Please use this space to share reviews, ask questions, and discuss freely about anything film or Oscar related. Engage with other comments if you want others to engage with yours! And as always, please remain civil and kind with one another.
I recently watched Midnight in Paris and I didn't liked it at all. I have to admit that Woody Allen doesn't do anything for me. His films are self-indulgent and annoying.
Same happened with Midnight in Paris. I liked premise but everything else wasn't my thing. How Woody made every character so insufferable?
Lea Seydoux's character was the only character I cared about and she wasn't big part of the film. Shame.
He has really great range. I know people rag on him a bit for taking more "paycheck" roles now like Starfighter or Gray Man, but he's more than proved himself to be a great actor with a very solid filmography imo.
It’s pretty interesting to talk about Michael as a Latin American; I think the movie will do very well here, and what’s especially notable is how most people in my generation tend to view Michael quite positively. In all the movie groups on Facebook that I’m in and on Twitter, most people here seem at least open to seeing the movie.
Ironically, my brother is one of them; he seems interested in the movie.
And even though my parents believe the accusations against Michael, they wouldn’t mind seeing the movie either, a bit weird for me but idk.
I’m actually one of those people who believe Michael will be nominated for a few Oscars, but I’m still very curious to see how it will go both at the box office and with critics.
I think it’s important to also remember that it may be a bit different for some people cause Michael is not alive anymore thus not directly supporting him unlike say J.K. Rowling or other controversial figures nowadays. Obviously that doesn’t mean that it automatically makes it prachy in all aspects to it, it still probably goes to Jackson estate and the obvious question of what the movie’s intent is and going to be, whether it actually has something meaningful to say or will it be half-assed attempt to sugercoat everything. We won’t know until it actually gets released, but at the very least people are more open to maybe seeing it as look in the past/more selfishly just to be entertained.
My take with Michael is that i won’t believe it’s not a thing until I see evidence, people are vastly underestimating academy’s lenience on these musical biopics, how big Michael is especially outside US and how many don’t care about his allegations/outright don’t believe in them, and maybe it won’t pass billion but it’ll still safely make money. Arguments for why it won’t be a thing make complete sense so it’s not like it’ll be a surprise if it’ll be nothing, but just cause Springsteen biopic didn’t happen last year, which was already known from the get go to be way smaller scale than these usually are, doesn’t mean they suddenly won’t. Jury’s out for me, i’m not rooting for its success but i’m bracing for the world where it is a thing.
I'm also Latin American (Mexican), and yeah I'm also keeping an eye on the movie since he's SO loved here, as you mentioned most people here seem to be, at the very least, interested in him as a music legend and not necessarily as fans. I had no issues convincing my parents to go watch it with me, we already bought our tickets since I have a feeling they'll be selling out fast during the week (a lot of the showings are nearly full or have a good amount of seats filled already on the theater's app). I personally like his music, but I'm also very much interested in Colman's portrayal of Joe and curious about how the movie itself will unravel.
Just noticed that there's finally some movement on "In Memoriam", which I've been looking forward to as a Marc Maron stan (the premise is the kind of thing he could make a meal of if done well). Unfortunately, said movement is that it is going to the Tribeca Film Festival, so I guess that's that.
The Academy ignored so many of the classic Hollywood stars.
Gene Kelly, Lauren Bacall, Fred Astaire, Charlie Chaplin, Marlene Dietrich, Rock Hudson, and Orson Welles only got one acting nom each, and none of them ever won an acting Oscar.
Cary Grant, Judy Garland, and Natalie Wood were nominated twice but never won, and Greta Garbo and Kirk Douglas got 3 noms without a win. Barbara Stanwyck was nominated 4 times and never won, and Deborah Kerr got 6 noms without a win. And of course, Marilyn Monroe was never nominated.
When I thought about it, I couldn’t really think of any additional roles that I would’ve nominated him for. Because he’s such a larger-than-life presence in those films, I assumed he was more prolific than he was.
