Oscars Recap and Winners: Food-in-Film Edition
Grab a conservatively-sized test tube of tequila, some popcorn, + lock in
Today, I won’t waste your time:
We’ll briefly cover some highlights from last night’s 97th Academy Awards, before jumping into Film Flavor’s second-annual Food-in-Film awards — the only source aggregating food-in-film related data on the past year’s most delectable films.
First off: Highlights from the Oscars:
Former host Jimmy Kimmel may have been missing from the 2025 Oscars, but his favorite tequila was not. Lucky attendees of the 97th Academy Awards shared clips of best actor nominee Coleman Domingo taking the stage, asking the audience to dance and drink their Don Julio 1942 magaraitas, served in the traditional Oscars 50-milliliter Chaparritos bottles. (Your local liquor store likely sells this liquid gold in a larger vessel.)
Tequilla bottles weren’t the only things broken on the stage: Sean Baker set the record for most Oscars won in one night for one film (Anora), while Paul Tazewell became the first black man to win an Oscar in Costume Design for his work on Wicked. Flow became the first independent film to win Best Animated Feature, and the first Latvian film to win an Academy Award. I’m Still Here became the first Brazilian win… the list goes on!
Conan O’Brien took on the job of hosting the 97th Academy Awards this year, opening with a disenchantingly unfunny musical number promising not to “waste time” during the show. Despite the jubilence of last year’s show, the concieted and self-important nature of the Oscars and its Hollywood stars was on full display last night — in direct contrast with the ethos behind the evening’s Best Picture winner.
As author
described in his reflections on the ceremony, monologues perspicuously explaining a characters thoughts or a movie’s themes are easy writing. Anora, by contrast, takes on the challenging task of writing charactes who do not always come up with the correct words to express what they are thinking and feeling. (This kind of writing is, of course, harder, but also uniquely suited to the medium of the moving picture.)This is why self-important speeches, like Adrian Brody’s acceptance of his Lead Actor award — which broke the record for the longest acceptance speech in Oscar history — and drawn-out tributes to lackluster franchises of yore (why do we care so much about James Bond right now?) felt especially and offensively out of touch. When monologues and performances are too long, the impact gets lost in the (deeply boring) sauce. 🥫
Luckily, Film Flavor readers sprinkled a little spice on this award season. Without further ado, let’s dig into the 2025 Film Flavor Oscars Poll results!
The Best Cinematic Food + Drink in 2024’s Oscar-Nominated Films 🍿
Drumroll please… 🥁…
Over the past week, Film Flavorians cast their votes, and there was resounding concesus:
💉 A whopping 64% majority declared The Substance as the #1 Oscar-nominated film with the best food and drink in 2024!
🎾 The non-Oscar-nominated film with the best food and drink? Unsurprisingly, 56% said Challengers, with All We Imagine as Light being the runner-up.
🍽️ When asked what lead character you’d most like to have dinner with, over 50% of you said Best Lead Actress winner Mikey Madison as Ani of Anora.
🍾 Most surprisingly, the vote was split on themed dinner party preferences: When given the choice to attend a soirée inspired by one of this year’s best picture nominees, Wicked and Anora tied for first place, while Dune: Part Two of all films was a close second. (Maybe my piece on sandworm salad had more impact than I could have ever dreamed!)
🍸 Finally, when presented with a choice of themed cocktails based on Oscar-nominated films, the vast majority of Film Flavor readers would order a Nosferatu-inspired German 75 with a black cherry twist.
(In other words, I learned you all love gin, bubbles, gothic themes, New-Hampshirites, and storied remakes-based-on-unauthorized-remakes as much as I do.)
The Most-Craved Snacks + Sips for 2025 Oscar-Nominated Films
🍬 Both Anora and Wicked has you all hankering for Candy and Chocolate, with a few votes for a mango-flavored vape hit mixed in.
🌽 A Complete Unknown had you all craving the crunch of a Bugle corn chip.
🍷 Conclave made the majority of cinephilic epicures pining for a plate of pasta and a conservitavely-portioned glass of Italian red wine. 🍝
🍾 Emilia Pérez, by contrast, made a 60% majority of respondents thirsty for a bottle of white.
🍽️ Both The Brutalist and I’m Still Here left 64% and 67% respectively wanting a full meal.
🍿 Dune: Part Two left the overwhelming majority pining for popcorn, straight from the bucket… (perhaps my Sandworm Salad thoughts had less great an impact than I thought.)
🍗🧴💉 The Substance, of course, had most folks tied between indulging in a rotisserie chicken and overpriced skincare in lieu of a meal.
🚬 And Nickel Boys? This stand-out film had a solid 50% of folks jonsing for a post-cinema smoke.
A Palate Cleanser
I posted my raw, unfiltered, knee-jerk thoughts to Substack Notes over the course of the awards show last night, culminating in a few of these bangers:
And this post from
that made me chuckle…Plus, one extra bit of trivia for you…
How Accurate Were The Film-Loving-Foodies’s Oscars Predictions?
✅ Oscar Wins Film Flavor Readers Accurately Predicted
Best Picture: Anora
Best Directing: Sean Baker, Anora
Lead Actor: Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Supporting Actor: Kiernan Culkin, A Real Pain
Orginal Screenplay: Anora
Adapted Screenplay: Conclave
International Feature Film: I’m Still Here
Original Score: The Brutalist
Original Song: El Mal
Sound: Dune: Part Two
Cinematography: Lol Crawley, The Brutalist
Makeup & Hairstyling: The Substance
Costume Design: Paul Tazewell, Wicked
Film Editing: Sean Baker, Anora
Visual Effects: Dune: Part Two
❌ Oscars Wins Film Flavor Readers Didn’t Foresee
Lead Actress:
Supporting Actress:
Productin Design: Wicked
Considering last year’s results, a few takeaways:
Film Flavor readers were much better at predicting Oscar wins in 2025. This could be due to the fact that readship has more than doubled since the 2024 Oscars, or it could be that this years Oscar winners were generally more predictable. Still, I’ll give credit where credit is due: Film Flavor readers area savvy about popcorn and pop culture.
In both years of this poll, Film Flavor readers have failed to predict the actress awards, despite accurately prediciting most other categories. (You may find some interesting musings on this from
in this Substack Notes thread.)I omitted the shorts and best documentaries from this years poll. This is in part because Film Flavor as a publication does not cover documentaries at this time, and in part because many of your dopamine-laden brains found last year’s poll too long. Now I’m having weird feelings about it and we’ll probably list the full categories next year. Sometimes, lessons must be learned through mistakes, and on this one, we’re taking the L!
Overall, one truth is abundantly clear: Film Flavor readers are extremely self-aware of their dietary preferences, and their hankerings’ correlations to the movies they watch. And that, my friends, makes me proud to serve you.
I thank you for taking this Film Flavor with Via Marsh journey with me. Let’s get dinner, same time next week?
In Case You Missed It…
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Until next week, and with gratitude,
—
and I meant every word!
👏🏼