Every Best Picture Nominee of the 2010's Ranked: #25-29

Scene from Roma (2018)

As 2019 reached its end, another decade of cinema had passed. It's amazing to think about how things have evolved since 2010 when the biggest controversies were about recognizing genre movies. Things look different now, especially as genre films like The Shape of Water and Parasite are winning Best Picture and the voting body looks incredibly different with each passing year. With this period in the books, it feels like a good time to celebrate their accomplishments by ranking all 88 titles nominated for Best Picture from worst to best with the goal of seeing which films are more likely to stand the test of time. Join me every Saturday and Sunday as I count them down, five at a time. It's going to be a fun summer looking back on what was, especially as we prepare for the decade ahead and an even more interesting diversity that we haven't even begun to think of.

29. Amour (2012) – Dir. Michel Haneke

When falling in love, there is this belief that things will be eternal, managing to last forever in this wonderful state of bliss. It’s the notion that most films go with, reflecting the autumn years as this peaceful, conflict-free period where nothing can hold you back from your significant other’s arms. However, Haneke comes with a tragic reminder of growing old, experiencing an increase in health problems that make those initial commitments difficult to fantasize about. With a soul-crushing performance by Emmanuelle Riva, this is a look into a side of love’s commitment that is painful, lingering into one’s own mortality and asking what deeper value we serve to each other. Are we the same the further away from healthy that we get, or does this bring with it frustration and anxiety that changes how we see each other? It’s not a comfortable sit, but it’s still one of the most powerful studies of love put to film.

28. Roma (2018) – Dir. Alfonso Cuaron

In his follow-up for Gravity, Cuaron has chosen to make a grounded drama about a Mexican maid that finds beauty in the mundane. With gorgeous black and white cinematography, the viewer is taken through this dreamlike journey that is deceptively simple. With excellent direction, the film manages to whirl around its epic scope, finding ways to question what stories deserve to be told and what value we all bring to each other’s lives. What it lacks in thrilling plot it more than makes up for with an endearing character portrait that is meditative and sweet, asking us to look closer and see what’s so special about our everyday lives.

27. Little Women (2019) – Dir. Greta Gerwig

With this update of the 19th-century masterpiece, Gerwig has found a way to find new vital substances in the narrative of the four March sisters. This isn’t just copying and pasting what audiences have heard for over a century. It’s an engagement with how important it is for women to express themselves, telling stories that may not seem important but matter deeply to them. With this film, it helped to make Gerwig one of the finest directors currently working while also proving her ability to add insight and humor into the familiar. With an all-star cast that features a career-making performance by Florence Pugh, this charming film finds the humanity of its characters and challenges not only how we see them, but how we see ourselves echoing throughout centuries. Things may be different, but Gerwig proves that the fights of Louisa May Alcott are still worthy of being fought to this day. It’s a novel whose significance hasn’t yet outstayed its welcome, and odds are that it never will. 

26. Marriage Story (2019) – Dir. Noah Baumbach

While the title may come across as ironic given its subject of divorce, there is something to admire in how it decides to explore love. What draws us to each other and makes us believe blindly in the joy that we give each other? Baumbach is drawing from his own experiences as he finds ways to understand minor grievances that pull us apart, where a turn of phrase can lead to an argument. It’s an honest story that doesn’t wish to take sides, instead finding ways to sympathize the humanity within the cruel world of divorce lawyers. Was this all worth it? With exceptional performances by Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, this is an acting showcase that finds every quiet moment rich with humor and heartbreak, revealing something deeper about adulthood that is unpleasant, but sometimes inevitable. Sometimes we have to choose between love and success, and it’s not always mutually exclusive.

25. A Star is Born (2018) – Dir. Bradley Cooper

With the fourth adaptation of this story, Cooper has found a way to update this story for a new generation while giving Lady Gaga a powerhouse performance. It may sometimes just be playing into what we know about her, but its ability to find the vulnerability within her charisma allows for a story that explores fame in the digital age, asking what truly matters in our life. If you don’t believe that this movie is a work of magic, just try to get through the performance of “Shallow” and not feel moved. With no more than a pre-chorus build-up, Cooper found a way to depict a star being born better than anyone else. If nothing else, it’s the moment that Cooper and Lady Gaga began being taken seriously, and that may be the biggest achievement of all.