In the first week of February, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the nominees for the 94th Academy Awards ceremony. The awards will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on March 27 2022, hosted by Wanda Sykes, Regina Hall, and Amy Schumer. More than 40 movies earned at least one nomination.
As is common after these announcements, reactions were mixed and snubs were called out. Regardless of the mixed opinions of many nominees, there are some films whose success is undeniable. For example, The Power Of The Dog and Dune both earned multiple nominations. Of course, people expect to see their favorite films win at the Oscars and some silver screen hits have earned more than one nomination.
10 Encanto: 3 Nominations
Disney’s latest film, Encanto, has been available for streaming for almost two months, but it’s still everything people can talk about. Encanto is a heartwarming tale about transgenerational trauma in Latinx families wrapped in a fantastic plot. Encanto is full of magic, carefully chosen Colombian references, and catchy tunes composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Encanto has been nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film alongside Raya And The Last Dragon, the other Disney movie of the year. What’s more, Encanto’s score is nominated for Best Original Score and the melancholic ballad Dos Oruguitas is nominated for Best Original Song.
9 Being The Ricardos: 3 Nominations
Being The Ricardos, directed by Aaron Sorkin, follows the relationship between Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, both I Love Lucy‘s main stars. With Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem as Ball and Arnaz respectively, this biographical drama explores their acting careers and marriage while they face a crisis that could end them both.
Being The Ricardos has been nominated for 3 different accolades: Best Actor in a Leading Role for Bardem, Best Actress in a Leading Role for Kidman, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for J.K. Simmons, who plays William Frawley (better known as Fred in I Love Lucy). These three actors are just a taste of Being The Ricardos‘ magnificent cast.
8 Nightmare Alley: 4 Nominations
Based on the novel of the same name, Nightmare Alley is a neo-noir thriller starring Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, and Toni Collette. Nightmare Alley, directed by Guillermo del Toro, tells the story of Cooper’s Stanton Carlisle, a nearly-psychopathic carnival worker who becomes a con-man. His web of lies lands him an ironic destiny.
Nightmare Alley is nominated for 4 Academy Awards this year: Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design. Nightmare Alley isn’t a fan favorite for the Best Picture award this year. Regardless, it isn’t Del Toro’s first major nomination in the Oscars. In 2018, he won Best Picture and Best Director for his masterpiece The Shape Of Water.
7 Drive My Car: 4 Nominations
Drive My Car is a Japanese drama film created and directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi, who drew inspiration from Haruki Murakami’s short story of the same name. Drive My Car deals with topics such as self-acceptance and regret through Yusuke Kafuku, as he mourns his wife while dealing with the direction of an Uncle Vanya production.
In addition to being the only foreign film in the race for Best Picture and Best Director, Drive My Car has been nominated for the International Feature Film award and the Best Adapted Screenplay award. If Drive My Car were to win the Oscar for Best Picture, it would be only the third foreign-language film to do so in the history of the Oscars (alongside The Artist and Parasite, French and Korean respectively).
6 Don’t Look Up: 4 Nominations
Netflix’s most recent movie, Don’t Look Up is a satiric allegory of the world’s attitude towards global warming. Don’t Look Up tells the story of Kate Dibiasky and Randall Mindy, two astronomers who try to tell the general public that an asteroid will destroy the Earth. The pair realize that the world leaders are incompetent and the public doesn’t care about their doom.
Written, produced, and directed by Adam McKay, Don’t Look Up is a black comedy that moves the audience to reflection while also making them laugh. Although many have criticized the frivolity with which Don’t Look Up tackles certain topics, it has also been praised for its parody humor. Don’t Look Up received nominations for 4 different categories in the Oscars this year: Writing (Original Screenplay), Music (Original Score), Best Picture, and Film Editing.
5 King Richard: 6 Nominations
Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green and written by Zach Baylin, King Richard is a biopic about Richard William as he trains his daughters to become successful sportswomen. Williams, played by Will Smith, is famously known for being the father and coach of Venus and Serena Williams. In fact, the two athletes served as executive producers for King Richard.
King Richard is nominated for 6 different Oscars this year. In addition to the Best Picture accolade, Will Smith has been nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role and Aunjanue Ellis for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. King Richard earned nominations for Film Editing, Writing for Original Screenplay, and Original Song for the song Be Alive, written by DIXSON and Beyoncé.
4 Belfast: 7 Nominations
Written and directed by Kenneth Brannagh, Belfast examines the ideological war between Protestants and Catholics in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1960. Belfast tells the story through the eyes of Buddy, a 9-year-old Protestant boy who falls in love with Catherine, a Catholic classmate. Belfast is a coming-of-age story that doubles as a picture of the Belfast that Kenneth Brannagh experienced during his childhood.
Belfast has been described by its director as his “most personal film” and his love for the project reflects in its quality. Belfast earned 7 Oscar nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Ciarán Hinds, Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Judi Dench, Directing, Sound, Writing (Original Screenplay), and Original Song for Down To Joy, by Van Morrison.
3 West Side Story: 7 Nominations
Like Romeo and Juliet, Tony and Maria love each other despite the violent feud between their families. West Side Story, based on the 1957 musical, follows the chaos that unravels when both teenagers decide to act on their feelings. West Side Story was directed by Stephen Spielberg and adapted by Tony Kushner.
West Side Story has received great reviews for its fresh perspective on the musical. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has nominated West Side Story for 7 different Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Ariana DeBose, Cinematography, Costume Design, Directing, Production Design, and Sound.
2 Dune: 10 Nominations
Dune, like its homonym book, depicts the story of Paul Atreides. Paul’s family moves to Arrakis, a desert planet that has no water but has plenty of Spice, a valuable ingredient. Dune is a sci-fi adventure with a heroic archetype at the center of its discussion. Dune also serves as a drama about political intrigues and the interaction between politics, religion, ecology, and many other social dimensions.
Directed by Denis Villeneuve, Dune is the first part of a two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel. Dune received 10 nominations for the 94th Academy Awards in most categories involving film production: Best Picture, Cinematography, Writing (Adapted Screenplay), Costume Design, Film Editing, Makeup, and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Production Design, Sound, and Visual Effects.
1 The Power Of The Dog: 12 Nominations
The Power Of The Dog, by Jane Campion, features Benedict Cumberbatch as Phil Burbank. Phil is a violent rancher who terrorizes his own family in order to hide his own insecurities. The Power Of The Dog, which explores universal topics such as love, grief, and self-identity, has been widely praised for its story and its performances.
The Power Of The Dog is the first film directed by a woman to ever receive more than 10 Oscar nominations, it earned 12. These include Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Benedict Cumberbatch, Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smith-McPhee, Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Kirsten Dunst, Cinematography, Directing, Film Editing, Music (Original Score), Production Design, Sound, and Writing (Adapted Screenplay).
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