The 96th Academy Awards are fast approaching, and movie enthusiasts everywhere are eagerly waiting for the big reveal of the year’s Best Picture winner among those in the rest of the categories. Because 2023 was one of the strongest recent years in cinema, it has become difficult to choose a favorite from all the amazing stories told across every genre.
Fortunately, for those who did not have a chance to go to the theaters and watch their pick of movies, streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and Prime Video make it easy for you to have your own front-row seats and experience these cinematic masterpieces. In the week leading up to Oscar night, here are all the Best Picture Oscar nominees currently available to watch on major streaming platforms.
Oppenheimer (2023)
Oppenheimer
5/5
- Release Date
- July 21, 2023
- Cast
- Cillian Murphy , Matt Damon , Robert Downey Jr. , Emily Blunt , Florence Pugh , Gary Oldman , Josh Hartnett , Jack Quaid , Kenneth Branagh , Rami Malek , Alex Wolff , Matthew Modine
With the highest number of Oscar nominations, Oppenheimer stands on the top rung of the ladder. Adapted from the 2005 biography American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, the biographical drama tells the intriguing true story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the man who led the Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb. The movie mostly focuses on his early academic travels, his personal life, and his involvement in significant research in history. Under the direction of Christopher Nolan, viewers get a glimpse of his broken psyche and the moral challenges Oppenheimer faced upon witnessing the destructive power of the bomb.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Nolan is known for his combination of intellectually stimulating material with a grounded approach to filmmaking. While the director’s credits are vast and exemplary, Oppenheimer is one of his most thought-provoking works yet. With Cillian Murphy leading the film as “Father of the Atomic Bomb” alongside industry A-listers like Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., and Florence Pugh, the film has drawn massive praise.
Oppenheimer has been performing exceptionally well this award season, winning five Golden Globe Awards, eight Critics’ Choice Awards, four BAFTAs, and more. It has received a whopping 13 Academy Award nominations, including the coveted Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor in a Leading Role, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Where to Stream: Oppenheimer is available to stream on Peacock.
Poor Things (2023)
Poor Things is based on the acclaimed 1992 novel by Alasdair Gray. It tells the peculiar story of Bella Baxter, a young woman who once jumped off a bridge to take her own life but was brought back in the strangest way by an eccentric scientist named Godwin Baxter. Having lost her memory and identity during the experiment, Bella begins a new life as a grown woman with the mind of an infant. As she begins to gain perspective and grows curious about the outside world, Bella insists she explore the outside world – and herself. Thus begins her odyssey of self-discovery.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Beyond being a film about the very essence of existence, Poor Things also explores feminism, identity, and what it means to be a woman. Bizarre, adventurous, and whimsical in director Yorgos Lanthimos’ signature style of movie-making, the film can be defined, in some ways, as a dark comedy. Emma Stone offers a bold, captivating, and fearless leading performance, with Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, and Ramy Youssef in equally nuanced roles.
Even though critics are divided about the movie, it has showcased brilliance at the awards so far. Emma Stone won a Gold Globe and a Critics’ Choice Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, with the movie receiving seven and thirteen nominations each. Because it is impressive how the movie uses fanciful visuals and an outrageous premise to probe complex ideas around society, its chances of winning a bunch of Oscars seem high.
Where to Stream: Poor Things is available to buy or rent on Apple TV.
Barbie (2023)
Directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margo Robbie in the title role, Barbie is a movie that takes a non-traditional approach toward the iconic Mattel toy. The movie begins with a “stereotypical” Barbie living out her dream in the perfect world of Barbieland with other Barbies and Kens. One night, she’s suddenly struck by existential dread and worries about mortality. After a lot of contemplation and a meeting with Weird Barbie, she ventures out into the real world and realizes that she has the power to find new ways to define herself. The movie’s all-star supporting cast includes Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Issa Rae, and Will Ferrell.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
If the record-breaking box office numbers are any indication, Barbie was a massive hit with the audiences, who not only called it an infectiously fun movie but also one that is unsurprisingly thoughtful. Gerwig’s light touch and Robbie’s sublime embodiment of the doll manage to create a balance of whimsy and comedy with heart and meaning. As one of the year’s biggest films, Barbie definitely deserves credit for crafting a feminist twist on a classic brand.
The American Film Institute has included Barbie in its list of one of the top-ten films of 2023. The movie earned twelve nominations at the Grammy Awards and broke another record by receiving the most nominations in Critics’ Choice Movie Awards history (eighteen). With eight nominations, Barbie could bring some major (and much-needed) pink presence to the 96th Academy Awards.
Where to Stream: Barbie is available to stream on Max.
21 Highest-Grossing Best Picture Oscar Winners, Ranked By Box Office Earnings
The Oscars are often criticized for only recognizing small films that nobody has seen, despite many box office hits having actually won Best Picture.
