Sci-Fi Review: The Star Wars Holiday Special (1978, dir. Steve Binder & David Acomba)


vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h12m50s880

Here I am, glass of soda in hand and Christmas Time (Don’t Let The Bells End) by The Darkness playing while I write about The Star Wars Holiday Special. Didn’t I go to college or something? I have a paper on my wall signed by Schwarzenegger that says I did. Oh, well. Let’s talk about this thing. The special begins and it’s already showing me something sad.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h11m34s712

Instead of airing an episode of The Incredible Hulk or Wonder Woman, they aired The Star Wars Holiday Special. Now we cut to Han Solo and Chewbacca in the Millennium Falcon. They are being chased by the Empire while they are trying to reach Chewie’s home planet so he can celebrate Life Day. I’ve watched the whole special and I still don’t know what that means. At first Han is a little hesitant, but they jump to lightspeed anyways. Now we get weird iris shots of people who are in the special including Julia Child if she were a man who was turned into a female plastic doll then given a spray tan.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h14m13s705

Then we cut to this shot of the Swiss Family Robinson house.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h22m48s369

Inside is the main set filled with the main characters such as:

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h23m52s632

Papa Wookiee who is here to give all the viewers nightmares.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h29m08s993

Mama Wookiee who we know is a woman because she’s working in the kitchen.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h23m42s527

And Baby Wookiee who we can all thank for introducing the worst animation I’ve seen since that Chinese computer animated movie Agent F.O.X. (2014).

After pointless and meaningless noises from the Wookiees, the special reveals it’s true colors. By that I mean that it’s really a variety show of bad comedy and musical numbers. It’s not everyday you get to see Anton Lavey in a musical number though.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h33m11s638

And this shot makes watching the whole special worth it.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h34m15s303

Now the Wookiees put in a call to Luke Skywalker.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h40m00s608

It’s been awhile since I watched the original Star Wars movies, but I don’t remember Mark Hamill looking like this. He reminds me of Pierre Kirby’s girlfriend in Dressed To Fire (1988).

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h42m55s088

After Hamill embarrasses himself, we now go back to the Wookiee household. They place a call to “Trading Post Wookiee Planet C”. I call it we roped Art Carney into this horrible thing to do really unfunny comedy bits.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h46m45s347

Next we cut to a shot of Zuco from Brazilian Star Wars

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h49m48s368

before cutting back to the Wookiees. Just in case the kids weren’t already traumatized for life…

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-17h54m34s623

there’s this scene where they thought it would be funny to dress up Harvey Korman like this. I’d be offended since I’m transgender, but all I can feel is sympathy for poor Korman. Not only is he in this, but this is one of his appearances in the special. That thing is cruel and unusual punishment. Mama Wookiee is watching this on TV.

Now the special cuts back to Han and Chewie to remind us they are still in the special before cutting back to more pointless crap. The only difference is that now Art Carney shows up to deliver some stuff to the family. Carney says the name Han as if he is saying the word “hand”. That would have made for a great name, wouldn’t it? Hand Solo. Goes right along with the single weirdest thing in the special that happens next.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-18h01m18s453

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-18h12m45s563

Papa Wookiee looks at VR porn. Diahann Carroll says things like “Now we can have a good time” and “I’ll tell you a secret. I find you adorable”. Oh, and Papa Wookiee makes drooling noises while pressing a button to have her repeat “I find you adorable” over and over. Then she goes on to sing a reject Bond song. I guess this part could be worse. I’m pretty sure Wookiee’s don’t have genitals and he could have been watching Water Power (1977).

Now the special cuts to Leia and C-3PO to remind us they are in this too before cutting to Chewie and Han. Then Imperials show up at the treehouse to look for Chewbacca and to remind us that people in Dayton, Ohio suffered greatly one night.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-18h25m13s001

This part goes on forever, and Art Carney gets a brilliant idea. I’ll distract this guy by making him watch Jefferson Starship.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-18h27m58s363

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-18h31m40s711

We built this special on Schlock ‘N Schtick.

