The Online Film Critics Society announced their nominations today. Along with the usual suspects, the 7 and a half hour documentary OJ: Made in America also picked up a nomination for best picture.
Damien Chazelle – La La Land
Barry Jenkins – Moonlight
Pablo Larraín – Jackie
Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester By the Sea
Denis Villeneuve – Arrival
Best Actor
Casey Affleck – Manchester By the Sea
Adam Driver – Paterson
Ryan Gosling – La La Land
Viggo Mortensen – Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington – Fences
Best Actress
Amy Adams – Arrival
Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Ruth Negga – Loving
Natalie Portman – Jackie
Emma Stone – La La Land
Best Supporting Actor
Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
Tom Bennett – Love & Friendship
Jeff Bridges – Hell or High Water
Lucas Hedges – Manchester By the Sea
Michael Shannon – Nocturnal Animals
Best Supporting Actress
Viola Davis – Fences
Lily Gladstone – Certain Women
Naomie Harris – Moonlight
Octavia Spencer – Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams – Manchester By the Sea
Arrival – Eric Heisserer, Ted Chiang
Elle – David Birke, Philippe Djian
Love & Friendship – Whit Stillman Moonlight – Barry Jenkins, Tarell Alvin McCraney
Nocturnal Animals – Tom Ford
Best Editing
Arrival – Joe Walker
Cameraperson – Nels Bangerter
Jackie – Sebastian Sepulveda La La Land – Tom Cross Moonlight – Joi McMillon, Nat Sanders
Best Cinematography
Arrival – Bradford Young
Jackie – Stéphane Fontaine La La Land – Linus Sandgren Moonlight – James Laxton
The Neon Demon – Natasha Braier
Best Film Not in the English Language
Elle – France
The Handmaiden – South Korea
Neruda – Chile
The Salesman – Iran
Toni Erdmann – Germany
Best Documentary
13th
Cameraperson
I Am Not Your Negro
O.J.: Made in America Weiner
Best Non-U.S. Release
After the Storm
The Death of Louis XIV
The Girl With All the Gifts
Graduation
Nocturma
Personal Shopper
A Quiet Passion
Staying Vertical
The Unknown Girl
Yourself and Yours
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM Elle The Handmaiden A Man Called Ove Toni Erdmann Things to Come
BEST DIRECTOR
Damien Chazelle — La La Land
Barry Jenkins — Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan — Manchester by the Sea
David Mackenzie — Hell or High Water
Chan-woo Park — The Handmaiden
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Chung-hoo Chung — The Handmaiden
James Laxton — Moonlight
Giles Nuttgens — Hell or High Water
Linus Sandgren — La La Land
Bradford Young — Arrival
BEST ACTOR
Casey Affleck — Manchester by the Sea
Joel Edgerton — Loving
Ryan Gosling — La La Land
Viggo Mortensen — Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington — Fences
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mahershala Ali — Moonlight
Jeff Bridges — Hell or High Water
Ben Foster — Hell or High Water
Lucas Hedges — Manchester by the Sea
Sam Neill — Hunt for the Wilderpeople
BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening — 20th Century Women
Kate Beckinsale — Love & Friendship
Ruth Negga — Loving
Natalie Portman — Jackie
Emma Stone — La La Land
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Viola Davis — Fences
Greta Gerwig — 20th Century Women
Naomie Harris — Moonlight
Nicole Kidman — Lion
Michelle Williams — Manchester by the Sea
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Damien Chazelle — La La Land
Barry Jenkins — Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan — Manchester by the Sea
Mike Mills — 20th Century Women
Taylor Sheridan — Hell or High Water
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Tom Ford — Nocturnal Animals
Eric Heisserer — Arrival
Seo-kyeong Jeong and Chan-wook Park — The Handmaiden
Whit Stillman — Love & Friendship
Taika Waititi — Hunt for the Wilderpeople
KEN HANKE MEMORIAL TAR HEEL AWARD
(To an artist or film with a special connection to North Carolina.)
Anthony Mackie
Jeff Nichols Starving the Beast
Gentle Readers, this has been a sad year. We lost so many great artists from David Bowie to Carrie Fisher, we had a sickening election year, and it seems like 2016 itself has anthropomorphized into a evilly sapient entity bent upon death and misery. There has never been a time more critical for a good…no great comedy/drama- People of Earth is that show. This show has made me laugh and sometimes brought me to no kidding emotional moments.