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
This three-hour and 26-minute-long masterpiece directed by Martin Scorcese is a Western crime drama based on a 2017 non-fiction book by David Grann. Killers of the Flower Moon takes its viewers to Oklahoma, where the Osage finds oil gushing from the ground. In 1919, Ernest Burkhart returns from World War I to live with his uncle, William King Hale. After his arrival, he marries Mollie Kyle, an Osage woman whose family owns oil headrights. But it’s not long before the Osage people become victims of a sinister murder plot, losing one member after another.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
A period epic helmed by the legendary Scorcese is sure to make an impact at the Academy Awards. It features career-best work from Leonardo DiCaprio (who was, once again, snubbed for a nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role) as well as a tragic and powerful performance from Lily Gladstone. The movie drew widespread acclaim for its gripping storytelling as well as the delicate handling of its difficult subject matter.
Award season buzz continues to build for its big names, with Scorcese earning his tenth Best Director nomination and Lily Gladstone becoming the first Indigenous American actress to be nominated for an Oscar. The movie was nominated in 15 categories at the BAFTAs and 10 at the Academy Awards, and it seems that it is well-positioned for greater recognition.
Where to Stream: Killers of the Flower Moon is available to stream on Apple TV+.
Past Lives (2023)
Past Lives
- Release Date
- August 31, 2023
- Director
- Celine Song
Past Lives is Korean-Canadian playwright Celine Song’s directorial debut. It tells the decades-long love story of two souls as they are separated by adulthood and continents. The movie begins in South Korea, where Na Young and Hae Sung are 12-year-olds who develop crushes on one another. But when Na Young’s family immigrates to Toronto, they lose touch. Over a decade later, they find each other online and reconnect through video calls. Eventually, Na Young (now Nora) marries another man. Twelve more years pass, and Hae Song visits New York, finally sharing a week with the girl he once fell in love with.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Song showcases her remarkable talent and unmatched perspective with this debut, immersing viewers in a story that only seems probable in the modern world but is still as iconic as ever. The rich layers of conversations paired with tender observations on human nature make the film both passionate and charming. Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, and John Magaro conjure their characters’ feelings – from longing and heartbreak to love and nostalgia – with grounded precision.
The critical response to Past Lives has been almost universally positive, sitting at 96% on Rotten Tomatoes with almost 300 reviews. So far, Song has been taking home certain accolades like Best Director at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, and Best Original Screenplay at the Austin Film Critics Association Awards, and Best New Filmmaker at the Boston Society of Film Critics Awards. At the Academy Awards, Past Lives received two nominations, including one for Best Picture.
Where to Stream: Past Lives is available to stream on Paramount+ and Showtime.
American Fiction (2023)
Another first-time director making it to the Oscars is Cord Jefferson. In his feature directorial debut, he adapts the 2001 novel Erasure by Percival Everett and tells the story of Monk, a novelist and professor who is frustrated by the literary industry using outdated tropes and offensive stereotypes to portray Black Americans. When his works are repeatedly rejected for not being “Black enough,” he decides to publish an outlandish Black book under a pseudonym. The book, surprisingly enough, becomes a hit, and Monk is forced to navigate the current culture’s obsession with stereotyping.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
One of the funniest and most refreshing films of 2023, American Fiction amuses viewers with its affectionate satire of culture and entertainment. Driven by razor-sharp writing and a naturally charming ensemble that consists of Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown, Adam Brody, and more, the movie succeeds in making you question what’s been in front of your eye for so long yet has been so overlooked.
The movie premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the People’s Choice Award before winning numerous accolades, including Best Adapted Screenplay at the BAFTAs. Now, it has been nominated at the Academy Awards in five categories, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Score.
Where to Stream: American Fiction is available to stream on Prime Video.
Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
Anatomy of a Fall
4.5/5
- Release Date
- August 23, 2023
- Director
- Justine Triet
- Cast
- Sandra Hüller , Swann Arlaud , Antoine Reinartz , Jehnny Beth , Saadia Bentaieb
One of the most stunning, emotional, and unbearably tense movies of 2023, Anatomy of a Fall is a French legal drama. It is set on an isolated mountain chalet, where a novelist named Sandra Voyter is being interviewed by a female student, but has to cut it short when her husband starts to play loud music in the attic. Soon after, their visually impaired son, Daniel, takes their dog, Snoop, for a walk and returns to find his father dead, on the ground below the attic window. Thus begins an investigation that holds Sandra as a suspect for murder.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Anatomy of a Fall is co-written and directed by Justine Triet, and it is her second collaboration with Sandra Hüller, who is a force to be reckoned with as Sandra Voyter. Triet always imagined Sandra as a character whose ability to speak in three different languages itself creates a cloud of confusion for the viewers. Apart from Hüller’s phenomenal turn, the movie also boasts a well-crafted procedural that plays out at an unnerving pace, is clever and calm at the same time, and grabs the viewers’ attention from the get-go.
