But not all esteemed films did so well at the Oscar nominations Thursday morning.
Complete list of Oscar nominations
Here are 5 things we learned:
1. Fifty years after the event it portrayed, “Selma” is (again) a flashpoint
The highly praised movie about a key period in the civil-rights movement stars David Oyelowo as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and was directed by relative newcomer Ava DuVernay. Both Oyelowo and DuVernay, in particular, had been singled out for acclaim, but when the Oscar nominations came down, both were shut out. “Selma” ended up with just two nominations: best picture and best song.
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Besides the “Selma” shocker, perhaps the biggest surprise of the morning was the lack of love for “The Lego Movie.” What could have been two hours of product placement was instead a clever, heartwarming film about the need for affection and togetherness, and it was widely expected to earn a nomination for best animated feature — and perhaps its screenplay. Instead it got just one nomination, for its song “Everything Is Awesome.”
Zeitchik wonders whether the movie was too hip for the room.
“The feeling has been that a more conservative or stodgy voter would not quite spark to the film,” he says. “I think there’s a constituency within the (animators’) branch that maybe felt that this was a little too cutting-edge.”
“Lego Movie” co-writer and co-producer Philip Lord, however, wasn’t going to be denied. He posted a photo of an Oscar — made of Lego.
It's okay. Made my own! pic.twitter.com/kgyu1GRHGR
