Here’s what you didn’t see in some of the best picture Oscar contenders
LA TimesDirectors, and their editors, must be brutal in their final cuts. “In that pursuit, great scenes that are not essential must be left behind.” What snippets of this year’s Academy Award best picture contenders never made it to the final cut? ‘Anora’ Sean Baker, director Setup: Nearly a half-hour of Ani wandering around the strip club, essentially unscripted to get “documentary-style” background of her working. It felt important, too, to declare that this would be a film that stays extremely close to Lawrence: The film keeps its characters cloistered, with only fleeting glimpses of the outside world.” ‘I’m Still Here’ Walter Salles, director Setup: “I’m Still Here” originally opened on an open sea at dawn as a military helicopter arrives. … The opening credits scene answered a question that should have remained unresolved … in real life, it remains unanswered to this day: What happened to the political dissidents who disappeared during Brazil’s military dictatorship?” ‘Nickel Boys’ RaMell Ross, director Setup: As a child, Elwood probes a mousetrap with a stick, causing it to snap closed as the camera turns to reveal a mouse under the bed.
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