The writing is amazingly quick and sharp. There are true – No Shit Legit geniuses working in their Writers’ Room, but that would fall flat without the vaudevillian levels of perfect timing and delivery of the cast. I knew that Oscar Nunez, Ana Gasteyer, H Jon Benjamin, Brian Huskey, and Wyatt Cynac would deliver great drama and comedy, but the deep newcomer talent stood alone and improved upon the ensemble: Da’vine Joy, Daniel Sherman, Bjorn Gustafsson, Nancy Lenehan, Tracee Chimo, Ken Hall, Alice Wetterlund, Debra McCabe, and Luka Jones all provided excellent performances that were believable, funny, and pulled you into their world.
There was one actor that brought no kidding teary eyed moments: Michael Cassidy. I saw him on Smallville and bit parts, but on People of Earth, he delivered powerful performances week after week. Watch this man because you’re seeing the next Tom Hanks. The obvious casting would be for action roles, but if he’s judicious and picks roles that let him push his drama and comedy chops, the next Tom Hanks he shall be. You read it here first!
Cold Open: LOTR-G confesses that he hasn’t worked in months, is in love with a subject, and will shave his head (pick the lie). Scroty won’t hear it because he’s about to consummate his revenge again Gina using Nancy as his weapon. Scary! Ozzie shows up and Scroty wants to kill them both. LOTR-G subtly turns off the wifi, thwarting Scroty from his double homicide. It’s pretty awesome that it’s just a wifi router that could’ve been bought at a Walgreens! AWESOME! Ozzie shows Gina the drawings of him with his lizard friend.
Chelsea calls her husband on the way back from the concert and hears him with another woman, poising her for revenge sex with Father Doug.
Richard is on the side of the road and gets picked up by Margaret who tries to explain that Nancy is just not that into him, but it falls upon deaf ears.
Jonathan is eating cheap food with Officer Glimmer and we learn: Officer Glimmer is NOT an alien just a dead beat lousy gambler who sold out to Aliens!!! LOTR-G approaches and tells Jonathan that Scroty’s going to kill subjects (Ozzie and Gina). Jonathan is visibly upset and goes to Ozzie’s rescue!
Ozzie and Gina are at the burger shack and decide to use hard-core therapy to get his memories out. Gina discloses that the last time she used this therapy it led to her patient’s death. They push forward anyway.
Jonathan confronts Nancy. It triggers his memory. He enters the shop and heads to the employees only door. The memory stops. Gina makes him go to the door.
LOTR-G is about to break up with Kelly, but instead they follow their hearts to Iceland. I’ve considered visiting Iceland, but I can be bored locally.Take that Iceland! SLAM! That’s right, that burn was cold …. as Ice! ICELAND YOU’VE BEEN FREEZER BURNED!!!
Jonathan tries to reason with Scroty that killing subjects is against the rules. Scroty insists that the rules don’t apply because the Main Ship is coming. They fight. Ahem: Scroty Man, Scroty Man, doing the things a Scroty can. What’s he like? Kind of a dick, Scroty Man. Scroty Man meets Jon-a-than, they have a fight Jon-a-than wins, Jon-a-than. [Sung]
Father Doug is practicing his keyboard and Chelsea arrives. She explains that her marriage is over. She throws herself at him and he catches it.
Richard arrives at Gina’s and sees Jonathan and Nancy fighting. Jonathan tries to reason with Scroty that he knows that he was in love with Kurt. It doesn’t go well. Scroty can’t handle Kurt’s death let alone that he was in love with a man.
Ozzie goes to the Employees Only Door, Gina distracts the store owner, and Ozzie bursts into the room. FLASH! Ozzie remembers his young self walking into the Employees only room years ago seeing the Reptilians in the back- some propose to kill him and Jonathan stops them. They respond like the serious yet lighthearted corporate frat guys I went to school with and still think of fondly of saying – Louis, I gotta say this one’s on you. Jonathan prevents them from killing Ozzie and convinces them to take him to the ship. Officer Glimmer finds Ozzie and arrests him.
Gerry is on his way to a date with Joy and his pulled into bailing out Ozzie and Gina. He wants Gerry to help him, but he’s all about insurance now.
Chelsea is trying to convince Father Doug that it’s okay that she likes him. Father Doug is trying to hold back.
Richard continues to watch Nancy and Jonathan fight. Jonathan wins, but Nancy’s self-destruct activates.
Gina hypnotizes Ozzie. They are on the ship and all of the Starcrossed member are being catalogued on the ship as children including GINA…DUN DUN DUN!!!
Jonathan is missing part of his face and it appears that both Richard and Jonathan might’ve been killed in the blast. *sniff*
The Main Ship docks and…..Scroty doesn’t recognize them at all.
Jonathan is rebooting Nancy and she recounts the Starcrossed members’ names and it’s confirmed that they were all abducted as children.
