Overview
When the 2021 Academy Awards took place this week, much about the ceremony was different. From the format and order to the venue and vibe, change was definitely in the air. But another big shift was evident even before the gongs were handed out. Both in cinemas and via streaming, the Best Picture contenders were all available to watch Down Under before the ceremony — so you could check out Sound of Metal from your couch, for instance, then head to your local cinema to see Minari.
Nomadland, which won the Best Picture prize, has also been showing in cinemas. It actually first started screening theatrically in Australia on Boxing Day last year, then returned to the big screen in early March. That's a little unusual, and so is the next piece of news: it'll be available to stream via Star on Disney+ from this Friday, April 30.
A number of movies have been making the leap from the big to the small screen quite quickly of late, including while they're still in cinemas. Wonder Woman 1984 did just that after Christmas, in fact. That's how the film business has been adapting to the pandemic era. Still, being able to stream the year's Best Picture winner at home mere days after it nabbed the coveted award isn't a usual part of Oscar proceedings.
The Chloé Zhao-directed and Frances McDormand-starring film follows the widowed, van-dwelling Fern — a woman who takes to the road, and to the nomad life, after the small middle-America spot she spent her married life in turns into a ghost town when the local mine is shuttered due to the global financial crisis. Charting her travels over the course of more than a year, this humanist drama serves up an observational portrait of those that society happily overlooks. It also won Zhao the Best Director gong, making her the first woman of colour and only second woman ever to nab the prize. McDormand won the Best Actress Oscar, too, and the feature was our best film of 2020 as well.
Disney+ viewers will be able to watch Nomadland as part of their regular subscription, with the movie available part of its new Star brand — a just-added new section of the streaming platform that joined the service back in February.
For folks yet to see the Oscar-winning film — or if you need a refresher — check out the Nomadland trailer below:
Nomadland will be available to stream via Star on Disney+ from Friday, April 30.
Top image: Searchlight Pictures. © 2020, 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved