There’s always something to watch on Netflix, but finding something that’s both new and good can be a chore. The selections below are my top “what to watch” picks of new and new-to-Netflix movies. There’s high quality animated film Orion and the Dark, way-above-average rom-com Plus One, and a ton more.

Orion and the Dark (2024)

This animated Netflix original was written by Charlie Kaufman (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation) so don’t expect a cookie cutter kid flick. Based on a children’s book by Emma Yarlett, the title character of Orion and the Dark is a shy elementary school kid who is filled with fears. His biggest is a fear of the dark, and when the embodiment of darkness shows up, he’s about to be taken deep into the darkness to face his worst phobia. 

Plus One (2019)

This genial romantic comedy stars Jack Quaid and Maya Erskine as Ben and Alice, usually-single best friends. To deal with an onslaught of upcoming wedding invitations, they decide to be each other’s “plus ones” for wedding season. Anyone with a pair of brain cells to rub together knows how this story ends, but the way it gets there is charming and honest with just enough meta-commentary on the rom-com genre to spice things up. Plus, playing out the story against a backdrop of various weddings inspires some hilarious comedy. 

Ready Player One (2018)

Steven Spielberg’s bigger-than-big science fiction epic takes place in both the future and the past. Hero Wade Watts may live in dystopian 2045, but The Oasis, the virtual world everyone lives in, is heavily informed by nostalgia for the “good old days” of 2024’s recent past. It seems far-fetched that pop culture junk from the 1980s will be remembered so fondly in 20 years, but it still makes a great backdrop for a ripping adventure as Watts and his pals join everyone else in the world in a race to find an easter egg hidden by Oasis’s enigmatic creator.

Fury (2014)

War, as they say, is hell, but it’s also a never-ending source of inspiration for great movies. World War II, as depicted in 2014’s Fury, is an ugly nightmare. There’s no sugar-coating the violence, cruelty, and psychological horror combat visits upon the soldiers in Fury, but their intense trauma-bonding is beautiful in its way. Brad Pitt plays Don “Wardaddy” Collier, a tank commander in the final days of the war, when the Nazis, bastards to the end, exhorted German civilians to rise up against the heavily armed Allied forces invading their country.

Last week’s picks

Dumb Money (2023)

A likable cast including Pete Davidson, Vincent D’Onofrio, and America Ferrera hold together this (kind of) true David and Goliath tale of Reddit cretins vs. Wall Street ghouls. While the real story is more complicated than the movie, the basic beats are the same: in 2021, a bunch of very-online people boosted GameStop’s stock to heights it should not have achieved, to the irritation of financial types. 

Open Wide (2024)

This Netflix documentary profiles controversial creators of “orthotropics,” John and Mike Mew, the father/son duo behind the “mewing” craze that taken over the incel-y corners of TikTok. Mewing, if you’re not familiar, is a combination of tongue exercises and gum-chewing designed to give you straight teeth and a more defined jaw. It’s pure crackpottery, but the rabbit hole around how an orthodontics heretic became an internet messiah is fascinating. 

Train to Busan (2016)

Train to Busan sets itself apart from the horde of zombie movies through its breakneck-pace, interesting setting—it takes place almost entirely on a train—and its surprisingly heartfelt emotional core. Busan uses the dead rising to explore capitalism, class, and the price of modernity, but you can ignore that if you want to simply enjoy a rip-roaring undead explosion instead.

The Hill (2023)

If you want an inspirational sports movie, jump on The Hill. It details the true story of Rickey Hill, who overcame degenerative spinal disease to play professional baseball. It features all the faith-and-hard-work-moves-mountains stuff that cynics like me sneer at, but we’re wrong, because Hill actually made it—not to the Bigs, but close, closer than he would have if he hadn’t tried so hard anyway. 

