Nomadland (2020)
3.5/4
What recent Oscar-winning film director Chloé Zhao does so well with her stunning Nomadland is expertly combine the nomad’s fascinating lifestyle, Frances McDormand’s master-class performance, a hard-working crew, and the film’s timely messages about grief and loss, putting it all into one Academy Award-winning movie.
But McDormand is what I liked best about Nomadland; she is the reason to see the movie. In her third Academy Award-winning performance, McDormand fully embodies Fern, a woman who hasn’t had it easy but by the film’s closing credits learns how to make her tragedies help her become a better person. This is another great, fearless performance from McDormand, one that will stand the test of time while cementing her place as the 21st century Katharine Hepburn.
Another reason this movie serves as one of the big stand-out films of 2020 is the unique way it was filmed. Instead of using professional actors for the scenes where Fern is interacting with the nomads, Zhao and her talented cast used true nomads who had never acted a day in their lives and asked them to play fictionized versions of themselves (Nomadland’s Empire is indeed a real place, located in Nevada). This filmmaking approach helped made the movie memorable and perhaps also helped catapult it to a Best Picture win at the Academy Awards (Zhao also took home the Best Director award for the movie).
Nomadland is an amazing, well-made film, and easily one of the best movies I’ve seen in this long year.
My goal with Nic’s Flicks is to provide an inclusive reading experience to Nexus readers. So, in that spirit, if there’s a movie that you think is worth reviewing or if there is anything else that is film-industry related that you think might need some coverage feel free to email editor@nexusnewspaper.com and I will consider addressing your idea.
Contest alert!: The first person to email editor@nexusnewspaper.com and tell us what their favourite movie of 2020 was will win a new, sealed copy of the original Karate Kid on Blu-ray courtesy of Pic-a-Flic Video.