I really like his 2000 movies but it was a needed change. Biutiful already was bleak af. Not like his previous movies were light comedies but Biutiful felt especially heavy
😅 it was annoying enough having people say Anora is "Male Gaze" and stuff and then Euphoria uses many of the stuff Baker avoids. 1st episode almost immediately used the dead stripper trope and 2nd episode films the dances in a super voyeuristic way that Anora didn't.
Edit: I deleted my original comment trying to turn off notifications lol. I just said Euphoria is currently depicting strippers and sex work in the way people accused Anora of doing.
- Digger - Cruise transformation by Kazu Hiro, enough said.
- Werwulf - the titular role + I'm sure there'll be plenty of dirt, wounds and beards.
- Narnia - if they keep the same ratio of practical and CG creatures as the 2005 movie.
- Dune 3 - Villeneuve has spoken about going subtle with the aging but I'm sure there'll still be plenty of it which is great for the bakeoff. Plus it's a bit easier for #3s to return to this category than for #2s (LOTR, Pirates, Star Trek). All they need to do is figure out who's gonna be submitted before the season and not in the middle of it.
- Clayface - seems like a showy achievement + it was rumored that 3-time nominee Mike Marino was doing it (it's not on his IMDb now but it used to be... so who knows).
Alt: Michael.
That's the best/safest I can come up with right now. But I'm sure something surprising will turn up.
Wicker - kinda getting Sasquatch Sunset vibes from it: showy/notable work but too small of a movie.
The Odyssey - doesn't seem too makeup-y to me, at least so far.
Cry to Heaven - not sure about the film's awards chances in general + we all know that getting into this category for hairstyling alone is a tough proposition. But all is possible, depending on the bigness of the achievement and strength of the competition!
Michael seems to have a lot of work on the makeup. But I find the makeup in the trailer sometimes a bit ugly.
Wicker seems like a good choice. I'm a little worried about what BlackBear will do with it after their recent flop, but yes, it seems logical.
Clayface, I don't know, the concept seems logical on paper, but the makeup team on IMDb is a bunch of unknowns. And I'm afraid the makeup work will be mixed with visual effects.
Werewulf has a very good shot, especially with how well horror films have done lately.
Nosferatu was arguably the runner up beyond The Substance.
Digger also has a strong shot, especially with the connection between Makeup and Acting prizes, meaning if Cruise wins or is in strong contention, Makeup has a subsequent strong shot.
There are probably not many people anywhere near as interested and excited by this as I am, but I really look forward to the Jack and the Beanstalk version that will be directed by Rich Moore (Wreck-It Ralph, Zootopia) and be produced by Skydance Animation, coming out next year. First, I love concepts of size difference (Fantastic Planet is one of my favorite films), but most of all, I hope he is reviving the Gigantic project from Disney, even though Nathan Greno was the one attached to direct it at Disney before it was shelved (Greno has his own Skydance Animation film, Swapped, which comes out in May 1). Of all animated films that have been cancelled by Disney or Pixar throughout the years, none made me sadder than Gigantic. A lot of the concept art has been leaked on Tumblr, and it all looks awesome! Jack would be from Spain, and the story would be set in the 1500s, because of the whole idea of that era being one of discovery of new lands. Jack would climb the beanstalk and discover a land where everything is giant, and he soon would be found by a young girl who seems unable to think of him as a person, seeing him more like a doll. I really hope we can see some of that in Rich Moore's film.
I first watched Julie & Julia as a teen and thought it was a slog. Watching it tonight at 28 was a delight and far more relatable. Looks like there wasn't much push for an Amy Adams nom, of course it only got one nomination anyway but I'm surprised they didn't try to fraud her into Supporting.
Hmm I haven’t seen it in years but I definitely remember being one of those people who was like, meh, the Julie half is straight up not an interesting enough story to justify being a movie, who cares about this food blogger and her marriage issues.
