OVP: Best International Feature Film (2021)
The Nominees Were...
Drive My Car, Japan
Flee, Denmark
The Hand of God, Italy
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom, Bhutan
The Worst Person in the World, Norway
My Thoughts: The international feature films of 2021 actually did quite well overall when it comes to extending beyond this category for the Oscars. Three of these films were nominated in other categories, which while not a record, definitely is unusual. Of course, one of these three films was cited for Best Picture, which basically made it impossible for the other contenders to take home the trophy. But we're not beholden to other categories here, and as a result we have more options than just going with the frontrunner.
But we'll start with that frontrunner, because why not? Drive My Car's most noted characteristics, as least during the Oscar discussion, were its length (clocking in at three hours, I picked the wrong theater to go to given mine was an old-timey one-screen theater without reclining seats) and the fact that the credits start forty minutes into the movie. But the movie itself never feels long, which is impressive given its a fascinating look at how we handle grief, hardly a subject that flies by. I thought that the side characters weren't fleshed out enough, but overall this has a strong central message, and a good lead performance from Hidetoshi Nishijima.
Flee we talked through in our last writeup for Animated Feature (links to all past categories at the bottom of this page), and I don't have a lot different to say since these categories are basically judging the same thing (the cumulative film). The movie's approach is too sporadic, the non-linear approach to the material not aiding a story that is about hiding. The film is too dry, and doesn't have enough connection to the material to stay with the viewer long after it's done.
The Worst Person in the World is the last movie to get into multiple categories at the Oscars, for writing. The film is at once a tragedy & a comedy, and while other films toe that line with a bit too much weight on one or the other, this one finds the balance quite naturally. The two leads are amazing, and it does a really smart job of talking about how much of life is about making choices when we can't possibly know all of the outcomes of our decisions. The third act is a killer, and excellently scripted. The biggest fault the movie has-the narration, which is unnecessary, adds nothing, & should've been scrapped.
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom wins the "best title" trophy of these five hands-down, but it's not nearly as consequential as the other nominees, and doesn't make up for it by being particularly adorable or heartwarming. Cute, but wholly predictable fish-out-of-water story that doesn't give us enough reason to get invested in this world other than the children are adorable. Also, it definitely needed to use the yak more (in and out of the classroom).
The final nomination is The Hand of God, directed by Paolo Sorrentino, the closest thing we have to Fellini these days, though I'm not as consistently enamored with him as I was with the original Italian maestro. I didn't love this the way I did The Great Beauty, but I liked it more than something like Il Divo. The cinematography is gorgeous (when is it not for Sorrentino), and the random chaos of the first half of the movie had me confused but fascinated. The twist, though, caught me so off-guard that I wish I'd spent more time with the oversexed but ultimately joyous characters of the film's first half (which, admittedly, is the point). A better movie in retrospect than when I first saw it, but still not as good as it should've been.
Other Precursor Contenders: Awards ceremonies like the Goyas and the Cesars aren't good representatives here since they're typically honoring the main films of a specific country, so I only count the Globes among the awards bodies we check-in with for Foreign Language film. The Globes went with Drive My Car, over the Oscar-cited Hand of God, as well as Compartment No. 6 (Finland), A Hero (Iran), and Parallel Mothers (Spain). In terms of the ten films that were on the shortlist but didn't make it, I'm going to guess that Compartment No. 6, A Hero, or maybe Great Freedom (Austria) was the sixth place...probably A Hero given they love Farhadi as a rule.
Films I Would Have Nominated: I normally take a pass on recommending here, but given the nominees they went with, I surely would've included A Hero, a strong film from Farhadi that continually delivers, even if it's borrowing from his previous work.
Oscar’s Choice: There was no chance once Drive My Car got those Best Picture/Director nominations-a landslide victory for the Japanese entry.
My Choice: I'm going to go with Worst Person instead. It's better executed, and its conclusion is stronger. Behind it is Drive My Car, Hand of God, Lunana, and Flee.
Those are my thoughts-what about you? Are you with Oscar and the longform look at Chekov as metaphor or do you want to join me as a woman understands the wake of her future through the choices of her present? Do you think Sorrentino will ever make a movie that is comparable to The Great Beauty, or does he eternally languish in its shadow? And why do we not have more movies where we put yaks in the classroom? Share your thoughts below!
Past Best Foreign Language Film Contests: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
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