Jess Hilburn, executive director of Benson Memorial Library, and Brandi Scardilli, editor in chief of ITI NewsBreaks, provide their hot takes on the 2026 Oscar nominations in their fifth annual awards season conversation, held over Google Chat on Jan. 27. They break down the Best Picture nominees, discuss other movies from the past year that are worth celebrating, and look at what’s available at the library.

The 2026 Oscars will take place on Sunday, March 15, at 7 p.m. EST on ABC.

Follow Jess and Brandi on Letterboxd: Jess is @jm910, and Brandi is @bsloths.

The opinions of the participants do not reflect endorsement by any organization. This conversation has been edited for clarity.

Introduction

Brandi: Welcome to our fifth annual Oscars conversation—can you believe it’s been that long?!

Jess: Wow. I really can’t! Five years. Good on us for consistency.

Brandi: A lot has changed in the world in the last 5 years, and the movies this year are reflecting our current moment—loneliness, grief, fascism, etc. And yet, I find a lot of the Best Picture nominees to be ultimately really hopeful. What do you think?

Jess: I think that’s a pretty spot-on analysis. Multiple of these movies allow grief and hope to coexist, and that feels much more true to our lived experience, but not without also transporting us into some really sweeping stories. Expert craftsmanship on display this year!

Brandi: I’m going to tell you something I just realized, on a personal level. After years and years of hearing about their genius, I watched my first Yorgos Lanthimos and my first Paul Thomas Anderson movies this year. They never appealed to me before. Something about this year made both Bugonia and One Battle After Another feel urgent to watch.

Jess: What about them created that feeling of urgency for you?

Brandi: From the trailer, One Battle just looked like a total crowd-pleaser with a dash of anti-authoritarianism. When we get to it, we can talk about how it’s deeper than that. But I’ll start with Bugonia to kick off our discussion of the 10 Best Picture nominees. Does that work for you?

Jess: Works for me!

Bugonia

Brandi: You know I was nervous about watching Bugonia. I really wanted to watch it because Emma Stone keeps racking up the noms, and I like her anyway, and I like Jesse Plemons, who didn’t get a nom but was considered a snub. That made me curious. I watched the trailer and decided this movie knows exactly what it is. It’s a power play between a conspiracy theorist and a CEO, and they’re going to trade barbs. I wanted to see it for the capital-A Acting. But it wasn’t that at all. I couldn’t figure out which character the movie wanted me to root for. There are other twists and turns that make it clear that this movie is BLEAK. It does not have nice things to say about the human condition. It’s actually one of the few that I didn’t find hopeful at all. I’m still thinking about it, trying to figure out if I can find a sliver of sunshine, but Bugonia wants you to know that people are terrible to each other. I found it very off-putting.

Jess: I was mixed on it. I watched it very recently, so I’m still mulling it over and trying to figure out what it’s trying to say. And maybe the answer is that it’s saying multiple things simultaneously. It’s hard to talk about that without spoilers, but one interpretation takes the side of the conspiracy theorists and the other takes the side of both parties. I think I like the latter more. When it comes to craft, the score was the standout for me. It was so aggressive and sweeping at the most visually boring moments, and I loved how the music told us about the internal life of the character on-screen and that gave the story another layer of richness. Look at me, praising Lanthimos and crew. Truly astounding, since he has never ever ever been my cup of tea. Love him in interviews, though!

Brandi: I agree about the score! It was chilling at times. Definitely got my attention.

Jess: It’s like the score for The Zone of Interest in 2023 or All Quiet on the Western Front the year before. I love an arresting, unexpected score.

Brandi: I think maybe the movie also has something to say about people being collateral damage ... there are multiple characters caught in the crosshairs who don’t deserve to be.

Jess: For sure. And also just about the banality of life (not evil, because I don’t think any of these characters are evil).

Brandi: I don’t either. Maybe that’s why we’re not supposed to take either side, fully.

F1

Jess: F1 I haven’t watched. I meant to. I really did. But that runtime got to me psychologically. Two and a half hours of vroom vroom is not something I seek out. I’m still trying to get to it before I do my full write-up though. Did you watch it?

