Kate Rodger’s Best Oscar Picks: Must-See Films in Kiwi Cinemas This Summer
Kate Rodger’s top Oscar picks this summer, from Emilia Perez to Timothee Chalamet’s Bob Dylan portrayal. Don’t miss these films in Kiwi cinemas!
Written by Kate Rodger
My favourite time of year - all the Oscar darlings are rolling into kiwi cinemas.
Here are my best Of Summer Picks and Get Thee to a Cinema Forthwith!
Clocking in with the biggest number of Oscar nominations, a whopping 13 all up, is EMILIA PEREZ
A visceral song and neon dance, Zoe Saldaña and Selena Gomez showcasing hidden and already lauded talents and with such a bold propulsive and truly electric delivery, I was utterly transported. This is the best kind of cinematic experience so PLEASE do not miss it on the big screen.
THE FEELS: Intense, thrilling, unexpected, I felt like I’d been taken away, dropped and drenched in a whole other world and I simply ADORE it when movies do this to me.
THE HOOK: A new identity, a new life, the real you; is redemption for your sins of the past possible in your future?
A Best VFX Oscar nomination for kiwi powerhouse WĒTĀFX for their work on making Robbie William’s a Chimp - PLEASE go see Better Man immediately lest you Come Undone... and let Robbie entertain you - No Regrets! (I know I know I’m sorry)
THE FEELS: ‘Cause I got too much life, running through my veins, going to waste. Guess that about sums it up.
THE HOOK: More hooks than a fly-fishing convention and from all favourite Robbie tunes - you need to see Rock DJ to believe it.
Not just Oscar nom’d for Best Animation but also Best Foreign Film for a fi with ZERO dialogue - what fun! Flow, for me, was flawless. The fact the lead actor is a “purrrfectly” cast cat of course just the icing on this crazy cat lady’s cake. But there are other animals! And an incredible parable on connection, friendship, survival and saving our planet. Yes Internet there is a capybara, but throw in a lemur, a dog and a cool-as feathery friend and by crikey we have a film for the age
THE FEELS: I was filled with such a cacophony of emotions from joy a wonder to dread and sadness and I loved feeling them all.
THE HOOK: #Cat. Enough said. Flow was both an emotional story of survival and friendship and unity through the eyes of our furry friends while also a sobering parable about the Earth’s survival as a whole. Just so so good.
A whopping 8 noms including Timmy as Bobby for Best Actor, A Complete Unknown has just landed in NZ cinemas. Set in the swirling intoxicating chaos of the 1960s, Timothee Chalamet entirely embodies Bob Dylan in a way that’s almost spooky as the story dives into the life of an enigmatic folk singer, his rise to fame as mysterious as the man himself. Through a kaleidoscope of perspectives—friends, lovers, and Johnny Cash—the film explores the blurred lines between truth and myth, art a identity and the cost of living a life in the spotlight. Incredible music of course, excellent supporting performances especially Ed Norton.
THE FEELS: Sound and music as a portal to the past this was immersive and engrossing and hard not to sing-a-long to! I felt a little like I was living in 60’s New York City and loved that feeling.
THE HOOK: It’s gotta be Chalamet and his performances on stage and in the studio. He’s so perfectly cast and brings an entirely enigmatic icon to life in a way that’s quite delicious.
