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Oscars 2022
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Rob Schneider Resurrects Will Smith Oscars Slap Drama As He Goes Off On The Actor: "He's Really An A**hole"
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Stream It Or Skip It: 'King Richard' on Netflix, The Movie That Won Will Smith An Oscar (and Inadvertently Led To The Slap)
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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Hans Zimmer: Hollywood Rebel’ on Netflix, A Short Doc About One Of Hollywood's Leading Composers
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Jada Pinkett Smith Admits She "Created That False Narrative" Of Her "Being The Adulterous Wife" On 'Red Table Talk': "It Didn't Help"
For people who don’t regularly watch movies, the yearly Oscar awards can provide a handy list of which films to bother to seek out. And, while the 94th Academy Awards were more or less overshadowed by a slap-related incident on Sunday night, nonetheless, the 2022 Oscars honored a number of worthy films that TV lovers should seek out, if and when they have the time.
Think of it this way: If you can devote over an hour every week to The Roy Family on Succession, you can surely spare a few hours for the crowning achievements in cinema in 2021. But, of course, we’re all busy people, there are a lot of awards categories, and a lot of these movies are quite long. No judgment, no pressure. We get it.
Now you’re faced with options: Should you devote two hours to the Best Picture winner, CODA? (Yes.) What about three hours to the Best International Feature from Japan, Drive My Car? (Also yes, but take it in installments if you must.) Decider is here to help you cut through the noise, so read on for an Oscars 2022 winners guide to find out which movies won and why, and which of the winners you should actually seek out — all of which are listed in order of priority based upon their “must-see” status, and all of which also include a direct link of where they are streaming.
'CODA'
Oscar wins: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Troy Kotsur), and Best Adapted Screenplay
Why it won: For many months leading up to the Oscars, pundits predicted Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog would take home Best Picture. Then, a week before Hollywood’s biggest night, CODA—the feel-good coming-of-age movie about a hearing girl and her all-Deaf family—appeared as the front-runner. Some critics who found the film cheesy and formulaic weren’t happy, but it seems after yet another year of doom and gloom, the Academy members were drawn to a movie that made them happy. As CODA director Sian Heder told Decider when the movie was released on Apple TV+ in August: “We’ve just been through a really hard year and a half as a human race. I think everybody is longing to see a movie that’s about connection and family.”
Why you should watch: Don’t listen to the haters—just because CODA is a “feel-good movie” doesn’t mean it’s not also a great movie. It’s a sincere, emotional, unabashedly uplifting tale that is guaranteed to make your whole family cry. Oscar-winners Troy Kotsur and Marlee Matlin—the only two Deaf actors to ever win an Academy Award—deliver warm, heartfelt, and genuine performances that will make you fall in love with their crazy on-screen family. And, as a bonus, CODA‘s run time is under two hours, and it’s streaming free on Apple TV+.
'West Side Story'
Oscar wins: Best Supporting Actress (Ariana DeBose)
Why it won: The Best Supporting Actress category was, as it usually is, stacked this year, with stand-out performances from Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter), Judi Dench (Belfast), Kirsten Dunst (The Power of the Dog), and Aunjanue Ellis (King Richard). But only one nominee—DeBose—quite literally melted her shoes from dancing so vigorously as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s masterful remake of the Broadway musical West Side Story. Anita is arguably the best role in the show—Rita Moreno also won the Oscar for playing her in the 1961 film—and DeBose’s performance was magnetic. She earned this statue.
Why you should watch: Like almost everyone, my immediate reaction to the words “Steven Spielberg West Side Story remake” was not favorable. Then I watched the movie, and I did a complete 180. Leonard Bernstein’s iconic score sounds better than ever on these new recordings, the dancing is absolutely off the charts, and the performances will sweep you up in this timeless tale of love and tragedy. Musical theater nerds will be obsessing over it for years to come. Trust me, you want to watch it.
'Summer of Soul'
Oscar wins: Best Documentary Feature
Why it won: While the Riz Ahmed-produced animated documentary Flee had some momentum, Summer of Soul, like CODA, appealed to the Academy’s sense of joy. This movie is a celebration of Black joy, and it’s a blast to watch. It’s a shame that Questlove’s heartfelt speech was overshadowed by the slap heard ’round Hollywood, but you can catch it on YouTube here.
Why you should watch: If you consider yourself a lover of ’60s music, then this fantastic, uplifting documentary about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival is required viewing. Director Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, best known as the frontman of the hip hop band the Roots, corrects a vital gap in music history by sifting through hours of archival footage from a six-week musical festival in Central Harlem, featuring performances from Stevie Wonder, The 5th Dimension, Nina Simone, and many more. Questlove not only unearths this great footage, but he drives home just how vital these Black artists were to the community in Harlem.
