Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Oscar Snubs

The 2020 Oscar nominations are out. As always, some worthy movies are snubbed. Before these movies unloved by Oscar are forgotten forever, here are some, in no particular order, that The Wheel recommends catching wherever they are streaming. These movies received an "A-" grade by The Wheel.

The snubs are after the jump.



Rotten Tomatoes
Uncut Gems (2019): Fast-talking gem dealer is a compulsive gambler whose debts spiral out of control. Shouting, bullying, foul language, and manic intensity from start to finish. Like watching a pot boil over. Adam Sandler is great and atones for every bad movie he ever made. A-


Rotten Tomatoes
The Lighthouse (2019): Two men confined in a lighthouse descend into madness. Dark. Unsettling. Intense. Like a punch to the gut. Who's mad and who's sane? What's real and what's hallucination? Is it all damn metaphor? Did you like it is the wrong question for this movie. A-


Rotten Tomatoes
The Farewell (2019): Family gathers in China when grandmother is diagnosed with cancer. A study in cultural differences dealing with universal feelings. Careful storytelling by Lulu Wang makes it heartfelt without being maudlin. Awkwafina handles a range of acting excellently. A-


Rotten Tomatoes
Yesterday (2019): Beatles music alone would be worth it, but the whole is a perfect blend of that with a sci-fi premise and a bittersweet love story, with each component leaving you wanting more, as it should be. Comic elements are a bonus. Maybe you have to be a Baby Boomer. A-


Two documentaries received an "A-" or better. All are well worth your time searching them out. None of these fine movies were nominated in the Documentary Feature category.


Rotten Tomatoes
One Child Nation (2019): Personal documentary about China's One Child Policy. Propaganda, fines, abortions, sterilizations, abandoned babies & abductions, international adoption racket. Policy now relaxed but China still scarred. Thought-provoking in surprising way. Must see. A+


Rotten Tomatoes
The Great Hack (2019): How Cambridge Analytica, using Facebook data, profiled millions of voters and bombarded them with fake news propaganda to sway 2016 election. Title is misnomer. Facebook freely handed over data. Zuckerberg and Trump are still in charge. 2020 is coming. A-

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