Apollo 13 (1995)

Apollo 13 tells the true story of the famous near-disaster of the Apollo 13 moonshot, in which courageous astronauts played by Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon learn they’re going to die if they don’t figure out how to fix their malfunctioning spaceship. Apollo 13 takes a just-the-facts approach because the actual story is so gripping it plays like a thriller. Just an amazing movie that will keep you on the edge of your couch.

King Kong (2005)

Peter Jackson’s remake of 1933’s King Kong is as huge as its main character, but its amazing special effects and over-the-top set pieces never overshadow the small, human moments that connect us to the story. Kong is such a noble and admirable character that his eventual fate will make anyone with a heart shed a tear.  

When it comes to toaster cleaning, are you a flip-and-dumper who aggressively tosses the crumbs and calls it a day? Do you make the outside sparkle, and leave the inside a hot mess? Or are you just sitting here thinking, “toaster cleaning who?”

Whether you’re new to toaster ownership or a veteran who has no idea how to properly clean this oft-used appliance (my own personal situation), please join us on this journey to toaster cleaning enlightenment.

It’s important to clean your toaster

First, let’s start with a valid reason to go the extra mile in toaster tidying, beyond aesthetics and that noxious burnt smell. As you’ve no doubt noticed, toasters don’t have a door! (Not toaster ovens, more on that later.) Because they have no barrier to the outside world, they collect not only crumbs, but dust, lint, even bugs, and quickly become a breeding ground for bacteria.

They’re also a fire hazard: According to Consumer Reports, toasters and toaster ovens are the fifth-leading cause of household fires after refrigerators. So cleaning them regularly not only looks good, it’s safer.

How to clean a toaster

1. Be safe and unplug

Hopefully this is common knowledge, but just in case: To avoid potential accidents, first unplug the appliance (anything inserted into a toaster when it’s on can cause electrical shock or a fire). And if it’s recently been used, give it plenty of time to cool down before you begin cleaning.

2. Loosen the crumbs

If there’s a crumb tray at the bottom, remove it and use an old toothbrush, pastry brush, or bottle cleaning brush to loosen the debris, and dump the contents. (It’s exciting to see we weren’t totally off base with the dumping.)

In the absence of a tray, poise your toaster over the trash can or your sink’s garbage disposal and give it a vigorous shake to dislodge the crumbs. Move the toaster into different upside-down positions while shaking to give all the crusted contents an equal chance to break free.

3. Clean the interior

If you’ve got a crumb tray, soak it in warm soapy water to loosen any stubborn crumbs (dish soap with a de-greasing agent will work best and most quickly). If all that’s left is to spruce up the toaster slots, use a spatula or small pastry brush to further clean the interior. (You can also wipe it down with a water-and-vinegar-dampened cloth). Where possible, clean from both the top and the bottom of the toaster for better access to hard-to-reach spots.

4. Shine up the exterior

Wipe down the outside with a damp cloth or antibacterial wipe to make it shine, sweep or vacuum up any remaining crumbs, dry off the tray with a microfiber cloth that won’t snag any lint or fabric, and re-insert it into the toaster.

How to clean a toaster oven

1. Unplug it

Again, it all starts with the unplugging, and I won’t stop saying it.

2. De-crud and soak

Remove the cooking tray and rack, which will most likely be caked in cruddy gunk, plus the requisite toast debris. Soak both the tray and rack in warm, soapy water while you do the crumb “dump and shake” as above.

3. Clean the interior with gentle, homemade solutions

Most toaster oven interiors are made of aluminum, so instead of using a harsh commercial oven cleaner that can damage it, make your own solution with two cups of warm water, a few drops of dishwashing liquid and 1/2 cup white vinegar. Use a sponge dampened with this liquid (not soaking) to wipe down the interior—and don’t forget the ceiling. To lift especially tough crud, scrub on a homemade paste of baking soda and water with a toothbrush or melamine sponge.

