Snubbed of Nominations

After picking up this dvd from the rental store after a friend recommended it for me, I watched it a couple nights ago and found it surprisingly good. It was visually amazing from a artistic point of view as the landscape provided a great backdrop to the characters while what their brilliant performances carried the story beyond my expectations. The violence, though vividly realistic and extremely brutal,it really enhanced the "feel," of the movie. I could see the obvious parallels between the novel Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy and this movie as both stories featured horrific violence in a land with moral ambiguity and unstoppable evil were present reoccurring themes. I do consider this movie a western and one of the best modern ones I've seen in awhile.

I am also confused on why this movie didn't get any recognition from the Academy. Though it still possesses a 90% rating on rotten tomatoes from the top critics, I'm not sure how beautiful films like these fly under the oscar radar without any attention whats so ever. Now, I wasn't even sure it existed until a friend recommended it to me, so I'm thinking the marketing or the Australian production may of had something to do with it. Does anybody have any more information of what the Academy actually thought about this movie? If they even considered it? i thought the soundtrack was excellently composed as it fits all the scenes perfectly while Nick Cave's haunting score was mind numbing. A nomination for the cinematography was also deserved here, as the whole film's visuals had me completely in awe. I was impressed by director's spectacular use of the Australian landscape. I don't know but I'm always baffled when great movies like these with flawless acting and stunning cinematography are always ignored by the Academy just because it isn't popular enough. To me, this was everything a Western should be, and I'm quite glad I got a hold of it.