Oscars 2023: Best Picture nominee list and our critics’ opinions

LOS ANGELES – The nominations for the 95th Academy Awards have been announced, and the list includes much more commercially successful films than in previous years. We’re looking at you: Top Gun: Maverick, Elvis, and Avatar: The Way of the Water.

Of course, many moviegoers still flocked to their streaming services for the latest films, but this year also seems to have focused on reopening theaters and returning to better quality feature films.

The sci-fi adventure Everything, Everywhere, Leads the Oscar nominations with 11 nominations. The Banshee of Inisherin and the German-language All Quiet on the Western Front had nine each.

Below is a list of the nominees for the Best Picture award and what critics have said about them on FOX.

“Fabelmans”

Spielberg and co-writer Tony Kushner (who previously wrote Munich, Lincoln, and last year’s remake of West Side Story for director) linger in Sammy Feibelman’s (Mateo Zorion Francis-DeFord) childhood when he becomes obsessed with filming. movie. His mercurial pianist mother sees this hobby as her calling, while Burt (Paul Dano), his more practical engineer father, sees it as more of an elegant hobby. But much of The Fabelmans takes place later in Sammy’s teens, after Burt’s career moved them from New Jersey to Arizona (and later California).

FULL REVIEW: The Fabelmans review: Spielberg’s spellbinding, unsentimental origin story

This ambiguity about “why” to make films – even exciting ones – is part of an important metatextual dimension of film. In a way, this adds to how Spielberg’s films, especially in the latter half of his career, have been misinterpreted through a filter of what audiences and critics expect from him – a filter that sometimes blocked his complexities and nuances.

“Banshee of Inisherin”

Thanks to fantastic buzz at the Venice and Toronto film festivals, the black comedy The Banshee of Inisherin has become a major player in this awards season.

PREVIOUSLY: Six Fall Films That Could Win Big Awards This Season

Especially for Colin Farrell, who plays an Irishman named Padraic, who is shocked when his longtime pal Colm (Brendan Gleeson) abruptly ends their friendship. Confused, Padraic tries to repair the relationship at all costs, even as Colm issues a harsh ultimatum. And while it may seem like a simple premise, it could become something special in the hands of writer-director Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri), who previously worked wonders with Farrell and Gleason in the 2008 crime black comedy. thriller “In Bruges”.

women talk

Based on a novel by Miriam Toews, Women Talk has a deceptively simple premise: eight Mennonite women meet secretly in a hayloft to discuss acts of gender violence committed in their isolated religious community.

CONNECTED: Top 10 films of 2022 named: Fabelmans, No

What follows is a poignant and poignant discussion about how to reconcile faith, forgiveness, and community with trauma, responsibility, and self-determination. According to the writer/director, this is “a conversation about how to remake a broken world.” Sarah Polly. And thanks to an all-star cast that includes Frances McDormand, Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jesse Buckley and Ben Whishaw, Women Talk is already a critically acclaimed highlight of the festival season – one that could very well ride that wave to awards season gold.

TANDR

People magazine praised another personal favorite that also sharply divided critics, the brash but overly long “TAR”. “Cate Blanchett gives a thunderous performance that would make Beethoven turn over,” wrote critic Tom Gliatto.

“Knowing Lydia Tar is not the same as loving her, but you can’t stop thinking about the fickle conductor,” agreed David Sims of The Atlantic.

Todd Field’s film, his first in 16 years, is dedicated to renowned singer Lydia Tar, who is days away from recording a symphony that will boost her career. When all the elements seem to be against her, Lydia’s adopted daughter Petra becomes an essential emotional support for her struggling mother.

All Everywhere All at once

“Everything, Everywhere, All At Once” includes concepts as vast as the entire multiverse and as intimate as a middle-aged woman (Evelyn Wang, played by Michelle Yeoh) reuniting with her fractured family, even if she has to it is by using all possible versions of ourselves from the vast web of universes that bind us to every decision we have never made.

WATCH THE INTERVIEW: ‘Everything, Everywhere, All At Once’ directors on Michelle Yeoh’s power

It’s a film as dizzying in its ambition as it is hilarious, with directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert using all the high-tilt chaos they’ve perfected in music videos like DJ Snake and Lil Jon’s “Turn Down for What?” introduce viewers to a world where anything is possible – and can happen right in front of your eyes.

