Sunday, February 28, 2016

Final Thoughts Before the Oscars


It's been quite an awards season. The precursors were mostly all over the place including the critics and guilds. At one point or another one of the following films--Spotlight, The Big Short, The Revenant, and Mad Max: Fury Road--were seen as the film to beat. The only surprise would be if one of these films didn't win the big award tonight of best picture. But they'll all have to do it the hard way with all of them missing precursor honors on the way like assumed current front-runner The Revenant missing out on PGA and SAG Ensemble awards. That film does have the momentum winning at the BAFTAs and coming out on top at the DGA. And yet, even with its Oscar-leading 12 nominations, the attitude seems to be that this film is too divisive to win especially with two films that might play better with the Academy for their topical content.

Certainly The Revenant has been helped by the notion that it was such an arduous undertaking to film, that a lot of its technical achievements are obviously displayed in their epic glory, and that whole weird bear raping controversy. Oh and of course its lead Leonardo DiCaprio is finally, FINALLY getting his overdue Oscars at 41 years young, which also fueled audiences flocking to this nearly 3-hr revenge drama to the tune of $170 million, second highest of the Best Picture nominees. Too bad it's also my least favorite film of the lot and probably stole some of the thunder from the other hard-to-shoot, technical wonder that is Mad Max: Fury Road. Both will be fighting it out to the end for sure.


Speaking of Leo, he will not be denied. He won all of the major awards and his film is clearly a favorite. He will be joined by the other acting lock of the night Brie Larson, whose dominance is a bit more confounding especially with her starring in a far smaller film (though getting a telling Directing nod) and in a severely stacked lineup. But like Leo, she has won all the major precursors including BAFTA and yesterday's Spirit Awards. The Supporting categories are slightly more competitive. Alicia Vikander beat Kate Winslet at the SAG, but Winslet beat her at the Globes and BAFTA while Sylvester Stallone has won all of the awards with the important exception of SAG and BAFTA, for which he was unexpectedly not nominated, going to Mark Rylance. And if Idris Elba has been nominated (won SAG and Spirit Awards), it would've been even more competitive.

Idris Elba's snub also brings me to the biggest storyline this awards season as signified by the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. For the second year in a row all acting nominees are white. There were plenty of outrage, think-pieces written, calls for boycott, and the Academy directly addressing it by making behind-the-scenes changes to make their membership more diverse in the coming years. Also in a stroke of kismet, Chris Rock is hosting tonight and I'm sure he'll have plenty to say so I shan't say more. The other minor story-line was category fraud with plenty of lead roles getting into supporting categories (and vice versa) aka looking at you Rooney Mara and Vikander.

But in the end, it's almost done. It's been a weird and pretty exhausting season. Leo is certainly relieved for it all to end. And while The Revenant is not one of my favorites and will probably walk home with lots of awards tonight, it's all about the appreciation of film. That's why people were so up in arms about various issues this year, because people LOVE films and want to make them better. So in the end, just continue watching and loving films.

Related links:
Click here to see my official predictions.
Click here to see my own personal ballot.
Click here to see my initial thoughts on the Oscar nominations.
Click here to see all my posts on "Awards Season."

My Oscar Predictions


The marketing campaign for this year's 88th Academy Awards is "We All Dream in Gold" and certainly there are many people who did exactly that last night.. For a handful of them, their dreams will become reality tonight. And so here I am now trying to predict what will happen later today...

Best Picture: The Revenant
Best Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant
Best Lead Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Best Lead Actress: Brie Larson, Room
Best Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Best Animated Film: Inside Out
Best Original Screenplay: Spotlight
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Big Short
Best Foreign Language Film: Son of Saul
Best Documentary: Amy
Best Original Score: The Hateful Eight
Best Original Song: "Til It Happens to You," The Haunting Ground
Best Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Production Design: The Revenant
Best Cinematography: The Revenant
Best Costume Design: Carol
Best Makeup and Hair: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Sound Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Sound Mixing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Visual Effects: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Best Live Action Short: Day One
Best Animated Short: World of Tomorrow
Best Documentary Short: Last Day of Freedom

Tally: 5 - The Revenant; 4 - Mad Max: Fury Road; 1 - Room, Creed, The Danish Girl, Inside Out, Spotlight, The Big Short, Son of Saul, Amy, Carol, The Hateful Eight, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Haunting Ground, Day One, World of Tomorrow, Last Day of Freedom

I'm obviously hoping for as little wins for The Revenant as much as I'm hoping for as many wins for Mad Max: Fury Road. In this scenario, The Revenant just edges Mad Max, but I can also clearly see it reversed or The Revenant, god forbid, sweeping. As for all of the other films, I don't think any other film will win more than 1 other than those two. It's been that kind of year. Check out my own ballot here.

Saturday, February 27, 2016

My Personal Oscar Ballot


The winners have already been tabulated and I'm sure they're already being printed into those envelopes for the big ceremony tomorrow night. And in this election year, I hope people took fully advantage of their voting privileges. So in that spirit, these would be my votes if I have an Oscar ballot. These are NOT my predictions.

