What Are the Best Movies of the Decade So Far?
It’s hard to imagine we’re five years removed from the myriad “Best Movies of the Decade” posts of 2009. That was fun, and each intervening year since has produced more than enough titles worthy of appearing on such lists. Of course, most of those titles won’t eventually make it when we get to the end […]
So, About Those 2015 Oscar Nominations…
What in the name of Dick Poop just happened?!?!?!? It was a wild morning that saw the announcement of the 2015 Oscar nominees, and I just can’t get past Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs’ all-time great mispronunciation of a name. Congratulations to Mr. Turner cinematographer Dick Pope on your Oscar nomination. I’m sorry you’ll live […]
The Best Films of 2014
It seems you’re supposed to open your end-of-year favorite films list with an assessment of the movie year as a whole, but I’ve never really been interested in that. Good, bad, or somewhere in between—I have no idea what I’d say about 2014 other than I love the 20 films I’m writing about today and […]
2015 Golden Globes Nominations Predictions
The ultra-prestigious and never ridiculous Hollywood Foreign Press Association is on the cusp of announcing its nominees for the 2015 Golden Globes. We should take these nominations very seriously, as the many, many dedicated and serious-minded members of this fine organization consider only the artistic merits of each film, performance, and craft achievement in a […]
2015 Oscar Predictions: The Calm Before ‘Unbroken’
One of the things I’m thankful for this year is a relatively pleasant Oscar season. Granted, it’s only Thanksgiving, and we haven’t yet gotten into the guilds and critics groups. We don’t yet know what awful narratives will be made up to drag down competing films. We don’t yet know who will win the second-annual […]
Interstellar Review
RATING: (4 STARS) I want to talk about how well-made Interstellar is. I want to talk about Hoyte Van Hoytema’s cinematography in director Christopher Nolan’s ambitious, awe-inspiring film; it’s remarkable. Stepping in for regular Nolan contributor Wally Pfister, Van Hoytema establishes an old-fashioned aesthetic full of shots of a decaying Earth and a quietly wonderous […]
2015 Best Supporting Actor and Actress Predictions: Simmons, Arquette, and…
Since my last 2015 Oscar predictions update, Interstellar landed…interestingly. I actually haven’t seen the film yet, so I can’t say too much, but it’s discouraging to see how much Nolan-related baggage—both positive and negative—writers are bringing into their reviews of the guy’s movie. But that’s neither here nor there for the purpose of this post […]
2015 Oscar Predictions: First Guesses Before Fall Fests
It’s 2015 Oscar predictions time, so let’s dig the prognosticator’s hat out of the attic, dust it off, and take a look at the landscape of the 2015 Oscar race. If I’m being honest, though, I almost didn’t want to get involved with 2015 Oscar predictions at all. Last year’s Oscar season and the nonsense […]
14 Films for 2014
A yearly tradition continues. I don’t much enjoy these early-year looking-ahead lists; I’ll still be in 2013 mode until I catch up with everything that eluded me before the turn of the calendar. Nevertheless, on a day like today one can’t help survey the calendar and mark his or her most-anticipated movie days. And 2014 […]
Christopher Nolan Movies
Christopher Nolan movies carry a mark that’s easy to spot from a mile away. Forget if you can the almost overwhelming hype that, like clockwork, accompanies each and every Christopher Nolan movie (or at least every film of his since The Dark Knight), Christopher Nolan movies also feature labyrinthine stories, blaring scores, and Michael Caine. […]