SONG: The songs on this series are awesomeballs! EG:
Chelsea and Father Doug get it on.
Richard is found by Gina and Ozzie. Ozzie learns that Jonathan is an Alien, LOTR-G and Kelly go to Iceland, Joy is stood up, and Gerry is abducted!!! CRAZYTOWN!!!
Continuing the roll call of those in arts & entertainment taken from us in 2016. Sadly, another name has been just been added to this list. RIP Carrie Fisher.
Singer Joey Feek
Actor Abel Fernandez (TV’s “The Untouchables”)
Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez
Actor Frank Finlay (“The Three Musketeers”)
‘Princess Leia’, actress/author Carrie Fisher
Jazz clarinetist Pete Fountain
Glenn Frey of The Eagles
Iconic nurse Greta Zimmer Friedman
Character actor Bernard Fox (“Bewitched”, “Hogan’s Heroes”)
“Initially, it was going to be footage of the band performing contrasted with footage of the movie. One member of the group objected to that because he wanted to feel that the group was a group on its own and not just tied to the movie, which was pretty valid motivation. I didn’t agree with it. I thought, ‘Hey, let’s capitalize on this movie.’ The same person came up with a storyboard mimicking Stallone’s rise to fortune to a young band from Chicago’s rise to fortune and notoriety. That became the video of a band woodshedding in a funky warehouse, then walking down the street in a funky part of town with determination on their face and eventually hitting the big stage and performing the song. That’s what came out. It was a popular video, but it was in the very early days of video. I look at it now and just cringe because it was so stiff and primitive.” –Jim Peterik
Oh, Peterik. You can cut yourself some slack. Pat Benatar can beat this music video in the cringe-worthy department with the one for her song You Better Run. Plus, there’s always 1986’s The Karate Rap. The only bad thing I see in this music video is the ridiculous idea of having the band members simulate getting hit in a boxing ring. Otherwise, you’ve just got Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve followed by the alley from Never Say Never by Romeo Void swapped out for a garage, and it ends on the set of Talking In Your Sleep by The Romantics. I see nothing wrong with that, and it certainly didn’t belong on WatchMojo’s list of the Top 10 Ridiculous 1980s Music Videos. Besides, what’s better? A fun blood-pumping music video for Eye Of The Tiger that people remember, or a stage-performance video for Burning Heart? I’ll go with Eye Of The Tiger any day of the week.
The information on who directed this music video is a little murky. If you go on to mvdbase, then it says Victoria Rain Kiriakis. I couldn’t find any information on who she is. I have come across some videos mis-credited to someone on there before, so I am inclined to believe Songfacts, which tells me that William Dear directed it. If that’s true, then this music video could have been a lot worse. It could have had a sasquatch in it. William Dear directed Harry and the Hendersons (1987).
The year of 2016 has taken many of the music scene’s greatest. Prince, David Bowie and Glenn Frey just to name a few taken too soon. Now, George Michael joins his musical brethren as news of his passing on Christmas Day was announced and confirmed.
There’s not much to say other than any kid growing up during the late 80’s knew and listened to George Michael in some capacity or another. While he became famous as part of the British boy band WHAM! it was when he branched out on his own as a solo act that he hit megastar status. His solo debut album, Faith, would reach multi-platinum levels and each single released from the album and each video that ran in circulation on MTV would become instant hits.
My favorite song of his and this goes to his many excellent post-modern videos, would be the third single released from his debut album, “Father Figure.”.
Father Figure
That’s all I wanted
Something special, something sacred
In your eyes
For just one moment
To be bold and naked
At your side
Sometimes I think that you’ll never
Understand me (understand me)
Maybe this time is forever
Say it can be, woah
That’s all you wanted
Something special, someone sacred
In your life
Just for one moment
To be warm and naked
At my side
Sometimes I think that you’ll never
Understand me (understand me)
But something tells me together
We’d be happy, woah baby
I will be your father figure (oh baby)
Put your tiny hand in mine (I’d love to)
I will be your preacher teacher (be your daddy)
Anything you have in mind (it would make me)
I will be your father figure (very happy)
I have had enough of crime (please let me)
I will be the one who loves you
Till the end of time
That’s all I wanted
But sometimes love can be mistaken
For a crime
That’s all I wanted
Just to see my baby’s
Blue-eyed shine
This time I think that my lover
Understands me (understands me)
If we have faith in each other
Then we can be strong, baby
I will be your father figure
Put your tiny hand in mine (my baby)
I will be your preacher teacher
Anything you have in mind
I will be your father figure
I have had enough of crime
I will be the one who loves you
Till the end of time
If you are the desert, I’ll be the sea
If you ever hunger, hunger for me
Whatever you ask for, that’s what I’ll be
So when you remember the ones who have lied
Who said that they cared
But then laughed as you cried
Beautiful darling
Don’t think of me
Because all I ever wanted
It’s in your eyes
Baby, baby
And love can’t lie, no
(Greet me with the eyes of a child)
My love is always telling me so (Heaven is a kiss and a smile)
Just hold on, hold on
And won’t let you go, my baby
I will be your father figure
Put your tiny hand in mine
I will be your preacher teacher
Anything you have in mind
I will be your father figure
And I have had enough of crime
So I am gonna love you
Till the end of time
(I will be your father) I will be your (I will be your preacher) Father (I will be your father) I’ll be your daddy, whoa
I will be the one who loves you
Till the end of time
Open: Richard and Robot Nancy are on a date; however, Scroty is controlling Nancy’s reactions and movements (Descartes would have a field day with this episode). They have an awkward kiss and we learn that Scroty likes Ayn Rand. Scroty continues to ask questions about Gina and it occurs to Richard that Nancy is jealous and The One. Scroty resolves to hunt Gina down and kill her.