4. Do the exterior and detail work

Use the same cleaning solution you used on the inside to wipe down the exterior, then spray white vinegar to cut through grease and streaks on the glass door. Gently check whether you can remove any of the knobs and dials to clean underneath those, as well. When all elements are clean and dry, reassemble your toaster oven—and enjoy its sparkling cleanliness for a few brief moments until you use it again.

This Kodak scanner digitally preserves film negatives and 50mm slides, and it’s on sale for $179.99 right now (reg. $224.99) with free shipping until February 4. It comes with a 50x50mm slide holder and adapters for 135, 110, and 126 sizes, and it works fairly easily: You put your film or slide into the matching adapter, feed it into the Kodak Slide N Scan, and view your images on the built-in 5-inch LCD display. Alternatively, you can use the provided HDMI cable to connect the gadget to your computer monitor or TV. Then you can make simple edits with the buttons on the top of the Kodak Slide N Scan, like enhancing the resolution, rotating images, and making color adjustments. Once you’re done, you can save a digital copy to an SD card (not included) or a USB-connected device.

You can get the Kodak film and slide scanner on sale for $179.99 right now (reg. $224.99) with free shipping until February 4 at 11:59 p.m. PT, though prices can change at any time.

Prime is light this week when it comes to newer and original movies, a perfect opportunity to dig a little deeper into Prime’s library to find hidden gems, film school classics, and all-time crowd-pleasers like the following.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

Tom Cruise returns to the iconic role he created in Top Gun, and he’s even more charismatic than he was in the 1986 original. This sequel is a collection of well-worn action movie tropes sprinkled with bromance, swagger, and rah-rah. Like its star, Maverick should be wrinkly and gray in the present day, but it somehow still works. The sequel is even bigger, more exciting, and more badass than the original. While you should have seen it in the theaters, Maverick is an excellent flick to show off a huge screen and a decent surround system.

Get Out (2017)

Jordan Peele set a new standard for horror with Get Out, a movie that is smart, fearless, funny, and bitingly satiric, but never forgets to be scary. Peele carefully builds an unsettling spell as he tells the story of a young African American man’s trip to visit to his white girlfriend’s family. It’s clear that there’s something very strange about this outwardly well-meaning, dorky white family, but it’s hard to say what. When the reveal comes, it’s more fucked up than you imagined.

The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

What better time than an election year to re-visit John Frankenheimer’s classic political thriller? Frank Sinatra stars as the leader of an infantry platoon that undergoes Soviet brainwashing in a North Korean prison camp. They return with no memory of the procedure, until Sinatra starts having disturbing nightmares and sets out to uncover what happened to him. The standout performance belongs to Angela Lansbury though, who plays a wickedly layered and menacing villain.

Jackass Forever (2022)

For me, the lockdown-and-paranoia phase of the COVID pandemic didn’t end until I saw Jackass Forever in a theater. Something about a room full of people cracking up together made me feel like shit was going to be alright. Watching people falling down, farting, being gross, and making dick jokes is funny in an essential, primal way, especially when all the blows are self-delivered. You could show Jackass Forever at any theater on earth, to any audience, and they would laugh. Maybe they wouldn’t like that they were laughing, but they’d laugh.

From Beyond (1986)

Streaming’s insatiable hunger for content lets you watch movies you might otherwise never knew existed. If you were unaware that 1986’s From Beyond existed, here is your wake-up call. Directed by Stuart “Re-Animator” Gordon, From Beyond mixes Lovecraftian cosmic horror with creature effects from horror’s “make it gooey” period. Unlike many horror directors, Gordon has a great eye and a unique, self-aware trash-cinema sense of humor, and here he created a cult classic.

The Elephant Man (1980)

This is one of the best movies ever made. In The Elephant Man, David Lynch tell the true story of John Merrick, a man with facial deformities so severe he can only survive by being exhibited as a freak in a London sideshow. Given a new life by idealistic surgeon Frederick Treves (Anthony Hopkins), Merrick is soon the toast of 1800s British society—a different kind of freak show. Lynch reigns in the excesses of his surrealistic cinema technique to portray Merrick and Treves with sensitivity, grace, and humanity, but the Lynchian madness evident in The Elephant Man’s dream sequences, POV montages, and shot composition is made more impactful through restraint. If Merrick’s passionate defense of his dignity in the famous train station scene doesn’t make you cry, we probably shouldn’t be friends. 