Note:
For Best Picture, Academy voters are asked to rank their choices. For the other categories, they are only asked to pick their choice of winner, which is exactly what I've done.

Best Picture
1 - Mad Max: Fury Road
2 - Room
3 - The Martian
4 - Brooklyn
5 - Bridge of Spies
6 - The Big Short
7 - Spotlight
8 - The Revenant

Best Director: George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Lead Actor: Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Best Lead Actress: Brie Larson, Room
Best Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Best Animated Film: Inside Out
Best Original Screenplay: Inside Out
Best Adapted Screenplay: Room
Best Foreign Language Film: Mustang
Best Documentary: What Happened, Miss Simone?
Best Original Score: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Best Original Song: "Til It Happens to You," The Haunting Ground
Best Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Production Design: The Martian
Best Cinematography: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Costume Design: Cinderella
Best Makeup and Hair: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Sound Editing: The Martian
Best Sound Mixing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Visual Effects: Ex Machina
Best Live Action Short: Stutterer
Best Animated Short: World of Tomorrow
Best Documentary Short: Chau, Beyond the Lines

My favorite Best Picture nominee came out on top for me, obviously, with Mad Max: Fury Road getting 6 awards from me. I spread out the wealth after that with a handful of films I really liked getting a couple of awards each (Room, Steve Jobs, Inside Out, The Martian). Shockingly, Oscar front-runners The Revenant, The Big Short, and Spotlight all walked home empty-handed, which probably says a lot to how I'm approaching the big night. There's a few weird spots for me like giving Cinderella costume, Ex Machina visual effects and The Martian production design. So theoretically Mad Max: Fury Road could've gotten more from me, but again with spreading the wealth. I also largely avoided the sentiment of giving DiCaprio his first Oscars, because Fassbender is just that much better and Michael B. Jordan was sadly not nominated.

My thoughts on Oscar nominations are here.

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Thoughts on Oscar Nominations

With the Oscars just three days away, I thought it was nigh time I chimed in with my quick thoughts on the nominations.

BEST PICTURE
  • The Big Short (5 nominations)
  • Bridge of Spies (6 nominations)
  • Brooklyn (3 nominations)
  • Mad Max: Fury Road (10 nominations)
  • The Martian (7 nominations)
  • The Revenant (12 nominations)
  • Room (4 nominations)
  • Spotlight (6 nominations)

It's the second year in a row we get 8 nominees in this august category and I seriously wish we just go back to 10. The films that probably just missed the cut include Carol, Straight Outta Compton, and I'd love to think Inside Out. The big shocker here is probably The Revenant racking up the most nominations to the detriment of early season favorites The Big Short and Spotlight and possibly taking the sails out of similarly tech-heavy favorite Mad Max: Fury Road. And it's likely the new front-runner to win.

BEST DIRECTOR
  • Adam McKay, The Big Short
  • George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
  • Alejandro G. Inarritu, The Revenant
  • Lenny Abrahamson, Room
  • Tom McCarthy, Spotlight

I was pleasantly shocked to see Abrahamson's inclusion especially since precursors just didn't indicate it at all. He beat out DGA-nominated and NBR-winning director Ridley Scott as well as BAFTA-nominated duo of Todd Haynes and Steven Spielberg. But the contest is between Miller and Inarritu. The latter already won DGA, but could he really capture Best Director prize back-to-back years? I'm hoping he doesn't. Shout out to Ryan Coogler who certainly deserved a spot here.

BEST ACTOR
  • Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
  • Matt Damon, The Martian
  • Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
  • Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
  • Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

People have been calling this lineup particularly weak which might be just what ol' DiCaprio needs to win that elusive Oscar. It's also been weird how set in stone this category was early on with a lone Johnny Depp spoiler SAG nominated. In any case, Redmayne gets back-to-back nominations, but unlikely back-to-back wins. Cranston gets his first Oscar nomination though I'm pretty sure I would've rather had Jacob Tremblay or Michael B. Jordan instead. But back to Leo, who will win, but I'm rooting hard for Fassbender.

BEST ACTRESS
  • Cate Blanchett, Carol
  • Brie Larson, Room
  • Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
  • Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years
  • Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

The default nomination of Lawrence aside, this is a strong group which means Larson's dominance this awards season (as much as I love her) confounds me. Really thought Blanchett or Ronan would've put up more of a fight, but regardless I'm ecstatic for Larson. Rampling probably edged out Maggie Smith and of course there's category fraud Alicia Vikander and Rooney Mara placed in supporting, but more on them later. Shout out to Charlize Theron and Lily Tomlin who should've gotten more love this season as well.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
  • Christian Bale, The Big Short
  • Tom Hardy, The Revenant
  • Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
  • Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
  • Sylvester Stallone, Creed

