Richard Brody Presents the 2025 Brody Awards

Summary

The New Yorker Radio Hour: Richard Brody Presents the 2025 Brody Awards

Hosted by David Remnick, and featuring critics Alexandra Schwartz and Richard Brody, this episode of "The New Yorker Radio Hour" delves into the cinematic landscape of the past year, culminating in the presentation of the exclusive Brody Awards.

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Introduction to the Brody Awards

David Remnick opens the episode by introducing the Brody Awards, highlighting their distinction from the more widely recognized Academy Awards. He remarks, “The Brodies are far more exclusive and more coveted than the Oscars, of course, though they don't have the little statue guy to go with it” (00:46). Richard Brody confirms that the tradition has been ongoing for seven or eight years, with Alexandra Schwartz noting, “We’re getting close to a decade. It’s true” (01:27).

Oscar Predictions and the Contenders

The conversation begins with a discussion about potential Oscar favorites. Alexandra Schwartz emphasizes the film Brutalist, praising director Brady Courbet for maintaining creative control. She states, “He does not wish to, you know, compromise his filmmaking ideals to make a movie that might be more palatable to studios or to audiences for once” (02:21).

Richard Brody expresses skepticism about some Oscar nominations, particularly criticizing Megalopolis by Francis Ford Coppola. He notes, “Megalopolis has been reviewed for its publicity rather than for what’s actually on screen” (03:06).

Brody Awards Presentation

Best Actor

The nominees for Best Actor include Adam Driver (Megalopolis), Ethan Harisi (Nickel Boys), James Matteo (The Featherweight), Glen Powell (Hitman), and Jason Schwartzman (Between the Temples). Richard Brody announces Adam Driver as the winner, lauding him as “the actor of his generation” and commending his performance in Megalopolis (04:26). He remarks, “he brings a real, like, physicality, a real command to this role and takes this $120 million and essentially puts it on his back with the sheer force of his personality” (04:30).

Best Actress

The Best Actress category features Joanna Arno (That Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed), Maria Dizia (Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point), Leia Drucker (Last Summer), Carlo Sophia Gascon (Emilia Perez), and Carol Kane (Between the Temples). Maria D'Azia is declared the winner for her role in Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point. Brody praises her performance, stating, “That’s the way it’s always been and always will be... if not chaos, an insurrection” (09:07).

Best Director

Nominees for Best Director include Zia Anger (My First Film), Francis Ford Coppola (Megalopolis), Rommel Ross (Nickel Boys), Paul Schrader (O Canada), and Tyler Taormina (Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point). Rommel Ross takes the award for his innovative direction in Nickel Boys. Brody elaborates on the film’s unique perspective, explaining, “all the dramatic sequences are filmed from the point of view of one of its main characters” which “makes it seem to some viewers... somewhat unorthodox” (12:02).

Best Picture

The Best Picture nominees are Between the Temples, Blitz, Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point, The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed, Nickel Boys, Amelia, Paris, A Complete Unknown, Psy, Anora, The Brutalist Conclave, Dune Part Two, and I’m Still Here. Nickel Boys is awarded Best Picture, with Brody asserting, “Nickel Boys was really head and shoulders above the competition. It’s a film that I think will... mark the year in history” (16:13). Alexandra Schwartz echoes this sentiment, adding, “I love Nickel Boys. I think it’s a terrific movie and I wish more people had seen it” (16:21).

Discussion on Notable Films and Oscar Implications

Alexandra Schwartz brings attention to Anora, describing it as “insanely a Cinderella” story, though she doubts it will receive Oscar recognition. Brody concurs, criticizing the film's depth: “It’s a film about a sex worker that has very little to say about her life as a sex worker” (15:10).

The conversation also touches on Adrien Brody’s Oscar chances amidst controversy over AI-assisted accent enhancements in his performance. Schwartz points out that the use of generative AI has sparked debate about the authenticity of performances, questioning whether it impacts Oscar eligibility (05:17). Brody refers to this as “the brutalist versus the cutalist” (06:03), illustrating the industry's divide on AI's role in acting.

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

As the discussion wraps up, Remnick and Schwartz reflect on the broader implications of the Brody Awards versus the Oscars, emphasizing the former’s focus on artistic integrity and innovation. Brody asserts the importance of films like Nickel Boys in shaping cinematic history, while Schwartz advocates for broader recognition of critically acclaimed works despite lack of mainstream awards.

