With an outpouring of festival and critics awards over the last 12 months, it seemed almost certain that Kelly Reichardt’s stunning First Cow would garner a handful of Academy Awards nominations. But in a landmark year for female filmmakers where two (yes, two!) women have been nominated for Best Director, and with both of their films also up for Best Picture, it is perhaps not a huge assumption to make that First Cow got drowned out by the noise surrounding Nomadland and Promising Young Woman. Maybe three female filmmakers being celebrated was just too much of a leap for the Academy to make.

Cynicism aside, the lack of nominations was a huge surprise for a film that has so far achieved widespread critical success, playing to acclaim at Sundance 2020, Berlinale 2020, and Glasgow Film Festival 2021, with a UK-wide release scheduled for May.

First Cow

Courtesy of: A24

Set in 1899 in Oregon, an American cook named Cookie and a Chinese immigrant named King-Lu form a strong bond while seeking their fortunes and a peaceful way of life. Based upon the novel The Half-Life by Jonathan Raymond, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Reichardt, First Cow is an example of truly masterful storytelling, with a plot that just gently unfolds before you, never rushed and always told with the most delicate of touches. There is brutality at every corner, but Reichardt finds beauty in friendship and the good people trying to avoid being overwhelmed by this unrelenting way of life. Their stories are told through the gentle turning over of a lizard stuck on its back, the biscuit given to a stranger’s baby, the kind whispers to a cow before milking. This quietude and un-showy way of storytelling is perhaps yet another reason that the film missed out on any Academy nominations. When compared with nominees such as Judas and the Black Messiah and The Trial of the Chicago 7, this is a film that feels very unconfrontational in its approach, just gently unveiling its story.

The masterful writing and direction aside, the most obvious category for First Cow to receive an Oscar nomination for was in cinematography. Reichardt once again teams up with cinematographer Christopher Blauvelt (Emma., Certain Women, The Bling Ring), who captures this gentle, almost dream-like story against lush, natural backdrops. Shot in 4:3 aspect ratio, each shot is a gorgeous oil painting in itself, incredible portraits of the Indigenous people and newcomers from across the world who have all been thrown together. Every face tells a very different story, each one struggling to carve out a life for themselves. Their actions are sometimes framed by open doorways or window frames, like old works of art hanging in a picture gallery. Blauvelt’s shots are as unrushed as the script, lingering long enough to build up an exquisitely detailed world, told through the smallest of gestures. His unhurried and beautifully detailed shots, alongside a sublime soundtrack courtesy of William Tyler, draw you into an almost dreamlike world.

First Cow

Courtesy of: A24

Totally absorbed by the stunning landscapes on offer, Blauvelt builds up a beautiful palette of all the shades of greens and browns imaginable, a land so far mostly untouched by the immigrants setting up new lives there. They almost disappear into their surroundings on many occasions, the textures of their clothing barely separated from the trees and bush surrounding them. An elderly man’s ragged attire blends seamlessly into his ramshackle hut, Cookie’s brown and beige clothing disappearing amongst the bracken as he forages for mushrooms.

In a category whose nominees are made up of Mank, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Nomadland, Judas and the Black Messiah, and News of the World, it is a shame that the Academy couldn’t find room to celebrate Blauvelt’s breathtaking vision. But with three of the nominated films being Netflix features, it seems more than possible that First Cow is among many films whose reach has been severely impacted by the global pandemic. In any other year, and perhaps without the Academy putting its full focus on Nomadland and Promising Young Woman and no other female-helmed films, it could have been a very different awards season for First Cow.