The Limitations of the Best International Feature Film Oscar
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
The shortlists for the 2021 Academy Awards have come out, and this includes the films that are still in the running for Best International Feature Film. They include the following:
Quo Vadis, Aida?, Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Mole Agent, Chile
Charlatan, Czech Republic
Another Round, Denmark
Two of Us, France
La Llorona, Guatemala
Better Days, Hong Kong
Sun Children, Iran
Night of the Kings, Ivory Coast
I’m No Longer Here, Mexico
Hope, Norway
Collective, Romania
Dear Comrades!, Russia
A Sun, Taiwan
The Man Who Sold His Skin, Tunisia
Pretty good list, right? Of course. This has always been my favourite category at the Academy Awards, because it feels like the authentic Best Picture list in a way. Outside of a handful of examples, the nominees selected here usually feel like legitimate contenders that have earned their positions, and not Oscar baited works that just managed to work. Last year — before the pandemic ruined everything — there was that high of Parasite being the very first foreign film ever to win Best Picture (and rightfully so). In fact, it was literally a year and a couple of days ago, at this point (to think, we would have been done Oscar season by now if things were normal).
However, I do have one gripe, and I know I’m not the only one: the rule that each country can only submit one film. This has cost some films in the past, and it’s an unfortunate stipulation. For instance, “France” selected Les Misérables as their official entry for 2019, and not Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Sometimes, safer films get chosen, when this is absolutely the category to go hog wild in with daring films. Need I bring up Roma, On Body and Soul, and many other arthouse greats? However, can you blame each nation for going safe, if they are trying to win and only have one shot at this?
On one hand, I understand why the Academy limits each country to one selection. Industry powerhouses like Japan, Italy, France, Germany and the like would have dominated heavily during the reigns of Kurosawa, Fellini, and the like. Nations could test their luck with a plethora of submissions that the Academy would have to sift through; even if ten countries took part with countless submissions (or even a limit of five), that’s still a ton of work for the Academy to get through (let alone the over one hundred or so countries that have film industries that could compete). One film per country is a nice way to bottleneck submissions, for the sanity of the Academy (and to get the best submissions, which are carefully selected).
On the other hand, it’s still a limitation that this fantastic category faces. Again, France had at least two films that deserved recognition, and the selection became a tricky one: do we go with a political statement, or with overwhelming beauty? The inclusion of international films in other categories also complicates this one-film-per-country rule. Sometimes, if a film is doing well elsewhere (screenplay, director, those kinds of awards), a country may opt to try and get another film recognition with the masses. Such was the case with Talk To Her, which won for Best Original Screenplay and garnered Pedro Almodóvar a Best Director nomination, but wasn’t in the running for Best International Feature Film. Then, you have politics. Ran (by Akira Kurosawa) was a nominations juggernaut: Best Director, Production Design, Cinematography, and Costume Design (the latter of which it won). Because of some turmoil between Kurosawa and the Japanese film industry, the film wasn’t selected as Japan’s entry (in a year it surely would have been a lock to win).
It’s a bit paradoxical that this category promotes an expanding vision, and yet it is still held back by this one simple rule. It can be bastardized for silly or loaded reasons. It might seem like this treasure trove to common movie goers, and it’s a bit rewarding to hardcore cinephiles like myself. But it’s still a bit of a head scratcher that’s attached to a category that’s meant to show how limitless film is; it sure is limited here. I can’t complain too much, given the usual gold of the category, but I still can’t help but wonder if this has done the Academy more harm than good over the years.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.