Then Baby Wookiee goes to some sort of device while the Imperials are searching the very small set. He calls up the infamous cartoon. This thing is supposed to introduce us to Boba Fett. I could actually talk about this cartoon, but I think this shot sums it up.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-19h49m57s599

Already missing Harvey Korman doing bad comedy? He now makes a return. Earlier Baby Wookiee opened a present which had the Brain Computer from Brazilian Star Wars in it and now he needs to watch an instructional video on how to use it.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-19h54m42s237

This part can best be described as Harvey Korman auditioning for Max Headroom about a decade before that show came on the air. Also, it shows us what anyone looking at this special was doing in 1978.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-19h58m05s272

I don’t know what that was all about, but now we go to the bar scene. This is the only bright point in this special thanks to Bea Arthur.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-20h02m43s186

Harvey Korman comes into the bar run by Arthur and attempts to hit on her. Korman has a hole in the top of his head that she pours drinks into.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-20h05m38s772

Didn’t think this character through, did they? If he takes in drink through the top of his head, then what exactly comes in or out of his mouth? Arthur turns him down. Then an announcement is made over the TV that the bar is to be closed by order of the Empire. This is when the scene basically turns into that part from Casablanca where they sing the French National Anthem. Honestly, this scene is not that bad. Granted it’s surrounded by fecal matter, but still. Arthur does a decent job singing and is kind of funny.

Now we cut back to the treehouse where we get a cameo appearance by the Wilhelm scream as Han Solo throws a Stormtrooper off the patio. It’s funny that even during this tiny little scene with Harrison Ford, we can still see why he’s a good actor.

Now the time has finally come to celebrate Life Day where it appears a bunch of people are walking into a star to commit suicide.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-20h52m08s201

It’s kind of like that overly edited version of the Star Wars commercial with Anna Kendrick that was on YouTube where they cut out enough of her lines that it appears she picks up a knife then kills herself.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-20h53m42s563

Then we get to see the whole gang together. You know, like I’m sure everyone thought they were going to see when they tuned in to this “Star Wars” special. Carrie Fisher sings here because who cares.

After stock footage from the movie to remind us this thing actually had something to do with Star Wars, we cut to the Wookiees at the dinner table together.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-20h59m38s711

I’m just going to assume they are conducting a seance to try and contact Obi-Wan. Now the credits roll and according to them we have Bob Mackie to blame for that thing poor Harvey Korman had to wear during the cooking scene. I love that the ending credits don’t include any of the actors names from the Star Wars movie. Apparently, Miki Herman was their “‘Star Wars’ Consultant”. It’s hard to believe that position existed. Oh, and of course David Winters did the choreography. That reminds me, I do need to see Dancin’ It’s On (2015). Heard it’s terrible. Then the 20th Century Fox logo comes up which is nice considering I’ve been watching Godfrey Ho movies that start with a girl standing like the Columbia Pictures lady while the Star Wars theme plays.

And the special goes out like it came in, by reminding us we could have been watching an episode of The Incredible Hulk or Wonder Woman.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-21h01m55s434

I’m sure there’s a fascinating backstory to this, but I don’t care. This is one of the most ill-conceived and poorly executed things I have sat through this year. And I watched a parody of Rocky where he gets hit in the face with the Star Of David as well as a children’s Hallmark movie where a little girl refers to beauty squirting out of her body onto the floor.

vlcsnap-2015-12-12-19h57m39s364

And finally, here’s what won with the Detroit Film Critics!


Spotlight

You can check out the Detroit nominations here.  Remember how stunned everyone was when Liev Schrieber was nominated for best supporting actor?  Well, he went on to win!

You can check out all the winners below!

Best Picture: Spotlight

Best Director: George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Actor: Michael Caine, Youth

Best Actress: Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

Best Supporting Actor: Liev Schrieber, Spotlight

Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl

Best Ensemble: Spotlight

Breakthrough: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl and Ex Machina

Best Screenplay: Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy for Spotlight

Best Documentary: Amy

The Indiana Film Journalists Have Spoken And They Love A Film About Boston!


Ted_2_poster

The Indiana Film Journalist Association have announced their picks for the best of 2015 and they went with … Ted 2!

No, just kidding, they went with Spotlight.

