What to watch this weekend May 5, 2023: Movie awards contenders

Matthew Jacobs
·3 min read
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The start of any month brings with it batches of movies added to streaming services’ libraries. As of this week, Netflix has “Girl, Interrupted,” “Steel Magnolias” and “Traffic,” HBO Max has “Blue Valentine,” “Hustle & Flow” and “Parasite,” and Hulu has “Atonement” and “Boogie Nights.” A handful of newer titles are also premiering digitally. First up is a spellbinding thriller featuring some of Hollywood’s hottest young actors. 

The contender to watch this week: “How to Blow Up a Pipeline”

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NEON picked up this eco-thriller out of last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, after which it won raves for its gripping portrait of young DIY environmental activists who band together to destroy oil pipes in West Texas. Based on Andreas Malm‘s nonfiction book of the same name, “How to Blow Up a Pipeline” stars Ariela Barer (“Runaways”), Sasha Lane (“American Honey”), Lukas Gage (“The White Lotus”), Marcus Scribner (“Black-ish”), and Forrest Goodluck (“The Miseducation of Cameron Post”). The movie might be too small to catch award-season buzz, but “Pipeline” is a technical feast, with propulsive cinematography and a score as riveting as the heist itself. It’s now rentable on VOD. 

Other contenders:

  • “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves”: If you missed this comical take on the popular role-playing game, Prime Video and Vudu have you covered. “Honor Among Thieves” was a surprise critical hit when it opened in March, which might help boost its profile when the Academy narrows down next year’s shortlists for Best Visual Effects and other categories. 

  • “A Man Called Otto“: Never underestimate the power of Tom Hanks. The Americanized version of “A Man Called Ove” — the Swedish dramedy that earned two Oscar nominations, including Best International Feature Film — racked up an impressive $64.3 million in domestic grosses at the start of the year. Both movies were adapted from Fredrik Backman‘s bestselling novel about a grouchy widower who has lost his will to live. Catch the Hanks version, directed by Marc Forster (“Stranger Than Fiction,” “World War Z”), on Netflix.

  • “Both Sides of the Blade”: This love-triangle drama earned “Beau Travail” auteur Claire Denis the SIlver Bear at last year’s Berlin International Film Festival. Juliette Binoche plays a radio broadcaster happily married to an ex-convict (Vincent London), but her life gets complicated when a former lover (Grégoire Colin) enters the picture. Denis’ domestic thriller is newly streaming on Hulu.

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