Joker, the movie, was all expose. Pheonix’ Depth was the narrative, but that’s not film
1
No one has mentioned Harriet!
What a riveting movie and certainly
Deserves mention as a contender!
4
As a lover of both Batman and storytelling I warn people away from Joker. Stylistically it is absolutely on-point, and Juaqine Phoenix does an excellent job playing the character, but the writing is atrocious to the point of being offensive. Characters are wildly inconsistent, vacillating between being cruel and malicious to kind and compassionate depending on whether we are meant to feel sympathy or not for the Joker in a given scene. People do bizarre things that only make sense if the world is a movie trying to lurch from scene to scene in a somewhat coherent way.
Plenty of movies are poorly written, but what elevates this movie to being offensive is how it portrays the poor. In the movie poor people celebrate the violent murder of three financiers who are not known to be guilty of any crimes beyond being well off. The celebration of these murders escalates into a full-blown murderous riot by the end of the film. It portrays the poor as just looking for any indication that they're allowed to start wreaking havoc, rather than victims chafing against an unfair system. It would be like if the LA riots started after Rodney King beat up a group of police officers and then a bunch of people decided to just keep going with that.
1
@Thad It's also being told by an "unreliable narrator" so much of it is tainted by the "moral compass" of the protagonist of the story.
The "Us VS Them" mentality isn't too far fetched. After all, several French Revolutions have shown us that the margin between "tax the rich" and "axe the rich" is a letter and a rose thin.
4
I really liked Once upon a time in Hollywood, but two days after seeing it , I could hardly recall anything about the movie except the 'out of place' violent scene. Nice movie, but like LaLa Land, completely irrelevant.
9
The first thing I saw when I looked at this page was a gallery of six images, five with white people and one with Asians. Shameful.
12
HAMLET, a foreign movie (England), won Best Picture for 1948. There have been other British Best Picture winners since then.
1
Although portrayed as truth, Scorsese's film is completely fictional rewriting of history. That any Irishman would ever run with the Mafia is likely an aberration of intelligence on the part of the Irishman and no others would want to be associated with the infamous criminals of the deep.
1
1945; The military brought Mafia leadership to our nation after the invasion of Sicily in WWII.
1954; "On the Waterfront" when Republican Eisenhower was President.
1972; "The Godfather" when Republican Nixon was President.
1974; "The Godfather II" when Nixon was still President and there were allusions to high political office in the movie.
1990; "Goodfellas" when Republican Herbert Bush was President. He was a former C.I.A. Director.
1994; "Casino" when Democrat Clinton was President and was victimized frivolously by Congressional Republicans.
2019; "The Hitman" and the Republicans are all powerfully threatening.
Are you understanding? I won't watch ignorant movies but others should analyze the movies for clues. I wouldn't write it if there were none.
The Irishman besting Scorcese's Goodfellas, Casino.
2
How can Once Upon A Time be in the race! It is pointless and does not have any story. Just shows how the whole industry is predisposed and biased towards people who have already made good films. It doesn't mean that any movie made by them is good. It is a ridiculous movie!
6
Don't forget 'The Report.'
1
Has anyone else noticed the Mafia glorifying movies appear during Republican administrations? "Think about it!". I laugh at the ads portraying the three thugs in suits like Mount Rushmore figures.
8
@PATRICK
Agree wholeheartedly. Who knew that "The Godfather" would become a GOP Primer? God help us all now.
6
@PATRICK -- Everybody who knows tRump knows he has connections... You can't be in the development business without those connections. Concrete?
5
@Will Flaherty
He will if we leave to find peace and true freedom in the southern hemisphere.
My favorite is Once Upon A Time in Hollywood.
11
No mention of Almodóvar’s Pain and Glory, a superb film with an outstanding performance by Antonio Banderas?
16
Walked out of JoJo Dancer, it had nothing to do with being offended, the jokes were awful and fell flat. The pacing reminded me of Mel Brooks' Men in Tights, another awful movie. Walked out during the German Shepard joke.
Really liked Pain and Glory, The Farewell and Once Upon a Time.
Looking forward to seeing the rest.
@John Hay
I have to say when it streams you should check out the last 30 minutes of Jojo, they are the best of the film and that ending! Easily the best ending of any film this year.
6
@Will Flaherty
I absolutely agree with you; I just saw this movie and it is about that most basic of themes. Good vs.Evil.
It is definitely a strong contender ( I hope) in the best picture class.
1
It utterly eludes me why people still care about something as trite as the Academy Awards, or movies in general. I haven't watched one through in thirty years, since actors and actresses stopped being adults and became a gang of irritating Peter Pans, the two "actors" from Quentin Tarrantino's latest exercise in pointless violence being prime examples thereof.
