It’s Oscar season and much like the Golden Globes, Netflix Originals haven’t had the best of times with Netflix being snubbed entirely at the Golden Globes. Most disappointingly not picked for an Oscar this year was Idris Elba for his supporting role in the Netflix Original, Beasts of No Nation but they’ve instead opted for Mark Ruffalo in Spotlight, Christian Bale in The Big Short, Mark Rylance in Bridge of Spies, Sylvester Stallone in Creed and Tom Hardy in The Revenant.
However there is a glimmer of hope for Netflix this year as two of its original documentaries has been nominated. Netflix has always performed well with its documentary and it’s a trend most likely to continue in following years.
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight For Freedom focussed on the 2013 revolution which plagued the capital and gives us an unseen glimpse as to what it was like to be a part of it often looked over by our traditional media.
The film scored well with many critics and isn’t the first time Netflix has scored with a revolution documentary at the oscars. The Square, released a few years ago documenting the uprising in Egypt also gained its rightful nomination.
What Happened, Miss Simone? is the biopic of the singer songwriter, Nina Simone who also had a long standing history of being a civil rights activist. It explains her strained relationship between her family and friends given her involvement in politics and music.
The documentary gets a never seen before insight into what her life was like with exclusive recordings, archive footage and rare accounts from family members and close friends.
These two documentaries face fierce competition in this category as Amy is hotly anticipated to steal the show. That documentary follows the more recently deceased singer, Amy Winehouse and her troubles in her life. Also standing in the run are Cartel Land and The Look of Silence.
Other Netflix documentaries including the hugely popular Making A Murderer were absent as well as the aforementioned Beasts of No Nation and Netflix’s The Ridiculous 6.