Brandi: I did! It was the perfect movie to watch with my dad. We enjoyed it. It’s not a movie. It’s a vehicle (pun intended) to get from race to race. It’s the most paint-by-numbers, cliched plot, but it really comes alive during the races. They’re truly exciting to watch. So it’s the default crowd-pleaser nominee slot, and I’m not necessarily mad about it. It’s not one of the best movies of the year, but it was filmed for maximum popcorn fun. Also, Damson Idris is a charisma machine. I want a sequel starring him.

Jess: That makes me a little more interested in watching it at least. Some fun never hurt.

Brandi: I always like to figure out what a movie is saying, and I think this one is saying, “Being a team player is good.” And that’s not a bad message.

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Frankenstein

Brandi: I decided not to watch Frankenstein. The visuals seem too intense for me. Guillermo del Toro can make amazing movies, but I can’t handle all of them. You can talk about that one.

Jess: I love GDT so much. While sometimes things get a little gory even for me, I love his sensibility and his eye and his hatred of AI. He is so committed to CRAFT, and I love that. Everything in Frankenstein looks and feels well-made (minus the wolves at times, but at least you know they’re not AI!). I love the original Mary Shelley story, and I feel it was and remains in very safe hands, lovingly rendered, with GDT. Also OSCAR NOMINEE Jacob Elordi? I love that for him.

I said “love” a lot in that paragraph, but I regret none of it because love is the crux of how that movie was made. And the story of Frankenstein really has love at the center as well. What does it mean to love and be loved? How does control factor into that? Is love what makes us human?

Brandi: That’s beautiful. I’m happy the movie exists!

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Hamnet

Jess: Speaking of love, take us into Hamnet if you’re ready!

Brandi: Oh, gosh, I’m getting emotional just thinking about it! The best final scene in any movie in the last ... decade, maybe? I’ll have to take the time to actually figure out what my other favorites are, but this movie really, really sticks the landing. The whole vibe is immaculate. I didn’t read the book, just for context. The way Chloé Zhao brings you in to that magic forest and we get this idyllic family only to have it be ripped away to become a story about how people cope with grief ... it’s a masterpiece. I don’t always express grief in the same way as people around me, so I really identified with the push-and-pull of Agnes and Will and how they had to pour their emotions into their own buckets. There’s no right or wrong way to grieve. That’s what I took away from it. And I felt very healed by the time the movie was over.

Jess: One thousand percent agree. I also haven’t read the book (terrible library rep here haha), so I don’t think I want to change how I feel about the movie in any way by reading it now after the fact. After we watched Hamnet in the theater, I couldn’t even talk about it in the car afterward because I was so emotional about it. And still am! Jessie Buckley gave a performance I’ll think about for many years. And even though he wasn’t nominated, Paul Mescal was a perfect scene partner and contrast for Agnes. I also thought the kids, especially Jacobi Jupe, were sensational. Jupe in particular really affected me, and that almost never happens with child performances. His expressions were so authentic, and the way he portrayed the relationship with his twin sister really punched me in the gut since I was sitting in the theater watching the film with my own sister.

The way each of those actors portrayed characters and dynamics that felt so lived in from the very first moment is extraordinary. I love every single part of this movie, and it’s by far my favorite of all the Best Picture nominees. Well, maybe not by far. There’s one other one that I have strong feelings about. But not enough to knock Hamnet out of first place.

Brandi: Absolutely. And Jacobi’s older brother Noah Jupe was in the movie in a pivotal but small role, and he nailed it. I very much look forward to what Jacobi does next. If he’s this good this young, we are in for some amazing roles in the future. Jessie Buckley is always good, but she leveled up here, which is why I think she got the nom and Paul Mescal didn’t. She threw her entire body and soul into this role in a way that I don’t think I’ve seen from her before.

I like that this and Train Dreams are both about the healing power of nature. I wish I had watched Hamnet in 2025; it would have been #2 on my favorites-of-the-year list. (I assume we have the same #1, but we’ll get to it.)

Jess: Jessie absolutely upped her game for this role. And two Irish actors playing the heads of one of the most iconic British families is great too. Also, I don’t feel overly bad about not wanting to read the book now because the book’s author, Maggie O’Farrell, co-wrote the screenplay.

Brandi: Oh, that’s good to hear. It makes me happy when authors are involved in their adaptations.

