For the first time ever, the Academy has revealed the shortlists for nine different categories all at the same time. Typically, this process is doled out over a few weeks to give each category a moment in the spotlight, but for our purposes, it's way more convenient. As ever, I will link to whatever reviews … Continue reading Short and Sweet: 91st Academy Awards Shortlists Announced!
Ladies and gentlemen, I am a nerd. I have been one all my life. I obsess over nerdish things like Star Trek and Doctor Who. I read the "Sword Art Online" books with just as much zeal as I watch the TV shows. I try harder than most to find ways to defend the Star Wars prequels. I … Continue reading London Crawling to Some Faraway Towns – Mortal Engines
In the continuing quest to get as much advance knowledge as possible before next year's Oscar Blitz begins, we now have the nominees for the Screen Actors Guild Awards. Like the Golden Globes, they're divided into movies and TV, and we only care about the movie side here. You can find the entire announcement at … Continue reading Insert “Sagging” Joke Here – Screen Actors Guild Nominations Announced!
It took almost a year for The Wife to get its wide release after debuting at last year's Toronto Film Festival, and a second theatrical run for me to actually see it. It came out in mid-August, literally the day before my birthday, but between the demands of the production I was working on at the … Continue reading Behind Every Great Man is a Woman Making Stink Eye – The Wife
As the year winds down, the Oscar campaigns are in full swing. Among the most competitive categories is Foreign Language, which has more than 80 films vying for one of the five coveted nomination slots. Sweden's submission, Border (Gräns), may earn one of those spots, with its mix of character study and magical realism, which earned … Continue reading Beauty Within the Beast – Border
As Awards Season heats up, we get hints and clues in fits and spurts about which films might vie for the top prize on Oscar Night. Tonight we have another step towards Hollywood's biggest night, with the announcement of the 20 films vying for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Later this month, this … Continue reading Ooh! Pretty! – Visual Effects Contenders Announced!
I hope you enjoyed my weeklong streak of reviews, and if not, I hope you enjoyed the week off you had from my ramblings. I was on vacation, visiting my family in upstate New York, introducing them to my girlfriend, and meeting my newborn nephew. He was due this week, but he came early on … Continue reading Gaga on Dick – Golden Globe Nominees Announced!
Yorgos Lanthimos has three English-language films to his credit after his breakout in Greece. His first, The Lobster, is one of the best farces I've ever seen and was my favorite film of 2016. Last year he gave us the disturbing horror film, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, which polarized audiences nationwide and developed a cult … Continue reading Forsooth! Yon Bitches Doth Be Cray! – The Favourite
Produced, directed, and co-written by Lee Chang-dong, South Korea's entry for the Foreign Language Oscar, Burning, is a clever piece of artistic filmmaking, seamlessly blending elements of romantic comedy with suspense and mystery. Featuring a three-lead cast that play off each other commendably, Lee is able to weave a tantalizing story full of visual metaphor and … Continue reading Let the Sunshine In – Burning
There's a small knickknack in my mother's house that's been there ever since we moved from Delaware to upstate New York in 1996. It's essentially a framed postcard with an inspirational message, like a cross-stitch sampler that hadn't actually been stitched. It says simply, "Home is not a place, it's a feeling." She has another … Continue reading They’ll Steal Your Heart and Your Wallet – Shoplifters
I Actually Paid To See This 