Women Talking And Everything, Everywhere All At Once Float To Top of The List

With a title like Women Talking, you’d assume that more people would be talking about this film. But we all know that saying about assuming.

I’ve sat on this one for a few days to let it sink in. Maybe the understatement of the year, but this was not a light, breezy movie to watch. Sarah Polley and the creative team made it very clear upfront that the audience would not have an easy time absorbing this film.

It was a chancy move fitting this between work and a film club meeting, but Adam and I stuck with it. And I am glad we did because otherwise, I might have missed one of my favorite movies on the Best Picture shortlist.

Favorite isn’t the right word to use for this movie. It feels like I am implying entertainment by using it. This is not an entertaining movie by any means. It is brutal, violent, and draining. But it asks so much of its characters and the audience.

Women Talking is the necessary and often overlooked conversation of the struggle for self-preservation with doing the least damage. These women have been wronged, violated, and abused for years. Their commune and by their admission, their actions have stripped them of their power. In the few days given to them, they must choose what they will do and figure out a way to live with the consequences.

If I hadn’t left this challenge so late, I could deep dive into the comparisons (and differences between this movie and the Banshees of Inisherin. Here, we have a deliberate, emotional string of conversations, knawing and scratching at their conundrum. The women of this community want to hash out an organized resolution to their problem. In Banshees, we have two men grasping at straws and violently lashing out at themselves for no apparent reason and with no regard for the consequences. Matriachies versus Patriarchies, anyone?

The cast of Women Talking was phenomenal. Each actor imbued the conversation with so much passion, rage, and thoughtfulness. It was a skillful dance of give and take, almost like watching a ballet, but with emotions. It would have been too hard to pick just one actress to nominate for either of the acting categories. This movie, even more than Triangle of Sadness, makes me lament there isn’t an ensemble cast award in the Oscars lineup.

Is this enough for the Best Picture win?

The odds say Women Talking is barely in the race, let alone up for an award. And the odds are likely correct, as much as I don’t like it.

As you probably already know, the likely winner is Everything, Everywhere All at Once. And I can’t dispute that almost certain outcome. It’s been my favorite to win from the get-go.

It’s a hard movie to capture. It’s one of those movies that, when asked about it, I have to say, see it for yourself. I won’t do it justice, and you won’t get the same things from the movie I did.

Some might say that Everything, Everywhere All At Once has too much crammed into the movie. To those critics, what else were you expecting when you read the title?

The chaos and the absurdity make the film’s themes- generational trauma, self-doubt, lack of self-worth, and romantic love to name a few- more palatable and light-hearted than a head-on deep dive would have. There’s nothing wrong with being able to laugh while you’re getting hit in the feels.

Unsurprisingly, so many of the actors in Everything, Everywhere are up for awards. This will make choosing a favorite to win in those categories extremely difficult.

Ke Huy Quan and Michelle Yeoh are both heavily favored but have strong competition from all the other nominees.

Jamie Lee Curits and Stephanie Hsu are going up against one another in the Supporting Actress category. Honestly, Stephanie Hsu deserves the win. Her performance as the anti-villain of Everything, Everywhere was inspired. But, the Academy is known for awarding wins based on a career and not just the performance at hand. (Think Sean Connery for The Untouchables.)

But, we’ll have to wait and see.