After having won the Palme d’Or (and the Palm Dog award) at the Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered, the movie went on to win six awards at the César Awards. Its global acclaim led it to two Golden Globes and one BAFTA. Now nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, the movie’s prospects seem well-built. In fact, if Anatomy of a Fall wins Best Picture, it would become one of the only four films that have won both the Palme d’Or and Best Picture Oscar.
Where to Stream: Anatomy of a Fall is available to buy or rent on Apple TV.
Maestro (2023)
Bradley Cooper’s second directorial feat makes good on the reputation he built with his debut, A Star is Born. The biographical romance, which is as emotional as it is powerful, focuses on the complicated life and career of the revered composer Leonard Bernstein. Covering almost 30 years of his life, Maestro explores Bernstein’s run as a 25-year-old assistant conductor to his rise to fame in New York. He begins a courtship with Felicia Montealegre and soon marries her, experiencing memorable career highs for himself and a bitter relationship with her.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Through Bradley Cooper’s iconic and delicate portrayal, Bernstein’s monumental influence on 20th-century music really shines through. At the core of Maestro is a human story, and it is brought to the screen with an array of marvelous performances, especially from Carey Mulligan as Montealegre and Matt Bomer as one of Bernstein’s lovers. Critical responses have heaped praise on the technicalities of the movie, as well as its ambitious effort and offering a glimpse into the life of a legend.
For those who have watched Maestro, it goes without saying that the large prosthetic nose Bradley Cooper uses to portray Leonard Bernstein has been in the talks for quite a while now. So for Kazu Hiro to receive an Academy Award nomination in the category of Makeup and Hairstyling was expected. Cooper and Mulligan have also earned a nomination in the respective categories of Best Actor and Best Actress.
Where to Stream: Maestro is available to stream on Netflix.
10 Best Oscar-Nominated Biopics of All Time, Ranked
These Oscar-nominated biopics capture different personas and different times. They all play significant roles in the cinematic world.
The Holdovers (2023)
The Holdovers
4.5/5
- Release Date
- November 10, 2023
Set against the backdrop of the winter of 1970-71, The Holdovers takes you to Barton Academy, a New England boarding school. Paul Hunham is a strict classics teacher who is often looked down upon by his peers and hated by his students. When he is forced to chaperon a handful of students with nowhere to go over the Christmas break, Hunham isn’t particularly thrilled. But stuck with Humham is the troublemaker Angus Tully. As the two go through a series of mishaps, both Hunham and Tully learn to respect each other and form an unlikely bond.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Directed by Alexander Payne and written by David Hemingson, The Holdovers is the kind of drama that reminds us why cinema exists in the first place – to tell passionate stories about the human condition in the most unexpected places. With its snowy backdrop and naturalistic performances, the movie charmed its audience and made them laugh and cry. Despite tackling a good amount of personal tragedy, it seems to flow through effortlessly, thanks to the praiseworthy performances from Paul Giamatti and Dominic Sessa (who makes us forget that this is his debut feature film appearance).
Da’Vine Joy Randolph has drawn universal appreciation for her performance as Mary Lamb. She has consistently held the fort as the best supporting actress at several prestigious award ceremonies including the Critics’ Choice Awards, the BAFTAs, the Golden Globe Awards, and the New York Film Critics Circle. Sessa also won the Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer. The Holdovers has been nominated in five categories at the Academy Awards and is expected to create some good-hearted buzz.
Where to Stream: The Holdovers is available to stream on Peacock.
The Zone of Interest (2023)
The Zone of Interest
4.5/5
- Release Date
- February 2, 2024
- Director
- Jonathan Glazer
- Cast
- Sandra Hüller , Christian Friedel , Freya Kreutzkam , Max Beck
Loosely adapted from Martin Amis’ acclaimed WWII novel, The Zone of Interest transports viewers to Auschwitz at the height of the Holocaust. Filmed in a documentary-style setup, it follows the German Nazi commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig as the pair try to build a life with a picket fence and a garden right next to the concentration camp. Despite the horrors of the camp operations unfolding around them day to day, they never let their personal lives and motives get entangled in fear and devastation.
Why it’s Oscar Worthy
Much like his other films, British director Jonathan Glazer maintains a tone throughout the movie – one that is terrifying, and disturbing, but also solemn and majestic. Praised as a “devastating Holocaust drama like no other,” and a “landmark movie that’s unafraid of difficult ideas,” The Zone of Interest throbs under Glazer’s unflinching director, the fearless performances he drew from Christian Friedel and Sandra Hüller urge viewers to understand provocative themes.
Having premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, the movie has never once lost its luster when it comes to sweeping trophies. While challenging in its subject matter, its searing portrayal of history’s biggest event led The Zone of Interest to win three BAFTAs and five nominations at the Academy Awards, making it ideally positioned as one of the year’s most influential films.
Where to Stream: The Zone of Interest is available to buy or rent on Apple TV.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
