It's an unfortunate regularity in American life that whenever something goes wrong with kids in school, the first instinct is to find someone to blame. I'm not talking about serious and severe disasters like shootings, but more mundane things like fights or bad grades. Is it the parents' fault for not raising their child properly? … Continue reading Will Boys Be Boys? – Armand
A few weeks ago, I began my crash course through this year's Documentary Feature shortlist. I make it my mission every year to see all 15 semifinalists, preferably before Oscar nominations are announced. For the past few years, I've succeeded more times than not, and that includes the class of 2024. This is far from … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – The True Killers
For as long as I can remember, I've always loved a good story. Whether it was a bedtime story my mom made up, a book, or even a piece of well-written news copy, I am enchanted by a tale told well. I didn't really know how to express myself when I was younger, as I … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Original Screenplay (VIDEO)
Usually, the Best Director contest is an easy one to parse and predict. Essentially, all we're asking is who had the best cinematic eye, who did the best job getting great performances out of their cast, and most importantly, who best executed the creative vision of the overall film? I normally get a bit of … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Best Director
One of the most common rebuttals to film criticism is for the people being critiqued to haughtily write off those giving their opinion by saying they should just do it themselves. This has gone on for years, but it's resurfaced in recent days thanks to the blowback against Emilia Pérez, particularly its regressive and stereotypical … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Cinematography
Yesterday I covered the Film Editing competition, the category I am likely most qualified to judge on a professional and objective level. Tonight, we do a complete 180 and go to one of those that I have basically no expertise in, Production Design. This is always a duel prize, awarded to the titular designer, who's … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Production Design
When it comes to the Academy Awards, my judging criteria can vary wildly depending on my level of knowledge or expertise. For example, as a writer - both amateur and professional - I know exactly what appeals to me in a screenplay, namely clever dialogue and a consistent, coherent story. I haven't acted in any … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Film Editing
As I've mentioned a fair few times over the last fortnight, the timeline for this year's Oscar Blitz had to be compressed due to the fire-induced delay in announcing the nominees. What is usually seven to eight weeks for this process is reduced to just over five, leaving me with little time to do anything … Continue reading This Film is Not Yet Watchable – February 2025
It's been just over a week since the Oscar nominations were announced, and the annual Blitz is already in progress. The timeline is extremely tight this year, with only five and a half weeks between the nominee release and the ceremony itself, which as I've previously mentioned is the shortest window since the pandemic. Normally … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – A Compressed Blitz
There are some years where the Academy Awards are just downright boring when it comes to the so-called "major" categories. Best Picture, Best Director, the two Screenplay fields, and all four Acting contests are susceptible to this disappointment. During the very low era during and immediately following the COVID pandemic, we saw this far too … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Supporting Actor (VIDEO)
I Actually Paid To See This 