Friday, April 16, 2021

Movies Update: Lessons From the Oscar Nominations and More

Plus, five science fiction movies to stream right now.
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By Mekado Murphy

Movies Editor

Hey, movie fans!

As the Oscars draw near, we're digging deeper into the nominees. Wesley Morris wrote about how, even in a year of history-making nominations, there's still more to do to improve the Oscars. Kyle Buchanan highlighted the six best speeches of awards season so far. Michelle No wrote about the drama "Minari," and how it paints a clearer, and more uncomfortable, picture of the immigrant experience onscreen. Bianca Giaever spoke to midwives about the birth scene in "Pieces of a Woman," which features a performance by the Oscar-nominated Vanessa Kirby. Nicolas Rapold looked back at the history of live-action shorts and how they used to be much more revered in the film industry. I spoke to the director Florian Zeller about a cryptic scene from his nominated drama "The Father." And Joshua Rothkopf wrote about how film festivals, often the first public stop for movies (like "Nomadland") on their journey to Oscar nominations, got creative during the pandemic.

And of course, there are still new offerings making their way to theaters and streaming. from those about singing alligators to others providing pandemic-inspired scares.

Enjoy the movies.

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MOVIE REVIEWS

'Arlo the Alligator Boy' Review: Of Songs and Scales

This hyperactive animated Netflix musical for kids, with messages of empowerment and references to "Midnight Cowboy," has a lot on its plate.

By Amy Nicholson

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'We Broke Up' Review: Breaking Up Is Hard to Watch

A longtime couple tries to keep their fractured relationship a secret during a family wedding in this melancholic romantic comedy.

By Teo Bugbee

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'Monday' Review: A Year of Love and Its Hangovers

Fiery physical contact keeps an expat couple together in Greece, and the sex scenes are enough for a half-dozen movies.

By Glenn Kenny

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'Downstream to Kinshasa' Review: Sisyphean Persistence

Dieudo Hamadi's documentary follows survivors of war as they demand long-overdue government compensation.

By Devika Girish

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'In the Earth' Review: Grassroots Horror

Ben Wheatley gets back to basics with this horror movie conceived during the pandemic.

By Ben Kenigsberg

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'Beate' Review: Bad Habits

Factory workers and nuns team up to make lingerie in this half-baked comedy from Italy.

By Beatrice Loayza

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'Ride or Die' Review: Killing for Love

After upending her life, a woman runs away with her longtime crush in this puzzling Japanese drama.

By Natalia Winkelman

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'Our Towns' Review: Across America, Signs of Life

In this companion piece to the book of the same title, James and Deborah Fallows search for revitalization in American cities that had fallen on hard times.

By Ben Kenigsberg

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