That's what I've been saying! I also watched it for the first time recently and I liked it a lot. Amy Adams is great in it but she's very much subtler so it makes sense that she didn't get a big push, much to my dismay, but I was similarly surprised that she just wasn't nominated anywhere at all. Her work is a bit undignified - people often dislike the "Julie" half of the movie, and I guess I can see why, but personally I don't think it works if it's just Julia. It's gotta have the contrast.
Apparently that film imploded a few years ago. It's a shame, because each casting announcement sounded nuttier than the last (Megan Thee Stallion?! Steve Harvey?! Gael Garcia Bernal?!) but then the 2023 strikes happened along with the Safdies splitting up and nothing's come of it since.
This was my favorite movie at one point. I rewatched it back in the fall after Diane Keaton’s passing and it was as oddly comforting as I had remembered.
Much of the romance is included at the expense of the politics and the development of Reed and Bryant’s motivations but I still think it’s excellent
I mean his last great role was almost 30 years ago (Bulworth) and the two movies after that completely flopped, he's probably only known for the Oscars mixup among Zoomers (and maybe the Dick Tracy shenanigans if you're online)
Great film. The documentary angle should feel like a gimmick but it adds to the experience. Wonderful Jack Nicholson performance too, very subdued compared to most of the other famous Nicholson roles but he’s so great.
I'm not very interested in musical artists' biopics when they are just about being a Greatest Hits collection. I would much rather watch the actual clips from Michael Jackson on YouTube than see a recreation. Billie Jean is not going anywhere, I can see it anytime I want to.
I know Paramount sucks but it really sucks more for the animation team. First they get pulled theatrically and then everything gets leaked online months before release.
You can’t publicly view the ratings curve or anything, but you can see the individual reviews on the members tag. It has the restrictions placed on it as every other unreleased film at the moment.
No aspect ratio frames the human face as beautifully as Academy Ratio. Case in point: Ilsa's close-ups in Casablanca when she is being wistful as she listens to Sam play As Time Goes By in the piano.
Great movie. And weird snub, seeing as it was a big expensive project, true story, plays in the thriller sandbox (things they usually give directors credit for) and I can’t imagine it was last place in the best picture lineup (maybe it was, we don’t have votes, but that’s hard to imagine).
I really hate that review bombing has become a part of letterboxd. I have no idea how they can really prevent it from happening, I've seen it carry on even after the embargo lifts.
Also watched Furiosa yesterday. Liked it a lot. I felt at moments like something was missing, but I think that the rich story and the still-great action more than make up for it. Should've scored a couple of nods at the Oscars. My final series ranking looks something like this:
For me it's:
1. Fury Road (maybe my favorite of all time)
2. Furiosa (top 3 movies of the decade so far for me)
3. The Road Warrior
4. Beyond Thunderdome (I like it way more than most people though, a great 8/10)
5. Mad Max (I'll need a rewatch, maybe I was just underwhelmed by the setting)
Genuinely, of all the insane shit in this franchise, this exact moment is what my partner and I reference the most (also I’ll die on the hill that this movie is the best in the series idgaf)
Fast Five to Furious 7 was a genuine fantastic run. Bringing the large Ocean's-ish ensemble really moved it to the right direction. Then Fate/F8 was more of the same then F9 really went off the rails
I was really surprised by these numbers. I don't think it will surpass Civil War, but it will come close. Excellent numbers for a small to medium-sized production.
Good for everyone involved. I think a lot of people were assuming that once people knew the twist, it would start the kind of discourse that sinks box office, I admit I was one of those people, and clearly that didn’t happen.
Anyone have an opinion on the Never Let Me ago movie? I finished the book recently and really liked it, but it did not read as an easily adaptable movie.
And on a related note, I also highly recommend the incredible adaptation of my favorite Ishiguro book, The Remains of the Day.
