1. The Brutalist

In the intricate dance of awards season, patterns often emerge that hint at potential Oscar glory. Notably, seven of the last eight Best Picture winners at the Academy Awards also clinched either Best Picture, Best Director, or both at the Golden Globes. This trend bodes well for The Brutalist which recently secured the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Drama, and saw Brady Corbet honored as Best Director. Such dual recognition not only amplifies the film’s visibility but also positions it as a formidable contender for the coveted Best Picture Oscar. Beyond the critical acclaim it’s earned, it also happens to be exactly the type of film Oscar voters love.

Centered on László Tóth, a Hungarian-Jewish architect and Holocaust survivor portrayed by Adrien Brody, the film chronicles his pursuit of the American Dream and the transformative power of art in post-war society. The film’s gargantuan 215-minute runtime matches the epic scope of the story and puts it on a similar scale as the masterful Oppenheimer, which was rewarded for its ambitious storytelling and meticulous character development with a Best Picture honor at last year’s Academy Awards. Once Tóth’s niece, Zsófia (Raffey Cassidy), delivers a poignant speech revealing that the Van Buren Community Center, one of László’s most significant projects, was intentionally designed to mirror the concentration camps that once imprisoned their family, the Oscar was pretty much won.