That SNL skit about La La Land is priceless! Exactly how I feel. Liked it - did not love it.
But Ryan sure is charming
I still need to see La La Land. My H and D saw it and were profoundly underwhelmed (we are a big musical theatre family.) So yes, H loved the SNL sketch.
Moonlight was interesting - I should have read about it before I went.
Hidden Figures was pretty formulaic but I really enjoyed the performances of the three actresses.
No desire to see a movie with extreme sadness or extreme violence.
Haven’t caught up to La La Land yet but just got home from seeing Hidden Figures, very impressive film. I’ve seen Hell or High Water which I thought was very good and that Jeff Bridges would be nominated, Loving and I thought both were outstanding, nor surprised about her nomination at all, Fences both Denzel and Viola amazing, Manchester by the Sea, sad movie but so beautifully done and extremely well acted by Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams and Lucas Hedges and Moonlight which was pretty exceptional although i wish I had known going into it that it was an adaptation of a three act play. The only other films that I saw this year was Sully and Eye in the Sky in which I thought that Alan Rickman would have been nominated posthumously.
I’ve seen Hell or High Water and Hidden Figures so far. Of the two, I’d vote for Hell or High Water. I liked Hidden Figures but agree with @missypie (post #21) re the formulaic descriptor. I’m seeing La La Land tomorrow: many mixed feeling about it here on CC. Should be interesting to see where I fall.
I also saw and liked Moana and A Man Called One - each nominated for Best Picture in their category: Animated Feature Film and Foreign Language Film.
We thought La La Land was OK, but we like it less and less the more we think about it. I liked Arrival a lot, but my wife didn’t like it so much.
As for snubs, the biggest is that Birth of a Nation got nothing. I don’t know if that’s because of the controversy about the director, or if it’s because the film actually wasn’t very good (my opinion). I was hoping Deadpool would get something, but it didn’t.
IIRC the number of Best Pic nominees was also bumped up to make sure that box-office hits that weren’t beloved by critics were also nominated. When it was only five nominees, the best picture list would consist of five smaller arthouse-ish films which generally weren’t in wide release. The general public would think “what the heck?!?!?! I’ve never HEARD of ANY of these” and they wouldn’t bother tuning into the awards show or going out to see any of the films. So it’s not just to goose up box office take, it’s also to keep the Academy “relevant”.
In the Foreign Films category, we’ve seen and loved “Toni Erdmann”. Screamingly funny.
Which Best Picture nominees are based on true stories? I have to ask because my mother is coming to visit and those are the only movies she enjoys.
@toledo Lion and Hidden Figures.
Hacksaw Ridge is based on a true story.
Found this short “behind the scenes” film about the making of La La Land.
I had no idea Ryan Gosling learned how to play piano for this film. I took lessons for years, and never could ever get good enough to get through a song without at least one mistake.
Ryan Gosling learned how to play piano for the film, but that’s not him that you hear playing when you watch the film. They dubbed in a real live jazz pianist. His lessons got him to the point where he could look convincingly like he was playing what you heard.
I forget the name of the pianist, but he (or she) was clearly named in the credits.
^^^^Lol, that makes me feel better. 
Saw Hidden Figures. Enjoyed it very much, definitely worth the time and $.
Manchester by the Sea still is my pick for Best Picture.
DH actually agreed to go see LA LA Land with me last night.
I thought it was beautifully filmed and choreographed. The score was wonderful, so reminiscent of the old classics. There was a lot of symbolism in it that I’d have to go back and try to be more aware of. The lighthouse theme was one that I did notice repeatedly. I thought that the fact that the main characters are not professional singers was beside the point and did not detract from the film for me.
My main problem was that for the middle third of the movie, it really dragged for me. I almost asked DH to take me home. Then it picked back up and I enjoyed the rest of it. The ending was really moving and poignant.
This is definitely NOT a film for everyone.
We have seen Manchester by the Sea, La La Land, Hidden Figures and Lion. All of them excellent movies. I didn’t find Manchester by the Sea to be entertaining but appreciated the quality of the acting, it was just to dark and raw for me. I liked Hidden Figures the best. The little boy in Lion was amazing, perhaps unconsciously I favored these two movies because they were based on true stories.
Saw Lion today. Husband and I thought it was a well made and well acted movie. However, despite the ending, we found it somewhat depressing, more depressing than Manchester by the Sea. Most likely because of the reality and truth of the story - the conditions in India, ways children are treated, etc. Also makes me think how in our own country, there are many people who want to chip away at support systems that help us be a civilized place with some safety nets in place. For real, do people want to wind up a society where people are regulated to the lowest, basest existences? Which is what happens when a society isn’t watching out for its most marginalized people.
We finally saw Lion yesterday. I really enjoyed it, but don’t think it’s a best picture. It suffers a bit from having to jump ahead 20 years. Is it depressing that there is still so much work to do in India? Yes. But that’s why it’s important we all see films like this. Too often Americans just have no idea what the rest of the world is like. I’m glad they didn’t try to sugarcoat the conditions. One thing the movie doesn’t show is Mantosh’s past and how it affected his ability to adjust to his Australian family. I came out of the movie feeling uplifted nevertheless. I thought Sunny Pawar who plays the young Saroo was adorable and did a great job, and of course Dev Patal is pretty serious eye candy, though he doesn’t come across as terribly sympathetic much of the time.
Edited to add: according to IMDB “Was originally unable to attend the US premiere of Lion (2016), because he was denied a visa.” Really? An eight year old boy can’t have a visa? And note the date!
Lion passed my Cry Test – i cried at the end. hehe
I did not cry during Arrival, but I enjoyed it. What a high-quality Sci-Fi film!
This year featured some very well-done inspirational and heart-wrenchingly dramatic pictures. I think LLL or MBTS will probably win, but I won’t be upset regardless of the winner.
@mathmom I kept wishing Dev would shave that scraggly beard off. 
Yes, I agree that Sunny Pawar was/is adorable and, although the movie is good, not worthy of an Oscar. I still haven’t seen them all but Manchester by the Sea is still my personal pick for Best Picture.
It passed my cry test, too, @prezbucky, but that’s a low threshold for me. I’ll tear up at Hallmark commercials.