What to watch: Best picture nominations

This year’s Oscars race nominated a wide range of films, from suspenseful mysteries about the Catholic Church to blood-soaked thrillers that take aim at the misogyny in the entertainment industry. The 10 films up for nomination are all transcendent and worth a watch, but for those who are too busy to watch them all, here are the ones you should focus on. 

 

“A Complete Unknown” 

Directed by: James Mangold

Available: Theaters

8 Nominations:

Best Picture
Actor in Leading Role – Timothée Chalamet
Actor in Supporting Role – Edward Norton
Actress in Supporting Role – Monica Barbaro
Costume Design – Arianne Phillips
Directing – James Mangold
Sound – Tod A. Maitland, Donald Sylvester, Ted Caplan, Paul Massey, David Giammarco
Writing (Adapted Screenplay) – James Mangold, Jay Cocks

The Bob Dylan biopic carries us through 19-year-old Dylan’s rise and his journey through his genre twist. Swinging through the film with Dylan’s music, performed by Timothée Chalamet, it is a must see for lovers of Dylan. Despite the historical inaccuracies, the film doesn’t uplift Dylan as a god or cast him down as a devil, rather it makes an effort to paint a dynamic picture of the Nobel Prize winner. 

 

“The Substance” 

Directed by: Coralie Fargeat

Available: Mubi

5 Nominations:

Best Picture
Actress in Leading Role – Demi Moore
Directing – Coralie Fargeat
Makeup and Hairstyling – Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli
Writing (Original Screenplay) – Coralie Fargeat

Bloody, grueling and gorey, this is not the typical movie expected as a best picture nominee in the Oscars. The stomach-turning, bloody critique of the entertainment industry’s mistreatment of women is a breathtaking achievement. The director makes a blunt statement, using every part of the screen, every moment in the runtime and every tool in a filmmakers toolkit to tell a shocking story, using the male gaze to portray the disgusting way in which the male-dominated society fetishizes then discards women with age. 

 

“The Brutalist”

Directed by: Brady Corbet

Available: Theaters

10 Nominations:

Best Picture
Actor in Leading Role – Adrien Brody
Actor in Supporting Role – Guy Pearce
Actress in Supporting Role – Felicity Jones
Cinematography – Lol Crawley
Directing – Brady Corbet
Film Editing – Dávid Jancsó
Music (Original Score) – Daniel Blumberg
Production Design – Judy Becker, Patricia Cuccia
Writing (Original Screenplay) – Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold

Taking seven years to make, “The Brutalist,” has been a long-anticipated film that follows a visionary architect – played by Adrien Brody – immigrating to the United States from post-war Europe. It’s a story of art and passion, self and identity. The runtime is a lot to swallow at 214 minutes, but the pacing, cinematography and captivating story with transcendental ideas keeps engagement all the way through. 

“The Brutalist” was seen as a front runner for quite some time – especially after winning Best Drama Feature at the Golden Globes. However, it came to light that “The Brutalist” used artificial intelligence in their movie which has led to frustration within some in the voting body. 

 

“Anora”

Directed by: Sean Baker

Available: Can be rented through Amazon, Apple among other platforms

Nominations:

Best Picture
Actor in Supporting Role – Yura Borisov
Actress in Leading Role – Mikey Madison
Directing – Sean Baker
Film Editing – Sean Baker
Writing (Original Screenplay) – Sean Baker

Set in Brooklyn, an escort meets and marries the son of a Russian oligarch. After a wild week of partying, drugs and sex the honeymoon comes to a halt when the parents leave for New York to force the newlyweds to get annulled. In an exciting, fast-paced journey with lovable characters and conflict that will make you laugh and cry, it is one of my favorite movies of the year.

 

“Emilia Pérez”

Directed by: Jacquez Audiard

Available: Netflix

11 Nominations:

Best Picture
Actress in Leading Role – Karla Sofía Gascón
Actress in Supporting Role – Zoe Saldaña 
Cinematography – Paul Guilhaume
Directing – Jacquez Audiard
Film Editing – Juliette Welfling
International Feature Film – France
Makeup and Hairstyling – Julia Floch-Carbonel, Emmanuel Janvier and Jean-Christophe Spadaccini
Music (Original Score) – Clément Ducol and Camille
Music (Original Song) – “El Mal”
Sound – Erwan Kerzanet, Aymeric Devoldère, Maxence Dussère, Cyril Holtz and Niels Barletta

When cartel kingpin Juan “Manitas” Del Monte requests lawyer Rita Mora Castro’s help with transitioning to a woman both their lives are forever changed. The musical walks through the journey of  Emilia’s character transitioning and trying to reshape her new life. 

Despite getting notable nominations in the award circuit, “Emilia Pérez” has received harsh blowback online. Many people criticize the movie – directed by a French filmmaker – for making Mexico seem like a poverty stricken, war torn, corrupt country along with mischaracterizing the experience of being transgender and being offensive. 

 

The other five best picture nominees are also worth a watch. Here they are:

“Conclave” – Peacock
“Dune: Part Two” – Netflix
“I’m Still Here” – Theaters
“Nickel Boys” – Theaters Feb. 25
“Wicked” – Buy on Amazon, Apple, Youtube, or Google

The Oscars will take place March 2 at 4 p.m. on ABC.

 

Chris Hutton can be reached at orionmanagingeditor@gmail.com