After a year of struggling to make my MoviePass pay off with a slim choice of quality films, more than a dozen Oscars-friendly films suddenly dropped into the most wonderfully busy time of year. There's no way to see them all, so I thought I'd point out a few favorites that are definitely ten buck worthy.
The Best Picture Front Runners
Black Panther, The Favourite, Green Book, Roma and A Star Is Born are the five films on every respected Oscars prediction list.
Roma opens in theaters on December 5, but moves to Netflix (TV) on December 21 so I'll eliminate that theater visit, followed by removing Black Panther which is available on Netflix now. I favor the bawdy The Favourite (opens November 30) over the pandering Green Book, but A Star Is Born has a magical touch that makes it a must see. Star will be eligible for almost every category and should tally a titanic-sized 13 or 14 nominations. Don't miss it on the big screen.
Recommendation 1: A Star Is Born
The Melodramas
Boy Erased, Beautiful Boy and Ben is Back are all quality, family dramas featuring a parent and child working through difficult situations, but boy, oh boy it will be a blue Christmas if you watch all three.
Timothee Chalamet and Steve Carrell's father/son story in Beautiful Boy and Julia Roberts and Lucas Hedges' mother/son film Ben Is Back (opens December 8) will gather the most acting nominations, but we've all seen the alcoholism story before and know how it ends. If I had to choose just one of these tissue-necessary dramas, Nicole Kidman and Lucas Hedges' conversion therapy drama Boy Erased, the one of these that is the least likely to get acting nominations, offers a more unique and hopeful story for the holidays.
Recommendation 2: Boy Erased
The Best Picture Contenders
These films are vying for a slot in the Oscars Best Picture race: All Is True, BlacKKKlansman, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, First Man, Mary Queen of Scots, Mule and Vice.
I must confess I haven't seen All Is True, Mary or Vice, and while I respected the artsy gusto of First Man I think it has a Houston-sized problem with matching subject and tone.
That leaves BlacKKKlansman and Can You Ever Forgive Me?, two dramedies that I fully enjoyed. Melissa McCarthy creates one of the best film characters of the year and I'd hate for anyone to miss it.
Recommendation 3: Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Films You Can Stream Tonight
December is a busy time to hit the theater, but these Academy Award eligible films are available on your TV: Black Panther, BlacKKKlansman, Crazy Rich Asians, Eight Grade, A Quiet Place plus the documentaries RGB and Won't You Be My Neighbor. All great choices, but I'd pick the one that pairs best with wrapping presents.
Recommendation 4: Crazy Rich Asians
Music-Based Crowd Pleasers
Everyone should see the first hour of A Star Is Born and the last 20 minutes of Bohemian Rhapsody in the theater. Mary Poppins Returns should be a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious time at the theater as well.
I've already picked A Star Is Born, and Mary Poppins Returns won't be flying out of theaters until January, so I can narrow your December choice to the Freddie Mercury biopic because it will, it will rock you.
Recommendation 5: Bohemian Rhapsody
The Ten Buck Review: All worth ten bucks.
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