Best Film

Winner: “Spotlight”
Runner-up: “Room”

Other Finalists (listed alphabetically):

“Anomalisa”
“The Big Short”
“Carol”
“The End of the Tour”
“Mad Max: Fury Road”
“The Martian”
“Steve Jobs”
“Straight Outta Compton”

Best Animated Feature

Winner: “Anomalisa”
Runner-Up: “Inside Out ”

Best Foreign Language Film

Winner: “Son of Saul”
Runner-Up: “Goodnight Mommy”

Best Documentary

Winner: “Amy”
Runner-Up: “Meru”

Best Original Screenplay

Winner: Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer, “Spotlight”
Runner-up: Matt Charman, Joel & Ethan Coen, “Bridge of Spies”

Best Adapted Screenplay

Winner: Emma Donoghue, “Room”
Runner-up: Adam McKay and Charles Randolph, “The Big Short”

Best Director

Winner: George Miller, “Mad Max: Fury Road
Runner-up: Tom McCarthy, “Spotlight”

Best Actress

Winner: Brie Larson, “Room”
Runner-up: Charlotte Rampling, “45 Years”

Best Supporting Actress

Winner: Greta Gerwig, “Mistress America”
Runner-up: Elizabeth Banks, “Love & Mercy”

Best Actor

Winner: Jacob Tremblay, “Room”
Runner-up: Jason Segel, “The End of the Tour”

Best Supporting Actor

Winner: Mark Ruffalo, “Spotlight”
Runner-up: Idris Elba, “Beasts of No Nation”

Best Vocal/Motion Capture Performance

Winner: Phyllis Smith, “Inside Out”
Runner-up: Tom Noonan, “Anomalisa”

Best Musical Score

Winner: Junkie XL, “Mad Max: Fury Road
Runner-up: Disasterpeace, “It Follows

Original Vision Award

Winner: “Anomalisa”
Runner-up: “Chi-Raq”

The Hoosier Award

Winner: Angelo Pizzo, writer/director/producer

Here’s What Won In San Francisco!


Spotlight

Remember when I shared with you the nominations of the San Francisco Film Critics?  

You don’t?

Okay, if you’re not going to pay attention… *sigh*

Well, anyway, the winners were announced on December 13th and here they are!

Best Picture
“Spotlight”

Best Director
George Miller, “Mad Max: Fury Road”

Best Original Screenplay
Oren Moverman; Michael Alan Lerner, “Love & Mercy”

Best Adapted Screenplay
Nick Hornby, “Brooklyn”
Best Actor
Paul Dano, “Love & Mercy”

Best Actress
Saoirse Ronan, “Brooklyn”

Best Supporting Actor
Michael Shannon, “99 Homes”

Best Supporting Actress
Mya Taylor, “Tangerine”

Best Animated Feature
“Anomalisa”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Son of Saul”

Best Documentary
“Listen to Me Marlon”

Best Cinematography
John Seale, “Mad Max: Fury Road”

Best Production Design
Judy Becker; Heather Loeffler, “Carol”

Best Film Editing
Margaret Sixel, “Mad Max: Fury Road”

Special Citation for underappreciated independent cinema
“The Forbidden Room” Guy Maddin’s haunted scream, full of artfully recreated, vinegar-eaten celluloid, is a rat’s nest of affairs too strange to recall and too troubling to forget.

Marlon Riggs Award for courage & innovation in the Bay Area film community
Frank Lee For his lifelong dedication to film culture in San Francisco—in particular his twenty-plus-year film stewardship of the 4 Star Theatre in the tradition of the family-run independent art house and his attention to Hong Kong film, both marked by his astute taste and knowledge.

O Canada! Here are the Toronto Film Critics winners!


Love you, Canada!

Love you, Canada!

Here are the films that the Toronto Film Critics picked (on Sunday) for the best of 2015!  Love you, Canada!

Best Picture: Carol

Best Director: Todd Haynes, Carol

Best Actress: Nina Hoss, Phoenix

Best Actor: Tom Hardy, Legend

Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina

Best Supporting Actor: Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies

Best Screenplay: The Big Short

Best First Film: Ex Machina

Best Foreign Language Film: Phoenix

Best Documentary: The Look of Silence

Best Animated Feature: Shaun the Sheep Movie

Here Are The Houston Film Critics Nominations!


Another one of my former hometowns has checked in with their nominations for the best of 2015!  The Houston Film Critics gave Ex Machina another nomination for best picture.  Wouldn’t it be kinda neat if Ex Machina snuck into the Oscar race as well?

