Flora Moody – DARKEST HOUR
Mary Everett and Donna Martin – I, TONYA
Gillian Chandler – mother!
Bev Wright – WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES
Megan Harkness and Ailsa Macmillan – WONDER

I decided to go in a couple of different directions in this, the final fantasy category of this little exercise. GHOST IN THE SHELL…really?!? And the otherwise exemplary makeup and hairstyling work on behalf of VICTORIA AND ABDUL couldn’t disguise the fact that the movie kinda sucked. THE GREATEST SHOWMAN could also have been a player here, if not for the overwhelming accolades it has already been receiving for its GLEE-ish musical score.

While Flora Moody, makeup artist Mary Everett and hairstylist Donna Martin, and makeup artist Megan Harkness and hairstylist Ailsa Macmillan have been deservedly shortlisted for their work on DARKEST HOUR, I, TONYA, and WONDER, respectively, I propose two outliers whose work I felt shouldn’t go unrecognized. After all these month’s Darren Aronofsky’s mother! has stayed ingrained in my mind, due in no small part to Gillian Chandler’s dark, psychotic makeup job in the service of recreating the multiple levels of hell endured by Jennifer Lawrence. While no key hairstylist doesn’t seem to be indicated, kudos would have to go to Félix Larivière for the equally fee-form hair concepts that populate mother!; and to Jennifer Lawrence herself for designing the wig she wore throughout major portions of the movie.

Also noteworthy is Bev Wright’s work on WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES; she and her team had quite a challenge in marrying makeup with the considerable visual effects works that went into what turned out to be Andy Serkis’ swan-song from the venerable series. The result is more than exemplary — this, as well as many other aspects left me with the distinct impression that WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES is the far superior “chase” movie than LOGAN, which was release back in the spring, and shared a copy-cat story structure.

One more: my absolute joy over the YA drama WONDER is enhanced by the seamless makeup work by Megan Harkness. On the strength of her work, I never realized that I was watching a heavily made-up actor in Jacob Tremblay’s Auggie. Bravo to that.

 

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