The culmination of an extended and delayed award season is in sight, with the 93rd Oscars taking place on April 25 to honor the best in film from the past year. There’s no shortage of surprises, snubs and speculation ahead of the event, and there’s plenty of films worth checking out.
Whether you want to be informed, entertained or simply get an edge in your Oscars pool, we’ve rounded up the most notable nominees and where to watch them so you’re ready for the big night.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Director - David Fincher; Best Actor - Gary Oldman; Best Supporting Actress - Amanda Seyfried.
What it’s about: The Academy sure loves nominating films about Hollywood. Mank, about the creation of the film Citizen Kane by screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz, earned a total of 10 nominations and has been lauded for its visual style, writing and strong acting.
Where to watch: Mank is a Netflix original.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Director - Chloé Zhao; Best Actress - Frances McDormand.
What it’s about: This meditative, intimate story follows a woman who, after losing her husband and job, decides to uproot her life and travel the American west. Nomadland won the Golden Globe for Best Picture and Best Director earlier this year.
Where to watch: Stream on Hulu.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Director - Lee Isaac Chung; Best Actor - Steven Yeun; Best Supporting Actress - Yuh-Jung Youn.
What it’s about: The American immigrant experience is on display in this story about a Korean family settling in Arkansas in the 1980s. This portrait of a family follows their financial struggles and dreams, sense of belonging and what it means to have a home.
Where to watch: Rent on Amazon Prime Video.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Actor - Anthony Hopkins; Supporting Actress - Olivia Coleman.
What it’s about: This lively, biting story about an elderly man suffering from dementia is both engaging and uncomfortable. It’s driven by two powerhouse performances by Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Coleman.
Where to watch: The Father is on Premium Video On Demand starting March 26.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Supporting Actor - Daniel Kaaluya; Best Supporting Actor - Lakeith Standfield.
What it’s about: This film follows Fred Hampton, a radical leader of the Black Panthers, and his friend and betrayer Bill O’Neal. It’s a riveting story about race, politics, friendship and community that is simultaneously heartbreaking and enraging, especially since we know how the story ends.
Where to watch: Enjoy on HBO Max or PVOD.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Director - Emerald Fennell; Best Actress - Carey Mulligan.
What it’s about: This stylish film allows for a darkly comic coating over a terrible scourge in society. Motivated by past trauma, Cassandra seeks out awful men in her spare time to teach them about consent and respect in violent and thrilling ways.
Where to watch: Available on PVOD.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Actor - Riz Ahmed; Best Supporting Actor - Paul Raci.
What it’s about: This curious film tells the story of a rock band drummer who begins to lose his hearing and has to face questions about his future. He undergoes a quest full of hope and salvation after his life is thrown into chaos.
Where to watch: Stream on Amazon Prime Video.
Notable nominations: Best Picture; Best Supporting Actor - Sacha Baron Cohen,
What it’s about: A courtroom drama based on events in the 1960s, this story features Aaron Sorkin’s signature fast-paced, slick dialogue with plenty of overt references to modern-day politics. It’s aspirational, highly dramatic, and — like most Sorkin works — a little bit cute.
Where to watch: This is a Netflix exclusive.
Notable nominations: Best Actor - Chadwick Boseman; Best Actress - Viola Davis
What it’s about: A beautifully-adapted stage play, this tale follows four black musicians backing up famed singer Ma Rainey across one afternoon at a recording studio in 1920s Chicago. It’s an at times funny and often intense drama about race, money and fame. It’s also Chadwick Boseman’s final film role; he posthumously won the Golden Globe for Best Actor.
Where to watch: Stream only on Netflix.
Notable nominations: Best Supporting Actor - Leslie Odom Jr.
What it’s about: This compelling story tells a fictionalized account of the meeting of four Black icons of the 1960s: Cassius Clay, Jim Brown, Sam Cooke and Malcolm X. The conversations they share across an evening deal with their approach to civil rights, religion and how to best serve the Black community.
