Best International Feature Film: Ranking Every Oscar Nominee
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Last year’s winner: Parasite-South Korea.
We’ve reached an exciting category. Firstly, this is the second last category we have overall. It is also the last category that isn’t the top prize of Best Picture, so you can expect me to go out with a bang tomorrow. Finally, I’ve always loved the Best International Feature Film group, since it usually results in the best batch of nominees. To me, this is what Best Picture usually feels like, although here it can be unhindered (primarily, anyway) by awards season politics and Oscar bait nonsense. It does have its own issues (countries only allowed to have one nominee is usually a pain), but we still usually get five excellent films. This year is no different. I like-to-loved every single one of these candidates, so let’s get right into it. Here are your nominees.
Biggest Snub: Night of the Kings-Côte d'Ivoire
I don’t think any of the five nominees don’t deserve to be there, but I always like to have a “snub”, since I feel like any opportunity to share movies with cinephiles is always a good one (never hurts to have yet another film to watch, rather than run out of recommendations). Besides, it’s interesting when the Academy branches outside of the usual European and Asian countries that usually dominate this category (Italy, Spain, Japan, et cetera). I don’t feel like the Academy selects African cinema enough, and such a unique option like short list nominee Night of the Kings (from Côte d’Ivoire) is the kind of film that this category excels in highlighting: such unique visions and stories.
5. Better Days-Hong Kong
With a group this tough, I’ll have to be picky. Better Days is barely last, but I have placed it there, because of its drawn-out midsection that slightly stymies the intense flow of the entire film. Its strong opening act and even greater grand finale are fantastic enough that a more polished film could have resulted in a potential “film of the year” candidate. Better Days blends current day fears and anxiety with this parallel of worlds: between the strict school system, and the gritty streets. It is a compelling look at bullying and its many manifestations.
4. Collective-Romania
I ranked Collective the second highest documentary in yesterday’s list, but this is a much tougher category. Fourth here isn’t too bad. I still highly recommend this film, especially because of how eye opening it is (to the point of guaranteed repulsion, geared towards how corrupted many of the world’s industries really are). The research here is so frightening, and the way Collective shows them is at a verité distance makes every piece of development hit harder than the last. This is like watching a political thriller feature, only this is sadly all real.
3. The Man Who Sold His Skin-Tunisia
There’s always one nominee in this category which feels grossly overlooked, likely because of then-limited distribution; this happens because the Academy sifts through film festival darlings for this category sometimes. This year’s version of that nominee is Tunisia’s The Man Who Sold His Skin: an aesthetic, shocking satire about immigration and the abuse of refugees. I personally found this film to be shocking from start to finish, with each revelation being filled with the same amounts of creativity and boldness.
2. Another Round-Denmark
Of course, Thomas Vinterberg is going to get some love in this category, and Another Round is the ample opportunity for this. This film is strange, because my memories of it don’t do it justice. It took revisiting this picture to be reminded of why I love it so much. Even though it is punctuated by moments, Another Round is as great as it is because of its genre ambiguity, singular nature, and balance of stoic and free filmmaking, which captures the states of sobriety and drunken celebration perfectly. I feel like my love of this film will only grow stronger over time.
1. Quo Vadis, Aida?-Bosnia and Herzegovina
Out of all of the strong candidates, my pick has to be Quo Vadis, Aida?. Had I watched this film last year, it would have placed very highly on my top list of 2020. I find the film so punishing in the kind of way that only the best art can deliver. As the film carries on, it only feels more and more difficult to bear, right until the overwhelming finale. Another reason why I love this category usually, is because it introduces me to films from the previous year that I may have missed. Everyone is familiar with Another Round and its likeliness of winning this category. I hope this category has also introduced people to Quo Vadis, Aida?: one of the most staggering cinematic achievements of this decade thus far.
Our Review of Quo Vadis, Aida?
Who I want to win: I’m rooting for Another Round, because Thomas Vinterberg is in dire need of an Academy Award. However, deep down I’m hoping for a Quo Vadis, Aida? upset. If anything, I wish all five of these nominees could win. They were all great.
Who I think will win: The way it looks, this currently looks like a landslide for Another Round, which has dominated any similar category (when Minari wasn’t featured); the extra Best Director nomination for the film doesn’t hurt its chances, too. However, there could also be the slight possibility of vote splitting, or members relying on the crowd to vote for this film while they vote for something else. If there were an upset, it could honestly be any of these. Better Days has local popularity. Collective is highly acclaimed, and has its Documentary nomination (showing validity). The Man Who Sold His Skin and Quo Vadis, Aida? have enough of an audience to have been selected, and their recent releases could actually help. I’m still going Another Round (which will almost certainly win, I think), but I’m also warming you up to the possibility of a shocking surprise, because you never know.
Tune in tomorrow for our next Academy Award category! We’re reviewing every single nominee.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.