The 2023 Oscar nominations were announced January 24th at 5:30 a.m by Riz Ahmed and Allison Williams. Here were the four movies with the best performances at the 2023 Oscar nominations.

Everything Everywhere all at Once

This whirlwind sci-fi adventure was the most successful movie at the nominations, garnering eleven nominations. This movie captures the heart of the audience by displaying the hardships of an Asian immigrant family through a multiversal story. 

“I loved how the movie looked at the relationship between mother and daughter in a new and exciting way. It served as a great commentary on the pressure that kids feel when trying to live up to parents’ standards. It ascends so many aspects of filmmaking while also giving the viewer an extremely fun viewing experience,” said Ryan Sugden (‘23). 

This hectic masterpiece walked away with two major wins at the Golden Globes, both for acting. Everything Everywhere all at Once hopes to capitalize on its advantage when the Academy Awards happen in March.

The Banshees of Inisherin

The mind twisting Irish film, following Pádraic combating loneliness, was awarded nine nominations at the Oscars. This Martin Mcdonagh original had Mcdonagh pairing up with long time co workers Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, all three being nominated in their respective categories. This movie caught the attention of audiences for the heartbreaking story of a man feeling he has nobody left to care about him.

“The movie had a beautiful underlying meaning of war and how small conflicts that don’t seem very large can completely blow up until you forget why it even occurred in the first place. The visuals were amazing as well as the harshness and honesty that portrayed two sides of a story. Despite the great metaphor, the movie is very long, slow and all about the underlying meaning. The surface level of this movie could be made into a 45 minute show, it feels, but then it wouldn’t show the intensity of the two sides and take you through what the movie was trying to portray,” said Riley Borges (‘24). 

Despite being slower paced than its respected competitors, The Banshees of Inisherin still is putting up a fight for the sheer beauty of the picture and its moving story. The film appeals more to an adult audience and would not typically attract teenagers.

All Quiet on the Western Front

Tied with The Banshees of Inisherin at nine nominations, this World War One drama depicts the glorification of serving your country, and the horror of war from the perspective of young men. This movie was less appreciated for its acting, and more recognized for its outstanding work in cinematography, makeup and hairstyling, as well as visual effects.

“It was a very interesting take on the war genre of film.  Really focusing on the change in regards to soldiers happy to serve for their country going into war and then being scared through various life altering experiences.  It pulled the audience along with experiences of what it was like to be there with the characters in the middle of a war,” said Sugden.

Elvis

One of Warner Bros Pictures highest grossing films in 2022, Elvis received eight nominations at the Academy nominations. A beautiful portrayal of the complicated career of one of the rockstars of the 20th century, Austin Butler’s memorable performance earned him a Best Actor nomination and Baz Luhrmann, director and producer, is hoping to capture the award for Best Picture.

“Elvis was a Baz special with great visuals and great music.Austin Butler put together one of the best performances of the year and really immersed the audience in the symbolic influence of Elvis. Tom Hanks put together one of the more lackluster performances of his career, and the movie dragged on, but despite those things the movie felt like a movie that Elvis would be proud of as it took the audience through the ups and downs of his life. [It was] a really great watch that I would recommend to anyone,” said Borges.

The 2023 Oscars will air on March 12th in Hollywood. These movies and many others will have the chance to win awards for their acting, cinematography, casting, and much more.