🎬 Happy Wednesday!

Today I’m continuing this week’s theme of dystopian movies 🌎 with an action movie by South Korean director Bong Joon-ho. #BongHive

Also, I give you an update on this year’s Oscar race and tell you about a shakeup in the Star Wars franchise.

Okay, here’s day 2️⃣.

Today’s movie: Snowpiercer

STREAMING ON NETFLIX

What it’s about: After humanity is eradicated by a failed experiment to counteract climate change, the last remaining survivors are forced to live on an infinitely running train called Snowpiercer. Two decades later, an entire class system has emerged but Curtis Everett (Chris Evans) and the rest of the passengers in the rear of the train are ready to revolt.

Why you should watch it: The world that Bong Joon-ho creates for Snowpiercer is wonderfully strange and oddly specific. He thought through every single detail of what his post-apocalyptic train society would look like and it’s easy to lose yourself in that. What makes the movie truly great is the action. Each setpiece is different from the last — different environments, different challenges — and they all progress in a satisfyingly linear fashion. As far as post-apocalyptic action movies go, this is one of the best.

Details: 🎬 Bong Joon-ho // ⏳ 126 minutes // 🗓 2013 // 📺 Trailer

Fun fact: Bong Joon-ho wrote Tilda Swinton’s role with John C. Rilley in mind. When he reworked the role for Swinton, he intentionally kept the masculine pronouns in the script to make the character’s gender fluid.

Also available on: Prime Video | iTunes | YouTube

State of the Oscar race: Best Picture

I always tell people I was an Oscar nut before I fell in love with movies. So, once in a while, I’m going to give you an update on the Oscar race. If you like this section, let me know by replying to this email!

Unlike most years, we’ve yet to see a true frontrunner emerge in the race for Best Picture. However, it looks like it’s shaping up to be a battle between industry veterans Martin Scorsese (The Irishman) and Quentin Tarantino (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood).

Tarantino has never won Best Picture, which might give him the edge. But watch out for Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, which has taken the industry (and audiences) by storm. If it wins, it will be the first movie not in English to win after Roma almost pulled it off last year — thanks, Green Book 🙄.

The frontrunners: The Irishman, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Marriage Story, Parasite

Other contenders: Jojo Rabbit, 1917, Little Women, Ford v. Ferrari, Joker, The Farewell

Dark horses: Dark Waters, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Bombshell, Waves

In movie news: D&D are out of Star Wars 👋

Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss can’t seem to get their happy ending. It’s been more than a year and half since it was announced the duo would helm the first Star Wars movie in 2022 after The Rise of Skywalker, which premieres later this year. However, they’re now bowing out citing a packed schedule.

• D&D inked a five-year, $250 million development deal with Netflix that would explain their packed schedule

• They join a loooonngg list of directors who have been fired or dropped out of Star Wars projects — Josh Trank, Colin Trevorrow, Phil Lord & Christopher Miller

• Last month, MCU mastermind Kevin Feige was tapped to develop a Star Wars film

My take: Based on the last two seasons of Game of Thrones, this is probably a good thing for Star Wars.

Have a great night! 🍂
Karl (@karl_delo)

🍅 I’m also a Tomatometer-approved critic on Rotten Tomatoes! You can find all my reviews here.

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