Nomadland (2020); Chloé Zhao

7.5 / 10

Well meaning, lovely, but very repetitious movie that I think you may appreciate more the less you personally care for capitalism actually.  Even when the plot dynamics change (or seem to) it's in the same register and key so to me it was covering the same ground after the first ~45 minutes and became wearying by the end.

This is a lot like The Rider (with the same poetic evocations and the limitation of non-actors and the absence of standard drama plot points). Like The Rider, it drifts, it doesn't really work as a typical movie that actually "moves" anywhere but as something like a tone poem. (ibbi - I'd rate The Rider similarly - this feels far weightier although The Rider kept me engaged until the end).

It resembles Harlan County, USA to me in the characters and in themes is like The Grapes of Wrath - little details are conveyed to the audience without an imposing story arc or structure. It's better early on and at one point I thought of The Rolling Stones song "Salt of the Earth" which describes these situations perfectly - condemned to horrible or ironic calamity (almost always right before retirement so they can't afford to retire), illness or death....... this would be like listening to a whole album of just "Salt of the Earth".

McDormand in a way is kind of masterful here - though I'm not sure she's showy enough for some to praise this - a lot of people will be like "what did she do?'. But her acting is terrific in ways you don't see much (many great "reacting" scenes, scenes alone where she's being functional working (or thinking) and many crucial scenes that she (professionally) totally salvages from (shaky) non-actors in light and buoyant ways. Especially in the "tire" scene imo -a deft handling of how to give and take and stay in character and make a scene work - and the performance accumulates little by little and fits in with the movie's vision.

I do think this is going to be very hard to beat for Best Director actually though because this is mostly a triumph of mood and rhythms again by Zhao -  it never goes off the rails or loses the pitch where she set the film. Maybe the biggest plus for me is that her directing style here captures details and they give the script a connecting theme  - which is why the script looks better than it really is.

At the very start I noticed someone with a "Morrissey" tattoo and that comes into play with many things here - where you maybe notice small things like that and then ponder what these people and their lives were like. What music they liked, what was fun for them and who they were before they found themselves in this environment when we meet them. That's a theme visually here that's worked a lot - how is who you are distinct from what you do. 

There's a sweet and revealing scene where McDormand talks about how she does things now and the dishes her father collected which she has in her trailer - so you then start thinking "Oh, ok he collected the dishes as a hobby but now they're essential to her to eat off AND she needs to hold on to them because it connects her to something hopeful that she had before ......and the movie is wise enough not to articulate any of that for you.

It just presents the scenes and lets you get there on your own.......much of the movie is like that.....some people will really respond to that style.......others  may find that kind of thing inert.

Oh honeys, I saw this this afternoon and loved it. 9/10

This movie is so moving and poignant. It has a contemplative quality and is one of those movies that stays with you a long time. This is a piece of Americana. Swankie's story was heart breaking.

Fran is superb. For me, she is one of the greats. The realism, the honesty the subtlety - this is what truly great acting is about. It isn't about wearing a showy wig and performing every line in sotto voce for two hours. There is no staginess, no dramatic turns and so totally disappears into the role of Fern. The scene where is enjoys herself watching the alligator with David is a stand out, McDormand lets us see a little more of her character. The layering is exquisite. Probably the best performance of this year. She makes Streep in Let Them All Talk look like she's in a clumsy pantomime. Like all of the acting greats, McDormand knows that less is more and you don't need all the gimmicks.

This movie resonates. The timimg is right.

The soundtrack by Einaudi is gorgeous.

It's ineligible for Score, but I'd bet on it to win Cinematography, Editing and Screenplay. The Zhao household is taking home gold in a wheelbarrow.

It's an incredibly lovely film, full of a quiet hope and love for the people who have been cruelly robbed of both. McDormand is just so wonderfully real and honest at every turn - you sense that she truly cares for all the people she meets on her travels, both as character and actress. This is my first Zhao, and her gentle yet distinct directorial style, combined with her clear adoration for the vast natural landscapes of the American West, makes for a truly immersive experience. She'd make a fantastic winner, as would the film itself, even if after having seen it I agree that it doesn't feel like a BP winner. Stranger things have happened though, and I'd love it if it took the big prize. Really though, you get the sense that Zhao made this without a second's thought for awards or recognition - it feels deeply personal, yet also universal. It's a marvel. 

Even if the film does well, Editing feels pretty unlikely, as quiet low key dramas don't typically take that prize, particularly when there are flashy editing contenders hanging around this year. Although it is predicted to win by most right now, adapted screenplay also feels like a challenge for it, as again they don't typically reward films that are as minimalist as this one is in its writing (not a criticism just a description), like how Roma, despite being a major contender most places, rarely won for its screenplay.

While I agree with your opinions regarding the actual quality of both elements, we're talking about academy voters not ourselves.

Name an editing winner remotely like this in the last 25 years or a screenplay winner.

Flash almost always matters with editing wins, which almost all other contenders are more overtly edited, though I personally wouldn't say better edited.

For screenplay, I can see The Father winning, as it is dialogue driven with twists and turns both which voters typically like. Yes much of this exists in the source material but voters never seem to care about that.

I think Judas and the Black Messiah is a dark horse in Editing.

I loved that this included the Venice Golden Lion seal before the opening credits - it's so rare for American films to do that when they've won prizes from the major European festivals. 

Anyway, I loved it - OnlyFrans' performance is so soulful and beautiful. 

Nomadland did a very good job at being insightful on America's poverty, HE used it to make bad poverty porn and win awards. It's not rocket science.

The great thing about McDormand here is that she's finally given her Maria Falconetti moment - filmmakers mostly rely on her wondrous ability to deliver dialogue but in this movie Zhao gives her face to the camera and it tells the story without much need for words. Yet another proof of how immense McDormand's talent is. She isn't likely to win her third BA Oscar for this but the film has a real shot at taking BP and she's one of the producers (and originators of the project itself) so it's very possible that she will still get her due for it which makes me really happy.

This looks absolutely dismal, commodified indie disguising as neorealism. Maybe if it was in helmed by an cast of unknown actors, sort of like a Ken Loach film, I'd dignify it.....but Hollywood elite Frances McDormand, distributed by Disney and directed by someone setting their sights on working for Marvel next, give me a fucking break.