The Next Best Picture Podcast

"My Father's Shadow" is a 2025 drama film directed by Akinola Davies Jr. in his feature-length debut, from a screenplay he co-wrote with his brother, Wale Davies, and starring Gotham Award winner Sope Dirisu. It follows a family reunion during the 1993 Nigerian election. The film had its world premiere at the Un Certain Regard section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first Nigerian film to be selected for the festival's Official Selection. It won the Special Mention for the Caméra d'Or and was critically acclaimed, receiving numerous awards and nominations, including a British Independent Film Award and two Gotham Independent Film Awards. It was also selected as the UK's entry for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. Akinola Davies Jr. was kind enough to spend some time speaking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from MUBI. Thank you, and enjoy!

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"Kokuho" It is a 2025 Japanese historical drama film directed by Lee Sang-il and written by Satoko Okudera, based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Shuichi Yoshida, starring Ryo Yoshizawa, Ryusei Yokohama, Mitsuki Takahata, Shinobu Terajima, Min Tanaka, and Ken Watanabe. It had its world premiere in the Directors' Fortnight section of the 78th Cannes Film Festival, where it received positive reviews, particularly for its acting, directing, cinematography, makeup, and hairstyling. It has grossed $125 million in Japan, becoming the all-time highest-grossing Japanese live-action film. It was selected as the Japanese entry for Best International Feature Film, making the December shortlist, and was nominated for Best Makeup and Hairstyling at the 98th Academy Awards. Oscar-nominated actor Ken Watanabe was kind enough to spend some time speaking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from GKIDS. Thank you, and enjoy!

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Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT

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It's that time of the year! It's our annual Sundance Film Festival recap podcast. For the 2026 film festival, and the final one in Park City, Utah, we have Ema Sasic, Cody Dericks, Sara Clements, and Daniel Howat joining me from Next Best Picture. Please take a listen as we reveal our favorite films from the festival and give you all a preview of the best that's to come in 2026. Thank you for listening, as always, and enjoy!

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THIS IS A PREVIEW PODCAST. NOT THE FULL REVIEW. Please check out the full podcast review on our Patreon Page by subscribing over at - https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture

For this week's second podcast review, Sara Clements, Dan Bayer, Lauren LaMagna, and Giovanni Lago join me to discuss the latest film from Park Chan-wook, "No Other Choice" starring Lee Byung-hun, Son Ye-jin, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yeom Hye-ran, and Cha Seung-won. Based on "The Ax" by Donald Westlake, the film premiered in the main competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, where it garnered critical acclaim. At the 83rd Golden Globe Awards, it was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Foreign Language Film, and Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (Lee Byung-hun). It was also selected as South Korea's entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 98th Academy Awards, making the December shortlist, though it was not nominated. What did we think of it though? Please tune in as we discuss the direction, performances, writing, camerawork, editing, its awards season chances (this was recorded before the Oscar nominations--Sorry!), and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy!

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"Send Help" is an American survival horror film produced and directed by Sam Raimi and written by Mark Swift and Damian Shannon. The film stars Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien as an employee and her boss, respectively, who become stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash and attempt to survive while tension rises between them. It is Sam Raimi's first conventional horror/thriller film since 2009's "Drag Me To Hell" and has received positive reviews from critics, and grossed $28 million so far against its $40 million production budget. Raimi was kind enough to spend some time speaking with me during the Sundance Film Festival (while I was sitting on the floor of a hotel hallway trying to avoid the noise of the many people who were around me in attendance) about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from 20th Century Studios. Thank you, and enjoy!

Check out more on NextBestPicture.com

Please subscribe on...

Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw

And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free
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