Category Archives: Film

Rangers of Fortune (1940, directed by Sam Wood)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

After narrowly avoiding execution by a firing squad in Mexico, three good natured outlaws head back to Texas.  Gil (Fred MacMurray) is their leader, a former army officer.  Antonio (GIlbert Roland) is the charming caballero.  George (Albert Dekker!) is the punch-drunk former prizefighter who provides comedic relief.  When they reach Texas, they meet and become involved in the efforts of a newspaper publisher (Brandon Tynan) and his daughter (Betty Brewer) to free their hometown from the control of an aristocratic landowner named Col. Rebstock (Joseph Schildkraut), who rules the town with the help of a sadistic group of cowboys.  It turns out that the three outlaws aren’t so bad while the respectable and wealthy Col. Rebstock is as bad as they come.

Rangers of Fortune is a standard 1940’s western programmer, though it’s distinguished by a better than usual cast and the quick-paced direction of Sam Wood.  It starts out almost as a comedy, with MacMurray, Roland, and Dekker cracking jokes and getting the better of almost anyone that they come across.  The screenwriter of Rangers of Fortune, Frank Butler, also wrote some of Bing Crosby and Bob Hope’s road films and he’s just as good as coming up with comedic dialogue for the team of MacMurray, Roland, and Dekker as he was for Hope and Crosby.

But the movie takes a serious turn once MacMurray, Roland, and Dekker cross the Texas border and they discover that Col. Rebstock will do almost anything and kill just about anyone to keep his hold on the town.  Even a successful scheme to install Gil as sheriff just leads to more innocent people dying.  When Rangers of Fortune turns dark, it turns very dark, with characters, who we usually don’t expect to die in a film like this, meeting a violent end.  Though it won’t convert any skeptics, it’s an interesting film for those who are already fans of old Hollywood westerns.

Rangers of Fortune has never gotten a proper video release but it is on YouTube.  Unfortunately, the copy uploaded to YouTube was in terrible condition so it’s difficult to fairly judge the film’s production values.  However, even on a damaged print, the natural authority of Fred MacMurray’s lead performance comes through and Joseph Schildkraut is as good a villain as always.  Patricia Morrison plays the prettiest girl in town and, even on YouTube, it’s easy to see why every man in town is competing for her attentions.  Seeing Albert Dekker, usually cast as intelligent and often conniving character, playing dumb is also an interesting experience, even on a bad print.  Hopefully, someday, Rangers of Fortune will get a decent restoration.

Here Are The 2021 SAG Nominations!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

This morning, the Screen Actors Guild announced their nominees for the best performances of 2021!  Getting a SAG nomination does not necessarily mean that a performer is guaranteed to get an Oscar nomination but it’s definitely a step in the right direction.  The Actors Branch is the biggest branch of the Academy and all the members of the Actors Branch are a member of SAG.  However, the majority of the people in SAG are not members of the Academy’s Actors Branch, which is why it’s rare that SAG and the Oscars ever line up 100%.

Looking over the SAG nominations, it’s good news for Don’t Look Up and House of Gucci, two Oscar contenders that have not been particularly popular with the regional critics.  It’s bad news for Kristen Stewart, whose acclaimed performance in Spencer was not nominated.  It’s also bad news — really bad news — for Mass, which is the type of film that should have received at least a Best Ensemble nomination.  I’m also a little surprised that West Side Story did not pick an ensemble nomination, though Ariana DeBose was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

The Power of the Dog was not nominated for Best Ensemble but it did pick up nominations for Benedict Cumberbatch, Kisten Dunst, and Kodi Smit-McPhee so I would say the film is definitely in good shape.

For those keeping track of Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s Oscar chances, the lack of a Best Stunt Ensemble nomination should be a bit of a warning sign that it may not happen.

That nomination for Don’t Look Up is going to bother me for at least the next four months.

Here are the SAG nominees!