David Remnick concludes the episode by noting the recognition of New Yorker-produced documentary shorts for Academy Awards, celebrating the synergy between WNYC Studios and The New Yorker in fostering high-quality cinematic content (17:01).

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Notable Quotes

• David Remnick: “The Brodies are far more exclusive and more coveted than the Oscars, of course, though they don't have the little statue guy to go with it.” (00:46)

• Richard Brody: “Adam Driver is the actor of his generation. He's almost like John Wayne or Cary Grant.” (04:30)

• Alexandra Schwartz: “I think Demi Moore is in a special category. I think she is essentially sort of like the Joan Crawford of her generation.” (09:07)

• Richard Brody: “Nickel Boys was really head and shoulders above the competition. It’s a film that I think will... mark the year in history.” (16:13)

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Final Remarks

Listeners can access Richard Brody's film critiques on The Front Row and Alexandra Schwartz's writings through The New Yorker's platform. The episode underscores the significance of niche awards like the Brody Awards in recognizing and celebrating cinematic excellence beyond mainstream accolades.

For more insightful conversations and award discussions, tune into future episodes of The New Yorker Radio Hour.

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Timestamp Reference:

• 00:46: Introduction of the episode by David Remnick
• 01:27: Alexandra Schwartz on the longevity of the Brody Awards
• 02:21: Discussion on Brady Courbet and Brutalist
• 03:06: Richard Brody's critique of Megalopolis
• 03:52: Richard Brody on Dune Part Two
• 04:26: Announcement of Best Actor winner
• 09:07: Richard Brody on Maria D'Azia’s win and Demi Moore’s nomination
• 12:02: Richard Brody on Best Director nominee Rommel Ross
• 15:10: Discussion on The Brutalist Conclave and Honora
• 16:13: Announcement of Best Picture winner
• 17:01: Conclusion and mention of documentary short nominations

Transcript

[Ira Flatow]

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[Alexandra Schwartz]

Listener supported WNYC Studios. This is the New Yorker Radio Hour, a co production of WNYC Studios and the New Yorker.

[David Remnick]

This is the New Yorker Radio Hour. I'm David Remnick, and it is that time of year again. It's awards season. And I'm joined by two of the New Yorker's critics, Alexandra Schwartz, co host of our podcast Critics at Large, and film critic Richard Brody. We're going to talk about the past year at the movies and the prospects for the Academy Awards. But much more importantly, Richard Brody will pick the winners of the award we call the Brody. The Brodies are far more exclusive and more coveted than the Oscars, of course, though they don't have the little statue guy to go with it. This is an annual tradition here at the New Yorker Radio Hour. Richard, how many years have we been doing the Brodies?

[Richard Brody]

Oh, seven, eight.

[David Remnick]

Seven or eight years.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

My God, we're getting close to a decade. It's true.

[David Remnick]

Now, first, let's talk about the other award show, the Oscars. So let's have Alex talk to the Brutalist. Why would the Brutalist be a favorite? Because you've written about it quite wonderfully for the New Yorker.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Yes, I profile the director, Brady Courbet. I mean, it's a small movie comparatively. It was on a $10 million budget, but it is a huge movie both thematically and in its form. It is close to four hours when you include its 15 minute intermission. And rather than scare away audiences, this seems to have enticed people. You know, it's an immigration story. It's the story of a Jewish architect following World War II. So it has a lot of themes that Hollywood might like or consider certainly to be serious. And it's really being hailed as a filmmaker's film.

[Richard Brody]

So, uh, oh, as opposed to a shoemaker's film?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Well, as opposed to, you know, Brady Courbet, both in his profile to me and more generally, has talked quite a lot about how much importance he gives to creative control to having final cut. This was a theme of his speech at the Golden Globes where he won for best director. For instance, he does not wish to, you know, compromise his filmmaking ideals to make a movie that might Be more palatable to studios or to audiences for once.

[David Remnick]

Don't you want to see a director get up and say, I'm a complete compromiser. I'm absolutely compromising from the word go.

[Richard Brody]

As opposed to the shy, retiring and modest Christopher Nolan.

[David Remnick]

All right, now, Richard, you put Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis as the third best movie of the year. That is not a universal.