Marty Supreme

Jess: Unfortunately, though, we are in for a dip because Marty Supreme is up next. I can’t recall, did you end up watching it?

Brandi: Sigh. I love Timothée Chalamet SO MUCH. But I can’t with this movie. My interest in it is about negative 1,000. All you!

Jess: Well, everyone I follow on Letterboxd loved this movie. The lowest rating of anyone I follow was 3.5 stars, and the vast majority gave it 4 or 5. I, however, was firmly at 2, and that felt generous. Timothée Chalamet is a star. I adore him. He’s such a theater kid, and he’s often too big for his britches, and I just don’t care. I find him magnetic. And he acts the hell out of this role! But the movie itself feels messy and disjointed and far too long. The fact that Marty Supreme got an editing nomination is WILD to me because I can’t imagine what was left on the cutting room floor. I also don’t like when filmmakers/writers use animal cruelty, even casual cruelty, as a plot device. It’s lazy and off-putting. It also makes me hate your characters. Which, maybe that was the point. But emotionally, you lose me, and the point no longer matters to me. Funny enough, I preferred Benny Safdie’s movie, The Smashing Machine, to this one, which I know is a PIPING hot take because it wasn’t well-received. Also, get Kevin O’Leary off my screen. (I bring up Benny Safdie because his brother and former filmmaking partner, Josh Safdie, is the director of this movie.)

Brandi: Yikes. Do you think it was saying anything about the pitfalls of chasing fame or anything deep like that? Like, is there anything redeeming about it!?

Jess: I mean, I gotta be honest. Not really. In the end, Marty Mauser abuses countless people, some who were even his friends, to get what he wants. He’ll do anything, say anything, step on anyone to get his way. And ultimately, he’s not really taken to task for it. There’s no real emotional catharsis here if you’re rooting against Marty, which any sane person most likely was. I’ll be excited to watch Dune Messiah for my Timmy C. palate cleanser (even though he’s also unlikeable in that, but the message is a little clearer that this guy stinks haha).

The costumes are great! There’s my redeeming quality haha.

Brandi: Good, I knew you could find something!

One Battle After Another

Brandi: So far, we’ve got some nihilism, some cars going fast, meditations on love and grief, and narcissism. Now we’ve got to get into anti-authoritarianism. One Battle After Another is my third favorite movie on this list. Everything about it works. The score, the cinematography, the writing, the acting, the story, what it’s saying about perseverance and resistance and community. A truly psychotic yet magnetic villain. An amazing first lead role from Chase Infiniti. Teyana Taylor knocking it out of the park so well that her short screen time lingers over the entire movie. Leonardo DiCaprio being the funniest he’s ever been. Benicio del Toro being the funniest he’s ever been. I can’t say enough good things about this movie.

Jess: I’m glad you like it. I’m a bit more negative on it, which makes me sad. Though it’s much easier for me to find redeeming qualities in this one.

Brandi: I think because PTA has always turned me off before, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved it. Not that I gave his movies a chance. I just didn’t like his vibe from the trailers alone. Maybe I need to rethink that now.

What are the redeeming qualities for you?

Jess: I don’t know that I vibe with what it’s saying about perseverance and resistance. I know it’s literally all in the title, but especially when living through the very bad times that we are currently in, the idea that there is no real victory and that life is just one battle after another feels really bleak. No matter what you do, how hard you fight, the same battles are here for your children to fight that you fought. I struggle to find the hope there. As for the other parts, I thought Leo was fine and the ongoing phone gag was very funny. I’ve liked del Toro more in other films. Sean Penn was very good, and I don’t know if I’d even label him the villain. I think he’s more the tool of a villainous society. I don’t want to spoil it, but the snake always eats its own tail, and that idea was portrayed well here. Filmmaking-wise, I really loved the car chase. It was unique and stomach-dropping and exciting. PTA should win for directing but lose the writing award, which is so odd because he’s always been known more as a writer than a director. But his skills are flipped here. I’m not sure if they were running her in lead or supporting, but I’d kick out Kate Hudson in a minute to get Chase Infiniti in the lineup. In supporting, I don’t think there’s anyone I’d take out. Teyana Taylor was the STAR for me. I missed her so much after she was offscreen.

