Best International Feature: Indonesia, Senegal, Thailand

by Cláudio Alves

Tomorrow we'll know which 15 films made the Academy's shortlist in the Best International Feature Film category. In this series of capsule review trios, I've looked at 27 films whose quality spanned from shoddy propaganda to caustic masterpiece. To end in a round number, I'd like to shine a light on three films that are very unlikely to be chosen by AMPAS. Three features whose singular oddness and inspiringly weird ideas deserve to be celebrated, even though one of them can be called faultless. Join me, as I try to describe the wonders of an Indonesian horror flick with historical ambitions, a Senegalese tragedy with Shakespearean proportions, and a Thai coming-of-age tale centered on the ideologies inherent to minimalist interior design…

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Best International Feature: Slovenia, Sweden, Ukraine

by Cláudio Alves

The Academy will announce its 15 finalists for the Best International Feature Oscar next Tuesday. For the first time in years, the shortlist will not include any saves from the executive committee, meaning that some more challenging pieces might suffer for it. In any case, as that day approaches, our joint adventure through the submissions continues. However, since time is short, I've decided to focus these last few groups of capsule reviews on pictures that enchanted me, the kind of titles I'd be ecstatic to see on the shortlist. Without further ado, let's delve into Slovenia's meditation on memory, Sweden's tale of chaotic motherhood, and Ukraine's sci-fi dystopia… 

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Best International Feature: Iran, Jordan, Saudi Arabia

by Cláudio Alves

In the past decade, Middle Eastern cinema has been having a moment among Oscar voters. At the very least, the cinema of Asghar Farhadi has earned AMPAS' attention. The director's A Separation and The Salesman won the trophies for Best International Feature, and the first film got an additional nomination for Best Original Screenplay. As for other countries from the region, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Lebanon have each won at least one nomination in the past ten years. I'm excited to see if this trend continues in the 2020s. With that in mind, let's delve into the films submitted for the 93rd Academy Awards by Iran, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia…

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Best International Feature: Bosnia & Herzegovina, Ireland, Lithuania

by Cláudio Alves

Historical narratives tend to do quite well in the Best International Feature Oscar race. For decades, World War II stories dominated the category though, more recently, this tendency has faded. Every sort of real-life drama enshrined in the appearance of prestigious importance is still catnip for Oscar voters. It's especially true if the film in question is European. Considering AMPAS' tastes, let's look at three submissions from the Old Continent, whose explorations of history differ in fascinating fashion. The Bosnian entry makes a thriller out of a massacre, Ireland draws western stylings from famine while Lithuania revels in the ridiculous ideas that stem from pre-war panic…

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Best International Feature: Costa Rica, Peru, Uruguay

by Cláudio Alves

Even though the Best International Feature category exists to celebrate world cinema, AMPAS tends to be biased in favor of European films. Productions from Africa, Asia, and Latin America tend to get shortchanged, although many stupendous films harken to those continents. Those tendencies may be waning though; In the last decade, only half of the winners came from Europe. With recent victories for Mexico and Chile, maybe we're living through a newfound openness from the Academy towards Latin American excellence? Speaking of which, we've already reviewed the flicks from Argentina, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, and Venezuela. Now, it's time to examine the submissions of Costa Rica, Peru, and Uruguay… 

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