- BlacKkKlansman by Terence Blanchard
- If Beale Street Could Talk by Nicholas Britell
- Isle of Dogs by Alexandre Desplat
- Mary Poppins Returns by Marc Shaiman
- A Star is Born by Bradley Cooper, Lady Gaga, and Lukas Nelson
ANALYSIS
This year’s BAFTA nominees present an intriguing mixture of scores, almost any of which could win.
Desplat’s Isle of Dogs is one of the strangest scores of this awards cycle. Despite having no buzz or momentum, it is one of the most nominated scores. The lack of support will be fatal, which is unfortunate because Desplat’s work does a great job recreating classic Japanese music, particularly through vocals and drumming.
As I’ve previously mentioned, Mary Poppins Returns leaves a lot to be desired as it fails to offer catchy or memorable songs. Compare this to A Star Is Born, whose catchy pop music drove it to becoming a widespread phenomenon. Because of its heavy pop leanings, A Star Is Born is difficult to gauge – it is good, emotional pop music, but this type of score almost never wins major awards outside of best original song categories.
It’s about time that Blanchard has received recognition for his work, coming away with his first BAFTA nomination despite composing over 40 scores across his career. BlacKkKlansman is a fantastic mixture of jazz and more traditional film-orchestral elements, oozing with an authentic 70s feel without being too on the nose or cliched.
Finally, Nicholas Britell delivers perhaps the best score of the year in If Beale Street Could Talk. It’s emotionally charged and deftly moves between a variety of emotional states like sorrow, fear, and love. From the first few notes, Britell’s score overwhelms the listener, immersing them in struggles and triumphs.
The field here is less predictable than the Golden Globes. But, based solely on the quality of music, the award should be Britell’s.
RESULT
My gut feeling that traditional film music would trump pop sensibilities blew up in my face. Whether A Star Is Born’s victory is a tidal change or simply an aberration, however, remains unclear.