Last week’s picks

The Underdoggs (2024)

Rapper Snoop Dogg makes his leading man debut in this sports-and-kids underdog comedy that owes a big debt to 1976’s The Bad News Bears. Dogg plays Jaycen Jennings, a talented-but-incorrigible former NFL wide receiver who has fallen on hard times. He ends up coaching a Pop Warner football team of foulmouthed kids with way more attitude than discipline, and comedy-plus-growing-and-learning ensues. Underdoggs tries to un-cheese the schmaltzy premise with a little meta-commentary (Jennings’ initial motivation for taking the coaching gig is to sell the movie rights) and a lot of cursing and weed-smoking.

Astro Kid (2019)

Astro Kid proves that great CGI films can come from places other than Pixar or Illumination. This charming film comes from France, and its quieter style is nice contrast to over-amped American animation. The titular Astro Kid is Willy, a resourceful 10-year-old who is marooned on a distant planet with only a robot to keep him company. While it’s aimed at kids, parents will be delighted (or at least entertained) as well.

Streaming on FreeVee, Prime’s free sister-service.

The Other Zoey (2023)

A romantic comedy doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel, and The Other Zoey doesn’t try to. Instead, it focuses on hitting beats that have worked since Shakespeare did them (a meet-cute, mistaken identity, nothing-in-common-lovers, etc.) especially well. Genuinely witty dialogue, charismatic performances, and a breezy plot add up to a better-than-average rom-com.

Return to Seoul (2023)

Cambodian-French director Davy Chou explores and explodes widespread myths about identity and culture through main character Frédérique Benoît’s journey to Korea. Freddie (as she’s called) was born in Korea and adopted by a French family, and now she’s a 25-year-old traveler who casually ends up in a “homeland” she has little connection to. If you’re hoping for a standard “finding cultural and personal identity” story, this isn’t it; it’s way more nuanced and complex than that. 

The Taking of Pelham 123 (1974)

I’m throwing this 1970s classic into the mix for anyone who wants to use Prime as a time machine. The old, gritty version of New York City is practically a supporting character in this heist comedy in which an audacious gang of criminals take an entire subway car hostage. They want one million dollars (cue Dr. Evil) and promise to start throwing bodies out of the train if they don’t get it quick. The man in charge of stopping their evil scheme is Walter Matthau. Because it was the 1970s and movies were like that then. 

Baby Driver (2018)

Baby Driver features car chases and heists that are twice as exciting as anything in any Fast and Furious movie and it’s smart and stylish, too. The Baby of the title is a savant at one thing: Driving. He works as the getaway driver for a gang of thieves, but Baby wants out. All that stands behind him and freedom is one last job. Spoiler: it doesn’t go smoothly.

Streaming on Prime’s free sister-streamer, FreeVee

If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for February 2, 2024 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle is on the easier side; I got it in three. Beware, there are spoilers below for February 2, Wordle #958! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.

How to play Wordle

Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.

Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)

Ready for the hints? Let’s go!

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Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?

We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)

Three of the letters today are in our mnemonic, and the remaining two are also fairly common. No unusual letters today.

Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?

Another word for split. 

Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?

There are no double letters today. 

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

There is one vowel. 

What letter does today’s Wordle start with?

Today’s word starts with C. 

What letter does today’s Wordle end with?

Today’s word ends with T.

What is the solution to today’s Wordle?

Ready? Today’s word is CLEFT.

How I solved today’s Wordle

I started with CRANE, which gave me the opening C. I tried CHECK next, which hinted that there were likely no other vowels. The only possible opening combination seemed like CLE-, which led to CLEFT. 