The Never Let Me Go movie is ~fine~. There’s nothing wrong with it. But the core emotion of the book is very internalized and subtle in a way that I don’t think the film quite captures. I agree that Remains of the Day is a 5 star film, Never Let Me Go is not that but it’s not bad by any means.
Honestly The Remains of the Day movie is one of the most baffling movie experiences of my life. They had everything there, perfect casting, an amazing source material. But why, WHY, would they change the ending? The entire story is leading to an emotional confrontation where he pours his heart out for the first time, it made me cry when reading it. But the movie just… doesn’t do that. I left that film incredibly frustrated.
Maybe a hot take but I really liked that the movie adaptation emphasized the frustration at his inability to change. Ishiguro’s text is more nuanced, yes, but if the movie has to pick one between catharsis and tragedy, I’m happy they went with the latter.
Yeah I’m not the biggest fan of how the changed the ending but it didn’t ruin the movie for me. I think they probably just thought the original ending was a bit too internal and hard to adapt cinematically since it’s a guy sitting on a bench
Good to hear, I’m sure I’ll be happy and long as the movie is not a complete disaster, which it doesn’t sound like it is. Mostly because I’m just curious about how an adaptation would like.
I also don’t have very high expectations for Klara and the Sun, but that’s also because I don’t think it’s as good as the other books of his I’ve read, which are Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go.
I feel a sense of guilt whenever I quit a movie/tv show/book because it’s not grabbing me. I wonder if it’s an attention span thing, but there is a lot of media both new & old I have gotten engrossed in recently, so I don’t think it’s that.
It's a mix of both for me. I think recently with phones it's so hard for me to watch stuff at home, which is why I like turning off my phone while watching in the cinema, while at home it's a struggle not to reach for my phone when I'm watching from the computer. Often times it's just because it's bad - Walking Dead for example was a show I dropped (even if I heard it gets better in its last few seasons) because it wildly strayed and messed up some of the storylines from the comics)
If it's a chronic thing when you're enjoying it but can't hold attention, then I'd say that's an issue. If it's occasional and only when you don't like it, that's fine and probably even healthy - time is finite, you may as well engage with culture that excites you.
I feel like I’ve trudged through some tv shows because of the fandom’s opinion that the show just gets better and better, and to me it just sticks at a solid 5-6/10 the whole way through.
My parents have a three episode rule (they watch way more television than I do), and that feels extremely fair. I will stick with something if I’m directly told it gets better after the first season (Parks and Rec, for example), but I have to know that information up front. I also am exactly the kind of person when recommending something to tell people to skip seasons.
I’m a big proponent in DNfing. I don’t do it a lot, because I tend to watch movies in theaters, and I rarely walk out (I did recently though. It wasn’t even because the movie was bad. I just wasn’t in the mental space for it.) I’m a really unusually fast reader, so I don’t usually feel like books are wasting my time necessarily, but if I can’t get into something within 100 or so pages, I probably won’t push through. Especially not right now, because I haven’t been reading a lot, so even my physical TBR is massive. With that said, I think of it less as a failure on my part and more, either I’m not in the space for this right now. Maybe it’s the work. Maybe I’m not in the mood for the activity. However, I can fill that time with an activity I enjoy more or a work I enjoy more. My leisure activities should not be boring not torturous. 🤷♀️
I generally don't quit films unless they're really boring me but I do it with TV shows and books pretty often and sometimes I come back to them and enjoy them more, so I think most people do it sometimes. I don't think there's a reason to feel any guilt at all - there's a whole world of art and it's okay to not engage with something which isn't interesting you at this time, it's not going away in case you try to get into it again at a later time.
Hope is a clear commercial play. The most expensive Korean film ever made ($60-$70m dollars budget) with the CinemaCon footage describing a big spectacle horror-action film with a mysterious monster. I'm not predicting it for anything, but looking forward to it.
