How To Watch Best Picture Nominee American Fiction At Home

Good news, cinephiles! First, I will try never to use the word "cinephiles" to describe us ever again. But secondly and much more importantly, movie aficionados (a much classier phrase, if you ask me) will be able to catch one of the best movies of the year ... while also doing a little more prep work ahead of this year's Academy Awards. Where I come from, we call that a win-win.

Every year, we anxiously await the reveal of the nominees for Best Picture, and, more often than not, we come away disappointed that our personal favs didn't make the cut. This year, however, perhaps the most pleasantly surprising pick (other than the excellent "The Holdovers," that is) turned out to be "American Fiction." 

Written and directed by Cord Jefferson — in his feature film debut, no less — the movie stars Jeffrey Wright as a cynical and jaded novelist who actually has pretty good reason to feel so cynical and jaded. Years of struggling mightily to get his writing to connect with mostly white agents and audiences alike have taken a toll on Wright's wryly-named Thelonious "Monk" Ellison, leaving him deeply dissatisfied with their expectations and standards of what a Black author ought to be writing about. Add in a personal tragedy stemming from his mother's onset of Alzheimer's disease, family drama represented mostly through his reckless brother (a deserved Oscar-nominated supporting turn by Sterling K. Brown), and a rather rash decision prompted by his own prickly personality and character flaws on top of it all, and the results are as explosive as you'd imagine.

Fortunately, even as "American Fiction" and the various other Best Picture nominees receive a boost at the box office, viewers can now check out "American Fiction" in all its satirical brilliance without ever leaving home.

Is it likely that "American Fiction" will actually walk away from the Oscars with the ultimate prize? Even the film's biggest supporters would have to admit that the odds are rather long (just to put this on the record, "Oppenheimer" probably has Best Picture in the bag), but don't let that stop you from catching up or revisiting one of the best movies of 2023. If that's not convincing enough, look no further than /Film's review by Mike Schutt, who wrote:

"Tackling such big ideas with a film that tonally switches back and forth between wacky comedy and heartfelt drama would be the death knell for so many first-time directors, but Jefferson, Wright, and every single craftsperson who worked on the film have such a firm grasp on the story being told that the result is one of the more joyous experiences I've had in a theater this year."

With all that preamble out of the way, those interested can check out "American Fiction" right now by heading on over to Vudu to purchase the film on PVOD in glorious 4K UHD. Granted, the official press release lists the title as currently available to "pre-order," but those who click through will notice that they can buy the digital copy right this very second. Being an Amazon MGM Studios release, fans will eventually see "American Fiction" come to streaming on Prime Video, although no release date has yet been announced. In the meantime, the film is currently in theaters and is available to buy through other retailers besides Vudu, including Prime Video and iTunes.