Monday, December 20, 2021 at 10:06PM The 2021 film year will stretch well into 2022 -- that happens with late Oscar ceremonies -- but we finally have a title we're really excited about to look forward to the month after the Oscars. Robert Eggers' viking drama The Northman starring Alexander Skarsgård hits theaters on April 22nd. Let's discuss the trailer with our Yes No Maybe So™ system...
Thursday, December 9, 2021 at 9:35AM by Matt St Clair
Flee, now playing in limited release, is transcendent. The animated memoir could break records by competing in three Feature categories: Animated Feature, Documentary Feature, and, because it’s the Danish submission, Best International Feature. Both Collective and Honeyland recently made history recently by competing in the latter two categories simultaneously, but no film has found itself in contention for all three. Flee might accomplish this historic feat, but it should go even further by also being nominated for Best Picture.
A nomination would allow the glass ceiling for documentaries to finally break. In the ceremony’s soon-to-be 94-year history, no documentary has ever competed in the top category...
Monday, October 25, 2021 at 2:22PM by Nathaniel R
It's official. Finally. Two truly excellent Scandinavian films are joining the Oscar competition. Norway's Cannes sensation Worst Person in the World, a romantic dramedy from the great Joachim Trier (Reprise, Oslo August 31st, Thelma), and the animated documentary Flee about a gay Afghan refugee who made his home in Denmark are now officially in the hunt for Oscar glory. The Best International Feature Film category is always hugely competitive and the voting system is complex so there are never any "locks" but both films have a headstart at making the 15 wide finalist list; they're already widely seen and wildly acclaimed from their multiple festival outings. Flee will actually be gunning for multiple nominations as it could theoretically compete for the two other specialty feature categories: Documentary and Animated Feature.
Norway and Denmark aren't the only countries to announce over the past few days. After the jump twelve other Oscar hopefuls from around the Globe...
Friday, October 22, 2021 at 11:00AM by Nathaniel R
Have you either of these classics of mid 60s international cinema? In one of the strangest timetables in Oscar history, both of these two film's leading ladies were honored with Best Actress Oscar nominations but neither in the year their film was honored: Sophia Loren (Marriage Italian Style) was nominated for Best Actress in 1964; Ida Kaminska (The Shop on Main Street) was nominated for Best Actress in 1966; inbetween those Oscar years the films themselves were nominated for Best Foreign Language Film of 1965 (now called Best International Feature Film).
I was thrilled to rejoin Juan Carlos Ojano on "One Inch Barrier" to discuss 1965's Best international race, a strong vintage, which also included the family drama Blood on the Land (Greece), the very horny Dear John (Sweden), and the supernatural Kwaidan (Japan). We discuss Best Actress, Oscar's resistance to Asian cinema, sex in cinema, and Sophia Loren's magnetism...
Friday, September 17, 2021 at 3:00PM by Nathaniel R
As we've long noted for the rest of the online world that doesn't pay super close attention to this category even if they'll dutifully share press release, Denmark is currently Oscar's favourite country (statistically speaking). In the past 12 years they've been nominated six times, won twice, and also made the finals twice more without actually snagging the nomination. That's the best run of any country in quite a long while in this category. They're the defending champion since the brilliant boozy Another Round took the gold at the 93rd Oscars. It's rare for countries to win this category in consecutive years but Denmark could given their hot streak. They've actually done that once before (1987 & 1988 with Babette's Feast and Pelle the Conqueror). Here are their three finalists for submission this time around...