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A CAST IN A MOTION PICTURE
Belfast
CODA
Don’t Look Up
House of Gucci
King Richard

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Jessica Chastain – The Eyes Of Tammy Faye
Olivia Colman – The Lost Daughter
Lady Gaga – House of Gucci
Jennifer Hudson – Respect
Nicole Kidman – Being The Ricardos

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING  ROLE
Javier Bardem – Being The Ricardos
Benedict Cumberbatch – The Power Of The Dog
Andrew Garfield – Tick, Tick…Boom!
Will Smith – King Richard
Denzel Washington – The Tragedy of Macbeth

OUTSTANDING  PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Caitriona Balfe – Belfast
Cate Blanchett – Nightmare Alley
Ariana DeBose – West Side Story
Kirsten Dunst – The Power Of The Dog
Ruth Negga – Passing

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A  SUPPORTING ROLE
Ben Affleck – The Tender Bar
Bradley Cooper – Licorice Pizza
Troy Kotsur – CODA
Jared Leto – House of Gucci
Kodi Smit-McPhee – The Power Of The Dog

OUTSTANDING ACTION PERFORMANCE BY A STUNT ENSEMBLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
Black Widow
Dune
The Matrix: Resurrections
No Time to Die
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A TELEVISION MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Murray Bartlett – The White Lotus
Oscar Isaac – Scenes from a Marriage
Michael Keaton – Dopesick
Ewan McGregor – Halston
Evan Peters – Mare Of Easttown

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A TELEVISION MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Jennifer Coolidge – The White Lotus
Cynthia Erivo – Genius: Aretha
Margaret Qualley – Maid
Jean Smart – Mare Of Easttown
Kate Winslet – Mare Of Easttown

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE IN A COMEDY  SERIES
The Great
Hacks
The Kominski Method
Only Murders in the Building
Ted Lasso

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Michael Douglas – The Kominski Method
Brett Goldstein – Ted Lasso
Steve Martin – Only Murders in the Building
Martin Short – Only Murders in the Building
Jason Sudeikis – Ted Lasso

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A  COMEDY SERIES
Elle Fanning – The Great
Sandra Oh – The Chair
Jean Smart – Hacks
Juno Temple – Ted Lasso
Hannah Waddingham – Ted Lasso

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE IN A DRAMA SERIES
The Handmaid’s Tale
The Morning Show
Squid Game
Succession
Yellowstone

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A DRAMA  SERIES
Brian Cox – Succession
Billy Crudup – The Morning Show
Kieran Culkin – Succession
Jeremy Strong – Succession
Lee jung-jae – Squid Game

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jennifer Aniston – The Morning Show
Jung Ho-Yeon – Squid Game
Elisabeth Moss – The Handmaid’s Tale
Sarah Snook – Succession
Reese Witherspoon – The Morning Show

OUTSTANDING ACTION PERFORMANCE BY A STUNT ENSEMBLE IN A DRAMA OR COMEDY SERIES
Cobra Kai
Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Loki
Mare Of Easttown
Squid Game

The Austin Film Critics Association Honors The Power of the Dog

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the Austin Film Critics Association announced their picks for the best of 2021 and it was another victory for Power of the Dog!

Here are all of the winners from Austin:

Best Film
Dune
The Green Knight
Licorice Pizza
Pig
The Power of the Dog

​Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza
Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi – Drive My Car
David Lowery – The Green Knight
Denis Villeneuve – Dune

Best Actress
Olivia Colman – The Lost Daughter
Penelope Cruz – Parallel Mothers
Alana Haim – Licorice Pizza
Kristen Stewart – Spencer
Agathe Rouselle – Titane

Best Actor
Nicolas Cage – Pig
Benedict Cumberbatch – The Power of the Dog
Andrew Garfield – Tick Tick… Boom!
Simon Rex – Red Rocket
Denzel Washington – The Tragedy of Macbeth

Best Supporting Actress
Ariana DeBose – West Side Story
Ann Dowd – Mass
Kirsten Dunst – The Power of the Dog
Kathryn Hunter – The Tragedy of Macbeth
Ruth Negga – Passing

Best Supporting Actor
Bradley Cooper – Licorice Pizza
Colman Domingo – Zola
Vincent Lindon – Titane
Kodi Smit-McPhee – The Power of the Dog
Jeffrey Wright – The French Dispatch

Best Ensemble
Dune
The French Dispatch
The Harder they Fall
Licorice Pizza
Mass

Best Original Screenplay
Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza
Wes Anderson – The French Dispatch
Vanessa Block and Michael Sarnoski – Pig
Fran Kranz – Mass
Mike Mills – C’mon C’mon

