The 2022 Oscar nominations have been announced which means it's once again time to look back on the best of last year's movies. One way to find out which is the best of the best is to analyze Metacritic ratings.
As it turns out, this year's lineup was a Metacritic mixed bag, with at least one film receiving marks that could be considered outright poor. For the most part, though, Kenneth Branagh, Denis Villeneuve, Jane Campion, and more have brought a group of well-reviewed movies to the table.
Don't Look Up (49)
The only 2022 Best Picture nominee to receive mixed or average reviews on Metacritic, Adam McKay's Don't Look Up was divisive, to say the least.
Don't Look Up is an ensemble film about the end of the world, and our seeming inability to put a stop to it. Jennifer Lawrence portrays astronomy grad student Kate Dibiasky, who discovers an impending comet strike. By her side is Dr. Randall Mindy, portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio in an Oscar-overlooked performance, who ends up getting entranced by the fame and success provided by the country's utterly incompetent leadership.
Nightmare Alley (69)
Guillermo del Toro's entrancing period piece features a stable of outstanding performances and gorgeous production design, but that wasn't enough to garner Nightmare Alley Metacritic acclaim.
The film follows Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper), a vagabond conman with the hopes of making it big as a clairvoyant. However, after teaming up with a wealthy doctor in the hopes of scamming a tycoon, he may learn that the cost of fame is life itself.
Dune (74)
Spider-Man: No Way Home, for instance, is at least equally beloved yet only holds a 71. Regardless, there's little doubt that Dune was one of the better high-budget films of the year, and it has a chance at taking home some gold this year, even if Best Picture is a stretch.
The film follows Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) as he and his father, Duke Leto, and mother, Lady Jessica, travel to the planet of Arrakis. Populated with both powerful resources and dangerous sand-dwellers, Arrakis is a gorgeous yet highly dangerous locale. Yet the harsh weather and locals is nothing compared to the incoming Harkonnen.
Belfast (75)
Belfast still raked in the nominations. On top of its Best Picture nomination, Branagh was nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. In the acting categories, Judi Dench and Ciarán Hinds were nominated for Best ing Actress and Best ing Actor, respectively.
Time will tell what awards the movie actually wins, but with seven total nominations, it has a decent chance, even if it is within the lower half of Metacritic's ranking.
CODA (75)
Apple TV+'s Ted Lasso.
CODA tells the story of Ruby Rossi, the only member of a deaf family with the ability to hear. The youngest Rossi is a hard worker who does everything she can to keep her family's fishing business above water. However, ion takes over profit as she becomes acquainted, then obsessed, with the art of choir.
King Richard (76)
Like some of 2022 Best Actor Oscar nominee King Richard is a movie with a heart and a message. It's a feel-good tale about three real-life people who deserved just that.
The plot follows Richard Williams (Smith) as he trains, and trains, and trains his daughters, Venus and Serena, to become tennis legends. While dealing with ignorance and tough competition, Richard guides Venus and Serena to the top of the athletic pack
West Side Story (85)
Steven Spielberg again sees what he can do as a director with this new adaptation of West Side Story. As it turns out, the musical is another that can be added to the long list of genres the director has received substantial recognition for. It's a tale told before, but critics liked it, even if audiences didn't exactly turn out in droves.
The plot is a retelling of Romeo and Juliet, except it takes place in New York and involves warring street clans. Things become even more complicated when a member of one gang falls in love with the sister of a rival gang member.
The Power Of The Dog (89)
With The Power of the Dog seems destined to take home at least one gold statue.
It tells the story of two rancher brothers by the names of Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and George Burbank (Jesse Plemons). Phil can be quite cruel, and when George starts bringing around a woman (Kirsten Dunst) and her—in his eyes—effeminate son, Phil reacts. But things may not turn out as he hoped, as life has a way of seeking out justice for itself.
Licorice Pizza (90)
Paul Thomas Anderson's is as chock full of his trademarks as it is powerful moments. It tells the story of 25-year-old Alana Kane (Alana Haim) and 15-year-old Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman, son of the late Philip Seymour Hoffman). Their paths lead them into and out of one another's lives, perhaps to the point of love.
Licorice Pizza is a film of massive scale, just like the rest of the director's works. It may only focus on two main characters' stories, but the narrative is played out with such realism that Anderson's film feels like a true-to-life portrait.
Drive My Car (91)
At the top of the pack is the critically acclaimed Japanese film Drive My Car, directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. Along with nominations for Best Picture and Best Director for Hamaguchi, the film earned nominations for Best International Feature Film and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The plot follows a widowed actor facing the realities of life and death. The aging man then begins to develop an interesting dynamic with a 20-year-old girl, who shows him that life can provide better days ahead.