1
@APH And how about more gun porn with Jon Wicke 3? Who watches this tripe?
1
It seems like Korean filmmakers have making the best films in the world for about 15 years or more now. Parasite must be really interesting to get this much attention (haven’t seen it yet myself) because great Korean films seem like they’ve been coming out all the time since the early 2000s.
12
What constitutes a Best Picture? It really is subjective. It seems that to win, you need to address a social or political issue in a liberal American viewpoint. It also helps if the movie is directed to the sentiments of upper middle class Americans. Marriage Story and Little Women are lined up that fashion.
2
The truth is that Oscar voters (at least for the moment) who tend to be older, more conservative in their tastes do not have a history of awarding comedies, horror films, science fiction or action films. with a slew of nominations, let alone best picture. In fact,the last romantic comedy to ever win best picture was Annie Hall in 1977.
As the academy becomes, younger and more diverse, such traditions are likely to change. But it is likely to be at least a decade before we witness real, significant, dramatic change in regards to the sort of Oscar fare that is nominated.
5
Marriage Story is comparable to Kramer vs. Kramer, which was mentioned in this story.
Kramer vs Kramer was released in 1979, a watershed year for great, groundbreaking movies. Apocalypse Now, All That Jazz, Being There (which was not even nominated for Best Picture), Manhattan. Somehow Kramer, a respectable but banal film, walked away with Best Picture over the likes of Apocalypse Now or Being there. Of course, it starred Hollywood heavyweights Meryl Streep and Dustin Hoffman, which might have had something to do with it, but you can’t say Peter Sellers, Roy Scheider, or Martin Sheen didn’t do their best work in those films.
I hope the same thing doesn’t happen with Marriage Story. Fortunately, 40 years later, the Academy has changed.
1
@Maurie Beck
Since "Kramer vs. Kramer" was only Meryl Streep's fifth movie, she could not yet really have been described as a Hollywood heavyweight.
2
I'm still recovering from the farce that Moonlight, an absolutely mediocre film, beat La La Land which was a joy to behold!
11
@J. G. Smith
Please! La La Land was stiff, exaggerated, mediocre acted and overrated. It should have never have been nominated for best picture. Moonlight , while not a classic movie, was certainly a well acted, above average film. There was/is no comparison between the two.
35
@J. G. Smith La La Land was nice but completely forgettable. The next day I struggled to remember which movie I had seen the night before and no, I had not had a single drink
14
The Nightingale 2019 - the most important film that has ever emerged from Australia, the most important film ever about Australia.
3
What about The Lighthouse?
7
My early pick for Best Picture is "The Last Black Man in San Francisco". I fear that it disappeared too quickly to gain critical mass but it is a fantastic movie.
14
I’m mystified over the “Marriage Story” hype. Maybe my expectations would have been met if had been titled “Divorce 101”.
Once upon a Time in Hollypark, an Irish Jester held in his palm the Marriage Card.
1
What about The King on Netflix? I want to see that at the Oscars ...
7
The fact that no foreign language film has won Best Picture suggests it would be farcical to do so now. It would imply that all past winners really were the best in the world rather than just the best in the US, or maybe US and Britain. As if not one of the great films by Kurosawa, Fellini and co. was better than the Oscar winner that year. Just keep it as best English language film and don’t pretend otherwise.
8
@David You're suggesting we need to repeat past mistakes because by correcting them we will have to acknowledge the past mistakes existed in the first place? How very Soviet of you. You must correct the error and acknowledge that it exists. It doesn't make past non-winners somehow unworthy. The Academy is still generally in line with American cultural limitations/preferences. It is not perfect.
4
@David The Academy is an American institution that is promoting the American film industry. They are likely to pick American films as winners that cater to the American audience.
2
I know it's not discussed here but one of our favorite cinema experiences this year had been "Apollo 11", as it should win best documentary.
Of course, the only bad thing about that had been Nixon's appearance calling the astronauts in congratulation! He probably had the line bugged!
I hope "The Irishmen" doesn't win any awards.
We're still speechless over how he could have made such a terrible movie as "The Wolf of Wall Street", such a great director yet Martin Scorsese stooped to such a low level. It just came off as such a money grab.
4
It’s not true that no foreign language film has won best picture. “Roma” won Best Picture at the 91st Academy Awards.
1
No that was Green Book. Roma got Best Director.
9
I can't wait to head to the theater and finally see some movies again. I haven't really watched too many movies over the past two years, except for the big blockbusters. But even then, sometimes I fall asleep in the theater.
