Best Picture Power Rankings: April 2022 Edition

Welcome to my first official Oscar Power Rankings of the 2022-2023 awards season! With nearly a full calendar year standing between us and the 95th Academy Awards, any predictions we attempt to make now would be foolish and wildly off-base. But why not do it anyway!? We already have a crowded slate of films scheduled to come out this year, so let’s take an early snapshot of the Best Picture “race” and see what films stand the best chance at winning the industry’s biggest award next winter!

‘Severance’ Season 1 Review: Work-Life Balance

Severance (2022) is a science-fiction mystery show created by Dan Erickson and directed by Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle. It stars Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Patricia Arquette, John Turturro and more in the story of a company called Lumen, which specializes in separating the memories of its employees between work and home life so that their split identities do not know one another. The show debuted on Apple TV+ and recently concluded its first season with a second on the way. What has viewers buzzing about this new show?

‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ Film Review: Family Matters

Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) is an action-comedy film from directing duo Daniels, previously best known for Swiss Army Man. It stars Michelle Yeoh as an unassuming woman who gains access to her alternate selves via the multiverse, using their combined skills to fight forces of evil. The film debuted at SXSW Festival to rave reviews and was released in theaters by A24. What has cinephiles jumping for joy with this film?

‘Apollo 10 1/2’ Film Review: Boyhood in Space

Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood (2022) is animated coming-of-age film from writer-director Richard Linklater. It features the voices of Jack Black, Glen Powell, Zachary Levi and more in the fantastical story of a boy growing up in the 1960’s who is recruited to travel to the moon. The film uses similar rotoscoping technology that Linklater has experimented with on his past films Waking Life and A Scanner Darkly, and it premiered at SXSW ahead of its Netflix release on April 1. Is this a return to form for a legendary filmmaker seeking his big comeback?