<\/p>\n
Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein” didn’t exactly wow audiences and critics when it premiered at the Venice Film Festival, and when it landed at the Telluride Film Festival<\/a> a day later for a pair of late-night screenings, the response was even more muted. Leaving Colorado, the airport gate was full of hushed conversations between people registering their disappointment with the movie.<\/p>\n “Frankenstein,” the talk went, had three strikes against it \u2014 a plodding story, computer-generated imagery that looked appalling and was employed to often ridiculous effect and, outside of Jacob Elordi’s affecting turn<\/a> as the monster, acting that seemed wildly excessive (Oscar Isaac) or hopelessly lost (Mia Goth). In short: a mess.<\/p>\n But then “Frankenstein” traveled to the Toronto, a city Del Toro regards as his “second home,” and finished as runner-up to “Hamnet” for the festival’s People’s Choice Award<\/a>. Now playing in a theatrical limited release ahead of its Nov. 7 Netflix premiere, the movie has found favor with the filmmaker’s devoted fan base, selling out theaters<\/a>, including dates at Netflix’s renovated Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, where admission lines wrapped around the block. And some prominent critics, including my colleague Amy Nicholson, have written some thoughtful reviews of the movie, praising Del Toro’s lifelong passion project. Amy calls it the “best movie of his career.”<\/a><\/p>\n So in this update to my post-festival Oscar power rankings for best picture<\/a>, you’ll find “Frankenstein,” a movie that’s hard to place on this list but harder still to ignore. Previous rankings are parenthetically noted.<\/p>\n Falling out of the rankings since September: <\/b>“A House of Dynamite,” “Jay Kelly”<\/p>\n The last “Avatar” movie<\/a> grossed $2.3 billion and, yes, earned an Oscar nomination for best picture. Yet I’m hard-pressed to find anyone who’s truly excited about devoting half a day to see the next installment, which clocks in at 3 hours and 12 minutes. Just because the first two movies were nominated doesn’t mean this one will be. But underestimating James Cameron’s ability to connect with audiences \u2014 and awards voters \u2014 seems dumb. So here we are, No. 10, sight (still) unseen.<\/p>\n Better than “Kinds of Kindness” but not nearly the triumph of “Poor Things,” this is mid Yorgos Lanthimos \u2014 off-putting, punishing and misanthropic but also featuring another showcase for Emma Stone’s bold, creative energy. There are a number of movies that could displace it as a nominee. Park Chan-wook\u2019s “No Other Choice” offers a more humane \u2014 and funnier \u2014 look at ugly things people can do when desperate. But I’ll stick with “Bugonia” for now. After all, how many movies inspire people to shave their heads for a ticket<\/a>?<\/p>\n Netflix has four movies arriving during the awards season window \u2014 the meditative stunner “Train Dreams,” Katherine Bigelow’s riveting, ticking-clock thriller “A House of Dynamite,” the George Clooney meta-charmer “Jay Kelly” and “Frankenstein.” (That’s how I’d rank them in terms of quality.) One of these movies will be nominated. Maybe two. At this moment, nobody, including the awards team at Netflix, knows which one(s) it will be.<\/p>\n Jafar Panahi\u2019s Palme d\u2019Or-winning<\/a> thriller possesses a withering critique of the cruelty and corruption of an authoritarian regime, combined with a blistering sense of humor. Panahi (\u201cThe Circle,\u201d \u201cTaxi\u201d) has been imprisoned by the Iranian government many times for criticizing the government, and his courage has been celebrated for its spirit of artistic resistance. He has been a ubiquitous presence on the festival and awards circuit this year, eager to share both the movie and his story. As the Oscars have thoroughly embraced international movies the last several years, “It Was Just an Accident” feels like it’s on solid ground.<\/p>\n An academy member recently expressed some reservations about this movie to me \u2014 not about the sequel itself, but about the prospect of seeing stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande embark on another tear-soaked promotional tour<\/a>. Whatevs. The first \u201cWicked\u201d movie earned 10 Oscar nominations, winning for production design and costumes. With the added casting category, the sequel might just surpass that number.<\/p>\n Josh Safdie’s wildly entertaining, over-caffeinated portrait of a single-minded ping-pong player premiered on its home turf at the New York Film Festival and people left the Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall caught up in the rapture of the movie’s delirium. It might be the movie that wins Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet his Oscar, though he’ll have to go through Leonardo DiCaprio to collect the trophy.<\/p>\n Neon won best picture last year with Sean Baker\u2019s \u201cAnora,\u201d and it\u2019s not unreasonable to think it could run it back with \u201cSentimental Value,\u201d Joachim Trier\u2019s piercing drama about a family reckoning with the past and wondering if reconciliation is possible \u2014 or even desired. The three actors cast in familial roles \u2014 Stellan Skarsg\u00e5rd, playing a legendary director angling for a comeback, and Renate Reinsve and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas as his daughters \u2014 are excellent, and Elle Fanning has a choice role as an A-list actor who becomes entangled in the family drama. And like \u201cAnora,\u201d this movie ends on a perfect, transcendent note. That counts for a lot.<\/p>\n “Sinners” made a lot of noise when it was released in April and, months later, belongs in any conversation about the year’s best movie. The job now is to remind voters of its worth at events like the American Cinematheque’s upcoming “Sinners” screening<\/a> with filmmaker Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan. With the level of its craft, it could score a dozen or more nominations, with only “One Battle After Another” as a threat to best that count.<\/p>\n Since its tear-inducing Telluride premiere<\/a>, Chlo\u00e9 Zhao\u2019s tender portrait of love and loss and the cathartic power of art<\/a> has been hitting regional film festivals, racking up audience awards and proving that people love a good cry. Stock up on tissues now for the film’s theatrical release later this month.<\/p>\n The Gotham Awards did away with its budget cap a couple of years ago, allowing indie-spirited studio movies like “One Battle After Another” to clean up<\/a> and, one supposes, the show’s sales team to move more tables at its ceremony. It was no secret that Paul Thomas Anderson’s angry, urgent epic would score well with film critics groups. (Panels of critics vote for the Gothams.) It’s just a question of how many dinners Anderson will have to eventually attend for a movie that has easily become the most widely seen film of his career.<\/p>\n Get exclusive awards season news, in-depth interviews and columnist Glenn Whipp\u2019s must-read analysis straight to your inbox.<\/a><\/p>\n This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n10. ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ (Unranked)<\/b><\/h2>\n
9. ‘Bugonia’ (10)<\/b><\/h2>\n
8. “Frankenstein” (Unranked)<\/b><\/h2>\n
7. ‘It Was Just an Accident’ (7)<\/b><\/h2>\n
6. ‘Wicked: For Good’ (6)<\/b><\/h2>\n
5. ‘Marty Supreme’ (8)<\/b><\/h2>\n
4. ‘Sentimental Value’ (3)<\/b><\/h2>\n
3. ‘Sinners’ (4)<\/h2>\n
2. ‘Hamnet’<\/b> (2)<\/h2>\n
1. ‘One Battle After Another’ (1)<\/b><\/h2>\n