[Richard Brody]

I'm well aware of it. I think that Megalopolis has been reviewed for its publicity rather than for what's actually on screen. That the story of Francis ford Coppola spending $120 million of his own money and above all, the greatest Hollywood sin of all, not caring whether he gets it back, has cost that film significantly in reputation.

[David Remnick]

What Oscar nomination actually surprised you the most? Richard?

[Richard Brody]

Dune Part two.

[David Remnick]

Okay, I'm with you on that.

[Richard Brody]

Dune Part two shocked me because I think it's a terrible movie. I think it's a sludgy movie. Part one at least had an impressive sandworm. This one is a, you know, this one is, you know, an extreme close up of a vacuum cleaner hose. And the pacing of it is.

[David Remnick]

And you can literally get that at home.

[Richard Brody]

The pacing is lugubrious. The dialogue, you know, it's, like, written to fit into cartoons. Cartoon bubbles.

[David Remnick]

Okay, we'll come back to some of the Oscar favorites, but let's get into the main event here, the presentation of the Brody Awards. Our first category is Best Actor. Alex, who was nominated?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

The nominees for the Brody Award for best Actor are Adam Driver for Megalopolis, Ethan Harisi for Nickel Boys, James Matteo for the Featherweight, Glen Powell for Hitman, and Jason Schwartzman for Between the Temples. And Richard. The winner is.

[Richard Brody]

The winner is Adam Driver from Megalopolis. Adam Driver is the actor of his generation. He's almost like John Wayne or Cary Grant. He is inevitably, always himself. And that, to me, is an enormous virtue, especially in a movie like Megalopolis, where he's playing such an extravagantly composite character, essentially a Leonardo da Vinci of urbanism. And yet he brings a real, like, physicality, a real command to this role and takes this $120 million and essentially puts it on his back with the sheer force of his personality.

[David Remnick]

I have this sneaking suspicion that Timothee Chalamet is gonna win for his Bob Dylan.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

And you're upset about it, aren't you, David?

[David Remnick]

Look, he's a perfectly good actor, but he's too sweet. He's a sweetie pie. Bob Dylan is many things, but he's not a sweetie pie.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

See, I actually thought that Adrien Brody had it kind of locked up for the Oscars until this recent controversy around generative AI being used to help perfect the Hungarian accents of Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, who played the main couple in the Brutalist.

[David Remnick]

Wait a minute. If we went back in time and we inspected, I don't know, the Polish accent in Sophie's Choice of Meryl Streep, would we get perfect, beautiful polish?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

The problem that people are having is that it not about the perfection or the imperfection. The fact that it was perfected using AI. Some people say, well, it's just using, you know, using a tool to augment the work of an. Not to replace the work of an actor. And other people are coming in and saying it's not fully his performance. He can't get the Oscar.

[David Remnick]

Bunch of Luddites. Okay?

[Richard Brody]

Now, essentially in this category, it's the brutalist versus the cutalist.

[David Remnick]

I think the cutalist is going to win.

[Richard Brody]

Yeah. I think the Cutlist has a very good sense.

[David Remnick]

If I have to hear one more time how in five years he learned how to play four chords, I just. It's enough already.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

I thought he was pretty good, but, you know, grump, grump, grumpy.

[David Remnick]

I'm talking about the Year in Movies with Richard Brody and Alex Schwartz. We'll continue in a moment.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

WNYC Studios is supported by Quince.

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[Alexandra Schwartz]

CNN brings you five stories that'll get you up to speed on your day. New episodes drop Monday through Friday at 6:00am, 9:00am noon, 3:00pm and 6:00pm hello from CNN.

[Richard Brody]

I'm Joe Beck from CNN.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

I'm Fez Jamil. I'm Christa Bowe with the five things.

[Richard Brody]

You need to know.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Follow CNN's Five Things podcast wherever you.

[Unknown]

Get your podcast guests.

[David Remnick]

Now. Alex Moving on to the next category for the Brodies. The nominees for best actress are.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Yes, they are. Joanna Arno for that feeling that the time for doing something has passed. Maria Dizia for Christmas Eve in Miller's Point. Leia Drucker for Last Summer, Carlo Sophia Gascon for Emilia Perez and Carol Kane for Between the Temples. And the Brody goes to.

[Richard Brody]

It goes to Maria D'Azia for Christmas Eve in Miller's Point, a film that relatively few people have seen and almost everyone who's seen loves it. You don't get rid of the police. I keep the police. Like, what are they nuts? Huh? You get rid of the bad guys, right? The bad people. You keep the good, huh?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

That.

