Source: h/t DALL-E.
The Academy
Awards will be given out Sunday, March 15, 2026. I've seen all the
nominees for Best Picture. That means my opinion means something.
Right? Regardless, I've ranked the movies in order of my preference
for "Best Picture."
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science uses ranked
choice voting (RCV) to ensure that the winner has broad support
throughout the Academy members. I wish US political elections used
something similar (see proportional
voting). But that's for another post.
My personal ranked choice of the Oscar nominees is based on the
grades I gave the movies immediately after seeing them. In case of
ties, I ordered them by my judgment today. Note this is not my
prediction of which movie will win but how I would vote, if I had a
vote. (The bettors are picking "One Battle After Another". I think
"Sinners" could win in an upset.)
The envelope please. The winner of "The Wheel Award for Excellence
in Motion Pictures" goes to...
Hamnet (2025): It's not a Shakespeare biopic. Its fiction that uses Shakespeare to tell a story about parental grief. Grief hangs heavily over the whole movie. But eventually Chloé Zhao uses a Shakespearean tragedy to wring a few drops of catharsis out of tragedy. Heartbreaking. Brilliant. A-
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Congratulations to the runners-up, in my ranked order:
Sinners (2025): A wildly ambitious and original take on vampire movies that bends the genre over backwards. In 1932, twin brothers come home from Chicago to open a juke joint in Mississippi. Their place plays the blues. The vampires play Irish folk music. See it (even if only for the music). A-
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One Battle After Another (2025): Former leftist terrorist (Leo DiCaprio) is hunted down by rightwing Col. Lockjaw (Sean Penn) after 15 years. Lots of explosions, gun fights, and car chases, but the broadly drawn characters keep it from being too serious. Lots of plot holes, but great acting makes it excel. A-
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Marty Supreme (2025): Timothee Chalamet plays a small-time, fast-talking hustler trying to beg, borrow, or steal the funds needed to get into the world table tennis championship in Tokyo. Fascinating to watch the acting, even if you can't like the character. A-
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Bugonia (2025): Wacky conspiracy theorist (Jesse Plemons) kidnaps a drug company CEO (Emma Stone), convinced she's an extraterrestrial planning to destory the Earth. Most of the movie is them failing to communicate, as the blood and stakes rise in this black comedy. Oscar nominations are deserved. A-
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Sentimental Value (2025): A filmmaker, estranged from his family, wants to make a movie in his old house with one of his daughters in the lead. She and her sister aren't ready to reconcile. Good examination of the intersection of art and personal life. Excellent acting all around. A-
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Train Dreams (2025): Story of a logger's life in Idaho circa 1917. The story has love and loss, violence and tragedy, all told in a quiet, poignant way. All these things happen to Robert, but he is not the protaganist. He mostly just waits for a revelation that he'll never receive about what life is all about. B+
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Frankenstein (2025): Guillermo del Toro's faithful adaptation of the Mary Shelley classic is visually stunning throughout. He emphasizes the father-son story more than the mad scientist story, with the creature being more victim than monster. B+
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The Secret Agent (2025): Portuguese. Political thriller set in Brazil in 1977 during the military dictatorship. Tension is already in the opening scene in a desert gas station, builds constantly but leisurely, until it's broken with violence in last few minutes. Too many characters to keep straight. B-
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F1: The Movie (2025): Cocky, arrogant Formula 1 racer, played by Brad Pitt (of course), tries to reclaim glory 30 years after a bad accident. It's a sports movie. Enough said. What did I learn about F1 racing? The win goes to the car with the best tires. Or at least the driver who knows how to get the most out of them. B-
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