Best Picture Nominees—Marriage Story


The Academy Awards take place Sunday, February 9. In the run up to that presentation, I'll be previewing each of the nine Best Picture Nominees.

Marriage Story
Starring: Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, and Laura Dern
Directed by: Noah Baumbach
Total Nominations: 6
Nominated For: Best Picture, Best Actress (Johansson), Best Actor (Driver), Best Supporting Actress (Dern), Best Original Screenplay (Baumbach), Best Original Score
About: Last year Netflix broke ground by landing a Best Picture nomination. This year they had three in the Golden Globes and recorded two Academy Award nominations for Best Picture. The first of the two I'll look at is "Marriage Story," a haunting film powered by beautiful performances. This is the one of the two I prefer, and I think in other years I would have had stronger hopes for it winning the award for Best Picture. But I think it's a long-shot here. It doesn't have the prestige of the other Netflix entry, "The Irishman," but it it an incredibly well told story. The performances from Johansson—a double nominee this year— and Driver are incredible, and power this difficult tale. Dern is likewise great in a supporting role. This is a quiet film, but one that caught my by surprise and ended up being really emotional. Baumbach is a gifted writer and director, and I know this tale was personal for him. But will it win any awards? This is where it gets tricky. Dern could, as she did at the Golden Globes. Baumbach could, as his script is great. Driver could, though he's not the front-runner thanks to Joaquin Phoenix. The same is true for Johansson, who I loved but think has a better shot at Supporting Actress for "Jojo Rabbit." It's weird to me to think this film could go home empty-handed, but it doesn't have a clear front-runner in any category, and I think it's a long-shot for Best Picture. Time will tell as the races come into view, but either way this was an incredible journey.
Rating: R for language throughout and sexual references.

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