Brandi: I completely see your point about it being bleak, but I took it as: There will always be people to carry on the fight. We see that in Regina King’s character. In Benicio del Toro’s character having his whole family involved in his refugee operation. I look at it more hopefully because it’s realistic. The authoritarian wounds won’t heal in a generation. I took it as a rallying cry to never give up. But maybe that’s just what I needed to hear in that moment. I also liked how it showed people doing all sorts of different jobs in the resistance. Every effort is valuable. And people, like Leo’s character, do get burned out and walk away. But there will always be others to take up the fight.

I agree actually that PTA should win for directing over writing.

Jess: I really enjoy that take. Maybe someday when I’m in a different headspace I’ll try it again and it’ll mean something different to me. I’m open to that future!

The Secret Agent

Brandi: Well, the next movie, The Secret Agent, isn’t available in our area yet.

Jess: I’m really sad we won’t get the opportunity to see The Secret Agent for a while, because I loved I’m Still Here SO MUCH last Oscars cycle. Brazil has been blowing me away lately with their filmmaking. Wagner Moura was in Civil War, and I had never seen him before and instantly went “WHO is THAT?” Love that he’s getting this attention and can’t wait to see the movie.

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Sentimental Value

Brandi: Please explain Sentimental Value to me. I understand it was, like Hamnet, about the healing power of art and about how fathers struggle to relate to their daughters, like One Battle After Another. The performances were wonderful. The scene between the two sisters in the bedroom was one of my favorite of the year. But ... I did not think the father did enough work to deserve reconciliation. I didn’t really understand how he was playing out his generational trauma via his script, and how it was affecting his daughters, beyond the oldest daughter’s depression. Watching this movie, I felt like I was completely missing something that would have made it click for me why this movie-within-a-movie was THE thing that brings them together. (Not really a spoiler, since making the movie is the premise.)

Jess: Well, I’ll take a stab at it. And please know this is purely my own interpretation and could be totally not what Joachim Trier and the writers intended. But I saw the movie-within-a-movie as the thing that pulled them back together because 1) it was happening on the heels of their mother dying and she was their previous tie, 2) because the oldest daughter was forced to be this emotional rock in her family while also trying to figure out who she was and fight through the mental toll of all that, and because of all that struggle, she’s desperate to connect with her father even though she resists him, and 3) the only way their father understands relationships is via his work. She needs to be a part of this movie because there’s no other way for them to connect. This is his last movie. This is their last chance. And him writing it with her in mind, seeing more of her struggle than she ever realized he did, and telling her how talented she is (even though it’s via insults to the work she’s currently doing) means something. He can connect more easily to his younger daughter because she doesn’t resent him the way his older daughter does and he doesn’t see himself in her like he sees himself in his older daughter. That makes connecting with her harder and more painful. Their house is haunted with the memories of the failed families of each generation. It’s full of pain. And yet, they return. They can’t get away from its pull. Just like they can’t get away from their pull to each other.

I think this movie is about the contrast between sound and silence. At times, their house was loud with fighting, with parties, with people being ripped away. Now it is quiet. Echoing with only their memories, which remain so loud. Their memories are so loud inside of them that they can’t get any actual words out, which creates this chasm of silence they struggle to overcome.

It’s like when you have something inside you that you want to say so badly but you just can’t because you don’t know how it might change things. But every moment you hang on to it and don’t let it out, you die a little more inside. They end up doing the movie together, but she isn’t running to her dad and hugging and vice versa. They are just beginning to understand each other a little bit better, and they are doing so through the language they can both speak—their art.

Brandi: That’s beautifully said. I like that. I guess I was tired when I watched it, and I wasn’t connecting with the characters, so I was getting frustrated. I did love how the house was a character though.

Jess: Hey, I watched it with my mom and she hated it. So I think it’s just one of those movies that connects with some people, maybe those who keep a lot inside (?) and doesn’t for others, and that’s OK. Maybe I have a Scandinavian sensibility about me and didn’t realize haha.

Brandi: Ha, maybe!

Jess: I think this is one where if I rewatched, I’d find new things each time that clicked with me. But I also don’t know if I could watch it too many times because it makes me deeply sad.

Brandi: Sad, but again, that hopeful note of them being able to be in each other’s lives!

