Spider-Man: Brand New Day opened to $360 million in its first domestic weekend. According to Box Office Mojo, that’s the highest grossing opening weekend of any film, ever. An astonishingly successful start for a franchise that desperately needed momentum. Following on the heels of the massive success of The Odyssey these kinds of ticket sales are hugely encouraging for theaters. Despite pacing for a multi-billion dollar haul, Tom Holland’s MCU film generating just a fraction of the cultural conversation that his Nolan film did over the last few weeks. Some of that has to do with the bad faith discourse machine that consumed The Odyssey like Odysseus’s men with Circe’s stew. Yet failing to turn box office into cultural staying power has also become something of a norm for the once impenetrable Marvel machine. 

You’ll no doubt have noticed that this is not a review of Brand New Day, a film that is — like most MCU fare these days — mostly fine if bloated by the need to tee up new installments in the long running franchise. Rather, this is a lament for casualties of a machine that has turned the prime years of multiple stars into grist for a series of decreasingly essential films. 

After the surprise of Toy Story 4, I am out of the business of doubting whether Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang have any juice left in their batteries. To do so would run counter to what’s always been at the core of this franchise; the existential worry that a parent will eventually be outgrown by their kids, that they’ll become obsolete. Each chapter of this particular story deals with this to some extent — Will new age Buzz replace old school Woody? Is there some utopia out there where you’ll never be outgrown? What purpose do you serve when a kid no longer needs you? Toy Story 5 tackles obsolescence more directly than any film since the first one by finally bringing screens into the picture. 

It is hard to argue that The Academy has not improved over the years as they have diversified their membership. What gets nominated for their annual best in film awards has also seen its average quality improve in tandem. Although familiar names — Guillermo del Toro, Chloe Zhao, Joseph Kosinski and Yorgos Lanthimos — return to the biggest races, their films elide what we have come to think of as standard Oscar bait. Leading the way with a record 16 nominations is Ryan Coogler’s starkly original Sinners. Not far behind with 13 is Paul Thomas Anderson’s sizzling One Battle After Another. I can quibble with a few nominations here and there but on balance its a great group. As always, we will be breaking down the flashy, above the line categories: All 4 Acting categories, Directing and Best Picture. We’ll also try to highlight as many films as possible so if your favorite “snub” was left out leave a comment below. 

​As a project this year we are taking a trip through time to revisit all of the Best Picture winners in history, Wings to Anora. Chicago is the seventy-fifth film in that series, to see all the other Best Picture reviews, click here.

As a project this year we are taking a trip through time to revisit all of the Best Picture winners in history, Wings to Anora. A Beautiful Mind is the seventy-fourth film in that series, to see all the other Best Picture reviews, click here.

**This review contains spoilers, if you would like not to be spoiled for a 24 year old film, please watch A Beautiful Mind first