Best Adapted Screenplay
Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog
Ryusuke Hamagucki and Takamasa Oe – Drive My Car
Sian Heder – CODA
David Lowery – The Green Knight
Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve, and Eric Roth – Dune

Best Cinematography
Bruno Delbonnel – The Tragedy of Macbeth
Greig Fraser – Dune
Janusz Kaminski – West Side Story
Andrew Droz Palermo – The Green Knight
Ari Wegner – The Power of the Dog

Best Editing
Andy Jurgensen – Licorice Pizza
Peter Sciberras – The Power of the Dog
Claire Simpson – The Last Duel
Michael Kahn & Sarah Broshar – West Side Story
Joe Walker – Dune

Best Original Score
Jonny Greenwood – The Power of the Dog
Jonny Greenwood – Spencer
Daniel Hart – The Green Knight
Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe – Candyman
Hans Zimmer – Dune

Best International Film
Drive My Car
Lamb
Parallel Mothers
Titane
The Worst Person in the World

Best Documentary
Flee
The Rescue
The Sparks Brothers
Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
The Velvet Underground

Best Animated Film
Belle
Encanto
Flee
Luca
The Mitchells vs the Machines

Best Voice Acting/Animated/Digital Performance
Stephanie Beatriz – Encanto
Abbi Jacobson – The Mitchells vs the Machines
John Leguizamo – Encanto
Danny McBride – The Mitchells vs the Machines
Kaho Nakamura – Belle

Best Stunts
Dune
No Time to Die
Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Spiderman: No Way Home
Raging Fire

Best First Film
Maggie Gyllenhaal – The Lost Daughter
Rebecca Hall – Passing
Fran Kranz – Mass
Michael Samoski – Pig
Emma Seligman – Shiva Baby

The Robert R. “Bobby” McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award
Ariana DeBose – West Side Story
Alana Haim – Licorice Pizza
Emilia Jones – CODA
Agathe Rousselle – Titane
Rachel Sennott – Shiva Baby

SPECIAL AWARD: to director Shatara Michelle Ford for “Test Pattern,” the Best Film Made in Austin by a Non-Austin Filmmaker

As part of the organization’s annual voting, the Austin Film Critics Association awards titles with local ties — works made by directors who live in Austin. This award is distinct to our group of critics, recognizing the talent of Austin filmmakers as we celebrate the best films of the year.

In alphabetical order, the five nominees for Best Austin Film 2021 are:

The Carnivores (dir. Caleb Michael Johnson)
The Get Together (dir. Will Bakke)
Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles (co-dir. Robert Rodriguez)
Queens of Pain (co-dir. Cassie Hay)
Without Getting Killed or Caught (dirs. Tamara Saviano and Paul Whitfield)

Here Are The 2021 Nominations of the Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Guild!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

When it comes to predicting the Oscars, the Guilds are usually a better precursor than the regional critics.  That’s because the guilds usually include a number of Academy members.  As such, the Guild nominations are a good indication of how the film industry and the Oscar voters are feeling about the contenders.

The Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Guild got things started yesterday, with their nominations for the best makeup and hairstyling of 2021!  There’s not really a lot of surprises below.

House of Gucci got a nomination as did The Eyes of Tammy Faye.  One would expect them to be nominated so it would have been a big deal if they had been snubbed.  But they weren’t, so who cares?

Dune got two nominations and seems a lock to pick up the most technical nominations and wins when it comes to the Oscars.

Don’t Look Up was also nominated for some reason.  Don’t Look Up is a terrible movie but I have a feeling it’s going to a contender.  Voting for it is a way to say you’re concerned about climate change without making any inconvenient changes in your life.  If Adam McKay could pick up a nomination for something as bad as Vice, he should be able to slip in with Don’t Look Up.