Sinners

Jess: One that didn’t make me sad is Sinners! You watched it way before me, so you lead us off.

Brandi: My favorite movie of the year! (Says the woman who watches anything gory with her hands over her eyes, doesn’t do horror, and likes her vampires sparkly in a meadow with Bella Swan.) I ONLY saw this movie because I love Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan so much, and I was getting FOMO because it was becoming such a big hit. It’s massively entertaining, but it also has so much to say about leaving a legacy and the lengths you’ll go to protect the people you love. And it centers music as the most important thing you carry with you. It’s so wonderful.

Jess: Well said! It’s so thick with layered storytelling and meaningful, specific character choices. The imagery Coogler creates is striking. While watching, I was afraid that he might not be able to land this massive plane he so beautifully created, but I was so wrong to worry because the ending was perfect. There really isn’t a part of this movie I don’t like. And we haven’t mentioned it yet, but it and its casting director Francine Maisler are nominated in the brand-new Casting category, and it’s such a great example of how great casting really matters. All the right people were chosen to tell this story.

Brandi: Absolutely! They got all of the noms right too. Delroy Lindo!! Wunmi Mosaku!! Miles Caton deserved a nom, obviously, but he has time to get one; this is his first movie. I’m torn—Michael B. Jordan deserves this win, but Timmy deserves it for his body of work. I will be happy if either wins.

Jess: I’d definitely prefer a Michael B. Jordan win here. Maybe the stars will align!

Train Dreams

Jess: And on that note of Best Actor … The most offensive snub of them all is no Joel Edgerton for Train Dreams, which is our final Best Picture nominee. That movie is astounding, and he is the center. How could he be left out?! I was distraught.

Brandi: I’ve been thinking about it, and I agree with what you told me before this conversation: Lift out Leo. He’s great, but what Joel does in Train Dreams is keep your attention focused solely on him for the entire runtime. That’s no small feat.

Jess: Yes! Joel deserved to be in this group. He had me feeling so deeply. And this is another movie where it’s tremendously sad and yet hopeful.

Brandi: I was in the right headspace to watch the movie. If I had been feeling even a little off the day I watched it, I wouldn’t have finished it. But I was captivated.

Jess: Oh absolutely. I knew I couldn’t be a little depressy and watch this one. I was right haha.

The ending shot in Train Dreams has stayed with me like the last one in Hamnet has stayed with you. I think it’s so beautiful and hopeful.

Brandi: Yes! I love the ways the movie showed technological progress and how it was affecting his life in subtle ways. He’s as resilient as the changing world he’s navigating, and he deals with unimaginable hardships, but he doesn’t give up.

Jess: And the “new” things for him are run of the mill or even outdated things for us, but you can replace those things with any of the modern technologies and changes that are coming at us so fast, and there we are. We are Robert Grainier. If only we can be as resilient and caring and charitable and reflective and honest.

I found him to be a really inspirational character. He’s not perfect. He’s a person. I felt like he’s someone I could or do know.

Brandi: Exactly. It’s also a very kind movie. Whereas in Bugonia, most people are terrible to each other, in Train Dreams, most people are kind to each other. There are glaring exceptions, such as the racial violence, but that’s reality. It doesn’t shy away from it.

Jess: Whereas Bugonia shows what can happen when people lean into their worst impulses, Train Dreams shows what can happen when people are brave enough to be vulnerable.

Brandi: I love how this is coming full circle!

Did you like the narration right away? It took me a bit to get into it, but I thought it fit the movie’s tone once I did.

Jess: I wasn’t sure about it at first, but I listen to a LOT of audiobooks so I got into the rhythm pretty fast. I enjoyed that part. It made it feel like being told a story and not just watching a story unfold. I know some filmmakers want you to be immersed and feel like you’re there inside the world, but I liked how Train Dreams acknowledged that the tale of this man’s life was being told to us. I was honored to witness it.

Other Movies Worth Watching

Jess: So as for the non-Best-Picture-nominated movies, is there anything you’d like to highlight?