Top Shooter: Maverick

More than three decades later, the sequel Top Gun: Maverick offers a double dose of nostalgia – both for the 1980s original and for the serene America it evoked in the first place.

FULL REVIEW: ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ review: ‘Top Gun 2’ is a superbly trite celebration of nostalgia

It’s nice to report that the film pretty much works from both perspectives, at least if you’re willing to put aside any moral questions about its inherently propagandistic nature. (The bad guys here again represent a nameless, featureless country known only as “the enemy.”) Director Joseph Kosinski is so dedicated to nostalgia that he even begins the film by faithfully recreating the opening credits of the original. Danger Zone by Kenny Loggins and all that. This movement is as carefully calibrated as any of the top fighter jets piloted by Tom Cruise throughout the film. Watching an old-fashioned blockbuster come to life is a delight, even if its plot ambitions aren’t entirely sky-high.

Elvis

Absurdity is part of the essence of Elvis. It’s important to know what’s going on, otherwise the movie’s frenetic opening action can be downright repulsive rather than just slightly overwhelming. Having cemented his trademark brilliant style with films such as William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge! and The Great Gatsby, director Baz Luhrmann now turns his camp maximalism to rock and roll king Elvis Presley. And while the result is highly uneven, the highs are too high (and too outrageous) to be missed.

FULL REVIEW: Movie Review: ‘Elvis’ somehow has both the best and worst performance of the year

Luhrmann sees in Elvis not just a revolutionary musician, but a mythical American figure, or maybe even a real superhero – and accordingly he positions the tone of his film somewhere between Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane and Sam Raimi’s Spider. The Man Trilogy. It’s exhilarating and exhausting in equal measure, and even Luhrmann’s rhinestone-filled touch can’t quite control this 159-minute behemoth. The film oscillates wildly from moments of transcendent originality of style turning into content, to one dull musical biographical convention after another. (One scene is dedicated to the Doja Cat diss; another is one of the most casual “tragic divorce” scenes in biopic history.) Perhaps that’s why “Elvis” somehow contains one of the best musical renditions of a biopic ever made. on film. – and one of the worst.

All Quiet on the Western Front

The Netflix adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, the classic World War I horror novel, was filmed by a German and written in German.

The film tells the gripping story of a young German soldier on the Western Front of the First World War. Paul and his comrades experience first hand how the initial military euphoria turns into despair and fear as they fight for their lives and each other in the trenches. Film directed by Edward Berger is based on the world–famous bestseller of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque.

Avatar: Path of Water

The action takes place more than ten years after the events of the first film. Avatar: The Way of Water begins to tell the story of the Sully family, the troubles they face, the lengths they go to protect each other, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.

RELATED: ‘Avatar 2 hit the box office with $134 million domestic debut

In the 13 years since the first film was released, Avatar has also become the butt of jokes due to the fact that the biggest film of all time, grossing nearly $3 billion, has left a relatively small footprint in culture. But even so, critics have mostly been on board The Way of Water, not just for the visuals, but for improving the story of the first installment. It has a 77% positive rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.

Triangle of sadness

In The Triangle of Sorrow, Swedish Suit director Ruben Östlund’s first English-language film, Dean and Harris Dickinson play a famous fashion model couple on a super-rich cruise that descends into chaos. It also stars Woody Harrelson as the ship’s captain.

CONNECTED: Charlbi Dean, star of ‘Triangle of Sorrows’, dies at 32

The film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in May and is released in the US and most of Europe in October. The film is a dark take on the super-rich, and Östlund poignantly breaks it down with humor and satire.

When is the Oscar?

The Oscars will take place on Sunday, March 12 at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. The ceremony will begin at 8:00 pm ET and will be broadcast live on ABC.

Who is hosting the 2023 Oscars?

Jimmy Kimmel will take the stage to host the ceremony, which previously hosted the Oscars in 2017 and 2018.

“Jimmy is the perfect host to help us get to know the incredible artists and films of our 95th Academy Awards. His love of cinema, live experience and ability to connect with our global audience will provide an unforgettable experience for our millions of viewers around the world.” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Young. “With the fresh eyes and masterful direction of Kimmel, Weiss and Kirshner, the Oscars will celebrate 95 years of rich history, the collaborative nature of filmmaking, and our diverse, dynamic and deeply creative community of filmmakers.”

Allison Shoemaker, Caroline Side, and FOX have contributed to this story.