Anyway, here are all of the film nominees:

Best Contemporary Make-Up, Feature-Length Motion Picture
“Black Widow” (Paul Gooch, Paula Price, Deborah LaMia Denaver)
“Coming 2 America” (Merc Arceneaux, Vera Steimberg, Trent Simmons, Caroline Monge)
“Don’t Look Up” (Liz Bernstrom, Julie LeShane, Claudia Moriel, Joseph Dulude ll)
“No Time to Die” (Daniel Phillips)
“The Suicide Squad” (Heba Thorisdottir, Greg Funk, Sabrina Wilson, Jillian Erickson)

Best Period and/or Character Make-Up, Feature-Length Motion Picture
“Being the Ricardos” (Ana Lozano, David Craig Forrest, Kyra Panchenko, Denise Paulson)
“Cruella” (Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne, Guy Common)
“Dune” (Donald Mowat, Jo-Ann MacNeil, Rocky Faulkner, Jennifer Stanfield)
“House of Gucci” (Jana Carboni, Sarah Tanno, Daniel Lawson Johnston, Stefania Pellegini)
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye” (Linda Dowds, Ashleigh Chavis-Wolfe, Renee Goodwin)

Best Special Make-Up Effects, Feature-Length Motion Picture
“Coming 2 America” (Mike Marino, Michael Fontaine, Yoichi Art Sakamoto, Diana Choi)
“Dune” (Donald Mowat, Love Larson, Eva von Bahr, Rocky Faulkner)
“House of Gucci” (Göran Lundström, Federica Castelli)
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye” (Justin Raleigh, Kelly Golden, Chris Hampton, Thom Floutz)
“The Suicide Squad” (Shane Mahan, Brian Sipe, Matt Sprunger, Greg Funk)

Best Contemporary Hair Styling, Feature-Length Motion Picture
“Coming 2 America” (Stacey Morris, Carla Farmer, Louisa Anthony, Victor Paz)
“In The Heights” (Betsy Reyes, Valerie Velez, Annemarie Bradley-Sherron, Diedre Harris)
“No Time to Die” (Daniel Phillips)
“The Matrix Resurrections” (Flora Moody, Shunika Terry, Kerrie Smith)
“The Suicide Squad” (Janine Rath-Thompson, Michelle Diamantides, Melizah Wheat, Kristen Saia)

Best Period Hair Styling and/or Character Hair Styling, Feature-Length Motion Picture
“Being the Ricardos” (Teressa Hill, Yvonne De Patis-Kupka Lindy Dunn, Kim Santantonio)
“Cruella” (Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne, Julia Vernon)
“House of Gucci” (Giuliano Mariano, Frederic Aspiras, Alexis Continente, Anna Carin Lock)
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye” (Stephanie Ingram, Betty Lou Skinner, Heather Hawkins, Bryson Conley)
“West Side Story” (Kay Georgiou, Jerry DeCarlo)

Griff the Invisible (2010, directed by Leon Ford)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

Griff (Ryan Kwanten) is a socially awkward young office worker who keep a rubber suit hidden away in his apartment.  When he returns home from work, he puts on the suit and searches the night for crimes to stop and criminals to thwart.. Or at least he thinks that he’s fighting crime. The neighbors seem to be afraid of the man in the rubber suit and there are posters on every street corner, asking if anyone can identity the masked voyeur who has been spotted walking about the neighborhood at night.  The only one his neighbors who appreciates him is the stray cat that waits every morning for a tin of tuna.

Though he might fight crime at night, no one thinks much of Griff during the day. His co-worker, Tony (Toby Schmitz), constantly bullies him. His older brother, Tim (Patrick Brammall), resents that he had to move back home to keep an eye on him and he is constantly asking Griff if he is having another breakdown.  Only the owner of the local hardware store is polite to Griff and that’s just because Griff spends a lot of money in the store, buying what he needs to make what he thinks will be an invisibility suit.

When Tim brings his new girlfriend, Melody (Maeve Dermody), over to meet Griff, she discovers that she has more in common with Griff than with Tim. Griff wants to be invisible while Melody wants to learn how to walk through solid objects. Melody and Griff could be the prefect crime fighting team and also the perfect romantic couple, but only if their fantasy world is allowed to exist uninterrupted.  That may be difficult because both Griff and Melody are coming under more and more pressure to get it togther, conform, and start living in the real world with everyone else.

Griff the Invisible is a likable comedy-drama from Australia. At first, it seemed like the film was going to idealize Griff’s fantasy existence but it’s actually fair in its treatment of Tim and everyone who wants Griff to snap out of it and join them in the real life. Being Griff’s friend or relative can be demanding. At the same time, Griff and Melody’s fantasy world is inviting too. Who hasn’t imagined themselves as a super hero at some point?  Most importantly, the pairing of Ryan Kwanten and Maeve Dermody works well. By the end of the movie, you’re happy that they have their fantasy as long as they also have each other.

