[I review the "The Holdovers" - nominated for a 2024 Best Picture Oscar - as well as "Rustin" and "The Color Purple" - films with Oscar nominated performances.]
Oscar nominations were announced this last week and no surprise that "Barbenheimer" ("Barbie" and "Oppenheimer") dominated. I pride myself in seeing all of the nominated films and performances before the ceremony that I can - I don't live in a very large metropolitan area so often the smaller films don't even make it here - but I am happy to say that I have already seen most of the films nominated and weighed in on them, too.
So if you are like me and you want to be in the know, you might have some boning up to do if you want to be Oscar ready, especially if you are going to participate in some Oscar competitions. I am here to help!
Here are some nominated films and performances that I hadn't yet gotten around to or that had snuck up on me (and maybe you too) and where you can find them.
Also, at the end of this post, I have listed all of the nominated films with links to my reviews which also tell you where you can find the films.
See you at the Oscars!
The Holdovers (2023)
A bittersweet dramedy about a history teacher, a cook and a student forced to stay behind at a boarding school over winter break.
My movie-going companion wanted to see this one ages ago, but I didn't know much about it and, not being a Paul Giamatti fan, I dragged my feet. Well, I should have picked my feet up.
This was one of my favorite movies of the year.
Paul Giamatti plays Paul Hunham, who teaches Ancient History at Barton Academy, a New England boy's elite boarding school. His students are rich, entitled and troubled. It's Christmas break in 1970, the Vietnam War is in full-swing and five boys must stay at school over the break because of various family issues.
Hunham is not a well-liked teacher, not by his students or his fellow teachers. Ironically, Hunham also attended Barton on scholarship as a young man. But now he is an authoritarian with a difficult personality and has no qualms failing his students if they don't produce, something that Barton's headmaster is not happy about, since giving a donor's son a failing grade leads to no money for the school.
So Hunham is on the naughty list for Christmas, and as punishment, must stay behind to babysit the boys who have to stay over Christmas break. And babysitting these boys is not an easy job. They are troubled, especially young Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), whose mother is leaving him at school so she can go off on honeymoon with her new husband. And no one likes Angus either. Keeping them all company is the cafeteria manager, Mary Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), who is grieving the loss of her son, a graduate of Barton and who was later killed in Vietnam.
Hunham stays true to form, forcing the boys to study and exercise instead of enjoying their time off, but after a few days, one of the boys' father arrives in a helicopter to take them all skiing. See? I said they were entitled. Sadly, though, Hunham is not able to reach Angus's parents to get permission for him to leave so he is left alone with Hunham and Mary.
All kinds of hijinks and misadventures ensue as the mutual dislike of each other turns to understanding as Angus and Hunham each learn about the other and bond - we knew that was going to happen, but it's how they get there that will keep you watching.
Paul Giamatti has made a living being a curmudgeon ever since his dramatic outburst about merlot in the movie "Sideways (also directed by Alexander Payne, who directed this film)." I always saw him as a one-note actor, boiling over and shaking with anger as his specialty. But here he shows a softer side. Yes, he still gets to emote but his performance is very nuanced. I believed him as a troubled guy with a disappointing life and I cared about him. His Best Actor Golden Globe win and now this Oscar nomination - well-deserved.
But Da'Vine Joy Randolph was a revelation. Not having seen the film yet and not knowing about her performance, I was surprised by her Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe win - who the heck is she? - but after seeing her in this, again well-deserved. It was a wonderful performance. And last but not least, newcomer Sessa was also wonderful in a difficult role and I am sure we will be seeing more of him.
Filmed at several Massachusetts boarding schools including Groton, the beauty of the campus and the snow-covered New England towns, covered bridge and all, belies the struggles going on with our characters in this very special, bittersweet film, very thoughtfully written by David Hemingson, whose original screenplay has been nominated for a 2024 Academy Award. The film has also been nominated for Best Picture, Best Film Editing with Giamatti and Randolph getting Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress nods respectively. Sadly, director Alexander Payne was snubbed.
Rosy the Reviewer says...a wonderful bittersweet Christmas movie that you will want to watch year round. One of the best movies of the year! (Peacock)
It's sad how people can be erased from history when they don't fit the mold. That's what happened to Bayard Rustin.
Bayard Rustin (Colman Domingo) was a mover and shaker in Martin Luther King's fight for civil rights. He is right there behind King as King gave his "I Have a Dream" speech at the 1963 March on Washington, which Rustin was instrumental in making happen. But Bayard Rustin was also an openly gay man and that didn't fit the picture.
Produced by Michele and Barack Obama, this is Rustin's story, a Quaker and activist who embraced non-violent protest working with Martin Luther King. He actually sparked King to act, but early on, was dismissed by King when King feared being linked with a homosexual. It didn't help that Rustin was suspected of having Communist leanings.
But in 1963, when Rustin wanted to plan a march on Washington, he enlisted King (Aml Ameen) again. He also had to get approval from other movers and shakers in the movement - Roy Wilkins (Chris Rock), A. Philip Randolph (Glynn Turman), John Lewis (Maxwell Whittington-Cooper) and others. The organizers were hoping for 100,000 to show up in Washington D.C. for The March for Freedom and Jobs. They got that and more - 250,000 came and the Civil Rights Act passed nine months later.