BEST PICTURE:
The Big Short, Paramount
Ex Machina, A24 Films
Inside Out, Disney/PIXAR
Mad Max: Fury Road, Warner Bros.
The Martian, 20th Century Fox
The Revenant, 20th Century Fox
Room, A24 Films
Sicario, Lionsgate
Spotlight, Open Road Films
Steve Jobs, Universal

BEST DIRECTION OF A MOTION PICTURE:
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Ridley Scott, The Martian
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:
Brian Cranston, Trumbo
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Matt Damon, The Martian
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Tom Hardy, Legend

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE:
Brie Larsen, Room
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Charlize Theron, Mad Max: Fury Road
Emily Blunt, Sicario
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Michael Shannon, 99 Homes
Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Tom Hardy, The Revenant

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina

Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Rooney Mara, Carol

BEST SCREENPLAY:
Aaron Sorkin, Steve Jobs
Drew Goddard, The Martian
Emma Donaghu, Room
Josh Singer & Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Quentin Tarantino, The Hateful Eight

BEST ANIMATED FILM:
Anomalisa, Paramount
The Good Dinosaur, Disney/PIXAR
Inside Out, Disney/PIXAR
The Peanuts Movie, 20th Century Fox
Shaun the Sheep, StudioCanal

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Dariusz Wolski, The Martian
Emmanuel Lubezki, The Revenant
John Seale, Mad Max: Fury Road
Robert Richardson, The Hateful Eight
Roger Deakins, Sicario

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:
Amy, Altitude Film Distribution
Best of Enemies, Magnolia
Cartel Land, IFC Films
The Look of Silence, Drafthouse Films
Where to Invade Next, IMG Films

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
The Assassin, Well Go USA
Goodnight Mommy, Radius/TWC
Son of Saul, Sony Pictures Classic
The Tribe, Drafthouse Films
White God, Magnolia

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:
Ennio Moriccone, The Hateful Eight
Michael Giacchino, Inside Out
Junkie XL, Mad Max: Fury Road

Daniel Pemberton, Steve Jobs
Ryuichi Sakamoto, Alva Noto & Bryce Dessner, The Revenant

BEST ORIGINAL SONG:
“Love Me Like You Do,” music & lyrics by Savan Kotecha, Ilya Salmanzadeh, Tove Lo, Max Martin & Ali Payami, 50 Shades of Grey
“One Kind of Love,” music & lyrics by Brian Wilson & Scott Bennett, Love & Mercy
“See You Again,” music & lyrics by Wiz Khalifa, DJ Frank E, Charlie Puth & Andrew Cedar, Furious 7
“Simple Song #3,” music & lyrics by David Lang, Youth
“Writing’s on the Wall,” music & lyrics by Sam Smith & Jimmy Napes, Spectre

TEXAS INDEPENDENT FILM AWARD:
6 Years
7 Chinese Brothers
Last Man on the Moon
Results
Sir Doug and the Genuine Texas Cosmic Groove

BEST POSTER
Carol – Theatrical Poster
Ex Machina – Theatrical Poster
It Follows – Rear Window Alternate
Mad Max: Fury Road – ‘What A Lovely Day’ Alternate
Sicario – Theatrical Poster
The Walk – IMAX Alternate

WORST FILM OF THE YEAR:
Aloha, Columbia
The Boy Next Door, Universal
Fantastic Four, 20th Century Fox
Mortdecai, Lionsgate
Pixels, Columbia

The Infinitely Wise and Benevolent Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Loves Spotlight!


Dallas is my home -- deal with it, haters!

The Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics — that’s right, my hometown! — announced their picks for the best of 2015 yesterday!  Oddly enough, they give very little love to two of my favorite films of the year — Sicario and Mad Max: Fury Road — and instead went for Spotlight.

Anyway, here are the DFW winners!

Best Picture:

Spotlight (director — Tom McCarthy)

Best Animated Feature:

Inside Out (director — Pete Docter)

Best Foreign Language Film:

Son of Saul (Hungary)

Best Documentary:

Amy

Best Director:

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (The Revenant)

Best Actor:

Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant)

Best Actress:

Brie Larson (Room)

Best Supporting Actor:

Paul Dano (Love and Mercy)

Best Supporting Actress:

Rooney Mara (Carol)

Best Screenplay:

Spotlight (Josh Singer, TomMcCarthy)

Best Cinematography:

Emmanuel Lubezki (The Revenant)

Best Musical Score:

The Revenant (Bryce Dessner, Carsten Nicolai and Ryûichi Sakamoto)

Russell Smith Award (named for the late Dallas Morning News film critic. The honor is given annually to the best low-budget or cutting-edge independent film.)