'Encanto'
Oscar wins: Best Animated Feature
Why it won: If you’re talking to anyone under 14, Encanto is arguably the movie of the year. With the momentum it’s currently got with Hollywood’s children, it’s hard to imagine this Disney movie about a super-powered family who lives in the mystical mountains of Colombia would not win.
Why you should watch: If you have kids, you’ve no doubt already seen Encanto more times than you’d like to admit. If you don’t have kids, go ahead and give it a watch, especially if you’re a Lin-Manuel Miranda fan. It’s not a must-watch, but it’s perfectly pleasant, the soundtrack is wonderful, and it will no doubt be in the pop culture conversation for years to come. After all, we’re still talking about Bruno.
'Dune'
Oscar wins: Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound, Best Production Design, Best Original Score
Why it won: Despite the fact that director Denis Villeneuve didn’t get a Best Director nomination, Dune ended up sweeping the technical categories at the Oscars—perhaps to make up for the fact that Villeneuve was snubbed. But no one can deny that Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 epic sci-fi novel was a gorgeous, cinematic achievement.
Why you should watch: You probably don’t need me to tell you to watch Dune, considering it was the only Best Picture nomination to be a smash hit at the box office and on HBO Max. But even though it was best seen on the big screen, it’s still worth watching at home, especially with the promise of Dune Part 2 on the horizon. You might just want to read a Wikipedia summary first.
'King Richard'
Oscar wins: Best Actor (Will Smith)
Why it won: Will Smith, who is 53, has been trying for the Oscar for many years now. Up until about 10:30 p.m. on Sunday night, most everyone would have agreed that Smith was a widely beloved and respected actor in Hollywood whose Oscar was overdue, and King Richard was certainly one of his best performances in years. Of course, the votes were cast before The Slap.
Why you should watch: While it’s now impossible to separate Will Smith’s Oscar-winning performance in King Richard from the controversy of him slapping Chris Rock on live TV, this biopic about Richard Williams is worth a watch. Williams is a somewhat unusual subject for a biopic—he’s not a world-class athlete, he’s a world-class athlete’s dad. But despite my initial skepticism, I was won over by the gripping tale of how Williams, through persistence and what feels like a little bit of magic, managed to pull his family out of poverty by betting it all on his two daughters—Venus and Serena.
'The Power of the Dog'
Oscar wins: Best Director
Why it won: Despite all the early hype and the 11 nominations, in the end, this brooding Netflix western about cowboys and their feelings went home with just one win. Director Jane Campion, who is the only woman to ever be nominated for Best Director twice, definitely earned this win with her sweeping, meticulous directing in The Power of the Dog, which brings to life Thomas Savage’s semi-autobiographical novel about growing up on a Montana ranch in 1925. (I think she deserved Best Adapted Screenplay, too, but whatever.)
Why you should watch: If you lose yourself in the vibes of this movie, and make sure you’re paying attention at the end, then you will see this for the brilliant masterpiece that is. The last 15 minutes takes the film from an exquisite, quiet character study in masculinity to a dark, twisted thriller. Don’t miss it. That said, if you can catch it on the big screen, do—the movie loses much of its splendor on streaming.
'Drive My Car'
Oscar wins: Best International Feature Film
Why it won: Given that Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s quiet masterpiece was the only film nominated in the international category that was also nominated for Best Picture, it’s clear it was an Academy favorite. And for good reason—this story about a Japanese theatre director grieving the sudden death of his wife is a moving portrait of human suffering.
Why you should watch: Don’t let the runtime or subtitles scare you away because Drive My Car is worth the effort. It’s a simply gorgeous deep dive into grief, and what it means to be the one who keeps living. It’s a long, slow build, so you may want to watch it in installments—you will be rewarded for your time and patience, trust me.
'The Eyes of Tammy Faye'
Oscar wins: Best Actress (Jessica Chastain), Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Why it won: The Academy can never seem to resist an actor’s “transformation” via an expert make-up job, and Chastain was essentially unrecognizable as Tammy Faye Bakker in this biopic about the infamous televangelist and her convicted fraud artist husband, Jim (played by Andrew Garfield). Critics didn’t love the film, but most agreed Chastain’s performance was a highlight. And hey, she was wearing a lot of make-up.
Why you should watch: Actually, you can probably skip this one. Most critics agreed that the movie was only “meh,” and the film like won’t be stay in the pop culture conversation beyond this awards season. If you’re looking for a great Chastain performance, you can always watch her in a different Oscar-winner, Zero Dark Thirty.
