'Get Out'(2017) Oscar nods?

That is quite the achievement. Who knew that even a horror comedy would get this much Oscar nods?

Without the current political climate, it would not be recognized by the Oscars due to their bias against horror movies, sure. However, it would deserve to be, and thankfully it is.

I haven't seen The Shape of Water yet, but from my understanding it's not an out and out horror movie, and the love for it has to do, at least a little bit, with some career recognition for Guillermo Del Toro.

Get Out is a perfectly good horror film, but there's no denying that politics play into the academy attention for it. Not that that's unusual. So much of the academy awards is political. There are campaigns for and against films and individuals every year. But the love for Get Out is a little absurd. There's no question that it was a well loved movie, and a runaway hit at the box office, but I don't think I'd even say it was the best horror film of last year, let alone the last 20 some odd years since the academy has recognized horror at the awards. It's just simply not the kind of movie they'd typically recognize. The social climate, and the major and highly aggressive awards campaign have clearly worked in its favor.

I came away from the movie more interested in what Jordan Peele was going to do next than I was taken with the film itself.

Actually, it's mostly a critique of the liberal elite. Of course, the right-wing are largely dismissive of anything dealing with white racism, while the left are largely the opposite, so that's pretty much gone unnoticed by both sides.

It's more saying that there are different kinds of racism, and that it's not just the right wing or Southern types that are guilty.

Because it makes them feel good to recognize that in themselves, or because they actually liked the movie, or didn't understand it.

All won Oscars

The Exorcist 
Silence Of the Lambs
ALIEN/ALIEN
Sleepy Hollow
Rosemary's Baby
The Fly
Misery
Black Swan
An American Wearwolf in London
Jaws
The Omen
Bram Stokers's Dracula
Whatever happened to Baby Jane
Phantom of the Opera
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde


 

That's true. But hardly any of those get into best picture or director categories. Cinematography, production design, editing, sound, and other categories that they see as technical categories are easier for them to award in the genre. But only a handful of those titles were taken seriously enough to be included into the major award categories. Before this year Black Swan, I believe, was the last nominee in the genre for best pic and director before this year. Before that I believe it was The Sixth Sense, and before that I believe it was Silence of the Lambs.

Kind of big gaps there, but maybe it's changing a bit.