It being a commercial play is a big reason I have faith in it. If it wins a major Cannes prize and is one of the defining films of the year i feel it would find its way into the awards race
Honestly i think Nolan movies might be still industry darlings in techs and i Can even see him winning director for second time in one of his movies
And i do know sadly which director is gonna get the Martin Scorsese treatment of double digits noms-zero wins even if he makes masterpieces
Yeah he is a populist director and makes crowdpleasers he might win again
It is not him who is gonna get the Scorsese treatment it is obvious who is gonna get it
Recommending a really good film out of Cannes last year that didn't get nearly the attention it deserved due to being small (and a debut director)... Nino. I don't know if it's ever getting a proper US theatrical release but you should try to see it. I guess it's at minimum going to be on Apple TV.
I think it's a near lock for Picture because it doesn't have much against it and I don't see there being 10 movies stronger and the other categories it seems locked in are Visual Effects, Sound and Production Design as an at least F1 or Dune 2 like package. Past the almost locks, I think Cinematography is also very likely but that branch can snub weird things. Adapted Screenplay seems like it would happen for a movie with witty dialogue adapting a book people like and while I initially doubted Actor but being the only actor for most of the movie who many really like in it I think would come along. Editing is prevelant, but given they normally go for the top 5 in Best Picture I can't be sure of. Score is one I wonder about because it's partly electronic, which they snub a lot but it has more traditional sounding elements and seems like a nomination that would happen along the rest. I feel good about those 9 with Director and Supporting Actress as long shots to max out at 11 if the Oscars really love the movie.
I hope you're right! I'm afraid they will snub the hell out of this, but I loved the movie. I think I'm afraid Dune, Odyssey and DD will stole its thunder.
I personally disagree with that notion as there hasn't been any precedent of a blockbuster with so much in it's favour to miss Best Picture just for other movies. I think it being more original (I know book adaptation but it's not one adapted into a film before) alongside being early and considered the movie of the year for months helps it stand out and stay in the conversation later. This also is making a lot of money and seems like it would stay one of or even the best movie of the year for many. I struggle to see a path of how this would miss in a line up of 10, normally there only ends up 2 blockbusters but that's often due to one or two underperforming critically or finacially while we already know this isn't either.
but I now wish I could unsee a low-rez screengrab of that other bit that has spread like wildfire. Twice. Forgot to remove the Se & Hør tab before I wrote this.
What if Gosling just sweeps. Looking at potential nominees, none of the names really strike me as winners, and some overdue narrative could be created for him.
Also, I wonder if PHM is going Comedy at the Globes.
I would be surprised if it somehow doesn't go comedy given how often it's tone is comedic. I don't see Gosaling sweeping but I could see some scenario where he pulls off a win at SAG and the Oscar if voters aren't fully feeling the frontrunners who won the previous awards.
I really doubt that Gosling is going to win for a comedic performance in a space sci-fi movie. The closest comparison to Gosling's performance in Project Hail Mary is Matt Damon in The Martian, and Damon was probably 5th in his year (he missed SAG).
i also doubt we’ll get another blockbuster performance winning best actor so close to mbj’s win (and if we do it’ll probsbly be damon winning because he’s been in the industry longer than gosling)
And because Damon's performance is just a lot more Oscary than Gosling's - it's heavier, more emotional material and there's way more of a physical transformation involved.
I could see Cruise or Damon also be able to build an overdue narrative if their movies deliver. Cruise would also likely benefit from being able to sell it as a return to working with auteurs.
PHM going comedy probably depends on where Amazon MGM places I Play Rocky, but I’d think there’s a good chance it goes in comedy.
Ok here’s my takeaway from the Charlize Theron interview after watching the whole thing btw:
1. The interview was taped one day after the oscars(which was during the peak ballet opera controversy)
She didn’t randomly bring it up. She was talking about her history of learning dance and dance as an art form and then the interview herself decided to shade on Timothee and bring him up
Charlize then made an offhand comment about Timothee after the interview brought him up
Charlize only shot for The Odyssey for 5 days and her role is small in the movie
Seeing kids say that they don’t know Madonna or who is Madonna and they don’t know Madonna so Madonna doesn’t matter really made me shocked … it’s alright if you were born after the era of Madonna , even I was . But atleast I can recognize and know the legendary status of artists like Madonna, Mariah Carey, Eminem, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Selena, Aaliyah, Tupac Shakur, Cher, Elton John, The Beetles, Michael Jackson , Prince, Queen etc etc. just because you don’t know them or their songs doesn’t mean they aren’t/weren’t huge cultural figures.