Wordle 958 3/6

🟩⬛⬛⬛🟨
🟩⬛🟩⬛⬛
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

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A primer on Wordle basics

The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word. 

Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: 

• Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)

• Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)

With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.

The best starter words for Wordle

What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.

How to win at Wordle

We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.

The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.

One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.

Wordle alternatives

If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:

• Wheeldle, which lets you play one puzzle after another

• Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.

• Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.

• Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.

• Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.

Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.

This year’s Oscars will be held at 7 p.m. on Sunday, March 10, which means you have your deadline for getting caught up with all of this year’s nominated films. While you’ve probably already seen biggies like Oppenheimer and Barbie, there are eight other Best Picture candidates to catch, not to mention dozens more in other categories.

On that note, here are all of the feature Academy Award nominees, along with where you can stream or rent them right now (alas, some entries are still only playing in theaters, and not likely to be available at home before the awards are handed out; still others have yet to play anywhere but film festivals or overseas).

And here’s a tip: if you’re looking to stream the nominees included with a subscription you might already have, Netflix will give you the most bang for your buck: nine of the year’s contenders can currently be found there.

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Oppenheimer

Nominations: 13

Barbie may have taken home most of the money in the friendly rivalry that was “Barbenheimer” (or “the only fun thing to happen in 2023”), but in the Oscar race, Oppenheimer has pulled well ahead. Oscar night might be the tie-breaker, after we see how many awards each film actually takes home.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Actor (Cillian Murphy), Best Supporting Actress (Emily Blunt), Best Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.), Best Director (Christopher Nolan), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Sound

Where to watch: Digital rental, streaming on Peacock Feb. 16

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Poor Things

Nominations: 11

A shockingly good showing for a movie that’s been at the center of discourse (alongside Saltburn) about movies being too dirty for the delicate sensibilities of American viewers. Well done.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Actress (Emma Stone), Best Supporting Actor (Mark Ruffalo), Best Director (Yorgos Lanthimos), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Where to watch: In theaters for now

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Killers of the Flower Moon

Nominations: 10

In addition the film’s various other achievements, Killers of the Flower Moon has earned Martin Scorsese his 10th Directing nomination—the most of any living director and the second most ever (behind William Wyler, with 12) in Oscar history. Also: Lily Gladstone is the first Indigenous American to ever earn a nomination.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Actress (Lily Gladstone) Best Supporting Actor (Robert De Niro), Best Director (Martin Scorsese), Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Original Song (“Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)”), Best Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design

Where to stream: Apple TV+

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Barbie

Nominations: 8

The year’s top-grossing film, and the one that most activated the cultural zeitgeist, apparently directed itself, as the old Billy Crystal joke goes: The Academy couldn’t see fit to nominate Greta Gerwig for her achievement in transforming what could’ve been a mere IP cash grab into a phenomenon. Margot Robbie’s lead actress snub also hurts, especially considering Ryan “Just Ken” Gosling made the cut [shakes fist at the patriarchy]. Still, eight nominations is pretty good for a movie based on a toy.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress (America Ferrera), Best Supporting Actor (Ryan Gosling), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song (“I’m Just Ken”) AND Best Original Song (“What Was I Made For?”), Best Production Design, Best Costume Design

Where to watch: Max

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Maestro

Nominations: 7

Reactions to Maestro have ranged from rapturous to meh to worse, but it appears that the Academy (traditionally fans of the prosthetic nose) was into it.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Actress (Carey Mulligan), Best Actor (Bradley Cooper), Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Sound,

Where to watch: Netflix

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American Fiction

Nominations: 5

Writer-director Cord Jefferson’s comedy-drama about a frustrated Black novelist (Jeffrey Wright) who writes a pandering stereotypical novel about Black Americans living the thug life only to see it taken seriously, is getting some surprising, but deserved, Oscar love. The nod for This Is Us‘s Sterling K. Brown, playing Wright’s gay brother, is especially welcome, underlining the film’s message that stories about the Black American experience can and should encompass a lot more than poverty and inner city gang life.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Actor (Jeffrey Wright), Best Supporting Actor (Sterling K. Brown), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score

Where to watch: In theaters, or purchase via Vudu

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Recommended products

Looking for a new streaming device? Consider one of these products.

• Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite

• Chromecast with Google TV (4k)

• Roku Ultra

• 2021 Apple TV 4K with 64GB Storage

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The Holdovers

Nominations: 5

“Academy Award Nominee Da’Vine Joy Randolph” has a nice ring to it, and Paul Giamatti might finally win the Oscar he should’ve for Sideways 20 years ago, but pour one out for director Alexander Payne, who perfectly aped the ’70s milieu of Hal Ashby.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Actor (Paul Giamatti), Best Supporting Actress (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing,

Where to watch: Peacock, digital rental

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Anatomy of a Fall

Nominations: 4

Buzz for this Cannes winner has been building all year about, particularly for Sandra Hüller’s lead performance. In a year with multiple significant films directed by women (Saltburn, Past Lives, Priscilla, and, of course, Cocaine Bear), Justine Triet becomes the eighth woman in Oscar history to earn a directing nomination for this chilly, process-y, psychologically complex story of a French court case.

Nominations for: Best Actress (Sandra Hüller), Best Director (Justine Triet), Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing,

Where to watch: Digital rental

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The Zone of Interest

Nominations: 4

Jonathan Glazer’s unsual Holocaust-era drama—set on the idyllic estate of a German officer living on the outskirts of a concentration camp, but while never sets foot inside the camp itself—is nominated both in Best International Feature and Best Picture, and it’s probably a good bet for the former if not the latter. Glazer earned a somewhat surprising directing nod for infusing the narrative with a palpable sense of detached dread.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Director (Jonathan Glazer), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Sound, Best International Feature

Where to watch: In theaters

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Napoleon

Nominations: 3

Ridley Scott’s historical epic got a mixed reception and didn’t do much at the box office, but the Academy still showed it some love. Maybe the four-hour director’s cut, coming eventually to Apple TV+, will earn more eyeballs.

Nominations for: Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Visual Effects

Where to watch: Digital rental

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The Creator

Nominations: 2

In a year light for prestige science fiction, The Creator grabbed a couple of technical nominations. The story of an AI child who might be the key to ending the way between humans and machines, it makes a lot of well-worn tropes look really good.

Nominations for: Best Sound, Best Visual Effects

Where to watch: Hulu

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Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning, Part One

Nominations: 2

And the award for the most awkward title goes to… (Guess the Academy didn’t get the memo that “Part One” has been dropped from the name.)

Nominations for: Best Sound, Best Visual Effects

Where to watch: Digital rental

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Nyad

Nominations: 2

A welcome, and not entirely surprising, pair of acting nominees for the swimming drama. Will Jodie Foster win her third Oscar? Will Annette Benning finally win her first? (In both cases, probably not.)

Nominations for: Best Actress (Annette Benning), Best Supporting Actress (Jodie Foster)

Where to watch: Netflix

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Past Lives

Nominations: 2

Director Celine Song and lead Greta Lee? ROBBED. But this quiet romantic drama examining the pain of looking down the path not taken still managed to grab two major nods.

Nominations for: Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay

Where to watch: Digital rental

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Society of the Snow

Nominations: 2

The 1972 Andean flight disaster was previously the subject of 1993’s Alive, but this version actually includes Uruguayan and Argentine actors in the leads (sorry Ethan Hawke).

Nomination for: Best International Feature, Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Where to watch: Netflix

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American Symphony

Nominations: 1

This doc about Jon Baptiste’s attempts to write a symphony as his wife, Suleika Jaouad, undergoes cancer treatment was expected to earn a Best Documentary Feature nomination, but came away with only Best Original Song.