Last year was all about the steamroll of J.K. Simmons. This year thankfully lots of spreading the love with Rylance and Stallone just edging the group to be the two favorites for the win. I'm betting on Stallone, except Creed just didn't hit with the Academy as much as I thought it would have. Lots of other names were in contention this season like SAG-nominated Idris Elba and Jacob Tremblay, BAFTA-nominated Benicio Del Toro, and Golden Globe nominated Michael Shannon and Paul Dano.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
  • Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
  • Rooney Mara, Carol
  • Rachel McAdams, Spotlight
  • Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
  • Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

It's two leads (Mara/Vikander) versus true supporting roles so in that sense I'm rooting for the latter especially Winslet because she should really have a 2nd Oscars by now. Vikander is the likely winner here and I suppose I can pretend it's for her Ex Machina role instead. This category was pretty fairly set early on as well with really just Kristen Stewart and Helen Mirren as possible alternates.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Ex Machina
  • Inside Out
  • Spotlight
  • Straight Outta Compton

I haven't seen it, but I'm a little amused that Tarantino's NBR-winning screenplay for Hateful Eight didn't make it in. The rest are the usual suspects with both Inside Out and Straight Outta Compton getting love here after missing out on Best Picture. Ex Machina was the big surprise here over WGA nominated screenplays for Sicario and Trainwreck. Spotlight is the favorite.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
  • The Big Short
  • Brooklyn
  • Carol
  • The Martian
  • Room

The Big Short is the likely winner here, but this category is already full of win since I honestly thought only ONE of Carol, Brooklyn, and Room would've made it here. The fact that all three of them made it in is heartening since we need to celebrate more WOMEN STORIES! I'm rooting hard for Room, but there's no bad winner here at all.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
  • Embrace Of The Serpent (Colombia)
  • Mustang (France)
  • Son of Saul (Hungary)
  • Theeb (Jordan)
  • A War (Denmark)

Not sure what was eligible, but I think many people thought The Assassin, Phoenix, Timbuktu, The Look of Silence, and Goodnight Mommy would've at least longlisted. I haven't seen any of these (yet), but the one to beat all season long has been the well-received Son of Saul.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
  • Anomalisa
  • Boy and the World
  • Inside Out
  • Shaun the Sheep Movie
  • When Marnie Was There

Anomalisa put up a fight and certainly it might appeal more to the older set of Academy voters, but category champ Pixar should prevail here once again. The Academy, as it wont to do, picked indie films over big studio fare (The Good Dinosaur, Minions, Peanuts Movie).

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
  • Bridge of Spies
  • The Danish Girl
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant

It's hilarious to me that The Revenant was nominated here because the movie mostly takes place outside. I mean, half their job was done by Mother Nature! Lucky bastards! I had hope for a surprise nomination of Room, but neither here nor there.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
  • Carol
  • The Hateful Eight
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Revenant
  • Sicario

Will it be back-to-back-to-back wins for Emmanuel Lubezki? All signs point to yes as The Revenant cinematographer looks to add to his wins for Gravity and Birdman. If I had a vote, it'd go to John Seale's masterful work in Mad Max, but that film will probably win a bunch of other awards. Lighting a candle to the Susan Lucci of cinematographers Sicario's Roger Deakins. Maybe next year?

BEST FILM EDITING
  • The Big Short
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Revenant
  • Spotlight
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

The Big Four Likely Best Picture Winners are here so there's no rocking the boat like last year. Mad Max is the likely winner here as in most of the tech categories, but I wouldn't be shocked to see The Revenant "steal" some of these awards as well.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
  • "Earned It," Fifty Shades of Grey
  • "Manta Ray," Racing Extinction
  • "Simple Song No. 3," Youth
  • "'Til It Happens to You," The Haunting Ground
  • "Writings on the Wall," Spectre

Just give Lady Gaga her Oscar and be done with it. Whatever. I'm just a little salty since "See You Again" from Furious 7 was snubbed and for what? Sam Smith's practically unlistenable garbage of a song? Don't have thoughts on the other songs and since the Academy isn't even inviting everyone to perform on Sunday well, let's just move on shall we?

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Carol
  • The Hateful Eight
  • Sicario
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

I'm usually a big fan of this category and I'm sure all of these films are worth, but for the life of me I can't really remember their scores with the exception of Star Wars, but that's also because that one leaned heavily in nostalgia.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
  • Carol
  • Cinderella
  • The Danish Girl
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Revenant

Costumer extraordinaire Sandy Powell is nominated twice for Cinderella and Carol and while I think she actually deserves to win she'll likely lose to Mad Max: Fury Road, which would be a refreshing winner in this category based on its genre trappings. I'd honestly be happy if any of those three films win.

BEST SOUND EDITING
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant
  • Sicario
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Revenant? Mad Max? Take your pick.

BEST SOUND MIXING
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Revenant? Mad Max? Take your pick.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
  • Ex Machina
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Very cool to see Ex Machina here, but I have a feeling this is where the Academy is going award last year's highest grossing film.

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared
  • The Revenant

I honestly expected to see The Danish Girl here or Carol, but here we are with that film with the really long title that I know nothing about.

