Want to catch up on all the Oscar nominees before the ceremony? Check out this lineup of nominated movies showing on the big screen in and around Oakland.
Read on for the highest rated films to catch, based on critical scores sourced from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. (Movie descriptions courtesy The Movie Database; showtimes via Fandango.)
Can You Ever Forgive Me?
When bestselling celebrity biographer Lee Israel is no longer able to get published because she has fallen out of step with current tastes, she turns her art form to deception, abetted by her loyal friend Jack.
Boasting a critical approval rating of 98 percent and an audience score of 83 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" has proven to be a critical darling since its release on October 19.
Oscar nominations for both Melissa McCarthy (Best Actress) and Richard E. Grant (Best Supporting Actor) support the critical consensus that, "Deftly directed and laced with dark wit, 'Can You Ever Forgive Me?' proves a compelling showcase for deeply affecting work from Richard E. Grant and Melissa McCarthy."
It's playing at The New Parkway (474 24th St.) through Sunday, Jan. 27. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
Free Solo
Follow Alex Honnold as he attempts to become the first person to ever free solo climb Yosemite's 3,000 foot high El Capitan wall. With no ropes or safety gear, this would arguably be the greatest feat in rock climbing history.
Boasting a critical approval rating of 98 percent and an audience score of 83 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, "Free Solo" has gotten stellar reviews — and an Oscar nod for Best Documentary — since its release on September 28.
The site's critical consensus notes, "'Free Solo' depicts athletic feats that many viewers will find beyond reason — and grounds the attempts in passions that are all but universal."
You can catch it at The New Parkway (474 24th St.) through Thursday, Jan. 31. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Miles Morales is juggling his life between being a high school student and being a Spider-Man. When Wilson "Kingpin" Fisk uses a supercollider, others from across the Spider-Verse are transported to this dimension.
With a 97 percent critical approval rating and an audience score of 94 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" has been a must-watch since its release on December 14, winning the Golden Globe and getting an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.
Critics rave, "'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse' matches bold storytelling with striking animation for a purely enjoyable adventure with heart, humor, and plenty of superhero action."
Get a piece of the action at Regal Jack London Stadium 9 (100 Washington St.) through Thursday, Jan. 31. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
BlacKkKlansman
Colorado Springs, late 1970s. Ron Stallworth, an African American police officer, and Flip Zimmerman, his Jewish colleague, run an undercover operation to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan.
With a critical approval rating of 95 percent and an audience score of 82 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, "BlacKkKlansman" has become a favorite since its release on August 10. It recently received six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director for auteur Spike Lee.
Per the site's summary of critic reviews, "'BlacKkKlansman' uses history to offer bitingly trenchant commentary on current events — and brings out some of Spike Lee's hardest-hitting work in decades along the way."
It's playing at Regal Jack London Stadium 9 (100 Washington St.) through Thursday, Jan. 31. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
