When did you realize your brain had been permanently broken by the election? My moment came last weekend, when I saw Robert Eggers’s Nosferatu and couldn’t stop thinking of it as the story of local business leaders colluding with an Eastern European despot — all while trying to control a woman’s body! If I can’t get my mind off current events even in a movie where acclaimed character actor Simon McBurney bites the head off a pigeon, what hope is there for any other Oscar contender?
Like it or not, we’re in for yet another awards season operating in the shadow of Donald Trump. (Wasn’t it good to have a break? We used it to get mad at Maestro. Those were the days.) Inevitably, films that were conceived, written, and shot years in the past will now be read by many awards voters as allegories for the new political landscape. Which Oscar campaigns can take advantage of the vibe shift, the way contenders like Moonlight and Three Billboards did the first time around? Some titles are better positioned than others, but I think all of them deserve a chance to make their case. So, as a bit of free advice to all the awards strategists out there, here’s how the top-15 Best Picture hopefuls can craft a winning message out of a demoralizing defeat.
The Slam Dunks
The Brutalist: America is a land of broken promises, symbolized by a businessman who hides his moral rot by constructing an oversize monument to his own ego.
Nickel Boys: Or maybe America is a segregated justice system enforced by violence, and the only real victory is keeping your head down and surviving.
Sing Sing: Or perhaps America is a prison — but at least it’s one where we can look out for one another, and in community find some manner of redemption.
Pretty Easy
Emilia Pérez: Prominent trans critics have taken issue with the musical’s Pollyannish view of transition, in which “changing the body changes society, changing society changes the soul.” However, for that same reason, not-particularly-online Academy voters could easily see a vote for Emilia Pérez as a vote defending a vulnerable minority scapegoated by the incoming president.
Anora: The bad guys are Russian oligarchs who disrespect our nation’s civil institutions, to say nothing of the way they treat our proud service workers.
Wicked: More of an all-purpose “creeping totalitarianism” narrative, unfortunately as applicable today as it was back in the Bush administration. Luckily, it’s vague enough that you don’t have to think too hard about which oppressed group is being compared to animals.
Gladiator II: Should an empire be led by a guiding ideal, or is it merely a vessel for the strong to strike down the weak? Bonus points for having a character literally say, “The people are tired of the madness of tyranny.”
Blitz: More an “anti-Tory” movie, but still: The entire mission of Steve McQueen’s film is to rebuke the lily-white, idealized vision of WWII heroism sold in right-wing media.
The Piano Lesson: Take away the ghost stuff and focus on the fact that Malcolm Washington’s adaptation of the August Wilson play celebrates and uplifts Black women, the one demographic that pointedly did not swing to the right this year.
The Substance: Sorry, J.D. Vance: The real purpose of the “postmenopausal female” is to turn into Monstro Elisasue.
Slightly Different Vibe, But Still Workable
Conclave: Since it’s literally about an election, Conclave is almost too close to the events of last week to benefit from the comparison. It’s too painful! Team Conclave might be better served by not pushing it and letting viewers draw the obvious conclusions.
A Real Pain: You wouldn’t call a film about a Holocaust tour “election counterprogramming,” but I could see this little dramedy becoming this season’s Arrival. It’s an anti-Trump movie in tone rather than content: an earnest and contemplative break from the noise.
September 5: A film about American journalists covering the Munich hostage crisis probably would have had a better narrative under the “democracy dies in darkness” ethos of the first Trump term. Everyone hates us now! But maybe Paramount can play that to its advantage and get viewers yearning for the good old days of Peter Jennings.
Probably Not Happening
A Complete Unknown: Maybe Bob Dylan can tweet some unflattering anecdote about Trump?
Dune: Part Two: They shoulda kept the Harkonnens’ weird hair.
Oscar Futures: This Is the Weirdest Episode of Emily in Paris I’ve Ever Seen
Every week between now and January 17, when the nominations for the Academy Awards are announced, Vulture will consult its crystal ball to determine the changing fortunes in this year’s Oscar race. In our “Oscar Futures” column, we’ll let you in on insider gossip, parse brand-new developments, and track industry buzz to figure out who’s up, who’s down, and who’s currently leading the race for a coveted Oscar nomination.
