Where to Watch All the 2021 Best Picture Nominees

Haven't seen the Oscar-nominated movies yet? No problem.

nomadland
Frances McDormand in 'Nomadland' | Hulu/Serachlight Pictures
Frances McDormand in 'Nomadland' | Hulu/Serachlight Pictures

Back in March, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the nominees for the 2021 Oscars, with eight movies vying for Best Picture. The winners will be announced during the Oscars ceremony that airs this Sunday (April 25) on ABC. For many loyal Oscar viewers, who enjoy checking out all the Best Picture nominees before the show, this is typically crunch time. Gotta see all those movies to know who should win, who got snubbed, and who exactly plays The Father. (It's Anthony Hopkins.)

This year will be the same in many respects, but, given the disruption of the movie business and number of nominees that debuted exclusively on streaming services, watching all the nominees isn't as simple as driving up to your local theater or stopping at a video store. Most of the nominees are available online in some capacity, but some require subscription services, while others can be purchased online (occasionally at a lofty price point). To help you make sense of it all, we put together this guide of where to find each movie.

the father
Sony Pictures Classics

How to watch The Father

Is it on a streaming service? No, The Father is not available on a streaming service. The drama starring Anthony Hopkins debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in 2020 and was released in select theaters via Sony Pictures Classics in New York and Los Angles on February 26, 2021, and expanded to additional theaters nationwide on March 12. 
Is it available to rent? Yes, The Father is available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Vudo, YouTube, and other VOD platforms for $19.99.
What we think of it: "Adapted from a play by director Florian Zeller, The Father finds clever, moving ways to dramatize its subject matter, bringing the viewer into the mind of a man slowly losing his grip on his memories... While all the actors give sharp performances, particularly Olivia Coleman, it's ultimately up to Anthony Hopkins to sell the film's most devastating moments and anchor the conceptual gambits. Luckily, the 82-year-old actor is more than up to the task." (Read our review from Sundance.)
(Watch the trailer)

judas and the black messiah
Warner Bros. Pictures

How to watch Judas and the Black Messiah 

Is it on a streaming service? It used to be! Judas and the Black Messiah was released on HBO Max on February 12, but it was only available on the service for a month, which is the window Warner Brothers has been using for its new releases that debut on the service and in theaters at the same time. You can still catch Judas and the Black Messiah in select theaters. 
Is it available to rent? Yes, Judas and the Black Messiah is available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Vudo, YouTube, and other VOD platforms for $19.99. 
What we think of it: "From beautifully shot scenes to electrifying performances, there’s plenty to love about Judas and the Black Messiah. Daniel Kaluuya as Fred Hampton is brilliant, but you’ve probably been hearing that for months already. His ability to morph into Hampton is incredible." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

mank
Netflix

How to watch Mank

Is it on a streaming service? Yes, Mank was released on Netflix on December 4.
Is it available to rent? No, Mank 
is not available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Vudo, YouTube, or other platforms. It's only available on Netflix. 
What we think of it: "To get frustrated at Mank for all its nostalgia would also miss the point of what David Fincher is doing with this story, which on its surface is a quasi-biopic of Herman Mankiewicz (played by Gary Oldman), the screenwriter behind the Orson Welles masterpiece, Citizen Kane. Fincher's latest is ultimately a movie about myth-making and the miniscule lines that exist between art and propaganda." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

minari
A24

How to watch Minari

Is it on a streaming service? No, Minari is not available on a streaming service
Is it available to rent? Yes, 
Minari is available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Vudo, YouTube, and other VOD platforms for $19.99.
What we think of it: "Lee Isaac Chung centers a child's perspective in his emotional epic Minari, about a Korean family who moves to Arkansas, but the effect goes so far beyond something like 'childlike wonder.' In his semi-autobiographical, 1980s-set tale, Chung uses his stand-in, 6-year-old David (played by the incredibly adorable Alan Kim), as a way to unearth the contradictions and conundrums of assimilation. David's viewpoint infuses everything that follows and makes Minari not just a very special movie, but a very funny one as well." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

nomadland
Searchlight Pictures

How to watch Nomadland

Is it on a streaming service? Yes, Nomadland was released on Hulu on February 19.
Is it available to rent? You technically can't rent Nomadland, but the Best Picture front-runner is now available to "buy" on Amazon, iTunes, Vudo, YouTube, and other VOD platforms for $14.99.
What we think of it: "At a moment when American patriotism has become synonymous with hate, exclusion, and greed, Nomadland offers a portrait of life on the fringes that encapsulates the inverse of those sentiments. It's a deeply generous, nonjudgemental work of art, fully attuned to this country's cruelty as well as its beauty." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

promising young woman
Focus Features

How to watch Promising Young Woman

Is it on a streaming service? No, Promising Young Woman is not available to stream. 
Is it available to rent? Yes, Promising Young Woman is
 available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Vudo, YouTube, and other VOD platforms for $5.99.
What we think of it: "Promising Young Woman uses aesthetics that usually get written off for being too feminine to its wily advantage, but the movie is anything but soft. Director Emerald Fennell has made something that's angry and borderline cruel. Underneath all the candy hues and catchy tunes, it offers gut punch after gut punch." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

sound of metal
Amazon Prime

How to watch Sound of Metal

Is it on a streaming service? Yes. Sound of Metal is available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.
Is it available to rent? Yes, Sound of Metal is currently available to rent on iTunes for $5.99. 
What we think of it: "It's in a class of its own. The experimental drama is filled with surprises and is secretly one of the best movies of this year." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

the trial of the chicago 7
Netflix

How to watch The Trial of the Chicago 7

Is it on a streaming service? Yes, The Trial of the Chicago 7 was released on Netflix on October 16.
Is it available to rent? No, The Trial of the Chicago 7
is not available to rent; it's only on Netflix.
What we think of it: "The Trial of the Chicago 7, which Aaron Sorkin both wrote and directed, is both pure, uncut Sorkin and very good. It's material that perfectly fits his bombast, but in this context, it's expertly deployed." (Read the full review.)
(Watch the trailer)

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