I have long called myself a lover of movies and cinema, though I have not always branched out in the movies I watched. I usually watch shallow, quick-hitting movies with an easy plot and a lot of humor to carry it along. This year I decided to delve deeper into cinema and to watch every single Academy Award Best Picture Nominee. Here are my thoughts, rankings, and judgments.
9th Place: “Joker”
I did not like “Joker” at all. I went to see it with high expectations and left the theatre feeling like I had just been duped out of $10. When I saw the high praise I was shocked. The movie had no real plot or substance, pandered to be culturally relevant, and the cinematography and sequence of events tilted more towards confusing than artistic. The movie gets 4 stars as opposed to 1 because of a good individual performance from Joaquin Phoenix. If you have not seen this movie I recommend never seeing it—you will be a better person because of it.
Final Judgement: 4/10.
8th Place: “Little Women”
I did not know what to expect going into “Little Women.” As a product of high school athletics, I felt weird going in. I was one of the only guys in the theatre. I was genuinely surprised by this period piece. It had vivid colors and sets, as well as great acting and genuine chemistry between the actors. It was also directed and produced beautifully, as I was able to track with the non-chronological storytelling. All this being said, it felt a little long, and I started to lose interest in the later-middle acts.
Final Judgement: 7.5/10.
7th Place: “Ford vs. Ferrari”
“Ford vs. Ferrari” is a movie that is very much carried by the leads. The characters are easy to sympathize with, despite their going through unique circumstances. The writing was excellent all the way through the last powerful scene. It is also a movie that makes it super fun to drive home from the theater.
Final Judgement: 7.5/10.
6th Place: “Marriage Story”
“Marriage Story” messed me up. Did I enjoy it? No. Was it a good movie? Yes. Adam Driver and Scarlett Johannson crushed it—without the range and emotion of these actors, the script would amount to nothing. It discusses the reasoning and flaws that conflict in marriage and amplifies them to offer a dramatic tale of falling out of love and inching into hate. Much more than a movie where Kylo Ren and Black Widow get a divorce.
Final Judgement: 8/10.
5th Place: “Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood”
“Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood” was a very entertaining movie. While I went in expecting that I knew the ending of the movie, Tarantino completely flipped my expectations. It shocked me, I felt tricked, and I loved it! This movie is not for the faint of heart, as it has some very violent and gory moments. This is a classic Tarantino, even though you may not realize it until the end.
Final Judgement: 8/10.
4th Place: “The Irishman”
At the beginning of this movie, you think that it is pandering to old men, but as you get further in you realize it definitely is, though I can confidently say I enjoyed the movie. The movie presents deep and troubled characters that you care about, even though they run around killing people. Deeply sad, deeply tragic, and very long (I would recommend watching it in sittings, rather than watching it in one sitting like I did). Shoutout to Ryan Rhodes, who watched the whole movie with me.
Final Judgement 8/10
3rd Place: “Parasite”
A very provocative film that kept me engaged, even with the language gap. A good commentary of class separation, featuring interesting sub-plots concerning every member of the family. I also liked how it did not depict the poor family as good guys and the rich family as bad guys, even with thrilling scenes of the poor family almost getting caught. Very good cinematography and sets as well. This could possibly be the best movie of the year.
Final Judgement: 8.5/10.
2nd Place: “1917”
Towards the end of Christmas break, I saw “1917,” and I was the only attendee under the age of 50. What I saw was a story of survival stumbling through post-battle land, which seems to always have a dead body in the shot. The cinematography of a perceived one-shot film is extremely well done—you follow the protagonists throughout the whole movie without losing sight of them. “1917” is not a fun movie, but it is a very powerful depiction of the risk and horror of war.
Final Judgement 9/10.
1st Place: “Jojo Rabbit”
I’ll be candid with you—”Jojo Rabbit” was by far my favorite movie in the group, though, since I saw this movie 5 times in theatres, this judgment is extremely biased. “Jojo Rabbit” is a WWII coming-of-age story that follows a ten-year-old German boy, Jojo, in the Hitler Youth program. When he finds a Jewish girl his mom is hiding in his attic, he questions everything he thought he knew was right. Roman Griffin Davis plays a confused boy with great range. The movie will make you laugh and it will make you cry (I cried 5 times). This is a high-quality movie that I feel will not get the justice it deserves.
Final Judgement: 10/10.
This is my full recap of my Oscar journey. Do not think that I am trying to push my opinions down your throat. Everybody watches movies differently and leaves with their own opinions. If you want to see more of my movie reviews you can follow me on the movie review app “Letterboxd” @jstim.