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
  • Amy
  • Cartel Land
  • The Look of Silence
  • What Happened, Miss Simone?
  • Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom

Amy is the runaway favorite here, but there are plenty of fans for The Look of Silence and What Happened Miss Simone? I've only seen Amy and Miss Simone and I preferred the latter slightly.

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
  • Body Team 12
  • Chau, Beyond the Lines
  • Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah
  • A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
  • Last Day of Freedom

Haven't seen any of these, but apparently their topics are dark and sad. So let's give the win to Last Day of Freedom. That sounds cheery.

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
  • Bear Story
  • Prologue
  • Sanjay's Super Team
  • We Can't Live Without Cosmos
  • World of Tomorrow

Apparently there isn't a weak link in the lineup which makes me happy. I've only see Sanjay's Super Team and World of Tomorrow and while I like the first, I absolutely fell for the latter. You can watch it right now on Netflix!

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
  • Ave Maria
  • Day One
  • Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)
  • Shok
  • Stutterer

I've seen all of these! Actually, not yet. I'll see these this weekend so I'll have a more fully informed opinion then. For now, as a life-long stutterer I think my loyalties lie with that film.

As I said above, the Oscars are in 3 days! I still need to post my personal ballot, my predictions, and a quick awards season wrap-up.

Monday, February 15, 2016

BAFTA loves Revenant, Mad Max, & Titanic Reunion


The British celebrated Valentine's Day by giving out a few awards at the BAFTAs though they showed shockingly little love for homegrown talent. First, the list of winners:

Best Film:
The Revenant
Best British Film: Brooklyn
Best Director: Alejandro González Iñarritu, The Revenant
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Best Actress: Brie Larson, Room
Best Supporting Actor: Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Best Original Screenplay: Spotlight
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Big Short
Best Foreign Language Film: Wild Tales
Best Documentary: Amy
Best Animated Film: Inside Out
Best Film Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Production Design: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Cinematography: The Revenant
Best Costume Design: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Makeup & Hair: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Original Music: The Hateful Eight
Best Sound: The Revenant
Best Visual Effects: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Best British Debut: Naji Abu Nowar & Rupert Lloyd, Theeb
Orange Rising Star: John Boyega

As I had predicted, The Revenant and Brooklyn won both Film Awards with the first film coming out on top with 5 wins overall including Directing and Actor. Suffice it to say, it's become the favorite to win those same categories at the Academy Awards and like the movie itself, we just have to bear it until it ends. Brooklyn's lone win along with Winslet (yay!) and Rylance winning supporting trophies were the few wins that went to homegrown talent as the awards took on a highly non-British tilt. It was most evident by the wins for DiCaprio and Larson in spite of strong British opposition in their categories as well as the strong showing of Mad Max: Fury Road with four wins. Screenplay awards, increasingly becoming the consolation prizes of the season, went to the two other Oscar favorites Spotlight and The Big Short. It was a "spread the wealth" kind of night though a few major films went home empty-handed (Carol, The Martian, The Danish Girl).

In terms of what these awards mean for the Oscars, you can probably bet your house on DiCaprio, Larson, Amy for Documentary, Inside Out for Animated Film, the two screenplay awards for Spotlight and The Big Short and for Mad Max: Fury Road to pick up AT LEAST 3 technical awards. The Revenant looks likely to win Picture/Director and Winslet has at least a 50/50 chance to win Supporting against Vikander. In terms of my predictions, I went a low 12/22 since I predicted MORE films picking up hardware and for the British to actually champion British talent, but ALAS.

Sunday, February 14, 2016

I love you and I like you...

Was trying to think of a perfect post to put up this Valentine's Day. Was scouring for gifs or screencaps of romantic moments from the past year in movies and TV shows. But then I stumbled into this fantastic fanvid someone put together to chronicle the beautiful story of Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt, so I thought I'd share that...


...of course the show ended last year when NBC unceremoniously aired its final season a year ago, doubling up episodes to air weekly during the first two months of the year. No matter, as it was still worth it in the end. So to Parks and Recreation, I love you and I like you.

BAFTA Nominations and Predictions


The BAFTAs are happening in London in just few hours so before that, I wanted to get in my quick thoughts and predictions.

Best Film
  • The Big Short
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Carol
  • The Revenant
  • Spotlight

Best British film
  • 45 Years
  • Amy
  • Brooklyn
  • The Danish Girl
  • Ex Machina
  • The Lobster

I'm sure it's happened before, but it's quite uncommon to have no film overlap between Best Film and Best British Film. Does that say more to the strength of American films this year or the weakness of British films? I won't get into that conversation, but it IS telling that the top 4 films in nomination tally are non-British--Bridge of Spies, Carol, The Revenant, Mad Max. Speaking of the latter, even with 7 nominations and a non-American director, it shockingly missed a Best Film nomination.

