Nominated for 10 Academy Awards, Brady Corbet’s “The Brutalist” is three and a half hours long with an intermission, making it the first film to have an interval since “Gandhi” (1982). 

It’s a compelling immigrant tale with Oscar nominee Adrien Brody delivering one of the best performances of the year as Lazlo Toth, a renowned Hungarian Jewish architect whose vulnerability leads to addiction.

His tale begins in 1947, as traumatized Lazlo arrives on Ellis Island, having survived Nazi incarceration at Buchenwald. An anonymous, penniless Holocaust survivor, he’s been separated from his beloved wife Erzebet (Oscar nominee Felicity Jones), who is stuck in Budapest with their young niece, Zsofia (Raffey Cassidy).

Making his way to Philadelphia, Lazlo is given a cot in the back of a furniture store run by his cousin (Alessandro Nivola) and his cynical Catholic wife (Emma Laird).

One day, they’re commissioned by Harry (Joe Alwyn) and his sister Maggie (Stacy Martin) to renovate an ornate study in a palatial mansion in nearby Doylestown as a surprise for their father, millionaire Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr. (Oscar nominee Guy Pearce). 

When Lazlo transforms it into a minimalist Bauhaus masterpiece, Harrison is – at first – shocked but he soon comes to admire its discreet beauty, commissioning him to design a vast hilltop community center. “I find our conversations intellectually stimulating,” Harrison explains, inviting Lazlo to move into his guest house.

The second half begins in 1953 during the massive building’s construction when Harrison arranges for Erzebet and Zsofia to emigrate and join Lazlo. But their feisty independence soon irks the autocratic Van Burens and erupts into conflict.

Credit Oscar-nominated cinematographer Lol Crawley for the jaw-droppingly, almost mythical sequence, a visual allegory in which anguished Lazlo and nefarious Harrison visit Italy’s famed Carrara white marble quarry where Michelangelo carved the Pieta.

Co-writing with his partner, Norwegian filmmaker Mona Fastvold, Oscar-nominated director Corbet seems to have fashioned visionary, perfectionist Lazlo after Howard Roark in Ayn Rand’s “The Fountainhead,” as he sacrifices everything to bring Brutalist architecture to his adopted American home.

The film’s audacious themes cover individualism vs. capitalism, creativity vs. compromise, and immigration vs. assimilation – citing Israel as the Jews’ homeland – closing with an epilogue about an architectural aesthetic surreptitiously reverberating from the past.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “The Brutalist” is an electrifying, epic 8.

Watching the Oscars on ABC on Sunday, March 2, is always more fun if you’ve seen the 10 Best Picture nominees, particularly since nominees for other Awards are often linked to many of these releases. Here’s where you can find them:

“Anora” focuses on a sex worker who impulsively marries the son of a Russian oligarch. Writer/director Sean Baker is nominated, along with actress Mikey Madison and actor Yura Borisov. It’s available for rent and/or purchase on Prime Video, and watch for it to stream on Hulu.

“The Brutalist” is a study of Holocaust immigrant trauma and antisemitism. Director Brady Corbet is nominated, along with actors Adrien Brody and Guy Pearce and actress Felicity Jones, plus Cinematography, Editing and Production Design. It’s playing in theaters now and will eventually stream on Max.

“A Complete Unknown” charts Bob Dylan’s rise as a folk singer from 1961-1965, when he traded his acoustic guitar to go electric. Director/writer James Mangold is nominated, along with actors Timothee Chalamet and Edward Norton and actress Monica Barbaro, plus Costume Design and Sound. It’s playing in theaters before streaming on Hulu.

“Conclave” revolves around the election of a new Pope. Actor Ralph Fiennes is nominated, along with actress Isabella Rossellini, plus Adapted Screenplay, Editing, Production Design, Costume Design and Original Score. It’s currently available to rent/buy on Peacock and Prime Video.

“Dune: Part Two” is the sequel to 2021’s “Dune,” picking up as Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) unites with the Fremen against House Harkonnen. Also nominated for Cinematography, Production Design, Sound and Visual Effects, it’s streaming on Max and Netflix and available to rent/buy on Prime Video.

“Emilia Perez” is a musical exploration of trans-identity as a Mexican cartel boss transitions into a woman.  Trans actress Karla Sofia Gascon is nominated along with Director, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing, Original Score, Original Song, Sound, International Film, Makeup and Hairstyling.  Streaming exclusively on Netflix.

“I’m Still Here” profiles a mother/activist whose husband – a dissident politician – disappears during Brazil’s military dictatorship. Along with Best International Feature, actress Fernanda Torres is nominated. No streaming information is available but, since it’s Sony Pictures Classics, it will probably be on Netflix.

“Nickel Boys” is a historical drama set at a racist reform school in 1960s Florida. Also nominated as Adapted Screenplay, it’s in theaters and will soon be available to buy/rent on Prime Video and streaming on MGM+.

“The Substance” finds an aging celebrity taking a black-market drug to create a younger, hotter version of herself. Director Coralie Fargeat is nominated, along with actress Demi Moore, Original Screenplay, Makeup and Hairstyling. Streaming on MUBI and to buy/rent on Prime Video.

“Wicked,” adapted from the hit Broadway show, is the first half of the story of what happened before Dorothy dropped into Oz. Actresses Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are nominated along with Editing, Original Score, Production Design, Sound, Visual Effects, Costume Design, Makeup and Hairstyling. Available to buy/rent on Prime Video and it will eventually stream on Peacock.