Hi All - 

I love the movies and since the 94th Academy Awards are tomorrow, I thought it would be fitting to send an overview of the Best Picture nominees. In previous years, I’ve hosted a viewing party, created a ballot, and made the Oscars a proper event. One year, my bestie Dave and I even went as far to rent every Best Picture Winner dating back to 1985 and had a movie marathon leading into the awards ceremony. There’s nothing quite like watching Amadeus at 1 am to show your commitment to the craft! We were so burnt out that we could barely muster any energy to watch the actual event (FWIW Slumdog Millionaire won). 

This year, we have a diverse group of films nominated. From sci-fi to western, there’s even a musical - there’s truely something for everyone to enjoy. The two standouts are CODA and Power of the Dog and critics seem pretty split between who will take home the coveted golden statuette. Both have already seen success with CODA winning the Screen Actors Guild for Best Theatrical Motion Picture, whereas, Power of the Dog just took home the BAFTA for Best Picture. If you only have time to watch one film, Power of the Dog is also nominated for 11 other awards so it’s likely the best bang for your buck. I haven’t seen it yet, but I have my popcorn ready and will be watching it tonight. 

Who else made the cut? I chatted with friends and family about what they thought about this years picks and gathered some industry insights.

The Nominees:

Unfortunatley I won’t be watching the ceremony since I’m in London. Although I suspect that I’m not the only one, there has been a steady decline in viewership of the Academy Awards. This is odd because our love for great stories has grown and our access to movies/content has never been easier. What’s going on? Why not celebrate that? Ross Douthat addresses this dynamic in his latest op-ed “We Aren’t Just Watching the Decline of the Oscars. We’re Watching the End of the Movies.” This piece is one of the best things I’ve read in a long time so I’m sharing it here:

Opinion - We're watching the End of the Movies

16.9MB ∙ PDF File

Read now

Read now

If you’re looking for a palate cleanser, I went to the screening of The Lost City, with Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum, and absolutely loved it. It was everything I enjoy in a movie and watching it in theatres was so much fun! It’s classic Sandy, has entertaining dialogue, the plot wasn’t entirely predictable, and it’s hilarious. Needless to say, it was two hours well spent!

Enjoy!

🍿 🎬