I love a good "Eat the Rich"-type story, mostly because our society is so well and truly fucked that we're never going to run out of the undeserving wealthy who inspire such tales. Rather than make the systemic changes necessary to narrow the wage gap, improve public welfare, and penalize fiscal criminals, we as the … Continue reading An Open Wound – Saltburn
There have been a lot of movies over the last decade based on consumer products. Most of them are thinly-veiled, feature-length commercials. But every once in a while, a film breaks through and becomes an essential part of our cultural conversation, like The Lego Movie. We can safely add Greta Gerwig's Barbie to that short … Continue reading Life in Plastic – Barbie
We're less than 48 hours from the Academy Awards, which means it's time to finally put up or shut up and predict what films and artists will actually take home the gold on Sunday. We've spent the last month poring over every nominee, analyzing the pros and cons to come to a conclusion as to … Continue reading Oscar Gold 2021 – Who Will Win?
As I type this out, the Independent Spirit Awards are taking place. Normally held the night before the Oscars, this year it was moved up a couple of days to give us a little bit of breathing room between the last major ceremony of Awards Season and the Main Event that is the Academy Awards. … Continue reading A Short Circuit – 2021 Awards Season Update
We made it, everyone! After 22 categories, it's finally time to tackle the big one. In a year that I think we can all agree was utter shit, the movie-going experience changed dramatically, and not for the better. I think we can also agree that, as years go, the overall quality of movies was lower … Continue reading Oscar Gold 2021 – Best Picture
Year in and year out, this is one of the most difficult categories to judge, which I guess is befitting the largest individual achievement category of the entire Oscars ceremony. More often than not, the eventual winner is pretty well determined in advance, as hype typically sweeps up in favor of one particular filmmaker. Over … Continue reading Oscar Gold 2021 – Best Director
As a writer, the Screenplay categories are among my favorites. They're also the only categories where I even have a calculable chance of ever getting nominated myself. Currently, those chances stand at 0.000000873%. It's the three that's most important. Last year it was 0.000000871%. Things are starting to look up for me, I can feel … Continue reading Oscar Gold 2021 – Original Screenplay
It's here. It's time. We've made it at last. After the most tumultuous year in cinema history, we finally arrive at Nomination Day. Twenty-three categories have been filled with hopefuls vying for the top prize in the film industry, and the annual Blitz is officially on! It's not lost on me that it's been exactly … Continue reading Time For the Delayed Blitz! – 93rd Academy Award Nominations!
Okay folks, this is it. The undercard has been officially filled out. Over the last 24 hours we've gotten the final film nominations for the Producers Guild of America, the Directors Guild of America, and the British Academy! These three ceremonies, which will take place over the next month, represent the last batch of major … Continue reading … And the Rest! – Nominations for PGA, DGA, and BAFTA Awards!
I love a good revenge fantasy. When done properly, it can produce righteous rage at the issue at hand, pulse-pounding thrills as the wish fulfillment is choreographed, and a sense of catharsis through the voyeuristic lens of the execution. When done poorly, it can simply come off as gratuitous. More often than not, Emerald Fennell … Continue reading The Doctor is Sin – Promising Young Woman
I Actually Paid To See This 