2
You should go and watch Corpus Christi. Such a great film about spirituality vs religion, individuality vs community, inclusion vs rejection in a time of conservative intensification in the world of NOW. Watched it at Toronto Film Festival, everyone was stunned by it. Not many people saw it though. Too bad films like Corpus Christi never get access to wider audiences despite being really valuable.
2
DId anyone like Tarantino's movie? I saw in the theater. I guess he should get an award for making a film without a script.
7
@Mhevey agreed I found it boring
4
@Mhevey
I personally loved it for taking me back to such a different time in history.
Thats all I ask of any film I see; remove me from my seat and take me someplace else....but it still has to be a good film
Ive seen some horrible movies with my R pass but this was one of the good ones.
2
Without any doubt, Pain and Glory is the best film we have seen this year. Parasite was an enormous disappointment despite good acting and cinematograpy. It is a tonal mess.
5
"Parasite" was a great late '70's KISS song.
2
"...but these days, Oscar voters tend to prefer their winners big."
Huh? Moonlight? Spotlight? Greenbook? Even "The Shape of Water," which had some wonderfully inventive production values as a period piece, had a budget of only 20 million. None of the Best Picture winners of the last several years could be mistaken for Gone with the Wind or Lawrence of Arabia. Simply, ambition of scale hasn't really been a surefire Oscar touchstone for a while. The last truly big picture that got Best Picture was Jackson's Return of the King.
17
The Lighthouse, Motherless Brooklyn, Pain and Glory
17
I am definitely voting for the movie I haven’t seen yet.
6
@ThePB: ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ is very, very good. It is on the list. Ir definitely evokes the place at the time...
13
The nominees will be the films with the stars the Academy believes will look good on the red carpet and boost ratings.
1
One gets tired of these world-weary and cynical comments. Many days it does seem like the world is going to hell. It certainly will if we all submit to and embrace the darkness. I guess that I’m just a half glass full sort of guy.
7
Dollar for dollar, "Arthur 2 - On The Rocks" is the best movie ever made.
4
@Stevie Surely you jest. You must have forgotten about "Leonard Part 6."
2
@Steven Levy
"It's got I.O.L. - instant on lighting."
"He's right dear, virtually no delay. "
That's the kind of writing you just don't see anymore.
1
@Stevie
I love your enthusiasm.
Good for you.
1
Hollywood only got a 70 for the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. I can't imagine it winning after that.
1
In addition to "Parasite", we'd also throw in "The Farewell" as worthy of Best Picture.
6
The Farewell was a critical and commercial flop. Where did you get this logic from?
4
A critical flop?
A commercial flop?
Sure, it's not Avengers box office but based on its budget, it did very well. It even made more on a per theater basis than Avengers did in its first few weeks.
It wasn't a critical flop either. It was well reviewed and has high ratings on Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB.
It's a very good independent movie.
13
@FrankD. Actually, The Farewell was well-received critically (all positive reviews, one mixed) and was sold to A24 for twice what it cost to make. Best buzz at Sundance and simply flew from there. DVD sales just happening, so basically you don’t know what you’re talking about.
10
Unless we get some great December releases it sounds like a depressingly weak year. Of this list I've seen "Parasite" and "The Farewell," and neither is Best Picture quality - though I could see some deserved acting nominations coming out of them. It would be especially tragic if "Parasite" got nominated when the far superior Korean movie "Burning" was snubbed in the Foreign Language category last year.
4
In the Bombshell clip, pay close attention to how Charlize uses her eyes and mouth to convey a feeling about her character. She's spectacularly good.
13
Parasite has been our favorite movie all year!
We haven't seen "The Irishman" but "The Wolf of Wall Street" was so bad, we're not getting our hopes up.
7
Your reporter didnt mention one of the year's best: Almodovar's "Pain and Glory." The press agents must have missed him.
27
The Lighthouse.
6
Taika Waititi is only just beginning.. before long, Peter Jackson will be relegated to being the second best movie maker in Aotearoa
9
Taika Waititi has already surpassed Peter Jackson, in my opinion, which may be why Taika was voted NZer of the year in 2017. He is a brilliant auteur with a distinctly Kiwi tone which we appreciate so much down here. His films are funny but frequently deeply moving. Jojo Rabbit is no exception. Check out Taika's first ever (short) film, "Tama Tu", which you can view on YouTube -it was funded by the NZ Film Commission- to see his particular combination of laughter and gravitas. To NYT readers: do watch Jojo Rabbit; it's not an easy subject but you will find that Taika Waititi has produced another fine film.
8
I thought "Once upon a time..." was filled with fun imagery and wrapped up in a satisfying way. However, I also left the theater to use the restroom positive that I wasn't going to miss much. To be courteous, I rushed back to the theater and asked my friend what I missed. "Not much" he said, "just Margo Robbie's toes".
