This year’s Oscar nods were so predictable that we were able to lay this page out more than a week ago and only had to make one change after the nominations were actually announced. It’s kind of sad the industry is so committed to sticking with the safe and known—and, as you’ll see from many of our reviewers’ comments, long. But while there don’t seem to be any masterpieces in the 2023 round of picks, there is a decent number of films that are, if nothing else, engaging, diverting, and demo-worthy.
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reviews | Oscar Nominees 2023
our comprehensive roundup of this year’s most notable Academy Award picks
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by the Cineluxe staff
updated March 9, 2023
All the Beauty and Bloodshed
Documentary Feature
Review Coming Soon
Picture, International Film, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Original Score, Visual Effects, Sound, Makeup & Hairstyling, Production Design
“From the opening pastoral scenes of nature in the French countryside that transition to the bleakness and horror of the trenches and No Man’s Land of the Great War, All Quiet on the Western Front captivates with an unflinching visual style, providing one of the most satisfying cinematic experiences offered by a movie from a streaming service this year.”
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Documentary Feature
“The only real complaint I have about All That Breathes is that it ends far too quickly. Granted, the 97-minute runtime already seems brisk on paper, but actually watching it, it doesn’t feel anywhere near that long. Some of that is due to the lack of a conventional narrative but a lot of it boils down to fantastic editing, compelling subjects, and mesmerizing cinematography. One simply hopes HBO eventually releases the thing in UHD/HDR so it can be experienced in its full splendor.” read more
Picture, Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay, Editing, Original Score
“The Banshees of Inisherin will no doubt go down as one of the most divisive films of this awards season but likely not for the reasons you might suspect, mainly because I can’t imagine anyone outright hating it. It’s one of the most captivating films of the year. No scene—indeed, no frame—is wasted and its closing credits seem to nip at the heels of its opening imagery. Then again, if you said you found it ploddingly paced, I’d have a hard time arguing with you.” read more
Visual Effects, Sound, Makeup & Hairstyling
“At nearly three hours, the pacing is slow, and there are often long periods between the next ‘event,’ making it feel long at times. Even when it feels the film is wrapping up, there is another 30 minutes! But, while I don’t think this is the best Batman movie ever, it’s still engaging and entertaining, and director Matt Reeves gives us an interesting new take on the Dark Knight that certainly looks and sounds better when screened at home.” read more
Actress
“Writer and director Dominik’s liberal use of artistic license and unorthodox filmmaking techniques in telling the story of the legendary Marilyn Monroe is risky. As often as it works, there are equally as many times that it comes across as lurid and cringey. Blonde is sometimes beautiful to look at, with a heroic performance by de Armas, but its content is bleak and disturbing.” read more
Picture, Actor, Cinematography, Editing, Costume Design, Makeup & Hairstyling, Production Design
“I can’t comment on how closely the film hews to actual events, or if Colonel Tom Parker was truly as controlling and influential on Elvis Presley as the film portrays, but I did find Elvis entertaining, though a bit long at 2 hours 39 minutes. If you’re a fan of Presley or Baz Luhrmann, it’s definitely worth a watch.” read more
Picture, Director, Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay, Editing, Original Score, Original Song, Costume Design
“Despite being a work of legitimate cultural significance, with a message that will still be sending shockwaves through my brain years from now, Everything Everywhere All at Once is also incredibly accessible and wildly entertaining, not to mention slap-happily zany.” read more
Picture, Director, Actress, Supporting Actor, Original Screenplay, Original Score, Production Design
“The two-hour 31-minute run-time can be a bit plodding. Don’t expect a lot of—or really any—action other than of the emotional kind. While I found the film interesting, scenes can drag a bit. But if you’re a Spielberg fan, this is definitely a movie you’ll want to see, as it accurately depicts his early life and influences.” read more
Documentary Feature
“Of the two documentary films cobbled together last year from footage shot by Maurice and Katia Krafft, Fire of Love is ultimately the better one. Sara Dosa doesn’t cram her own personality into the film the way Wenrer Herzog does, but she also takes a more childlike and irreverent approach that suits its subjects and subject matter better. I’d love it if you watched both because there are some ways in which Herzog’s film is superior. But if you have to pick one, make it this one, whether it wins the Oscar or not.” read more
Adapted Screenplay
“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is lighter and breezier than the original film but with a similarly clever and intricate plot. It also features first-rate sound and picture quality, making it one of the premier streaming releases of the year.” read more
Animated Film
“Del Toro’s Pinocchio—a re-imagining of the 1883 novel that has nothing to do with Disney’s take on the property—is a weird and wonderful, utterly soulful fantasy adventure and allegory that almost seems to have been made with no other audience in mind than del Toro himself. “ read more
Animated Film
“This is such a compelling little film that anyone with a hint of tolerance for weirdness will get altogether lost in the experience. It’s refreshing to watch a movie that leans so hard into its adorableness without ignoring the difficulties we all face in life. It’s also a delightfully strange feeling to watch a film made with so much sincerity and so little cynicism. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but if the original shorts resonated with you in the slightest, I think you’ll love the feature-length Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.” read more
Original Song
“RRR may not have been India’s entry in the Academy Award International Feature category this year, but it is a hugely successful and highly accessible film that you don’t have to be a film connoisseur to enjoy. So check out this not so hidden gem of a film on Netflix if you haven’t already.” read more
Animated Film
“Chris Williams’ The Sea Beast is not perfect but it brings all the charm and well-crafted storytelling of his previous efforts for Disney to his new partnership with Netflix Animation.”
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Picture, Director, Actress, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing
“Tár can be a maddening film to watch—which makes it an even more maddening film to review. It ticks off all the trendy boxes, not just weighing in on gender politics and the blind destructive power of the howling virtual mob but also adopts a chill, distant, elliptical style that constantly holds the characters at arm’s length. Most troubling of all, it dips into the au courant fantasy realm by having certain key actions hinge on the implausible. It’s hard to take the film’s take on the contemporary world seriously or care a fig about any of its characters when it’s so willing to conveniently veer away from any kind of convincing reality.” read more
Picture, Adapted Screenplay, Editing, Original Song, Visual Effects, Sound
“Maverick is like a master class in how to make a blockbuster sequel. The casting and acting are great, the cinematography is fantastic, the plot is simple but compelling, and the action is fast-paced and (mostly) believable. And it plays terrifically in a luxury home theater. It looks and sounds great, is a near-guaranteed crowd pleaser for your next get-together, and has great replay value. In fact, I already can’t wait to watch it again, and it will likely have heavy rotation in your theater’s demo showoff reel!” read more
Picture, Director, Original Screenplay
“It’s nearly impossible to tell if writer/director Ruben Östlund desires to watch the ultra-wealthy suffer himself or if he simply assumes his audience is cruel and morally bankrupt. Either way, this muddled and overly long exercise in unfocused schadenfreude manages to be both shallow and thematically incoherent, callous and distant, shockingly disgusting and punishingly boring, and even its contradictions aren’t enough to make it interesting. It’s one of the most soulless and repugnant works of cinema I’ve seen in ages, and the fact that it’s getting any attention this awards season is as scathing an indictment of entertainment industry as I can imagine.”
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Animated Film
“Turning Red seems to have critics and audiences split, with critics giving it a 95% Rotten Tomatoes rating, matching both Soul and Wall-E, and audiences scoring it a more mediocre 66%, closer to The Good Dinosaur’s 64%. While I didn’t find Turning Red to be among Pixar’s strongest outings, it’s entertaining and looks fantastic, and certainly worth checking out for Disney+ subscribers.” read more
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