[Richard Brody]

That's the way it's always been and always will be is, if not chaos, an insurrection. Okay, Brucy.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

One actress who made the Oscars list but didn't make yours is Demi Moore, who's back with the substance. She won the Golden Globe. It seems like she's a strong contender for best actress at the Oscars. What do you think about her Oscar nomination and why is she not on the Brody's list?

[Richard Brody]

I think Demi Moore is a wonderful actress and I think part of the problem in the acting categories is that pretty much everybody is a wonderful actor or actress. The technical level of acting now is extremely high, that they simply have a level of training that makes them virtuosi. And I think that Demi Moore is in a special category. I think she is a essentially sort of like the Joan Crawford of her generation. She really excels in melodrama. I felt that way ever since seeing her in St. Elmo's fire in the 1980s. The problem is she came of professional age in an era that made very few melodramas. And so the best years of her life, of her professional life, were spent in something like a wilderness.

[David Remnick]

When she went up to collect the Golden Globes, Demi Moore, she was not only overcome, but she said that she had been told that she was essentially not a serious actress. I forget the phrase that she used for it.

[Richard Brody]

Popcorn actress.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Popcorn actress.

[David Remnick]

Yeah, popcorn. That's it. So she had been Diminished in some way and then given the chance to have a quote, unquote serious role. She embodied it, she fulfilled it, and she won the award. What do you think of that narrative, Richard?

[Richard Brody]

I think it's a correct assessment of the industry's complete misuse of her talent over the last 30 years. The substance is not a popcorn movie, but I don't think it's a movie that really shows the range of her art.

[David Remnick]

Now, Alex, the next award.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Okay, we're getting to the big ones. It's our third category. Richard, who are your nominees for best Director of the Brodies?

[Richard Brody]

Zia Anger for my first film, Francis Ford Coppola for Megalopolis, Rommel Ross for Nickel Boys. Paul Schrader for O Canada and Tyler Taormina for Christmas Eve in Miller's Point.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

And the Brody goes to.

[Richard Brody]

Goes to Ramel Ross for Nickel Boys.

[David Remnick]

Wow. How would you do it? Well, I wouldn't run into the swamp hot in it. So the coast is clear and it.

[Richard Brody]

Hits a ride somewhere west or north.

[David Remnick]

All right. That's how they get you, Richard. Rommel Ross didn't even get nominated.

[Richard Brody]

Didn't even get nominated.

[David Remnick]

But this picture was really innovative, and not only for its use of point of view.

[Richard Brody]

What happened, what makes it innovative also makes it seem to some viewers, even in the industry, somewhat unorthodox, somewhat, you know, inherently unpopular by design. Like, what's distinctive about what he does in Nickel Boys is that all the dramatic sequences are filmed from the point of view of one of its main characters.

[David Remnick]

Has that been done before?

[Richard Brody]

Oh, it's done many. It's been done many times before in Hollywood in a movie called lady in the Lake directed by Robert Montgomery in the mid-1940s. I think that's the premise of the Blair Witch Project, if I'm not mistaken. But those films treat it like a gimmick for Nickel Boys. It. It has a philosophical dimension, and I don't use that word loosely. Romel Ross is something of a cinematic philosopher. We've seen many, many movies in which horrific inflictions beset the protagonist, in which the main characters suffer terrible fates at the hands of brutal overseers. The difference in Nickel Boys is that the way that the technique is deployed by Ross and the cinematographer Joan O'Frey, you actually feel as if you are in the. In the minds and in the bodies of the characters.

[David Remnick]

I agree.

[Richard Brody]

It's essentially history being created from within.

[David Remnick]

I thought it was the most extraordinary new release I saw this year. Now, the Academy nominated 10 films again this year for best Picture. We've talked about a few of them. Nickel Boys, Amelia, Paris, A Complete Unknown. Psy. Let's add to that. Anora, the Brutalist Conclave, Dune Part Two. And I'm still here. Any thoughts on any of those films before we give out the Last Brody? Alex.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Well, you know, Anora is a movie that has been so critically beloved and I think also loved by audiences who have seen it. Sean Baker's movie about a sex worker in a Manhattan club who can get swept away in a romance. Question mark with the son of a Russian oligarch. And it's been called, insanely to me, a Cinderella. As I remember, Cinderella has a happy ending, but nevermind. But you know, I just feel I loved Honora. I don't think it's gonna get any Academy love. And as we know, that's okay. We do not need the Academy to validate our feelings, critical and otherwise. But still, you know, it hurts me a little to see it come up totally short, but that's what I'll say about that.

