But through the lens of the 50 films nominated for at least one Academy Award this year — features, shorts, documentaries, and international films — the film industry is still humming with talent. This is on balance a very strong Oscar year.

Robert Eggers's reimagined Nosferatu is not only making the meme rounds but also the awards rounds. At the Oscars 2025, the movie received nominations for Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Makeup & Hairstyling.

It's rare for a movie like "The Substance" to break into the Oscars race. Written and directed by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, the film is an intense, satirical and violent body horror thriller about insecurity and the pressures of the unrealistic beauty standards that society forces onto women both when they are young and when they are older.