Written by Julian Breece and Dustin Lance Black and directed by George C. Wolfe, the film, though very talky, is an historically important film, with a tour de force performance from Domingo, who has been rewarded with a 2024 Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Domingo has been a working actor for years, toiling on TV, but this is his first starring role in a feature film. And he makes the most of it. He also starred in "The Color Purple," (see review below) in a decidedly different role which he also knocked out of the park.
This was not just an homage to Rustin but an homage to political activism and organizing, reminding us of what it takes to make change happen and the people who brought about change via the Civil Rights Movement. And speaking of those people, I would have liked to have seen an epilogue showing the actors next to the real life people with something about what the real life people went on to do. I know epilogues like that can be a cliche, but in this case, these people deserve to be remembered.
In an interview, Domingo said that Michele and Barack Obama had specifically chosen him for the role and that Barack had told him, "There would be no Barack Obama without Bayard Rustin."
Rosy the Reviewer says...an important film about a man who deserves his place in history (Netflix).
The Color Purple (2023)
This is the film version of the stage musical, which ran on Broadway from 2005-2008 (revived in 2016) and which, in turn, was based on the 1985 Oscar-nominated adaption of Alice Walker's 1982 novel. Most of you probably saw the first film and/or read the book, but in case you didn't, here is a recap of the story.
In 1909 Georgia, teenager Celie (Phylicia Pearl Mpasi as young Celie) lives with her sister Nettie (Halle Bailey) and abusive father Alfonso (Deon Cole). Their mother has died and Alfonso has been sexually abusing Celie causing her to become pregnant twice. Both children were taken away from Celie and Alfonso forces her to marry local farmer, "Mister" Johnson (Colman Domingo), who already has three children. She is basically there to take care of the children and act as a housekeeper.
Then Alfonso goes after Nettie but she escapes and moves in with Celie until Mister tries it on with her too. But she is not having it. She leaves telling Celie she will write her every day.
Fast forward to 1917. Now Celie (Fantasia Barrino) is older and resigned to her life of misery. Mister's son Harpo (Corey Hawkins) marries Sofia (Danielle Brooks), but unlike Celie, who is compliant and puts up with abuse, Sofia is defiant. Then singer Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson) comes to town and befriends Celie. These three women bond in this story of sisterhood.
After years of abuse, will Celie finally find her voice and be reunited with Nettie and her children?
If you read the book or saw the original movie, you know the answer. Secrets are revealed and good triumphs over evil. If only life was really like that.
This is a difficult story to live through because of the rampant racism and patriarchy that Celie and others have to endure. But it's also a story of endurance and hope. The acting is excellent, especially Brooks as Sofia (she won a Tony for her performance in the 2016 revival of the Broadway musical and has been nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar) and Colman Domingo as Mister. With this role and his role in "Rustin (see review above)," Domingo certainly had a good 2023. And Whoopi Goldberg, who played Celie in the original film also makes an uncredited cameo appearance as Celie's midwife.
Though this is a musical, it's not one where people burst into song that much for no reason. There is a little of that, but the music is mostly woven into dream sequences, church and stylized dances, so if you think you don't like musicals, this one probably won't bother you that much.
However, the film, directed by Blitz Bazawule with a screenplay by Marcus Gardley, is slow-moving, and though this is not a remake of the earlier movie per se because it's a musical, I had to ask myself - did we need this new version?
Rosy the Reviewer says...I can appreciate the production values and the film is worth seeing for the performances, but I don't think we needed this remake, even if it was a musical version, when we had a perfectly good Oscar nominated film already. When something is good, let's leave it alone, and the original was good (For rent of purchase on Amazon Prime).
And as promised, here is a round-up of the nominated films and performances that you need to see if you want to be in the know when the Oscars roll around. I have included my earlier reviews that also tell you where you can find the film to stream, if available (click on the name of the film).
See you at the Oscars!
Nominated for Best Picture:
- "Anatomy of a Fall" - Five nominations including Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Director
- "Barbie" - Eight nominations including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress
- "The Holdovers" - Five nominations including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress (See review above)
- "Killers of the Flower Moon" - Ten nominations including Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director
- "Maestro" - Seven nominations including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress
- "Oppenheimer" - Thirteen nominations including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director
- "Past Lives" - Two nominations including Best Picture
- "Poor Things" - Eleven nominations including Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director (Stay tuned for review next week)
- "American Fiction" - Six nominations including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor (Stay tuned for review next week)
- "The Zone of Interest" - Five nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Best International Feature Film (will review this film as soon as I can find it somewhere)!
And though these films were not nominated for Best Picture, they included some nominated performances and screenplay:
- "Rustin" - Best Actor (See review above)
- "Nyad" - Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress
- "The Color Purple" - Best Supporting Actress (see review above)
- "May December" - Best Original Screenplay
- "Society of the Snow" - Best International Feature (Stay tuned for review next week)
Thanks for reading!
