On 8th February, the Academy Awards announced their prestigious nominees for 2022’s Oscars. From heartwarming family dramas to cutthroat thrillers and near perfect novella adaptations, cinema took its beauty to a new grace this past year. Here are 11 of the best off the list you need to add to your watchlist right now.
1. TICK, TICK…BOOM!
This biographical film follows the story of playwright Jonathan Larson – an aspiring composer in New York City concerned about making the right career choices whilst navigating the pressures of love and friendship.
2. DUNE
Adapted from the bestselling book of the same title, Dune is an epic science fiction film featuring Paul Atreides – a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people
3. NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Nominated for four Academy Awards, Nightmare Alley is a gripping psychological thriller based in the 1940s, taking viewers through the life of Stanton Carlisle and his grand scheme of gaining elite and success as he pairs with an ominous psychiatrist.
4. SPENCER
Historical fiction done at its finest, Spencer takes us through the marriage between Princess Diana and Prince Charles that over the years has gone cold. But through the rumors of divorce and affairs, peace comes in its own way amidst Christmas celebrations at the royal estate.
5. WEST SIDE STORY
Fans of musicals absolutely adored this musical romance by Steveb Speilberg. From love at first sight between young Tony and Maria to finding their place between two rival gangs vying for control of the streets, West Side Story explores forbidden love mellifluously.
6. FLEE
The Danish animated documentary that made waves all over the web, Flee explores the life of Amin Nawabi who is on the verge of marriage to his long-time boyfriend but is unknowingly confronted with a secret from his past he can no longer avoid.
7. ASCENSION
Thought provoking and insightful, the documentary explores the pursuit of the Chinese Dream in today’s society – a dream that carries its own burden of prioritizing productivity and innovation above all and everything.
8. THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD
From Norway’s box of coming-of-age movies paired with dark comedy and romance, The Worst Person In The World delves into the life of a young woman battling indecisiveness as she traverses the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her dream career.
9. LICORICE PIZZA
An exciting coming-of-age romance, Alana Kane and Gary Valentine grow up, run around, and fall in love in California’s San Fernando Valley in the 1970s in this amusing piece.
10. BELFAST
In this acclaimed British-Irish comedy drama, a 9-year-old reminisces on his childhood within a war-torn nation and belonging to a working class family – one that is brimming with nostalgia and warmth.
11. KING RICHARD
Based on the life of Richard Williams, father to Venus and Serena Williams, the grappling documentary portrays in honesty what it took to make Richard’s daughters the greatest tennis players of all time.
