The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science released the shortlists for ten categories ahead of the nominations for the 95th Oscars, and fans of The Batman are upset that the film’s original score didn’t make the cut. The final nominations will be announced on January 24, 2023, and the ceremony will occur on March 12. The Batman has made the Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Sound, and Visual Effects shortlists. And the film opened to critical and commercial success, sporting, at the time of this writing, a Certified Fresh 85 percent from critics and 87 percent from viewers.However, when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science released the shortlist, it was revealed that The Batman didn’t make the shortlist for Best Original Score. Fans took to Twitter to express their objection to the decision. Original scores that did make the shortlist include All Quiet on the Western Front, Avatar: The Way of Water, Babylon, The Banshees of Inisherin, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Devotion, Don’t Worry Darling, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Fabelmans, Glass Onion, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, Nope, She Said, The Woman King, and Women Talking. See how fans reacted to the snub below:Related:The Batman’s Riddler Is Saw From Jigsaw (& 1 Scene Proves It)
Why The Batman’s Score Deserved To Be Nominated
Oscar-winner Michael Giacchino had a busy, successful year. He also composed music for Jurassic World: Dominion, Lightyear, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Werewolf By Night, which Giacchino directed. Oddly, Giacchino’s score for The Batman didn’t make the cut: it was his best work in 2022. And the film’s score, aside from Matt Reeves’s direction and Greig Fraser’s cinematography, was one of the film’s strongest points. That being said — while it’s unlikely that Reeves will receive a nod for his on-point direction, as the season’s stacked with talent, namely James Cameron, Todd Field, Martin McDonagh, and Steven Spielberg — Greig Fraser’s cinematography deserves a nomination: as did Giacchino’s score.
Starting with the film’s brooding theme for Batman, the dark, reverberating tones were so characteristic of the titular character, embodying the grim, bleak persona of Batman, that the caped crusader’s theme should have carried the score toward Oscars success. The insidious music done for the Riddler (played by Paul Dano) was also a fitting choice. Then, finally, the somber yet graceful theme for Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman fit like a glove. All of these themes come perfectly into play in the film like a good score should: The Batman‘s theme in “Can’t Fight City Halloween” is a crescendo brimming with tension, almost sounding like a villain’s theme. In contrast, Catwoman’s delicate theme hits its peak with Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle’s kiss.
There’s no doubt that Giacchino’s score should have at least made the 2023 Oscars shortlist. So it’s easy to empathize with The Batman’s fans’ frustration. Their only hope is to see The Batman succeed in other categories, namely Best Cinematography.