Tangerine (director — Sean Baker)

Tell Them What You Love, St. Louis Film Critics!


Inside_Out_(2015_film)_poster

The St. Louis Film Critics announced their nominations yesterday and they gave a lot of love to one of my favorite films of the year, Inside Out!  Love you, St. Louis!

BEST FILM

Inside Out
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

BEST DIRECTOR

Todd Haynes, “Carol”
Alejandro G. Inarritu, “The Revenant”
Tom McCarthy, “Spotlight”
George Miller, “Mad Max”
Ridley Scott, “The Martian”

BEST ACTOR

Abraham Attah, “Beasts of No Nation”
Matt Damon, “The Martian”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Revenant”
Ian McKellen, “Mr. Holmes”
Eddie Redmayne, “The Danish Girl”

BEST ACTRESS

Cate Blanchett, “Carol”
Brie Larson, “Room”
Saoirse Ronan, “Brooklyn”
Charlize Theron, “Mad Max: Fury Road”
Alicia Vikander, “The Danish Girl”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Paul Dano, “Love and Mercy”
Idris Elba, “Beasts of No Nation”
Mark Ruffalo, “Spotlight”
Mark Rylance, “Bridge of Spies”
Sylvester Stallone, “Creed”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Jennifer Jason Leigh, “The Hateful Eight”
Rooney Mara, “Carol”
Kristen Stewart, “Clouds of Sils Maria”
Kate Winslet, “Steve Jobs”
Alicia Vikander, “Ex Machina”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

“Clouds of Sils Maria,” Olivier Assayas
“Ex Machina,” Alex Garland
“The Hateful Eight,” Quentin Tarantino
“Inside Out,” Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen
“Spotlight,” Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer

 

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

“Brooklyn,” Nick Hornby
“Creed,” Aaron Covington and Ryan Coogler
“The Martian,” Drew Goddard
“Room,” Emma Donoghue
“Steve Jobs,” Aaron Sorkin

BEST EDITING
The Big Short
Max Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Spotlight

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

“Beasts of No Nation,” Cary Joji Fukunaga
“Carol,” Edward Lachman
“The Hateful Eight,” Robert Richardson
“Max Max: Fury Road,” John Seale
“The Revenant,” Emmanuel Lubezki

BEST ART DIRECTION

Brooklyn
Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Max Max: Fury Road

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
The Walk

BEST MUSIC SCORE

“Carol,” Carter Burwell
“The Hateful Eight,” Ennio Morricone
“Inside Out,” Michael Giacchino
“It Follows,” Rich Vreeland (as Disasterpeace)
“Mad Max: Fury Road,” Junkie XL

BEST SOUNDTRACK

Amy

Dope
Love and Mercy
The Martian
Straight Outta Compton

BEST SONG

“See You Again” Furious 7
“Til It Happens to You” The Hunting Ground
“Feels Like Summer” Shaun the Sheep
“Writing’s on the Wall” Spectre
“Simple Song #3” Youth

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Anomalisa
The Good Dinosaur
Inside Out
The Peanuts Movie
Shaun the Sheep

BEST COMEDY

Inside Out
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Spy
Trainwreck
What We Do in the Shadows

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Amy
Best of Enemies
Cartel Land
The Hunting Ground
The Look of Silence

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

The Assassin
Goodnight Mommy
Phoenix
Son of Saul
Wild Tales

BEST SCENE

Creed’s first fight, “Creed”
Paul Walker farewell, “Furious 7”
Bear attack, “The Revenant”
Jack’s escape and rescue, “Room”
Walk between the Twin Towers, “The Walk”

SPECIAL RECOGNITION: Stunt work in “Mad Max: Fury Road”

The Chicago Film Critics Society Rounds Up The Usual Suspects!


 The Chicago Film Critics Society announced their nominations for the best of 2015 yesterday and it’s pretty much the usual suspects, with a few unexpected names tossed in as well!  Check them out below and try not to get on the Mayor’s bad side because I hear he’s one scary guy.

