20 Weeks To Oscar: Is The Door Wide Open Again?

Could the Academy’s bizarre preferential balloting system be the defining issue in coming to a Best Picture winner this year?

And let me note again, before going any further, that the existence of the preferential ballot system at The Academy is IDIOTIC and I will forever believe that this was a bad joke foisted on The Academy by an exiting Bruce Davis.

20 Weeks To Oscar: It’s Gettin’ Hot In Here

There are a lot of theories out there about how to read the tea leaves this season. But for me, the truth is that I have never seen anything quite like it.

PGA and SAG, Birdman. Globes, Boyhood and The Grand Budapest Hotel. LAFCA and NYFCC, Boyhood. Coming up in short order… DGA, BAFTA, WGA.

Gurus o’ Gold: A Week After Nominations… Any Changes?

The Gurus update their Best Picture picks and answer this question: Has the leader in any of the other categories changed, in your view, over the last week?

20 Weeks To Oscar: Ragin’

I don’t know that I have seen anything like this before. It’s kind of about Oscar season. It’s mostly not. But Oscar has yelled “pull” and now everyone is shooting at the clay pigeons. And the bullets are flying from every direction.

Gurus o’ Gold: Nomination Day (1 of 2)

The Gurus have voted on the slotting of 22 categories (no shorts yet) after today’s nominations. And if you listen to the Gurus today, 14 of those awards will be split pretty evenly between Boyhood, Birdman, and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Gurus o’ Gold: Nomination Day (2 of 2)

Page 1 of 2 Pre-Venice/Telluride/Toronto Best Picture Field Post-Venice/Telluride/Toronto Best Picture Field After New York… Just Before Selma & American Sniper Just After Selma & American Sniper Gurus o’ Gold: A Week From Thanksgiving, aka Screener Time Thanksgiving Week The Rise of Selma Gurus o’ Gold-n-Globes) The Top 8 Categories Heading Into The Holiday Break…

The 2014 Critics Choice Movie Awards Go To…

Best Picture – “Boyhood” Best Actor – Michael Keaton, “Birdman” Best Actress – Julianne Moore, “Still Alice” Best Supporting Actor – J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash” Best Supporting Actress – Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood” Best Young Actor/Actress – Ellar Coltrane, “Boyhood” Best Acting Ensemble – “Birdman” Best Director – Richard Linklater, “Boyhood” Best Original Screenplay – Alejandro G….

20 Weeks To Oscar: The Most Shocking Event Of The Week!!!!

The Answers…

Clint Eastwood.
Bradley Cooper.
Alexandre Desplat.
Foxcatcher.
The LEGO Movie.
Life Itself.

The Question…

What are six Oscar occurrences today that are legitimately more surprising than Selma “only” getting a Best Picture nod?

Oscar Nominations: The Nominee Reactions

“Almost exactly a year ago, we were off to Sundance wondering if people would ever see Whiplash. Today is truly beyond our wildest dreams. As Fletcher would say, holy #@^!#@*$!!!”.” –  Helen Estabrook, Jason Blum & David Lancaster, producers of Whiplash ______________ “Humbled, thankful and more than anything, grateful. So, so happy that Alejandro and…

20 Weeks To Oscar: Screenermania!

An industry in which a $2.4 million buy-in ($900,000 before you are nominated for anything) just for DVDs—before ads, books, promo items, appearance costs, etc,—to be considered “serious” about receiving awards is a problem.

20 Weeks To Oscar: The Trouble With Endings (spoilers)

This piece deals with the end of three Oscar Best Picture candidates, reveling the ending of American Sniper, The Imitation Game, and Unbroken. DO NOT PROCEED is you haven’t seen the films or do not want to know the endings… you have been warned!

SPOILER ALERT!!!

20 Weeks To Oscar: SNUB!

A snub is a smile turned upside down. That’s the First thing that always hits me when people scream, “SNUB!.” In order for some potential nominee who didn’t get nominated to be snubbed, someone who did get nominated has to have been undeserving in the eyes of the screamer(s). Second thing I think of is…

Gurus o’ Gold: One Last Guess Before Nominations

The Gurus are back for one more round before nominations are announced on Thursday morning. The last slots for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay are the most contentious slots for The Gurus. And Grand Budapest Hotel moves up slightly while Selma moves down slightly.

Look for the Gurus rankings of all the categories (other than shorts) on Thursday afternoon.

2014 EDA Award Winners

AWFJ EDA ‘BEST OF’ AWARDS These awards are presented to females and/or males. Best Film BOYHOOD Best Director (Female or Male) Richard Linklater for BOYHOOD Best Screenplay, Original BIRDMAN – Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu, Nicholas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo Best Screenplay, Adapted GONE GIRL – Gillian Flynn Best Documentary CITIZENFOUR – Laura Poitras Best Animated Film…

Houston Film Critics 2014

Houston Film Critics Honor Boyhood, Gyllenhall and Moore   Richard Linklater’s Boyhood dominated the proceedings, winning awards for Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, Supporting Actress (Patricia Arquette) and Technical Achievement. It was also received the Texas Independent Film Award, a special recognition for films shot in the state.   Jake Gyllenhall bested a competitive field of leading actors to…

Critics Top Ten List 2014: Ray Pride

Movie City News 1. Boyhood 2. Gone Girl 3. The Immigrant 4. The Grand Budapest Hotel 5. Love Is Strange 6. We Are The Best! 7. Ida 8. Calvary 9. Winter Sleep 10. Actress

Globes Shine Boyhood And Linklater

Globes Shine Boyhood And Linklater, As Well As Grand Budapest: Plus Adams, Keaton, Arquette, Simmons,  Leviathan

Boyhood’s Richard Linklater Not So Fond Of Plot

“Nothing much happens anyway.” Boyhood‘s Richard Linklater Not So Fond Of Plot With – Boris Kachka’s June 2014 Profile Of The Life Of Ellar Coltrane, Up To Now

The Top 10s of 2014

Boyhood sits alone at the top of the list – nothing else comes close – and then The Grand Budapest Hotel, another big gap and then the rest of the list. Guardians of the Galaxy, in case you were wondering, is sitting there at #21 just a hair away from the Top Twenty.

Critics Top Ten List 2014: Moira Macdonald

Seattle Post Birdman Boyhood Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen Gone Girl The Grand Budapest Hotel Life Itself Like Father, Like Son Love is Strange Mood Indigo Selma