Within the first balloting, simply after Venice, Telluride and TIFF, greater than 20 contenders acquired votes — however there’s already a transparent favourite. Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” has a double-digit lead over Chloé Zhao’s pageant fave “Hamnet,” which is tightly bunched with Ryan Coogler’s very authentic blockbuster “Sinners” and Kathryn Bigelow’s “A House of Dynamite.”
Stating that Anderson hasn’t gained a trophy but regardless of 11 nominations, Katie Walsh says, “The bracing, electrifying and stunningly prescient ‘One Battle After Another’ feels like his moment.” Amy Nicholson says Coogler’s memorable vampire story might assist buck the Oscars’ tendency towards recency bias: “A spring release date shouldn’t be an awards-season sin, and ‘Sinners’ should prove it.”
Robert Daniels factors out that “Hamnet’s” Folks’s Alternative win at TIFF bodes properly: Of the final 18 to take that prize, “16 have been nominated for best picture (including Zhao’s ‘Nomadland’) … her Shakespeare weepy appears to be an obvious early front-runner.” Glenn Whipp says “Hamnet’s” all-but-assured standing as a prime contender will colour awards season: “Can a movie be too emotionally devastating? Get ready to unpack your feelings about grief. It’s going to be a fun few months.”
Greatest director | Greatest animated characteristic | Greatest worldwide characteristic
1. “One Battle After Another”2. “Hamnet”3. “Sinners”4. “A House of Dynamite”5. “Jay Kelly”6. “Sentimental Value”T7. “Marty Supreme”T7. “Wicked: For Good”9. “It Was Just an Accident”10. “Hedda”
RogerEbert.com
Robert Daniels
1. “One Battle After Another”2. “Hamnet”3. “A House of Dynamite”4. “Jay Kelly”5. “Sentimental Value”6. “The Testament of Ann Lee”7. “Sinners”8. “Rental Family”9. “No Other Choice”10. “Bugonia”
“With a prior awards juggernaut under her belt in the best picture winner ‘Nomadland,’ Chloé Zhao was already a good bet to return to the race. But now that ‘Hamnet’ has won TIFF’s People’s Choice Award — of whose last 18 winners, 16 have been nominated for best picture (including ‘Nomadland’) — her Shakespeare weepy appears to be an obvious early front-runner.”
Turner Traditional Motion pictures
Dave Karger
1. “One Battle After Another”2. “Hamnet”3. “A House of Dynamite”4. “Sentimental Value”5. “Jay Kelly”6. “Sinners”7. “Wicked: For Good”8. “It Was Just an Accident”9. “Avatar: Fire and Ash”10. “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere”
“With several promising contenders yet to screen (notably ‘Wicked: For Good,’ ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ and ‘Marty Supreme’), Paul Thomas Anderson’s ‘One Battle After Another’ and Chloé Zhao’s ‘Hamnet’ have emerged as early front-runners for the year’s biggest award. The field is already looking quite impressive.”
Los Angeles Instances
Amy Nicholson
1. “Sinners”2. “One Battle After Another”3. “A House of Dynamite”4. “Hedda”5. “Hamnet”6. “Nouvelle Vague”7. “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery”8. “Sorry, Baby”9. “Kiss of the Spider Woman”10. “Nuremberg”
“A spring release date shouldn’t be an awards-season sin, and ‘Sinners’ should prove it. Ryan Coogler’s bootlegging, Southern vampire blockbuster is smart, ambitious, original and masterfully executed — a classic best picture contender. Oscar voters just have to think big.”
IndieWire
Anne Thompson
1. “Sinners”2. “Hamnet”3. “One Battle After Another”4. “A House of Dynamite”5. “Train Dreams”6. “The Smashing Machine”7. “Jay Kelly”8. “It Was Just an Accident”9. “Frankenstein”10. “Bugonia”
“Three movies are vying for front-runner status: Ryan Coogler’s scary period gangster drama ‘Sinners’; Chloé Zhao’s Toronto People’s Choice winner ‘Hamnet,’ a moving Shakespearean family drama; and Paul Thomas Anderson’s rollicking action-comedy ‘One Battle After Another.’ Tradition favors the emotional period drama.”
Katie Walsh
1. “One Battle After Another”2. “Marty Supreme”3. “Sinners”4. “Jay Kelly”5. “Hamnet”6. “A House of Dynamite”7. “Frankenstein”8. “Wicked: For Good”9. “Sentimental Value”10. “It Was Just an Accident”
“Paul Thomas Anderson has been nominated 11 times but never won an Oscar, and the bracing, electrifying and stunningly prescient ‘One Battle After Another’ feels like his moment. It’s also what everyone in the know keeps saying. It would be nice to see some international features make it into the best picture lineup too.”
Los Angeles Instances
Glenn Whipp
1. “One Battle After Another”2. “Hamnet”3. “Sentimental Value”4. “Sinners”5. “A House of Dynamite”6. “Wicked: For Good”7. “It Was Just an Accident”8. “Marty Supreme”9. “Jay Kelly”10. “Bugonia”
“‘Hamnet’ was the talk of the Telluride Film Festival after its world premiere gutted the audience. Can a movie be too emotionally devastating? Get ready to unpack your feelings about grief. It’s going to be a fun few months.”