[David Remnick]

And I thought Honora had one of the great enigmatic closing scenes of any film I've seen in recent years.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Yeah, I'd agree with that. And one actor who's key to that scene is Yuri Borisov, who is nominated as a Best Supporting actor. I'm rooting for him. I think he has a shot.

[David Remnick]

Forget it.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

But not a big one.

[David Remnick]

Richard, you're amends. Amends on Honora, if I remember right.

[Richard Brody]

Yeah, I mean, I found Honora, you know, fairly superficially entertaining, but indeed superficially entertaining.

[David Remnick]

That's what people say of me all the time.

[Richard Brody]

It's a relatively incurious film. In other words, it's a film about a sex worker that has very little to say about her life as a sex worker. It's a film about a descendant of a Russian immigrant family that has nothing to say about her life as a Russian immigrant. In other words, I don't think it's a bad setup for a movie. I think that it's done for entertainment value rather than for actual curiosity about the conflicts faced by its protagonist. Can I say something about the Brutalist?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Oh, yes, Richard Slaughtered here on Mike.

[Richard Brody]

I'm actually somewhat shocked by the enthusiasm for the Brutalist. I get the impression that Brady Courbet is far more interested in Laszlo as a heroin addict, er, Chebet as a sufferer of osteoporosis, and Shofiya as someone who can't or won't speak than actually about their experiences in the Holocaust. It's Holocaust as metaphor.

[David Remnick]

So the Brutalist is a contender at the Oscars, maybe, but not at the Brodies. Let's get back to the nominees for the big prize of the day, the Brody Award for best Picture.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Okay. The nominees for best picture are between the Temples Blitz, Christmas Eve in Miller's Point. The feeling that the time for doing something has passed. It's not me. Juror number two, Megalopolis. My first film, Nickel Boys and O Canada. And the Brody goes to, unsurprisingly, to Nickel Boys.

[Richard Brody]

Nickel Boys was really head and shoulders above the competition. It's a film that I think will, you know, mark the year in history.

[David Remnick]

Alex, you agree?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

I love Nickel Boys. I think it's a terrific movie and I wish more people had seen it. I understand maybe why they didn't. I think there's an expectation that you're going into a movie about pain and about black pain specifically, and it might be preferable to hold off on that. It has been nominated for best picture. It has no chance at the Oscars. I would love to see it nominated for best director also, but mainly I just hope people see it.

[David Remnick]

What's gonna win?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Ooh, good question. I think the Brutalist has a shot.

[Richard Brody]

The Brutalist or Wicked?

[Alexandra Schwartz]

Oh, shot.

[Richard Brody]

I think I.

[David Remnick]

Shut up. The Wicked might win.

[Richard Brody]

Wicked might win. I think there's a huge desire for.

[David Remnick]

I'm holding space for that cinematic comfort.

[Richard Brody]

Food that makes a billion dollars.

[David Remnick]

Ah, there's that. There's that. Alex Schwartz, Richard Brody. As always, it's a great pleasure. Thank you so much. You can find Richard Brody's column on film, the front row and Alex's writing [e-mail] and you can hear her hosting the New Yorker podcast, critics at Large. That's the New Yorker Radio Hour for today. And speaking of awards, not to brag, but documentary short films produced by the New Yorker have been nominated for two Academy Awards this year. Not bad. You can watch those [e-mail] David. I'm David Remnick and that's our program for today. Hope you'll join us next week.

[Alexandra Schwartz]

The New Yorker Radio Hour is a co production of WNYC Studios and the New Yorker. Our theme music was composed and performed by Meryl Garbus of Tune Yards, with additional music by Louis Mitchell. This episode was produced by Max Balton, Adam Howard, David Krasnow, Jeffrey Masters, Louis Mitchell, Jared Paul and Ursula Sommer, with guidance from Emily Botine and assistance from Michael May, David Gable, Alex Barsch, Victor Guan, and Alejandra Deckett. The New Yorker Radio Hour is supported in part by the Tsarina endowment fund.

[Ira Flatow]

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