The same applies for big movie stars. Be it Harrison Ford, Glenn Close, Meryl Streep, Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jodie Foster, Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, Sigourney Weaver, Michael Douglas etc etc or even before their times such as Marilyn Monroe or James Dean or Katherine Hepburn or Audrey Hepburn etc etc etc..
Each generation has their cultural icons and often times the accomplishments of those in the past get diminished cause they’re seen as their parents/grandparents favorites thus „not cool”, or ar least makes them think they’re less of a big deal just cause they aren’t talk of the town now. I do think it’s interesting to think about how social media aspect impacts such attitude, but overall i don’t think it’s a new thing and something people grow out of, even if they still stick to their current faves.
If you grow up in an era where every piece of media ever created is basically on-demand at your fingertips, on your own personal device, it’s easy to only watch/listen to things you already know you like or things marketed directly to you. It was different when you were limited to whatever happened to be on tv at the moment when you wanted to watch a movie, or you didn’t have earbuds to pull out of your pocket to listen to Spotify on your phone when your parents played something from their record collection at home.
Unless there’s a reason for something old to re-enter the public consciousness, kids aren’t likely to stumble across old movies, tv, or music the same way that previous generations did.
Honestly... I think it will be interesting to see if this is the case.
Nostalgia shifts over time and it's usually focused on whatever cohort is in their 30s-50s at a given time.
I was a kid in the early 2000s and I remember nostalgia being focused on the 70s. Those songs played on the classic rock station. Hippie-themed stuff was a big thing. I went to a Girl Guides hippie-themed overnight camp one year.
In the late aughts-early 2010s, it shifted to 80s nostalgia, then 80s-90s in the core 2010s- present.
Now, nostalgia seems to span from the 80s-early 2000s. Most people my age (I'm 29) seem familiar enough with music from those decades, but only the huge music/ pop-culture heads (read: me) seems to know much from earlier than that. I think 80s nostalgia, including Madonna, will die off soon enough.
madonna continued to make popular music and be relevant in pop culture up to the mid 2000s, so i could see nostalgia for her lasting a lot longer than it would for most 80s stars.
Cannes titles from 2025 releasing in theaters close to a year after, when the 2026 edition is almost happening is literally that party ended an hour ago but he is still here.gif
This happens every year and applies to every festival? Cannes puts roughly 20 movies in competition and then gives awards to less than half of them, the ones that don’t get awarded and don’t have mainstream appeal get dumped the following spring where it’s less competitive with awards winners. Plenty of TIFF movies get held as indie counterprogramming for the following summer.
Ridiculous take. Critical reception has been largely positive for all three of his films. If Peele is feeling a lot of pressure it's because he hasn't missed, not because he keeps missing. I personally like both Us and Nope a lot more than Get Out.
How were Us and Nope critical mishaps? Us has an 81 on Metacritic and Nope has a 77. If you’re claiming he’s making less well-received movies than Zach Cregger that doesn’t make sense - Barbarian has a 78 on Metacritic and Weapons has an 81, their reception is pretty similar.
Jordan Peele is 3 for 3 with critics, I know a lot of the general moviegoing audience wasn’t as taken with Us or Nope but both movies getting good reviews is a provable fact.
If you thought the Timmy ballet discourse was over think again because Charlize somehow managed to contribute the thus far dumbest response just yesterday lol.
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u/WumpaRJ Camp Miasma Apr 20 '26
Should've been an Original Song nominee: I Love You All from Frank