Here is a list of all of the nominated films, in order of nominations, and where to watch them. Most feature-length films are available to rent, if you don’t have any of the main streaming services, and some of are in limited theatres (as always, follow COVID protocols).
Review: Minari (2020)
Who’d have thought that Minari, a film that centers on an Korean immigrant family that tries to start a farm in Arkansas during the 1980s, would end up being the quintessential American film? It represents the American dream in ways both subtle and overt, and it irks me to no end that it has received numerous foreign film nominations, simply because a great deal of the dialogue is in Korean.
Review: Nomadland (2020)
Nomadland is currently the frontrunner for the Best Picture and Director Oscars (among others), and it’s easy to see why: it’s an extremely well-made contemplative film that probably isn’t for everyone due to its slow, introspective nature, but is popular among cinephiles like myself. The film is based on the book of the same name, written by Jessica Bruder (which I haven’t read, but now I want to).
Review: Promising Young Woman (2020)
How do I review a film that I unabashedly adore, and one that receives a rare perfect score from yours truly? It’s my favorite film of 2020 so far — there’s still more to see, but I highly doubt anything will be able to top this. Promising Young Woman marked my first time at a theater in person in several months…I’d heard amazing reviews from critics lucky enough to get to see the film a year ago, at Sundance; some even praised it as the best film of the year, and even though I was excited to see it, I doubted it could possibly be that good.
Ranking the 2021 Oscar Nominees
Fact: As of this past Sunday, I watched every single film (including the shorts) nominated for an Oscar this year. It’s not usually that easy, as some films — especially international ones — may be hard to find, either in a theater or on streaming.
Review: The Father (2020)
The Father is the last of this year’s Best Picture nominees that I’ve seen; unfortunately, it wasn’t released until last month, and only became available to rent until a couple weeks ago. You may wonder if it’s worth $20 to rent, and it certainly is, especially if you consider how much it would cost for 2+ people to go to the movies, get popcorn, etc. I watched it with my mom, and even though we had to pause multiple times — and watch over two days — I still found The Father to be an extremely effective, sympathetic, authentic portrait of living with dementia.
2021 SAG Awards Predictions (All Categories)
Remember when Parasite won Best Ensemble at last year’s SAG Awards? That was pretty dope, as the young people say. This year’s winners are both difficult and easy to predict, if that makes any sense. But, I’ll do my best.
Reviewing the 2021 Oscar-Nominated Documentaries
When Oscar nominations were announced last week, the Documentary Feature category was among the most surprising; acclaimed docs like Dick Johnson Is Dead, All In, and Boys State were all shut out, in favor of five diverse films, ranging from terrific to a disappointing and ineffective. Here are my reviews of the nominees, in order from best to worst.
Oscar-Winning/Nominated Vegans
There are more vegans in the ‘biz than you’d think, and more and more celebrities — and everyday folks — are opting for a cruelty-free lifestyle.
2021 Oscar Predictions
I’ve used some fancy, schmancy math — based on nominees’ previous wins and total nominations thus far — as well as my knowledge of what the Academy tends to like, in order to predict the nominees. Hopefully, the nominees will be more diverse and representative of what America looks like now.
Review: I Care A Lot (2021)
The dark comedy I Care A Lot from writer-director J Blakeson is based in reality, and points viewers to the sad fact that people are often taking advantage of elderly individuals with no real heirs, by posing as their legal guardians. Blakeson’s film certainly takes things to the extreme, and is a pitch-black comedy with no truly likable characters.
Review: The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021)
It’s disappointing that a movie featuring such important, relevant material — drug use, lynching, among others — can be so, well, disappointingly bad. I certainly hope Lee Daniels redeems himself after this atrocity, and that Andra Day is able to find another script and filmmaker worthy of her talent; however, she has said that this role took so much out of her that she may never act again.
Review: The Mauritanian (2021)
I was fortunate to get to watch a screening (through The Hollywood Reporter) of The Mauritanian, one of the last movies to be released during this incredibly long awards season. It’s a very powerful story, directed by veteran filmmaker Kevin Macdonald, featuring a couple of solid performances but is inconsistent in its story and execution.