I liked it, can't say its best picture worthy.
7
@Muta
Yeah same. It was a fun watch but one that is mostly forgettable. Great throwbacks to LA in the 60s but Sally Menke’s editing was sorely missing. I can’t image this will win Best Picture.
3
@Muta
I enjoyed it as well but the story was rather thin. And a bit long.
2
Why do movies have to be separated into “Male Dominated” and “Female Dominated” when written about? is that necessary? What’s the point, if any?
9
@Kevin Unfortunately, it is necessary. In the history of the Oscars, more than half of the Best Picture winners, including last year's, have failed the Bechdel Test. Over the past 25 years, the only winner that didn't have the majority of dialogue conducted by men was 'Chicago'.
Generally, in 82% of movies, 2 out of the 3 main characters are men, and 75% of movies feature men speaking for most of the time.
Women are ridiculously underrepresented in film, so it's nice to acknowledge the rare stories in which they are prominently featured. I wouldn't watch a bad movie just because it has women in it, but hearing that a movie is female-led can be an extra incentive to watch, both for grown women and parents with young girls.
You will also notice that the reference to gender was made in regards to a female-dominated film about women who were badly treated by men in the media industry, whereas the fact that the main female character in 'The Irishman' only speaks six words doesn't appear to require a mention.
If we had even roughl equal representation of men and women in film, then these categories wouldn't be necessary. As it stands, I'm happy about every female-led movie that gets some reognition.
7
I think this whole process is rigged and this article talking about moods and moments only strengthens that belief. "Liberal" Hollywood might withhold support rather than acknowledge actresses portraying FOX presenters. A quiet movie about a divorce might not get acknowledged because "Oscar voters prefer their winners big." It's a load of nonsense.
I hadn't heard of Marriage Story or Parasite, but the trailers are interesting. The "Oscar voters" can do what they want...I'll vote with my dollars.
5
The Lighthouse The Lighthouse The Lighthouse...and Midsommer!
9
Ad Astra and The Lighthouse both deserved mention here but I can wait until the Oscars when I'm betting they will get more credit. The surreal Monos was outstanding too... unfortunately I was the only person in the theater watching it when I went...
3
Eye roll...here we go again. A handful of people in the know create buzz about some ( mostly obscure, mostly fall releases) films. Then those films are described as Oscar buzz worthy. Waiting for Guffman anyone?
6
@MD Monroe I would offer for your consideration a film that’s creating a lot of buzz “Home for Purim” - a story of the importance of holidays to bring family together.
1
@MD Monroe It's all too easy to disagree with Kyle. Has he ever been right?
Another shoutout for Monos. And I can’t wait to see Almodóvar’s film too.
8
Most of these look fascinating--even Little Women, a book I found interminable.
I would say that if Academy voters want to honor a body of work, Tarrantino's doesn't even begin to ascend to the insight and expertise of Scorsese's.
8
@cmk
Oh, goodness. Of the list here, I've only seen "Once Upon A Time in Hollywood," and "The Irishman," and while the latter is a masterwork in many ways, it's the former that stole my heart.
In fairness, it's probably because I grew up in LA in the '70s, just before the time in which "Once..." takes place. It is so very evocative of LA at the time, down to such minute detail, that you feel like you've entered into a time machine as much as a movie.
It is beautifully filmed, and while Tarantino indulges in some overly-long scenes and shots, and his obscene-turned-comic violence in a couple of places, it also has a hopeful, beautiful, nostalgic soul. I loved every second of it. One of my favorite movies in a very long time.
40
@Livonian You actually grew up after the time in which "Once..." takes place. The Tate-LaBianca murders occurred in 1969.
3
@Livonian Neither of these films has shown here yet, but I've tkts for the first big screen showing of "The Irishman" next week.
It sounds like we are from the about the same generation, and it's easy to see why the nostalgia in "Once"--esp if you grew up in LA--might be appealing.
I must admit, however, that over the years I've given up on Tarantino. He strikes me as more of a brand than an artist. After almost 30 yrs of filmmaking, he seems like he's simply manufacturing slightly different versions of "cool."
The cinematography may get better, but the content doesn't seem to deepen. Just my opinion, though.
1
The Netflix bias will probably sink "The Irishman" like it did last year to "Roma" which I felt was deserving of the Best Picture Oscar last year. We try to make a point of seeing all the nominees before the awards telecast in order to try our hands at forecasting who should, who will win and who was left out. It makes for a more enjoyable viewing experience.
