has been a turbulent year for Hollywood, with highs and lows from
the writers' and actors' strikes to the phenomenal commercial success of Barbie and
Oppenheimer, via the brutal restructuring of the studios.

After the Covid-19 years, and the ensuing gloomy predictions of theaters gone dark, the
Barbenheimer craze confirmed that cinema remains an event to be shared collectively – and a
still-profitable endeavor for the studios. Warner Bros made $1.4 billion in worldwide takings
with Barbie, while Universal raked in $957 million for Oppenheimer.

Overall, the box office reached $8.6 billion in the US in 2023, a sharp rise, although still far
from pre-pandemic levels. This mixed result was largely due to the strikes which postponed
films scheduled for late 2023. Screenwriters and actors have won their case against the
streaming platforms and the threat of artificial intelligence – Kimmel joked: "Thanks to this
historic agreement, actors are now able to go back to worrying about being replaced by
younger, more attractive people."

But the fact remains that Hollywood is still trying to stabilize a new business model in the
face of streaming, the importance of which at the Oscars continues to decline. Despite their
many nominations, neither Maestro for Netflix, nor Killers of the Flower Moon for Apple
TV+ won any awards.
Triumph: a very great success, achievement, or victory (= when you win a war, fight, or
competition), or a feeling of great satisfaction or pleasure caused by this
To sweep the board: to win everything that is available.
To come to pass: to happen.
Indigenous: used to refer to, or relating to, the people who originally lived in a place, rather
than people who moved there from somewhere else
To pay tribute to someone/something: to praise someone or something.
To quell: If you quell doubts, fears, etc., you calm them
To steer clear of someone/something: to avoid someone or something
that seems unpleasant, dangerous, or likely to cause problems
Commandant: an officer who is in charge of a military organization or building, such as
a prison for soldiers used during a war.

Ceasefire: an agreement, usually between two armies, to stop fighting in order to allow
discussions about peace

Lapel: a strip of cloth that is part of the front of a jacket or coat. It is joined to
the collar and folded back onto the chest

Bring/draw something to a close: to make something finish.

Endeavor: an effort or attempt to do something

Ensuing: happening after something and because of it

Gloomy: not expecting or believing anything good in a situation
Brutal: cruel, violent, and completely without feelings