SHOULD WIN: The Big Short for Best Film, Brooklyn for Best British Film
PREDICTION: The Revenant for Best Film, Brooklyn for Best British Film

Best Director
  • Adam McKay, The Big Short
  • Steven Spielberg, Bridge of Spies
  • Todd Haynes, Carol
  • Ridley Scott, The Martian
  • Alejandro González Iñárritu, The Revenant

This year seems to have shaped up into an apology tour for deigning to not give Iñárritu the win last year over (IMO more deserving) Richard Linklater's Boyhood despite winning the Oscars, but whatever. Which is to say, he's the most likely front-runner. I would like to think Scott would get not only home votes, but also sympathy votes for missing out on the Oscar nomination. Then again, it's insane to see George Miller miss out here.

SHOULD WIN: Todd Haynes
PREDICTION: Ridley Scott

Best Actor
  • Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
  • Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
  • Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
  • Matt Damon, The Martian
  • Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs

Best Actress
  • Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
  • Brie Larson, Room
  • Cate Blanchett, Carol
  • Maggie Smith, The Lady in the Van
  • Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

Actor is a 5/5 match with Oscars and had been quite consistent all awards season long while Actress went 3/5 with Oscars nominating Smith instead of Charlotte Rampling (which was a shock) and opting to put Vikander's Danish Girl role here instead of in supporting while Oscar put her in supporting and picked Jennifer Lawrence to fill her spot. In terms of winners, this could actually get interesting if the British voting body decide to support home-spun talent (Fassbender? Redmayne? Ronan? Vikander?) versus the current prevailing American front-runners (DiCaprio, Ronan).

SHOULD WIN: Michael Fassbender for Actor, Brie Larson for Actress
PREDICTION: Leonardo DiCaprio for Actor, Saoirse Ronan for Actress

Best Supporting Actor
  • Benicio del Toro, Sicario
  • Christian Bale, The Big Short
  • Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation
  • Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
  • Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies

Best Supporting Actress
  • Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina
  • Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
  • Julie Walters, Brooklyn
  • Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
  • Rooney Mara, Carol

The miss here for Sylvester Stallone (and Creed in general) is an anomaly, but it's even stranger to see Oscar-nominated Tom Hardy not get a notice. Similarly, I would've thought BAFTA would've nominated Helen Mirren, but delightfully they ended up going for the severely unrewarded Julie Walters. Vikander, of course, gets her second nomination of the year and is the likely front-runner while Elba seems to be the smart pick for the guys.

SHOULD WIN: Idris Elba for Supporting Actor, Kate Winslet for Supporting Actress
PREDICTION: Idris Elba for Supporting Actor, Alicia Vikander for Supporting Actress

Best Original Screenplay
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Ex Machina
  • The Hateful Eight
  • Inside Out
  • Spotlight

Best Adapted Screenplay

  • The Big Short
  • Brooklyn
  • Carol
  • Room
  • Steve Jobs

The easy picks for both would be Spotlight and The Big Short especially since the first film has had very little competition in its category all season and the latter seems to have coalesced as the late-season favorite. The one mild shock is not seeing The Martian's screenplay nominated for adapted but I supposed they didn't fully embrace that film. I'm hoping we see some surprises, but I fully believe we won't.

SHOULD WIN: Inside Out for Original, Room for Adapted
PREDICTION: Spotlight for Original, The Big Short for Adapted

Best Non-English Film
  • The Assassin
  • Force Majeure
  • Theeb
  • Timbuktu
  • Wild Tales

Best Documentary
  • Amy
  • Cartel Land
  • He Named Me Malala
  • Listen to Me Marlon
  • Sherpa

Best Animated Film
  • Inside Out
  • Minions
  • Shaun the Sheep the Movie

Amy and Inside Out are locked to win not only because of their season-long momentum, but also their popularity across the pond. The Foreign Fim category is a bit more interesting as awards favorite Son of Saul was ineligible. Theeb is the only one Oscar-nominated this year (and British-helmed) while The Assassin and Timbuktu got some critic notices. Meanwhile Force Majeure and Wild Tales made more noise the previous year's award season.

PREDICTION: Theeb, Amy, and Inside Out

Best Cinematography
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Carol
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Revenant
  • Sicario

Best Editing
  • The Big Short
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant

Best Production Design
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Carol
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Costume Design
  • Brooklyn
  • Carol
  • Cinderella
  • The Danish Girl
  • Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Make-up and Hair
  • Brooklyn
  • Carol
  • The Danish Girl
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Revenant

Best Original Music
  • Bridge of Spies
  • The Hateful Eight
  • The Revenant
  • Sicario
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Sound
  • Bridge of Spies
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Visual Effects
  • Ant-Man
  • Ex Machina
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens

The tech categories is where Mad Max: Fury Road shone getting all of its 7 nominations in these 8 categories (missing just Original Music). If it had gotten more nods above the line, I'd be more confident in predicting a clean sweep but alas I'm predicting a share-the-wealth scenario with no one film getting more than 2.

