‘I’m Still Here’ and a Best Picture Oscar ranking

The final Best Picture nominee for this year’s Academy Awards arrived in local theaters this past week.

“I’m Still Here,” from Brazil, is a wrenching biographical drama about Eunice Paiva and her attempts to locate her husband after military forces raid their home following political unrest in Rio de Janeiro in 1971.

Eunice, played by Fernanda Torres (a Best Actress nominee this year), faces incarceration and intense interrogation from a dangerous, law-skirting regime, all while being kept intentionally in the dark by her husband, former Brazilian Congressman Rubens Paiva (played by Selton Mello). As her world comes crashing around her, Eunice attempts to maintain stability at home, where her five children increasingly feel the glaring absence of their father.

Torres is the quiet, yet commanding centerpiece of the film directed by Walter Salles, which is based on the book by Marcelo Rubens Paiva, the real-life son of Eunice and Rubens Paiva. The ensemble of young actors that make up the Paiva family all provide natural, endearing performances, providing Torres with frequent opportunities to react and attempt to control the emotions wavering throughout the home.

“I’m Still Here” takes the time to examine the dynamics within the family, which then serves to supply the emotional punch of the film’s devastating third act. In a key moment, Eunice insists that her family smile for a picture that will be published in a local newspaper alongside a story about Rubens’ disappearance. There’s so much more happening under the surface of those smiles.

The film is a worthy addition to this year’s eclectic Best Picture lineup, which contains several great films, “I’m Still Here” included. Academy voters select Best Picture on a preferential ballot, where each member ranks all 10 of the films in their order of preference. Purely for the sake of fun, I would rank the films as such:

1. “Nickel Boys”

2. “The Substance”

3. “Anora”

4. “The Brutalist”

5. “Dune: Part II

6. “I’m Still Here”

7. “Wicked”

8. “Conclave”

9. “A Complete Unknown”

10. “Emilia Pérez”

Of these films, I’d be content to see any of the Top Eight win the Best Picture trophy. The No. 9 entry “A Complete Unknown” is an entertaining-but-overly-familiar music biopic. The only movie I outwardly dislike on the list is “Emilia Pérez,” which also happens to be this year’s Oscar nominations leader with 13. Opinions vary.

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Tyler Wilson can be reached at twilson@cdapress.com.

    This image released by Searchlight Pictures shows director James Mangold, left, and Timothée Chalamet on the set of "A Complete Unknown."

    This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film "Wicked."