The BAFTAs, one of the last major movie awards shows before the Oscars, have wrapped up, and there is plenty to discuss.
Let’s begin with the clearest loser of the night, Marty Supreme. The pulsating Timothée Chalamet-led sports flick walked into the awards with 11 nominations but shockingly walked away with zero wins. Stiff competition from other highly coveted movies like Sinners and One Battle After Another is to blame, with the two Oscars frontrunners scooping up a combined nine awards; OBAO taking home Best Film and Sinners predictably winning Best Original Score.
But the biggest upset of the night has got to be Yorkshire’s Richard Aramayo beating Hollywood heavyweights like Leonardo DiCaprio and Michael B. Jordan to win Best Actor for I Swear. He played Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson in the moving biopic that offered a cheeky but realistic look at living with the condition in 1980s Scotland. Many critics called Aramayo’s performance the beating heart of the movie with his blend of vulnerability and endearment through John’s struggles tying the movie together wonderfully. Aramayo was visibly moved as he claimed the award, repeating in his speech that he couldn’t believe he had managed to pull off the underdog victory. Aramayo isn’t in the running for the Oscars, so this throws their race for Best Actor in the air, however pundits still tip Chalamet as the favourite despite Marty Supreme’s dismal evening.
Amidst the A-listers who presented awards the conversation surrounding the hosts was dominated by one name. He’s a former BAFTA winner himself and the star of one of the most acclaimed film franchises of the last decade – of course, it’s Paddington Bear. The star, who made his stage debut last year with his own musical, presented the award for Best Children’s and Family Film which went to the Indian-made Boong, which, similarly to Paddington’s film series, balances a powerful story about familial bonds with a playful tone.
However, the night was not without controversy. As Sinners stars Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting an award, John Davidson (who has Tourette’s Syndrome) was heard on the prerecorded broadcast involuntarily saying a racial slur. Davidson has apologised profusely for his repeated verbal outbursts during the event, but most have instead slammed the BBC for not editing out the incident in the two hours between the live ceremony and the broadcast. It took until Monday for the incident to be edited out the iPlayer version of the show but not before backlash including from Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch. Interestingly, the BBC elected instead to edit out BAFTA winning documentary maker Akinola Davies Jr.’s calls for Palestinian freedom during the live airing of the show but not Davidson’s language. Other notable winners include Jessie Buckley winning Best Actress for Hamnet, Zootropolis 2 for Best Animated Film, Paul Thomas Anderson winning Best Direction for One Battle After Another, and Sentimental Value for Film Not in the English Language.
Photo by Michael Mora on Unsplash.