It's been a hell of a ride, folks. Between wildfires, delayed nominations, the myriad controversies surrounding the leading candidate, and the recent tragic passing of Gene Hackman that won't make the In Memoriam montage because there's not enough time to recut the whole thing, this has been one of the most tumultuous run-ups to the … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Best Picture (VIDEO)
Tag: James Mangold
Oscar Blitz 2025 – Adapted Screenplay
I hadn't intended to use the preamble for these category breakdowns as a pretense for personal anecdotes, but sometimes it just works out that way. The annual Oscar Blitz always has a lot of ground to cover, and as I go on, I find myself getting into certain grooves where I'm just able to type … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2025 – Adapted Screenplay
Oscar Blitz 2025 – Best Director
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
No Huddle BLITZ! – 97th Academy Awards Nominations
The time has come, ladies and germs! At the ass crack of dawn this morning, and with significant portions of Los Angeles County still on fire, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences brought out Bowen Yang and Rachel Sennot to announce this year's Oscar nominees. I myself did NOT watch the proceedings live, … Continue reading No Huddle BLITZ! – 97th Academy Awards Nominations
You Got Nothing to Lose – A Complete Unknown
If there's one thing about my upbringing for which I'll be forever grateful, it's that my mother raised me on great music. I grew up in the 80s and 90s, and while I certainly found my favorites in those sets (my first "jams" were Whitesnake's "Here I Go Again" and Guns 'n Roses' "Paradise City," … Continue reading You Got Nothing to Lose – A Complete Unknown
Old Man Yells at Klaus – Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
When I was 12 years old, my family and I took a Spring Break vacation to Florida to go to Disney World. It was one of the greatest weeks of my life, and now that both my mother and the close family friend who was the impetus for the trip are gone, I hold on … Continue reading Old Man Yells at Klaus – Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Oscar Gold 2020 – Best Picture
We come to it at last. Twenty-four days straight, no breaks, one category after another. And now, there's just one more to go, the big one, Best Picture. Now, because I cannot just let things be easy, I have a completely convoluted process for determining my rankings in this field. This is for two reasons. … Continue reading Oscar Gold 2020 – Best Picture
Oscar Gold 2018 – Adapted Screenplay
The screenwriting categories are among my favorites, y'know, being a writer and all. And there's an interesting dichotomy in results between the Original and Adapted Screenplay awards. Since 2000, half of the Adapted Screenplay winners have gone on to win Best Picture. Conversely, only five Original Screenplay winners have won the top prize in that … Continue reading Oscar Gold 2018 – Adapted Screenplay