PREDICTION: The Revenant for Cinematography; Mad Max: Fury Road for Editing, Sound; Bridge of Spies for Production Design; Carol for Costume Design; The Danish Girl for Make-Up and Hair; The Hateful Eight for Original Music; Star Wars: The Force Awakens for Visual Effects

Best Debut by British Writer, Director or Producer
  • Alex Garland (director, Ex Machina)
  • Debbie Tucker Green (writer/director, Second Coming)
  • Naji Abu Nowar (writer/director, Theeb), Rupert Lloyd (producer, Theeb)
  • Sean McAllister (director/producer, A Syrian Love Story), Elhum Shakerifar (producer, A Syrian Love Story)
  • Stephen Fingleton (writer/director, The Survivalist)

Best British Short Animation
  • Edmond
  • Manoman
  • Prologue

Best British Short Film
  • Elephant
  • Mining Poems or Odes
  • Operator
  • Over
  • Samuel-613

Rising Star Award
  • Bel Powley
  • Brie Larson
  • Dakota Johnson
  • John Boyega
  • Taron Egerton

I have no idea about any of the Short categories so my predictions will literally be a blind guess. As for Best Debut, I'm thinking Garland has it in the bag. But the more interesting category is of course the Rising Star Award (which is voted on by the public) as it contains not only a bunch of actors who I know, but also really like. I think it's a likely toss-up between Boyega and Egerton both handsome British young men in populist films.

PREDICTION: Alex Garland for Best Debut, Manoman for Best Animated Short, Samuel-613 for Best Short Film, and John Boyega for Rising Star

Saturday, February 13, 2016

End-Of-Year: 2015 TV Winners

Slightly behind schedule, because I'm me, but after nearly two weeks since I posted my favorite TV shows, here are my picks for my favorite performances of 2015! Starting with my pick for best ensemble...


BEST ENSEMBLE: Sense8
Runner-Up: Orange is the New Black
Other Nominees:
Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Fargo, Fresh Off the Boat, Game of Thrones, Jane the Virgin, Mad Men, Parks & Recreation, Veep

The cast of each of these shows are fantastic and so picking a favorite from among them is actually quite ridiculous. But I gave it Sense8 which made use of its globe-spanning cast to such unique effect that even though they were mostly separated from each other by long distances, it all still gelled together as a whole. My runner-up is of course the wonderfully female-skewed ensemble of Orange is the New Black which somehow just keeps getting better and better every season. The rest of the shows I've singled out are not to be lumped as honorable mentions since all of them really take pride in creating an overall sense of community with their casts.

BEST ACTOR, DRAMA: Rami Malek, Mr. Robot
Runner-Up: Justin Theroux, The Leftovers
Other Nominees:
Charlie Cox, Daredevil
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Matthew Rhys, The Americans

The Hannibal boys were my top two picks last year which is probably why I decided to leave them off my list in spite of a final season that really got into their twisted relationship. Instead, I opted for newcomer Malek whose approachable strangeness is a perfect fit for the show, both giving off a coldness that's tempered with real beauty. Runner-up went to Theroux who anchored his own share of crazy (he literally died and went to limbo twice) in the bravura sophomore season of his show. Mazel tov to Hamm's final season, Cox's ability to act in those tight costumes, Odenkirk's new spin to a familiar character, and Rhys' chameleon-esque talents.

BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA: Krysten Ritter, Jessica Jones
Runner-Up: Taraji P. Henson, Empire
Other Nominees:

Hayley Atwell, Agent Carter
Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder
Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men

I honestly didn't know Ritter had it in her, which is my fault because her previous work most notably Apartment 23 and Breaking Bad showed she's more than capable at caustic realness and depth of emotion, which she deploys to brilliant effect in her show. Henson, in the meantime, gleefully plays one of the breakout characters of last year and is consistently the best part of her show. Shout out to Davis' courtroom dramatics, Maslany's TV-defying sister act, Moss' heartfelt goodbyes, and Atwell's ability to snark/fight in perfect hair and makeup.

BEST ACTOR, COMEDY: Thomas Middleditch, Silicon Valley
Runner-Up: Adam Scott, Parks & Recreation
Other Nominees:

Aziz Ansari, Master of None
Jonathan Groff, Looking
Randall Park, Fresh off the Boat
Joshua Sasse, Galavant

This was an interesting category for me, because it's usually such a BUMMER category when it comes to traditional award shows. It's gotten better with the recent Amazon 1-2 punch of Jeffrey Tambor in Transparent and Gael Garcia Bernal in Mozart Jungle (both NOT on my list because I haven't seen their sophomore seasons), but still lacking. My list, of course, shows what COULD BE and I wish more people would branch out a bit. My pick this year goes to Middleditch, whose show is popular and yet he hasn't been able to break through himself even though he's SO GOOD at the awkward-bumbling-genius role. Of course there's perennial favorite of mine Scott who, like most of the members of his cast, whisked into the sunset with absolute skill and class. Big props to Sasse's mad singing skills, Park's unrecognized hilarity, Ansari's delightful meanderings, and Groff's adorable cluelessness.

BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY: Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
Runner-Up: Aya Cash, You're the Worst
Other Nominees:

Ellie Kemper, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Amy Poehler, Parks & Recreation
Constance Wu, Fresh Off the Boat

Unlike its male counterpart, this category is ALWAYS SO DAMN COMPETITIVE to the point that two years running and I still haven't made room for the AWESOMENESS of the Broad City ladies. But looking at my final short list and you can see the immense talent on display. Rodriguez was my runner-up last year, but she was certainly THE breakout actress of 2014 and has only solidified her status as one of the best actresses working today this past year. Meanwhile Cash catapulted herself in runner-up position by deftly handling a depression story arc that could've been made a mess if it weren't for her excellent performance. Give it up also for Louis-Dreyfus gut-busting intensity, Wu's pitch-perfect line deliveries, Kemper's unabashed positivity, and Poehler's presidential exit.

Now comes to Supporting/Limited categories for which I've decided to shortlist 10 people per category as opposed to just 6 with the Lead. This is #PeakTV people and there are A LOT of people doing amazing work. Rather than seeing this as a Everyone Gets a Trophy, see this as a Look at How Fantastic A Lot of People Are. And go...

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA: Miguel Angel Silvestre, Sense8
Runner-Up: James D'Arcy, Agent Carter/Broadchurch

Other Nominees:
Aml Ameen, Sense8
Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul
Burn Gorman, TURN
Joshua Jackson, The Affair
Matt McGorry, How to Get Away with Murder
Ari Millen, Orphan Black
Jussie Smollett, Empire
Martin Wallström, Mr. Robot

First, a bit of housekeeping. I'm considering all the main Sense8 characters as "supporting" the same way the Modern Family cast consider themselves that for awards. It's a bit of category fraud in my part, but I can live with it. With that said, Silvestre as the hot-machismo-soap-opera-stud on the outside but hot-mess-of-a-hopeless-sweetheart on the inside Lito is my top pick. Second place goes to D'Arcy playing two polar opposite characters in two very different shows (well they're both two GOOD shows). Also loving McGorry's dance moves, Millen's ability to keep up with Maslany, Banks' quiet intensity, Jackson's fiery arc, Gorman's unexpected redemption, Ameen's ridiculous smile, Smollett's coming out, and Wallström's own brand of crazy.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA: Maura Tierney, The Affair
Runner-Up: Jamie Clayton, Sense8
Other Nominees:

Calista Flockhart, Supergirl
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Regina King, The Leftovers
Charlotte Rampling, Broadchurch
Molly Parker, House of Cards
Lana Parrilla, Once Upon a Time
Jean Smart, Fargo
Holly Taylor, The Americans

There were SO MANY choices in this category that I actually forced myself to not give one show more than two nods (or else you'd see more Sense8 ladies probably). Speaking of that show, Clayton was my runner-up invoking such genuine realness and vulnerability to her character. Tierney was my top pick since in a show that's all about The Acting, she seems to really play it in such a natural and effective way even when she's going Big and Dramatic. Big props as well to Flockhart's boss-level attitude, King's strong presence, Rampling's ball of pain and regret, Parker's combativeness, Headey's shame shame shamefulness, Taylor's revelatory story line, Smart's wisecracks, and Parrilla's unexpected Savior Moment.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY: Titus Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Runner-Up: Andre Braugher, Brooklyn 99

Other Nominees:
Jaime Camil, Jane the Virgin
Brett Dier, Jane the Virgin
Lamorne Morris, New Girl
Timothy Omundson, Galavant
Jeremy Allen White, Shameless
Bokeem Woodbine, Fargo
Zach Woods, Silicon Valley
Steve Zissis, Togetherness

This was a fun list to put together, because with every name I just start smiling or laughing. Certainly the top spot was a no-brainer as Burgess came out, so to speak, with all the glitter and pinot noir that he deserves and more. My winner two years ago and runner-up last year Braugher isn't too shabby as his Holt character gets more and more in touch with his ridiculous side. Shout out as well to Camil and Dier's endlessly fun bromance, Morris hot mess hijinks, White's brooding intensity, Woods' uncomfortable cadness, Zissis' confidence in his schlubness, Woodbine's unspoken threats, and Omundson's glorious hair.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY: Taryn Manning, Orange is the New Black
Runner-Up: Yael Grobas, Jane the Virgin
Other Nominees:

Donna Lynne Champlin, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Kether Donohue, You're the Worst
Kirsten Dunst, Fargo
Allison Janney, Mom
Jane Krakowski, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Adrienne C. Moore, Orange is the New Black
Chelsea Peretti, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Lauren Weedman, Looking

The top two spots are held by actresses playing messed-up hard-to-love (actually VERY easy-to-love) women who keeps strong despite their circumstances. Manning in particular, thanks to her show's writers as well, has been able to really delve deeper into a character that was honestly intolerable just a couple of seasons ago. Grobas' meanwhile could've easily been stuck in such a one-note role and yet the show is able to take advantage of her great presence to make her such a complicated and fascinating character. All the love as well to Dunst's Minnesotan accent, Krakowski's TV comeback, Moore's touching Jewish conversion plot-line, Peretti's everything, Weedman's soulfulness, Champlin's voice of conscience, Janney's ability to hit funny/sad so effortlessly, and Donohue's line delivery of "New Phone, Who Dis?"

