Making Oscar history, 'Parasite' wins best picture

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By JAKE COYLE

LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a milestone win that instantly expanded the Oscars’ horizons, Bong Joon Ho’s masterfully devious class satire “Parasite” became the first non-English language film to win best picture in the 92-year history of the Academy Awards.

“Parasite” took Hollywood’s top prize on Sunday night, along with awards for best director, best international film and best screenplay. In a year dominated by period epics — “1917,” “Once Upon a Time ... In Hollywood,” “The Irishman” — the film academy instead went overseas, to South Korea, to reward a contemporary and unsettling portrait of social inequality in “Parasite.”

True to its name, “Parasite” simply got under the skin of Oscar voters, attaching itself to the American awards season and, ultimately, to history. The win was a watershed moment for the Academy Awards, which has long been content to relegate international films to their own category. But in recent years, to diversify its membership, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences has invited many more overseas voters.

Multiple standing ovations greeted Bong’s several wins. “I am ready to drink tonight,” Bong said, prompting roars from the crowd. Unexpectedly called up again for best director, Bong saluted his fellow nominees, particularly Martin Scorsese, and concluded: “Now I’m ready to drink until tomorrow.”



Bong Joon Ho, right, reacts as he is presented with the award for best picture for "Parasite" from presenter Jane Fonda at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Looking on from left are Kang-Ho Song and Kwak Sin Ae.(AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)


Read more: https://apnews.com/75ca3451d6974bfa1228025fa4790be2

[msongs]

1. oh I thought this was a donald trump bio pic lol nt

[mr_lebowski]

3. You can extract yourself by deleting your post ...

In fact, I'm kinda recommending it ...

[Demovictory9]

4. uncalled for

[rpannier]

5. Great Movie

Deserved it
I saw it in a theater in Korea

[cstanleytech]

13. Meh....but then again I am more of a scifi fantasy fan for the most part with a dash of drama and

comedy films thrown in.

[mahina]

6. I thought it was dreadful but evidently I'm the only one.

Super thrilled for Taika Waititi wins though!

[Auggie]

14. I didn't think it was dreadful, but it certainly wasn't the Best Film of 2019.

[Auggie]

7. The Academy Awards preferential ballot (How it works)

Indiewire.com (Jan 28, 2020)

As Academy voters check their Oscar ballots starting Thursday, they must rank the nine contenders for Best Picture. Many of them openly admit that they have no idea how the preferential ballot works.

SNIP

Many voters seem to believe that the order in which they rank their favorites could boost their No. 1 choice. Nope. Their ranking will have zero impact on the fate of their No. 1 choice. Not ranking the films in your true order of preference could have big — even unintended — consequences for what wins.

Some people think that they can impact the race by listing fewer choices. Nope. Without preferential ranking, the more nominees, the greater the chance a polarizing film might win Best Picture; with nine nominees, if sentiment were closely divided, theoretically a film could win with only 12 percent of the members regarding it as best. (With most Oscar categories with five contenders, a 20 percent + 1 vote is the mathematical minimum, so it’s usually much more, though rarely a majority.)

That’s why the Academy gives voters the chance to rank the films by preference. To make sure your voice is effectively heard, rank the nine titles in order of your preference as to how deserving each is to win. Don’t do anything else.

SNIP

When the Academy’s accountants get the ballots, first they tabulate how many No. 1 votes each nominee has. Then they eliminate the title that has the least No. 1 votes. For all the ballots with that title as No. 1, the accountants make the second choice the first. That process is repeated over and over until two films remain. The film that has the most No. 1 votes is the winner. That’s how some ballots’ No. 8 choice could contribute toward the winner.

So if “Parasite” was your No. 1 choice from the start, and if “1917” is another finalist, your vote is counted for “Parasite,” whether you have “1917” at two (your actual preference) or last. As long as your No. 1 film remains in the race, that is how it is counted. The only way to push your favorite movie to the win is to make it No. 1.

But let’s say the two finalists are “Joker” (your No. 7) and “1917” or “Once” (your No. 8 and 9). Hoping to help “Parasite,” what you will have accomplished is hurting “1917” without helping “Parasite.” If “Joker” and either “1917” or “Once” are the two final films standing, you have just voted for “Joker” over “1917.”

SNIP

The same thing happens if you cut “Once” and “1917” from the ballot, thinking this helps “Parasite.” It does zero for your No. 1, and possibly helps “Joker” if it’s still listed on your ballot. Voting for fewer than nine only increases the chances a film you don’t want could win.

To help your favorite film win, put it at No. 1. For the maximum voice in the final Best Picture choice, list the rest in order of your real preference. Period. Anything else reduces your voice and does nothing to help your preferred film.

https://www.indiewire.com/2020/01/oscars-voters-preferential-voting-best-picture-1202205711/

Is the preferential ballot truly representational of the Academy's intentions?

Do voters paradoxically doom their favorites by advancing (or eliminating) films they don't want to win?

[True Blue Drew]

8. Wasn't "The Artist" in French?

I didn't see it, but it did win Best Picture several years back.

[TexasBushwhacker]

10. Yes, and Roma was in Spanish

Doesn't AP employ fact checkers?

[OnlinePoker]

16. Roma didn't win Best Picture. n/t

[OnlinePoker]

15. No, The Artist was silent.

The actor, when he finally spoke, was French.

[Srkdqltr]

9. What makes this movie so good?

I'm not a movie person. Horror movies are not my thing. The girls alone would make it a no for me. But then I don't vote of count in these things.

[djg21]

12. It's not a horror movie.

It’s a very dark comedy that addresses socioeconomic status. It reminded me somewhat of Showtime’s Shameless.

It is very good. I watched it last week not knowing that it was up for best movie.

[mentalsolstice]

20. When we watched it, we paused 1/2 way, and said Shameless!

When it ended we agreed, it was as if Quentin Tarratino had written and directed the series finale of Shameless! We enjoyed it as much as the other Oscar nominees we had watched.

[mahina]

17. +1

[Blue_Tires]

11. The Oscars are a racket

[Sucha NastyWoman]

18. I rented it this morning.

Enjoyed this movie. And I haven’t seen any of the other Best Picture nominations except The Joker. But it didn’t seem like a great movie to me, just a good one.

[pbmus]

19. ....

엉터리
eongteoli

[Love-All]

21. It definitely wasn't as good as Ford vs. Ferrari. (I'm into dude movies.)