Strong Oscar-caliber choices for 2023’s great year at the movies.

The 96th Academy Award nominations were just announced with some surprises, omissions, and choices we pretty much saw coming.

Lily Gladstone has become the first Native American to be nominated an Oscar for her performance in Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon.” She was so phenomenal in that film in the ways she represented her moods and tones within her character. And in a time when people of various races are getting first-time nominations, we must cross our fingers and hope she takes home the Oscar, as she did for her Golden Globe award.

I have some good news and bad news. I’ll start with the bad news, which is that Greta Gerwig didn’t get nominated for Best Director nor Margot Robbie got nominated for Best Actress with “Barbie.” But the good news is that film has been nominated for other categories, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Ryan Gosling), Best Supporting Actress (America Ferrara), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Gerwig and Noah Baumbach). I’m glad the award show didn’t add a Blockbuster category, because that would be too tedious and predictable. But I still thought the movie was delightful, not just for its comical representation of Barbie dolls, but also for its important message about strong womanhood. I’m a guy and even I know Barbie doesn’t have to end up with Ken. She can be whoever she wants to be.

And there are other good things for women, too, like Justine Triet being the first female French filmmaker to get nominated for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Picture for “Anatomy of a Fall.” It may not have gotten placed in the International Feature category, but it still represents the patience and questions of a courtroom drama. Who is the suspect in the death of a fallen victim? What possible motive could they have had if they were guilty? There’s a lot to unfold, and the tension thickens.

We also have some wise choices for the Best Animated Feature category like “Elemental,” “Nimona,” “Robot Dreams,” and my two favorites of last year “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron.” I hope one of those two win, because they both represent the infinite possibilities in the genre. At 83 years old, Miyazaki won his first Golden Globe for his latest masterpiece, so let’s see how the Oscars will play out.

Among the nominees in the International Feature category, there’s also some consideration for a German import that deserves more credit called “The Teacher’s Lounge.” When Sony Pictures Classics gave me an advanced look at it, I was amazed at the narrative, performances, and direction regarding a teacher trying to do the right thing, when things spin out of control.

And my favorite short film of last year Wes Anderson’s “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” is part of the Best Live Action Short Film category. Maybe it will get beaten by the other nominees: “The After,” “Invincible,” “Knight of Fortune,” and “Red, White and Blue.” Maybe not. But either way, I still thought it was a whimsical take on a Roald Dahl story, the best of the Anderson-Dahl short films to find their way on Netflix to be exact.

This is just me talking about my opinions, but there are also some important qualities about this year’s nominees. If I missed something else vital, please let me know and I apologize. Let’s see who and what wins this March.