Past Lives, the Best Picture nominee frequently hailed as the best film of 2023, arrives for streaming convenience just in time to hype it up for Oscars night next month. One of A24’s best-ever features, this film quietly generated hype last summer, countering the typical big-budget flicks of the time. Sadly, it never came even remotely close to Everything Everywhere All at Once, the previous year’s massive success and Best Picture winner from the company. A24 might not be able to secure two Best Picture wins in a row, but that does not stop Past Lives from being one of the best, if not the single best, films of 2023.
What Is ‘Past Lives’ About?
Past Lives, the writing/directing debut of U.S.-based creative Celine Song, tells a partially autobiographical story about love lost from childhood to adulthood, as the main character, Nora Moon, leaves South Korea with her family at a young age to start a life in Toronto. When her old classmate, whom she last saw at age 12 and had feelings for, comes to visit her decades later, the immense weight of their long-gone chance at a life together hangs over the trip with a bittersweet sense of destiny.
Every facet of Past Lives rang successful with critics and audiences, a story both universally appealing and specific to the conflicting identities of traditional Koreans and Korean expats. Greta Lee and Teo Yoo effortlessly dissolve into their roles, and Song’s direction style shows an instant mastery of cinematic quietude through her patient lens. The film’s critical success is building to a perfect ending, leaving no dry eye in any theater or home.
Romance and Oscars History
Audiences, Hollywood, and history have all treasured romance in storytelling. The Academy Awards reflected this with its first Best Picture choice: Wings, the romantic war picture about the love triangles of WWI fighter pilots. The romantic drama genre has carved out a presence at all film awards ever since, and from Casablanca to Titanic, epic love stories represent one of the significant crosses of critical and box office attention.
Drama is at the heart of most Best Picture winners, and Past Lives is by far the most romance-oriented of this year’s category nominees. Only Maestro comes relatively close, with the central relationship of Leonard Bernstein and his wife taking up most of the film. Without any action, comedy, or fantasy elements included, Past Lives resides in a particular category that tugs at the heart with specific romantic entanglements and life-altering drama without any other distractions. Recently, the moving romantic and dramatic tensions of Little Women, Phantom Thread, and Call Me By Your Name reflect a similar approach, but these all ultimately lost their battle for the top award.
Will ‘Past Lives’ Win Best Picture at the Academy Awards?
Greta Lee and Teo Yoo in ‘Past Lives’ / A24
Unfortunately, being the best does not always win first prize. Whether or not critics think Past Lives is the best film of 2023, it has stiff competition from more successful films like Barbie, Killers of the Flower Moon, Poor Things, and especially Oppenheimer, which has so far swept most awards this season and is in the top running for winning the Oscar for Best Picture. Even with A24’s blessing, Past Lives looks like one of the least likely nominees to win the coveted award, save for a surprise surpassing Parasite’s win in 2020.
Even if it ends up a Best Picture loser, Past Lives is the must-watch film this month after the long wait to join a convenient streaming service (though it beat Oppenheimer in moving out of VOD only). As the other Best Picture nominees trickle in, check back for where to watch American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, The Zone of Interest, and other subscription streaming holdouts.
Past Lives is streaming now on Paramount+ with Showtime.