BEST PICTURE
Carol
Inside Out
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight

BEST DIRECTOR
Todd Haynes–Carol
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu–The Revenant
Tom McCarthy–Spotlight
Adam McKay–The Big Short
George Miller–Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST ACTOR
Christopher Abbott–James White
Leonardo DiCaprio–The Revenant
Michael Fassbender–Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne–The Danish Girl
Jason Segel–The End of the Tour

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett–Carol
Brie Larson–Room
Charlotte Rampling–45 Years
Saoirse Ronan–Brooklyn
Charlize Theron–Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Benicio Del Toro–Sicario
Sam Elliott–Grandma
Mark Rylance–Bridge of Spies
Michael Shannon–99 Homes
Sylvester Stallone–Creed

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jennifer Jason Leigh–Anomalisa
Jennifer Jason Leigh–The Hateful Eight
Cynthia Nixon–James White
Kristen Stewart–Clouds of Sils Maria
Alicia Vikander–Ex Machina

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Bridge of Spies–Matt Charman and Joel & Ethan Coen
Ex Machina–Alex Garland
The Hateful Eight–Quentin Tarantino
Inside Out–Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve and Josh Cooley
Spotlight–Tom McCarthy & Josh Singer

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Anomalisa–Charlie Kaufman
The Big Short–Adam McKay & Charles Randolph
Brooklyn–Nick Hornby
Room–Emma Donoghue
Steve Jobs–Aaron Sorkin

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Carol–Edward Lachman
The Hateful Eight–Robert RIchardson
Mad Max: Fury Road–John Seale
The Revenant–Emmanuel Lubezki
Sicario–Roger Deakins

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Carol–Carter Burwell
The Hateful Eight–Ennio Morricone
Inside Out–Michael Giacchino
It Follows–Disasterpeace
Mad Max: Fury Road–Junkie XL

BEST ART DIRECTION/PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Assassin
Brooklyn
Carol
Crimson Peak
Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST EDITING
The Big Short–Hank Corwin
Mad Max: Fury Road–Jason Ballantine & Margaret Sixel
The Martian–Pietro Scalia
The Revenant–Stephen Mirrione
Spotlight–Tom McArdle

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
The Assassin
The Look of Silence
Phoenix
Son of Saul
White God

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Amy
Cartel Land
The Hunting Ground
The Look of Silence
Where to Invade Next

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Anomalisa
The Good Dinosaur
Inside Out
The Peanuts Movie
The Shaun the Sheep Movie

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Christopher Abbott–James White
Bel Powley–The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Geza Rohrig–Son of Saul
Amy Schumer–Trainwreck
Jacob Tremblay–Room

MOST PROMISING FILMMAKER
Alex Garland–Ex Machina
Marielle Heller–The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Josh Mond–James White
Laszlo Nemes–Son of Saul
Bill Pohlad–Love & Mercy

The Southeastern Film Critics Celebrate A Film About The Northeast!


Spotlight

Yesterday, the Southeastern Film Critics announced their picks for the best of 2015.  They picked Spotlight for best picture and George Miller for best director, which seems to be a very popular trend as of late.

Top 10
3. Room
5. Carol
10. Trumbo

Best Actor
Winner: Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Runner-up: Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs

Best Actress
Winner: Brie Larson, Room
Runner-up: Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Runner-up: Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies

Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina
Runner-up: Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

Best Ensemble
Winner: Spotlight
Runner-up: The Big Short

Best Director
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Runner-up: Tom McCarthy, Spotlight

Best Original Screenplay
Winner: Tom McCarthy, Josh Singer for Spotlight
Runner-up: Bob Petersen, Pete Docter for Inside Out

Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner: Emma Donoghue for Room
Runner-up: Charles Randolph and Adam McKay for The Big Short

Best Documentary
Winner: Amy
Runner-up: Best of Enemies

Foreign Language
Winner: Son of Saul
Runner-up: The Assassin

Best Animated Film 
Winner: Inside Out
Runner-up: Anomalisa

Best Cinematography
Winner: John Seale for Mad Max: Fury Road
Runner-up: Luca Bigazzi for Youth

The Gene Wyatt Award for the Film that Best Evokes the Spirit of the South 
Finders Keepers