Brandi: Yes, I have two. Roofman is a movie that fits in well thematically with this crop of nominees being bleak yet hopeful. It’s about how our country fails people who don’t fit into the typical boxes, but they’re able to find community and belonging through kindness. I’ve loved Channing Tatum since A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints (20 years ago this year!), and he’s SO good in Roofman. And his scenes with Kirsten Dunst are heartbreakingly tender. Its awards chances ran out of steam early, but it’s a really good story. Also, I loved Eternity. Elizabeth Olsen continues to be one of my favorite actors, and she gets quite a showcase here. The premise, of having to choose her afterlife, is a fun concept to start with, and the movie wrestles with how to reconcile the effects people have on your life—do you stick with what’s familiar, or do you see what could have been? Which feeds your soul more? It’s a very outside-the-box rom-com, and I loved it.

Jess: Roofman is on my list, and I really enjoyed Eternity, so I wholeheartedly cosign that recommendation. Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch (my favorite Marvel character), you deserved so much better! I am excited to watch Eternity again with the family when it’s on streaming soon.

Brandi: Tell me about your highlights of the year that didn’t get nominated.

Jess: For nominated movies that aren’t in the Best Picture race, I haven’t yet watched Blue Moon or It Was Just an Accident, and am looking forward to both. Amy Madigan in Weapons getting a Best Supporting Actress nod is wonderful because she scared my socks off as Aunt Gladys (I even named one of our cats after the character because it was such a great horror performance).

I’ve watched seven of the 15 nominated shorts and, as always, many are not available. But of the ones that are available, I highly recommend All the Empty Rooms and Jane Austen’s Period Drama and in that order. The first will make you sob, and the second will make you laugh uproariously. And you can support your local library with the latter as well by watching it on Kanopy!

KPop Demon Hunters is a fun-for-the-whole-family animated watch I highly recommend. For the animated shorts, both that are currently available are really lovely (Butterfly and Retirement Plan). I hope the other animated shorts are available soon because I am always captivated by the different art styles.

As for movies that didn’t get any nominations …

The Ballad of Wallis Island (which I believe just got some BAFTA noms) is worth your time. You’ll cringe, laugh, and maybe shed a tear. The Quilters is a doc short on Netflix about men who are incarcerated and make quilts for children in foster care; it’ll heal a part of your heart and restore some faith in humanity that is much needed right now. Yacht Rock: A DOCKumentary was my favorite doc watch last year, and I have a whole playlist I go to for a pick-me-up now. And last but not least, Sorry, Baby should have gotten a Best Original Screenplay nom for Eva Victor, but even though it didn’t, you must watch it. A masterpiece by a brand-new voice who is here to stay. Her final monologue? I’ll remember it forever.

Brandi: Julia Roberts agrees with you on Sorry, Baby!

Availability at the Library

Brandi: Let’s talk quickly about availability at the library for the Best Picture nominees. Here’s the list:

On DVD
Bugonia
F1
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Hamnet (scheduled for March 3)

No DVD announcement yet
Marty Supreme 
The Secret Agent 
Sentimental Value

Netflix exclusives 
Frankenstein
Train Dreams

Also, based on books:

One Battle After Another loosely based on Vineland by Thomas Pynchon
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Train Dreams by Denis Johnson

Jess: We just got Bugonia in and cataloged, and it’s already checked out, so that’s a good sign. Sinners has been checked out a good number of times, and I expect that to tick up here now post-nominations. I’m excited to have an Oscars movie display because that always garners interest, but I’m sad I can’t put two of the book adaptations out, because Netflix original! Especially because they are two of the best. But I’ll promote the heck out of Hamnet and hope other people love it as much as I do!

Brandi: Train Dreams especially would resonate with people in rural towns.

Jess: I agree. And I’d recommend it through (movie watcher’s?) advisory to so many of my patrons who I know would connect with it. Maybe one day, we’ll get a Criterion release.

Hamnet the book has been checked out sparingly since it was released, but literally just got returned, so obviously the movie has sparked some interest!

Closing Thoughts

Brandi: Anything else you want to add?

Jess: Overall, a good year for movies, especially ones that resonated with me emotionally. I appreciate all the work that went into making that happen.

Brandi: It really was a great movie year. I think we need escapism more than ever, obviously, these days, but people are so numb to the onslaught of bad news that they want to FEEL something too. And these movies delivered.

Jess: Thanks for talking about them with me!

Brandi: A great time, as always!

Movie posters are from imdb.com.