Another competitive race in this year’s edition of the Academy Awards is the Foreign Language Film category. One omission that is worth noting is Hayao Miyazaki’s The Wind Rises, though that did get a nomination for Best Animated Feature, and is probably the favorite to win.
The nominees for Foreign film feature Golden Globe winner and presumed frontrunner The Great Beauty, The Broken Circle Breakdown, The Hunt, and a couple of dark horses from Cambodia and Palestine.
The Past is a bit of a surprising absence from this list, but the big name left out of consideration is the controversial Palme d’Or winner, Blue is the Warmest Color. It gained attention for its long lesbian sex scenes, but even moreso for its compelling story of a young woman coming of age in terms of her sexual identity but also just as an adult woman. The love story is pivotal but not principal to the lead character Adele, who is played by Adele Exarchopoulos, who was also excluded from the Best Actress category, somewhat unsurprisingly. It’s unfortunate to see one of the best movies of the year go without mention at the Oscars, but it’s had enough good press, and perhaps the more obscure titles nominated will get more out of the publicity.
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