With Oscar nominations coming up on Tuesday, there are two more films from 2018 that I want to see and review during the holiday weekend. It's very possible that with these two in the books, I might be so far ahead of the curve that I'll only have the Short categories to tackle for this … Continue reading Drugs are Bad, Mmkay? – Beautiful Boy
Well folks, I finally did it. As of Monday I have completed the Documentary Feature shortlist. No matter which five films are nominated next Tuesday, I will have seen and processed them. It turns out that the reason I could see them all was through an Academy program called "Oscars Spotlight: Documentaries." It's a new … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Achievement Unlocked!
Nicole Kidman received a Best Actress nomination at this year's Golden Globes for her performance in Karyn Kusama's noir thriller, Destroyer, and it's possible she could get an Academy Award nomination next week. As such, it's only proper that we take a look at this thematic departure for the past Oscar-winner, and see if the hefty … Continue reading About As Far From Stepford As it Gets – Destroyer
While coverage will continue on 2018 films as we get closer to the Oscar Blitz, that doesn't mean we get to sleep on the actual new releases that officially ring in the 2019 year in film. The first entry for this new year is Replicas, starring Keanu Reeves, released by Entertainment Studios, who let's just say … Continue reading No Winners in This Game of Clones – Replicas
At last check, I had seen seven of the 15 shortlisted films in the Oscar Documentary Feature category. The goal for the last few years has been to see all of them before the nominees were announced, thereby saving myself one more group during the annual blitz. A couple years ago I saw all but … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Continuing Documentation
Now that the Golden Globes are out of the way, and Awards Season is in full swing, it's time for the rest of the minor ceremonies to announce their nominees. We've already had the Independent Spirit and SAG nods for a while, but in the last few days we've also accumulated announcements from the Writers … Continue reading Let the Undercard Bouts Begin! – Guild and BAFTA Nominees Announced
Viewers of Denmark's Foreign Language entry, The Guilty, may find unexpected similarities to an American film from a few years ago, The Call, starring Halle Berry. In that 2013 film, Berry plays a 9-1-1 operator who works to save a kidnapping victim played by Abigail Breslin, which expanded from Berry's grounded performance to a slew of action … Continue reading Call Him, Definitely – The Guilty
As I've made abundantly clear on this blog, I am not a fan of the Golden Globe Awards or the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, due to the methods they use, substituting bribery for critical thought, and acting as a marketing tool for films no one gets to see before the nominees are announced. That said, … Continue reading Let’s All Get Drunk and Clap – 76th Golden Globe Awards Results
I had an interesting new experience when I saw Germany's Foreign Language submission, Never Look Away the other night. It was my first trip to the Aero theatre in Santa Monica, part of the Arena Cinematheque chain of classical theatres, which includes the world famous Egyptian theatre, founded by Sid Grauman, who also founded the Chinese … Continue reading Truth Hurts, But is Still Beautiful – Never Look Away
I saw 111 new films in 2018 between the theatre and streaming services. Eleventy-one movies, eleventy-one reviews, either stand-alone or in groups. Eleventy-one chances to thrill, to laugh, to cry, and to outright despise. It's been a hell of a run this first year, and we're still not done. There are still plenty of movies … Continue reading The Best (and Worst) of 2018
I Actually Paid To See This 