Consider this my post-Cannes outlook into the Best Picture race for the 97th annual Academy Awards, which will be celebrating and awarding their choices for the best in film from 2024. I’ve presented all 40 films, via 8 tiers, that I have on my radar as of the end of May, and during the very early part of the awards season. If you want more detailed thoughts on my thinking on why I believe a certain movie may currently be a contender, and why I have them placed where I do in the running, look out for my much more in-depth piece on the matter that might be over at Ordinary Times by the time this is published.
TIER 1: THE POST-CANNES FRONT-RUNNERS
01. Dune: Part Two (+0 Since The Last Update)
02. Blitz (+1 Since The Last Update)
03. Sing Sing (-1 Since The Last Update)
04. Conclave (+0 Since The Last Update)
05. Nickel Boys (+2 Since The Last Update)
TIER 2: THE POST-CANNES HEAVYWEIGHT CONTENDERS
06. The Piano Lesson (+2 Since The Last Update)
07. Queer (+2 Since The Last Update)
08. Anora (+20 Since The Last Update)
09. Emilia Perez (New Addition To The Board Since The Last Update)
10. Joker: Folie à Deux (+0 Since The Last Update)
TIER 3: THE POST-CANNES “ON THE BUBBLE” SERIOUS CONTENDERS
11. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (+0 Since The Last Update)
12. Gladiator II (+0 Since The Last Update)
13. Wicked (+0 Since The Last Update)
14. Challengers (+11 Since The Last Update)
15. The Apprentice (+0 Since The Last Update)
TIER 4: THE POST-CANNES LONG SHOTS ON THE VERGE OF BEING TAKEN SERIOUS
16. Kinds Of Kindness (-2 Since The Last Update)
17. His Three Daughters (-1 Since The Last Update)
18. Didi (+3 Since The Last Update)
19. The Bikeriders (+1 Since The Last Update)
20. Here (-2 Since The Last Update)
TIER 5: THE POST-CANNES LONG SHOTS WITHIN STRIKING DISTANCE
21. The Room Next Door (-4 Since The Last Update)
22. Juror No. 2 (-3 Since The Last Update)
23. A Real Pain (-1 Since The Last Update)
24. The End (+11 Since The Last Update)
25. The Seed Of A Sacred Fig (New Addition To The Board Since The Last Update)
TIER 6: THE POST-CANNES CONTENDERS WITH A SLIM PATH
26. Parthenope (+4 Since The Last Update)
27. Maria (-1 Since The Last Update)
28. The Outrun (-1 Since The Last Update)
29. A Different Man (+2 Since The Last Update)
30. Exhibiting Forgiveness (+2 Since The Last Update)
TIER 7: THE POST-CANNES CONTENDERS SEARCHING FOR A PATH
31. Twisters (+10 Since The Last Update)
32. Nosferatu (+7 Since The Last Update)
33. Nightbitch (New Addition To The Board Since The Last Update)
34. The Substance (New Addition To The Board Since The Last Update)
35. Civil War (+1 Since The Last Update)
TIER 8: THE POST-CANNES LONGEST OF LONG SHOTS
36. Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1 Or Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 2 (+6-7 Since The Last Update)
37. The Wild Robot(+8 Since The Last Update)
38. The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of Rohirrim (+6 Since The Last Update)
39. Inside Out 2 (+7 Since The Last Update)
40. Mufasa: The Lion King (+10 Since The Last Update)
OFF THE BOARD SINCE THE LAST UPDATE
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice; Emmanuelle; Hit Man; I Saw The TV Glow; Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes; Megalopolis; Monkey Man; Piece By Piece; SNL 1975; The Fire Inside; The History Of Sound; The Supremes At Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat; We Live In Time