Where to watch: Stream on Amazon Prime Video.
Notable nominations: Best Actress - Andra Day.
What it’s about: A film about the FBI investigating a prominent Black figure: jazz singer Billie Holiday, who became the target of a sting operation with the intention of infusing race into the war on drugs. While the film has received mixed reviews, Andra Day’s stellar performance already earned her a Golden Globe.
Where to watch: Stream on Hulu.
Notable nominations: Best Director - Thomas Vinterberg; Best International Film.
What it’s about: And now for something different: This story follows four high school teachers who love to drink. So much so in fact, they hatch a plan to drink regularly in order to maintain a buzz. It’s wild, beautiful and a bit of a gut-check, backed by a wondrous performance by Mads Mickelsen.
Where to watch: Currently available on PVOD.
Notable nominations: Best Actress - Vanessa Kirby.
What it’s about: A lengthy, intimate scene of a home childbirth gives way to a film about the tragic aftermath and the division that occurs between a husband and wife.
Where to watch: Stream only on Netflix.
Notable nominations: Best Supporting Actress - Maria Bakalova.
What it’s about: The surprising sequel to the iconic film “Borat,” this story enlists rising star Maria Bakalova as Borat’s teenage daughter as they navigate an America that’s politically and racially charged amidst a pandemic.
Where to watch: Stream exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
Notable nominations: Best Supporting Actress - Glenn Close.
What it’s about: This widely panned film follows a Yale law student returning home to his rural Ohio family. In addition to this Oscar nod, Glenn Close was nominated for a Golden Globe as well as a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actress.
Where to watch: This is a Netflix Original.
Onward: Disney+
Over the Moon: Netflix
A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon: Netflix
Soul: Disney+
Wolfwalkers: Apple TV+
Collective: Netflix
Crip Camp: Netflix
The Mole Agent: PVOD
My Octopus Teacher: Netflix
Time: Amazon Prime Video
The Father
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
Minari
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7
Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round
David Fincher, Mank
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Chloe Zhao, Nomadland
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
Viola Davis, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Andra Day, United States vs. Billie Holiday
Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand, Nomadland
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman
Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins, The Father
Gary Oldman, Mank
Steven Yeun, Minari
Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy
Olivia Colman, The Father
Amanda Seyfried, Mank
Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari
Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah
Leslie Odom, Jr., One Night in Miami
Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
LaKeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah
Judas and the Black Messiah
Minari
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
The Father
Nomadland
One Night in Miami
The White Tiger
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
News of the World
Nomadland
The Trial of the Chicago 7
The Father
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7
Onward
Over the Moon
A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Soul
Wolfwalkers
Burrow
Genius Loci
If Anything Happens I Love You
Opera
Yes-People
Feeling Through
The Letter Room
The Present
Two Distant Strangers
White Eye
Another Round
Better Days
Collective
The Man Who Sold His Skin
Quo Vadis, Aida?
Collective
Crip Camp
The Mole Agent
My Octopus Teacher
Time
Colette
A Concerto Is a Conversation
Do Not Split
Hunger Ward
A Love Song for Latasha
Da 5 Bloods
Mank
Minari
News of the World
Soul
"Fight For You," Judas and the Black Messiah
"Hear My Voice," The Trial of the Chicago 7
"Husavik," Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
"Io Si (Seen)," The Life Ahead
"Speak Now," One Night in Miami
Greyhound
Mank
News of the World
Soul
Sound of Metal
Emma
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Mank
Mulan
Pinocchio
Emma
Hillbilly Elegy
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Mank
Pinocchio
The Father
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Mank
News of the World
Tenet
Love and Monsters
The Midnight Sky
Mulan
The One and Only Ivan
Tenet
Anthony Marcusa is a writer for BestReviews. BestReviews is a product review company with a singular mission: to help simplify your purchasing decisions and save you time and money.
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