Nomination for: Best Original Song (“It Never Went Away”)

Where to watch: Netflix

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Bobi Wine: The People’s President

Nominations: 1

The documentary follows musician Wine and his pro-democracy campaign for the presidency of Uganda.

Nomination for: Best Documentary Feature

Where to watch: Disney+

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The Boy and the Heron

Nominations: 1

Hayao Miyazaki has still got it, and if this indeed turns out to be his final film, it’s a fitting swan song. (A pity Joe Hisaishi’s music missed, though—did John Williams really need to be recognized for the 54th time for his fifth Indiana Jones score?).

Nomination for: Best Animated Feature

Where to watch: In theaters for now, but likely eventually joining the rest of the Studio Ghibli films on Max

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The Color Purple

Nominations: 1

Early buzz saw the adaptation of the Broad musical The Color Purple as a major awards-season contender, but, for whatever reason, it seems to have fallen out of the zeitgeist. Still, congratulations to Danielle Brooks.

Nomination for: Best Supporting Actress (Danielle Books)

Where to watch: Digital rental

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El Conde

Nominations: 1

This dark comedy from Chile (about a vampire Augusto Pinochet) looks like no other movie out this year.

Nomination for: Best Cinematography

Where to watch: Netflix

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Elemental

Nominations: 1

Critics shrugged off Pixar’s latest, which initially fizzled (fire joke) at the box office before melting the hearts (water joke) of audiences worldwide. The immigrant allegory wound up legging it to $500 million and beating out the mega-hot The Super Mario Bros. Movie for an Oscar nomination.

Nomination for: Best Animated Feature

Where to watch: Disney+

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The Eternal Memory

Nominations: 1

The poignant documentary follows a couple, Augusto and Paulina, as they navigate his progressive Alzheimer’s.

Nomination for: Best Documentary Feature

Where to watch: Paramount+

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Flamin’ Hot

Nominations: 1

If a movie about Barbie can get Oscar love, why not a movie about Cheetos? Also, can we finally give Diane Warren an Oscar already?

Nomination for: Best Original Song (“The Fire Inside”)

Where to watch: Disney+, Hulu

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Four Daughters

Nominations: 1

This unique documentary uses artifice to explore the life of a Tunisian woman named Olfa in the aftermath of the disappearance of her two daughters, as director Kaouther Ben Hania brings in actresses to take on the roles of the missing women in Olfa’s life.

Nomination for: Best Documentary Feature

Where to watch: Digital rental

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Godzilla Minus One

Nominations: 1

This movie deserved a Best Picture nomination. It deserved to win for Best Visual Effects if only for matching the best Hollywood can offer, but on a paltry sub-$15 million budget.

Nomination for: Best Visual Effects

Where to watch: In theaters for now

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Golda

Nominations: 1

This Helen Mirren-starring biopic of the titular Israeli leader came and went without anyone much noticing…except for the prosthetic makeup that transformed the actress’s appearance.

Nomination for: Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Where to watch: Paramount+, Showtime

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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Nominations: 1

A Marvel movie nominated for its visual effects? Sure, why not?

Nomination for: Best Visual Effects

Where to watch: Disney+

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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Nominations: 1

The final(?) outing for Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones picks up a tiny bit of Oscar love with its Best Score nomination, the billionth (or 54th) for John Williams.

Nomination for: Best Original Score

Where to watch: Disney+

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Io Capitano

Nominations: 1

The Italian nominee for Best International Picture isn’t currently in theaters, nor is it streaming anywhere. Hopefully that’ll change in the wake of the nomination.

Nomination for: Best International Picture

Where to watch: TBD

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May December

Nominations: 1

Todd Haynes’ latest, starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore and loosely based on the Mary Kay Letourneau scandal, picks up one well-deserved nomination. But no Charles Melton? No Natalie Portman? No Julianne Moore? C’mon.

Nomination for: Best Original Screenplay

Where to watch: Netflix

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Nimona

Nominations: 1

Certain people got mad about the queer rep on display, but if you aren’t a bigot, this adaptation of the ND Stevenson graphic novel is 100% delightful.