16
@George Santini But at the end of the day, who died and made the AMPAS the be all and end all arbiter of what is worthy and what isn’t?
4
Almodovar’s new film “Pain and Glory” deserves consideration. I never really paid much attention to Antonio Banderas as an actor ...my bad...he is exceptional as a director reviewing the past and coming to terms with the present, albeit grudgingly. Beautiful in many ways, it’s a celebration of what’s possible in film, taking the audience through a variety of emotions while remaining entertaining throughout.
33
@walt amses
Banderas was exceptional in Dolor y gloria, the best I have ever seen him. His subtle physical manifestations of the character’s pain and naturalistic yet quiet execution of the dialogue were definitely Oscar worthy. I first saw him in Almodóvar’s exquisite, “Mujeres al borde . . .” but he has truly evolved as an actor.
10
Joker was splendid.
I have yet to see a movie this year which took me from my seat in the cinema to actually being the person on the screen quite as much as Phoenix did with his character.
There was a mastery of the art of acting that extended beyond an actor his age suggestive of a very deep knowledge and learning from the history of acting. There were sedate elements of the old Japanese movies, there were elements of Scorsese.
Never have the comic book performance felt so real as though you could walk in the character’s shoes.
Just splended.
12
@BBD
The acting by Phoenix was breathtaking, I was also on the edge of my seat, tensely watching his character. But the film itself was not exceptional enough for Best Picture. Entertaining for sure but not worthy of such an award.
6
Parasite was extremely boring and pretentious. Forced myself to stay until 2/3 in and then had to leave, it never seemed to end...Once Upon A Time was excruciatingly boring and pointless too. Need to see the rest of the films on this list. Liked Joker, amazing performance...a few Oscars probably here, but got repetitive. Would only recommend to a few.
Where is Monos?
9
Charlize Theron is killing it these days. Hard to think of a more versatile performer/producer.
22
@Steve Williams The rock?
He’s certainly everywhere, and I enjoy a lot of what he does. But it’s hard for him to disappear into a character like Theron did with Aileen Wuornos. She appears to have pulled off the same trick with Megan Kelly in Bombshell (at least from the teaser). Lately she’s done a good comedy with Seth Rogan and the most stylish action flick in years with Atomic Blond. Toss in producing credits like the Mindhunter series and kablam, mind blown.
2
Parasite was fantastic-- chilling, relevant, and at once literal and metaphorical. I hope it takes best picture!
45
So the Joker made the cut, but Midsommar didn't ? I give up.
14
@anxiety attack Agreed! and "The Lighthouse", too.
3
I would have thought Motherless Brooklyn would have been nominated. Lovely film.
14
@Rick Harris. Totally agree! Gorgeous film.
@Rick Harris It may yet be officially, as the official nominations won't be announced for probably a couple of months. The writer even admits in the last paragraph of the introduction that there are still some more potential awards contenders coming down the pike.
I don't know why that movie wasn't highlighted in this article as it's been out for some time now. I haven't seen it nor have I seen most of the other films mentioned, so I don't have any insight into why it was omitted.
Saw "Parasite" three days ago and am still thinking about it. Highly recommend!
65
Everything is fluff next to “Monos.” That’s the best film of 2019.
Uh hellooooo, The Lighthouse??
Best Actor
Best Supporting Actor
* Should be at least nominated for Best Picture
10
The Oscars. Ho hum.
32
I nominate Bruce Springsteen's "Western Stars." It is a unique hybrid of documentary, concert film and personal meditation. It has everything that great cinema should include: beautiful cinematography, a sweeping musical score and a narration that offers food for thought.
1
"Joker" was ok for what it was (and the only plausible comic book movie ever made). "Once Upon a Time" was utterly pointless. I definitely won't try to catch all the nominees like I did last year.
8
For me it's between Jojo and Once Upon a Time. Once Upon a Time was an honest to goodness enjoyable film. I really liked it and would like to watch it again at some point. Jojo looks oddly fun and interesting so, yeah. It's challenging.
So good.
8
The Farewell is my pick. This is probably going to be the first movie about the lives of Chinese and Chinese family values winning an Academy Award. Good Luck. I watched Hollywood movies since 1936 and the first movie was King Kong. Later I watched Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times. I am still watching Hollywood movies today. Farewell is a much better movie than Crazy Rich Asians. Flower Drum Song was another great movie about Chinese lives produced in 1967.
3
@McLean123 whoa. how old are you? and the farewell has no chance unfortuately
3
@McLean123 Why does one feel compelled to compare one movie to another with nothing in common other than the casts' racial appearance or ethnicity? That's cringey and lazy.
3
That person has been watching movies since 1936, so take it easy
5