BEST LIMITED ROLE, ACTOR: BD Wong, Mr. Robot
Runner-Up: Alfonso Herrera, Sense8

Other Nominees:
Raul Esparza, Hannibal
Noel Fisher, Shameless
Hugh Laurie, Veep
Ki Hong Lee, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Lars Mikkelsen, House of Cards
Nick Offerman, Fargo
David Hyde Pierce, The Good Wife
Conrad Ricamora, How to Get Away with Murder

Wong had two very short scenes in the entirety of the show's first season run and yet he made such a huge impact to not only the mythology of the show, but also to its overall strangeness. Then there's Sylvestre's (see above) other half and yes I couldn't not single him out in this small way. Shout out to Ricamora's ability to stay alive, Offerman's Reagan reactions, Laurie's unassuming appeal, Fisher's touching coming out, Esparza's face-twisting role, Lee's clueless adorability, Pierce's one-on-one with Margulies, and Mikkelsen's dark presence.

BEST LIMITED ROLE, ACTRESS: Freema Agyeman, Sense8
Runner-Up: Rosario Dawson, Daredevil/Jessica Jones

Other Nominees:
Tovah Feldshuh, Walking Dead/Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Kathryn Hahn, Parks & Recreation
Eréndira Ibarra, Sense8
Margo Martindale, The Americans/The Good Wife
Cristin Milioti, Fargo
Lois Smith, The Americans
Liv Tyler, The Leftovers
Cicely Tyson, How to Get Away with Murder

Agyeman has been a favorite of mine ever since her Doctor Who days and I was so happy to see her on TV again and her character in Sense8 is in line with all of the other wonderful, kick-ass ladies she is known for. Dawson in the meantime is playing double-duty as one character in two shows and excelling in both. Let's give her a starring role soon, okay Marvel? And finally much love to Hahn's absolute disgust, Martindale's professionalism, Feldshuh's whiplash of two roles, Ibarra's penchant for gay porn, Milioti's AND Smith's grace in death, Tyson's age-defying presence, and Tyler's violent transformation.

And scene. So now all that is left is my ranked list of my Top 35 TV Shows of 2015. Based on my picks above and last week, it's easy enough to figure out my favorites.

Monday, February 1, 2016

End-Of-Year: 2015 TV Nominees

Happy first day of February or as I like to think of it, as the best time to finally start talking about my favorite TV shows and films of the past year. I just like the time to mull things over! With that said, the goal is to post everything before the Oscars at the end of the month, so let's go!

First up are my TV nominees for Best Drama, Best Comedy, Best New Show and Best Ensemble. Later this week, I'll dig into my favorite individual performances for which there are many. Onwards...


BEST DRAMA SHOW

  • Agent Carter
  • The Americans
  • Game of Thrones
  • The Good Wife
  • How to Get Away with Murder
  • Jessica Jones
  • The Leftovers
  • Mad Men
  • Mr. Robot
  • Sense8

The majority of these won't ever see the light of Emmy Awards, but gosh darnit I will proclaim my love for them and genre TV (and Netflix) proudly.


BEST COMEDY SHOW
  • Broad City
  • Brooklyn Nine-Nine
  • Fargo
  • Fresh Off the Boat
  • Jane the Virgin
  • Orange if the New Black
  • Parks and Recreation
  • Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
  • Veep
  • You're the Worst

Speaking of Netflix, here's a couple more. Plus some shows from network TV if you can believe it! Plus female-led shows! They're out there and they are amazing!


BEST NEW SHOW
  • Agent Carter
  • Better Call Saul
  • Black-ish
  • Empire
  • Fresh Off the Boat
  • Galavant
  • Jessica Jones
  • Mr. Robot
  • Sense8
  • Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

It was a banner year for new shows last year and this list highlights this fact. I didn't even get to include two shows from this most recent fall that delighted me greatly (Limitless, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) so you know how strong this year has been in this regard.

BEST ENSEMBLE
  • Brooklyn Nine-Nine
  • Fargo
  • Fresh Off the Boat
  • Game of Thrones
  • Jane the Virgin
  • Mad Men
  • Orange is the New Black
  • Parks and Recreation
  • Sense8
  • Veep

For this category, I pretty much looked at my favorite shows and really thought about not only if their ensemble members are great individually, but also how they all work together.

So later this week, I'll post my favorite actors from the past year including my pick for Best Ensemble. Then hopefully soon after that, I'll post my ranked list of my Top 35 shows of 2015. You may think 35 is a lot, but let's just say I watch a lot of TV. A lot.