Nomination for: Best Animated Feature

Where to watch: Netflix

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Perfect Days

Nominations: 1

The latest from Wim Wenders, a lo-fi Japanese/German co-production about a businessman (Koji Yakusho) who decides to embrace the simple life of a toilet cleaner, has yet to even open in U.S. theaters.

Nomination for: Best International Feature

Where to watch: TBD

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Robot Dreams

Nominations: 1

This largely dialogue-free feature about a dog and his pet robot is both beautiful and impossibly moving. It’s not currently showing anywhere, so add it to your watchlist—it’s well worth following up on once it hits streaming.

Nomination for: Best Animated Feature

Where to watch: TBD

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Rustin

Nominations: 1

This biopic about civil rights activist Bayard Rustin got only one (well-deserved) nomination, for lead actor Colman Domingo.

Nomination for: Best Actor (Colman Domingo)

Where to watch: Netflix

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Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Nominations: 1

While the live-action superhero genre grows increasingly dull, there’s still plenty of heart and innovation to be found over in the Spider-verse. While it faces stiff competition from The Boy and the Heron (especially consdiering voters may be miffed it only tells half a story), there’s no discounting the love out there for this followup to the 2018 Best Animated Feature-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse.

Nomination for: Best Animated Feature

Where to watch: Netflix

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The Teachers’ Lounge

Nominations: 1

The German Best International Picture nominee isn’t in theaters currently, nor is it streaming.

Nomination for: Best International Feature

Where to watch: TBD

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To Kill a Tiger

Nominations: 1

The film follows Ranjit, searching for justice in the wake of his daughter’s brutal gang rape. It’s not currently showing anywhere.

Nomination for: Best Documentary Feature

Where to watch: TBD

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20 Days in Mariupol

Nominations: 1

The timely doc finds a team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the titular city as they attempt to chronicle the ongoing war.

Nomination for: Best Documentary Feature

Where to watch: YouTube

If your kitchen sink is stopped up, think twice before calling a plumber. There are ways to unclog a kitchen sink that cost less and take less time. If they fail, go ahead and give a pro a ring, but at least try these first. The steps below are listed in order of severity and effort.

Plunge the sink

Start by preparing your sink, removing any standing water with a cup and dumping it into a bowl for now. Then, use a small plunger if you have one. The answer may be as simple as using some suction to force the clog through. 

Tool you’ll need: Korky Beehive Mini Sink Plunger ($13.99, Target)

Use boiling water 

If you can’t plunge the clog, it might be too big—for now. Boiling water can shrink or disintegrate some gunk, which might be all you need to get things flowing again. Bring a pot of water to a boil, then pour it right into the drain. If the water doesn’t start draining out of the basin, wait until it cools, remove it with a cup, and try again. If it’s draining, but slowly, get back at it with the plunger to see if you can force it out. 

Tool you’ll need: Farberware two-quart pot ($16.99, Target)

Try home remedies like baking soda

Baking soda has so many household uses and is generally gentler to use than other chemical products (although there are some surfaces you shouldn’t use it on). Baking soda and white vinegar are fizzy, bubbly best friends that can work together to oust a clog. Pour a cup of each into the drain, give the duo about 15 to 20 minutes to work some magic, and then try running hot water from the tap down into the hole. 

Tools you’ll need: Arm & Hammer pure baking soda ($1.89 for a pound, Target) and white distilled vinegar ($4.69 for 128 ounces, Target)

Enlist the help of clog-clearing chemicals

If these remedies don’t work, you can always try store-bought chemicals. Drano Max Gel ($24.96 for a two-pack, Home Depot) is highly rated and usually effective, but a building manager I know swears by Pequa ($9.98 for 64 ounces, Home Depot) and calls it “a miracle.” Whatever you choose to use, read the instructions on the packaging carefully and keep your plunger close by for a finishing touch if needed.