Ozzie is having food with his mom and needs to get critical documents, leading him to go to his father’s place.
Chelsea visits Father Doug. Father Doug is getting the band back together… by an Outlet Mall! Chelsea is crushing on him big time!
Gerry is selling insurance … rather well.
Starcrossed is a shambles: they meet at the furniture store and a barn. The barn is the Last Straw (wakka wakka wakka)! They disband.
Jonathan sees LOTR-G and is shocked that he’s working at a coffee shop. LOTR-G is really sweet and reminds me of people I knew in Vermont: quiet, in touch with their feelings, and salt of the earth types. Jonathan gets LOTR-G to give him a free coffee and his tips.
Ozzie visits his father who’s into buddhism for now. His father is a slob who keeps important documents in garbage bags. Ozzie finds a photo of him on a drug store horse ride, triggering a Beacon memory and a family meeting.
Father Doug is playing at the lounge and Chelsea show and groupies big time. It’s sweet.
Ozzie’s parents explains that they lost him at the grocery store. He describes a lizard person and they give him many drawings of him with this Lizard Man friend (Jonathan). In the past, Ozzie had gone into the back room and sees all of the Reptilians, including Jonathan (lizard Jonathan).
Chelsea goes to Father Doug’s motel room that he’s staying at for his gig and they pork. It’s very human. This show really knows how to balance the drama with the comedy.
We close with Gina enjoying a glass of wine while Nancy is lying in wait in the closet. Scary!
No awesome song this week, but a good episode in any case.
This past year, the Grim Reaper took a bumper crop from the worlds of film, television, music, sports, literature, and pop culture. Here at Cracked Rear Viewer, we salute those men and women who in some way touched our lives:
Television director Norman Abbott
New England Patriots great Julius Adams
Voice actor Joe Alaskey
Playwright Edward Albee (“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”)
‘The Greatest’, Muhammed Ali
Folk/Blues/Jazz star Mose Allison
Catholic TV host Mother Angelica
Actor Arthur Anderson (voice of the Lucky Charms Leprechaun)
Producer/voice actress Sylvia Anderson (“Thunderbirds”)
I probably won’t do one of these next year, but it happens to be the 50th anniversary of Kwanzaa. That, and I got lucky to come across a legit Kwanzaa music video. I say legit in the sense that it didn’t come across as something that was meant to be shown to children to teach them about the holiday.
When I went to this song, I was treated to a link to a hilarious video where someone was trying to make fun of Kwanzaa and brought up its founder’s past. I kept thinking: “You don’t want to go down that road. Your religion won’t survive the trip.” Besides, since at least 1997, Kwanzaa is no longer intended to be an adversarial holiday to Christmas. Why should it be? There’s no reason it needs to conflict with someone’s religious beliefs as its founder himself said.
As for the music video, it’s nice and simple. It touches on themes of Kwanzaa, but isn’t just educational like I the other Kwanzaa related music videos I came across. There is also something that I highly doubt Hoffman intended when making this music video. I thought Hoffman’s dancing reminded me of a famous music video, so I did mute the song and played Never Gonna Give You Up over it. At about two minutes and thirty seconds it does start to sync up. Its not as good as that Gumby video syncing up with the one for Torn by Natalie Imbruglia. Still, I thought I would mention it. I doubt Hoffman meant that to be the case. Nevertheless, I’ll give her credit for it anyways.
The post on YouTube is ambiguous as to who directed the music video. That’s why I left it blank. However, it does tell you who shot and edited it. That would be Nick Marcoux. I couldn’t find any information on him.