Meet This Year's Best Picture Contenders
Which films from 2019 could contend for a best picture Oscar in early 2020? We have surveyed industry experts, reviewed the reviews, and examined the top performers at this year's major film festivals to come up with a list of 20-ish potential contenders. (They're listed alphabetically in the gallery above.) Of course, the ultimate best picture nominee list will include 10 or fewer titles (likely fewer), so not every one of these films will secure a nomination—but it's likely that all of the eventual nominees will be found in our list. The biggest wildcards are the handful of films that have yet to be screened for anyone; we'll point those out as we get to them.
What is it? A semi-autobiographical drama from legendary Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar centering on the life of a fading film director played by Antonio Banderas.
Why is it a contender? It greatly impressed audiences at its Cannes debut, and has since become one of 2019's best-reviewed films as well as the highest-scoring film ever directed by Almodóvar.
What are its chances? We'll say 50-50, as experts appear to be split. It is a Spanish-language film, which immediately hurts its chances since the Academy rarely recognizes foreign-language films in the best picture category. (More on that topic on the next slide—but let's just say there's another foreign-language contender this year, and the odds of two non-English films cracking the nominee list would seem to be slim.) And no Almodóvar film has been so nominated. But this could be a chance for the Academy to remedy that situation, effectively recognizing Almodóvar for his entire body of work by honoring the film that best represents him personally. The fact that it's a film about a filmmaker certainly doesn't hurt.
When can I see it? It is in limited release right now, and is still in the process of rolling out to additional cities.
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