It is awards season, and the 94th Academy Awards will air March 27. The past year, award shows have been limited in size, held over Zoom or even held via Twitter. Now, though, the Oscars are set to air from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Movies as well are transitioning back to in-theater showings, but many of the nominations are still streaming-service originals. The list of movies this year includes exciting nominations and a few surprises.
The nominations for Best Picture are “Belfast,” “CODA,” “Don’t Look Up,” “Drive My Car,” “Dune,” “King Richard,” “Licorice Pizza,” “Nightmare Alley,” “West Side Story” and “The Power of the Dog.” Of these, “The Power of the Dog” is leading in nominations with Jane Campion receiving a Best Director nomination and Benedict Cumberbatch in the Best Lead Actor category. This is one of the likely contenders to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Alongside this movie, “Belfast,” which tells the story of a boy in his working-class family in Ireland during the 1960s, holds quite a few other nominations such as Ciarán Hinds for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and Judi Dench for Best Actress in a Supporting Role as well as Kenneth Branagh receiving a Directing nomination.
Another potential winner for Best Picture is “CODA,” which stands for Child of Deaf Adults. The film focuses on a daughter, who is the only hearing person in her family, and the relationship between her love for music and love for her family. The movie contains three Deaf actors and is heavy with American Sign Language. Using Deaf actors who really understand this role is a big step forward. “CODA” is also nominated for Actor in a Supporting Role with Troy Kotsur and Adapted Screenplay.
There is also an interest in foreign films this year, which is exciting to see since the shift in attention to films outside of the U.S. with the Best Picture win for Parasite in 2020. “Drive My Car” is a Japanese film that tells the story of a director who is working on a new production and dealing with the loss and mystery of his wife’s recent death. The film has its Best Picture nomination and Best International Film nomination, while also receiving a nomination for Adapted Screenplay and Best Director.
Also receiving acclaim, “The Worst Person in the World” is a film from Norway that received a nomination for Original Screenplay. This film tells the story of a young woman navigating her love life and work over four years while also figuring out who she is. “Flee,” a film from Denmark, is also nominated for Documentary Feature and Animated Feature, as it is an animated true story about a man who reveals his difficult past to his partner right before their marriage.
Another exciting nomination includes Andrew Garfield’s Actor in a Leading Role nomination for “Tick, Tick… BOOM!” where he plays Jonathan Larson, a theater composer during the ‘90s. Lin-Manuel Miranda is also well represented with his work with “Tick, Tick… BOOM!” and ”Encanto,” where he is nominated for his song “Dos Oruguitas.”
Additional songs nominated for the Oscars include Beyoncé’s “Be Alive” for “King Richard,” Van Morrison’s “Down To Joy” in “Belfast,” Billie Eilish’s “No Time To Die” in the recent Bond film of the same title and Diane Warren’s “Somehow You Do” in “Four Good Days.” These nominations certainly predict good performances at the award show.
Ariana DeBose has also been nominated for Actress in a Supporting Role for her role as Anita in “West Side Story.” This is an exciting nomination since Rita Moreno received her Oscar win with this same role in 1962 with the original “West Side Story.”
Kristen Stewart is also nominated for Actress in a Leading Role for “Spencer” where she plays the late Princess Diana. Moviegoers have largely discussed this film with the increase in popularity in the royal family, and it’s clear Stewart’s role was an interesting take on the family’s secret moments.
Overall, there are no extremely surprising nominations or snubs from this year’s categories. Some argue that Lady Gaga and “House of Gucci” should have received more nominations, and some are surprised by the large representation of foreign films this year. However, the awards this year show no certain winner, so seeing who receives Best Picture will be an exciting watch.
Edited by Camila Fowler | cfowler@themaneater.com