To quote Nelson Muntz upon watching Naked Lunch, after seeing Wicked: For Good, my immediate reaction was, "I can think of at least two things wrong with that title." And guess what? It isn't the word "for." I admit I enjoyed the first film to a degree, which was really the first part of the … Continue reading Yellow Brick Road to Nowhere – Wicked: For Good
Every year, I make it my mission to see all the shortlisted films for Documentary and International Feature, as well as the entire accepted submission list for Animated Feature. I don't always accomplish the goal, usually due to accessibility and release issues (in fact I've never completed the Animated field), but I try all the … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – The Occupied
Have I mentioned yet that there are 35 official entries for Animated Feature this year? Because there are. Thirty-five fucking movies, even though several high-quality films were left off! As of right now, it looks like I'll end up taking in 32 of them, which is far from shabby. I'm just miffed that once again … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Take Me to Church
I have to be honest with you guys. I came dangerously close to including Chloé Zhao's new film, Hamnet, in the November edition of TFINYW (and before you say anything, I will resume the series; I just had to take a hiatus for December and January due to all the hectic bullshit I was dealing … Continue reading Shakespeare in Mourning – Hamnet
The last several months have been particularly difficult for me. As financial hardships mount, unemployment resumes (yep, I lost my shitty sales job right after New Year's), and I stare at the horizon of my own obsolescence as our world descends into madness, it's hard to cling to the things that bring any kind of … Continue reading The House with a Crack in its Walls – Sentimental Value
We're a little more than a fortnight away from Oscar nominations, and one of the more intriguing subplots regarding the ceremony - and Awards Season writ large - this year is the good number of foreign films that will end up competing for mainstream hardware. Not only is this shaping up to be the most … Continue reading The Shark Has Such Teeth – The Secret Agent
As we enter the final days of 2025, the viewing schedule kicks into overdrive. We're just over three weeks from Oscar nominations being announced, and there's still so much to see. Among mainstream contenders, I still need to watch Wicked: For Good, Marty Supreme, Bugonia, F1, and probably Weapons, to say nothing of all the … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Visa Denied, Part 2
I can honestly say that I didn't intend to do a third installment of this miniseries. I figured the two batches I'd already done would be sufficient to see out the fall months. But then the Academy released the list of accepted films for the Animated Feature contest, and I saw that there were a … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Animation Autumn-ation, Part 3
I've got this wonderful tingly feeling all over my body. Oh wait, no, that's hives. Anyway, I'm stuck in my room all weekend, so I might as well make the most of it with some batch reviews. A few days ago, the Academy released its shortlists for half the categories at next year's Oscars, including … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Visa Denied, Part 1
I admit I was a bit surprised when the first Zootopia film from 2016 ended up winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. It's not a bad movie by any means, but it was up against what I felt were far superior candidates in the forms of Moana and Kubo and the Two Strings. It … Continue reading Partners and Crime – Zootopia 2
I Actually Paid To See This 