The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled their latest batch of Oscar nominees, and the big story had to be Sinners. Ryan Coogler’s horror film snagged a record 16 nominations, including one for Best Picture.
A lot of folks (including me) were surprised to see F1® The Movie land a Best Picture nom as well. I wasn’t surprised, however, to see so many R-rated films on the docket—and very hard R-rated movies at that. Only three PG-13 films can be counted among the 10 Best Picture nominees. Again, not surprising, but a little disappointing.
I sit down and talk about most of those Best Picture nominees here: What are they? I’ll tell you. Are they good? I’ll tell you. What problems do they have? I’ll tell you that, too. And the whole thing is filled with my straight-from-the-hip, one-take thoughts, so forgive me if I stumble at times.
Obviously, I don’t detail everything here, and there’s no substitute for our full reviews (please, oh please, read our full reviews). But hopefully, it’ll give you a little information to put in your back pocket.
3 Responses
It’s good to see a video about all the Oscar noms this year. As a Christian and a frequent movie watcher, I tend to be a little leery of the nominees since I’ve been burned a few times (There Will Be Blood, anybody? Ouch.). I’m looking forward to seeing Train Dreams. Thanks!
Aww, what’s wrong with There Will Be Blood? Basically a perfect movie in my opinion — but to each their own.
Enjoy Train Dreams. I loved it.
This was a solid year for movies. There was a ton of mediocrity as usual, but the Oscar nominees show that the highs were pretty high.
I’d love to hear commenters’ thoughts on the Best Picture nominees. My (not in the least bit authoritative) scores follow:
Hamnet: 9/10 — beautifully acted, broke my heart — on par with the book
Sentimental Value: 6/10 — Terrific acting, but script was flawed and resolution didn’t ring true emotionally
One Battle After Another: 10/10 — masterpiece on every level — better than the book
Sinners: 7/10 — heavy-handed social commentary, vampire stuff was overfamiliar, but great acting and awesome musical sequences
Marty Supreme: 6/10 — well-made but grating, like Uncut Gems
Train Dreams: 9/10 — tender, sad, beautifully understated — on par with the book
Frankenstein: 5/10 — not Del Toro’s best effort
F1: 3/10 — cliched story, lightweight, but well-shot — no clue why it’s nominated for Best Picture instead of It Was Just An Accident
The Secret Agent: Seeing it Thursday!
Bugonia: Haven’t seen it