Film Review: I Hear The Trees Whispering (dir by Jozsef Gallai)

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

A man named Will (Gabor Varga) has a new job. He spends his days in the wilderness, living in a small cabin and essentially keeping an eye out for anyone who might need help or who might be doing something that they shouldn’t be doing. His only company is his supervisor, June (Laura Saxon). He never meets June. He just hears her voice as he spends his days exploring the forest. Her voice sounds familiar to him, like someone from his recent past,

Will is a man hiding from the traumas of that past. His wife died in a tragic accident. His daughter is currently being raised by her grandfather (Larry Hankin). Will has next to no contact with her. He says it’s better that way. June tells him that almost everyone who accepts a job in the forest is trying to avoid something or escape some sort of tragedy. The forest is where people go to disappear.

June also explains that strange things are hidden in the forest,. Will comes across creepy and deserted buildings. He finds a backpack and makes a shocking discovery when he searches it. Some nights, he thinks that he might see a figure in the distance trying to give him some sort of coded message.

The latest film from director Joszef Gallai, I Hear The Trees Whispering is full of atmosphere. The majority of the film is shot from Will’s point of view. Indeed, we never see Will’s face. Instead, we hear his voice and occasionally, we see his hands while he’s searching for something. It’s a technique that puts us directly into Will’s mind. Just as he’s lost in the wilderness, so are we. Just as he’s hearing strange noises and trying to see where they’re coming from, so are we. It’s a technique the allows the film to capture the forest in all of it ominous beauty. One can see why Will would want to escape to the forest while also understanding how the isolation could drive someone to the point of madness. However, there’s another reason why the majority of the film is shot from WIll’s point of view, one that I won’t spoil beyond to say that it all pays off in an unexpected but effective twist during the film’s third act.

With a 78-minute running time, I Hear The Trees Whispering moves at a deliberate pace, Once again, it’s a film that’s far more concerned with setting the proper atmosphere and developing the characters of Will and June than with tossing in any cheap jump scares. The audience’s fear and anxiety comes from the fact that it’s impossible to watch the film without imagining how you would react if you found yourself in the same situation. Would you have the courage to leave the cabin and see where the noises were coming from? I probably wouldn’t but Will doesn’t really have a choice. He’s as much a prisoner of fate as he is a prisoner of his tragic past. Just as Jack Torrance was always meant to be the caretaker of the Overlook Hotel, Will was always meant to search the forest in search of answers.

As I mentioned earlier, there’s a big twist in the third act, one that I guarantee will take you by surprise and which will force you to reconsider everything that you’ve previously seen. That’s what a good twist does!

I Hear The Trees Whispering is an effectively atmospheric thriller, one that will leave you thinking long after the end credits have rolled.

The TSL’s Grindhouse: Space Mutiny (dir by David Winters)

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

“Arggggh!”

— Dave Ryder (Reb Brown) in Space Mutinty (1988)

Space Mutiny, a sci-fi epic from 1988, is full of dialogue about all sorts of political and philosophical concerns but none of it is quite as memorable as the quote above.  Dave Ryder says, “Argggggh!” a lot over the course of Space Mutiny.  He’s the newly appointed head of security for the Southern Sun, a gigantic spaceship that has spent the last 260 years traveling from Earth to a new planet.  Being head of security is important because there are some people on the Southern Sun who are plotting a mutiny.  Dave Ryder decides that the most effective way to battle the mutineers is to yell loudly and frequetly.  “ARGGGGGH!’ Ryder yells whenever he’s being shot at.  “ARGGGGGGGH!” he screams when he finds himself on a very slow and gradual collision course with the head of the mutineers.

When Dave isn’t saying stuff like, “Argggggh!,” he’s saying stuff like, “Go!  Go!  Go!”  When the bad guys open fire on him and his men, it’s time for them to “Go!  Go!  Go!”  When the mutineers are being chased, Dave is quick to tell everyone to “Go!  Go!  Go!”  He’s like the physical fitness trainer from Hell.  He never actually yells “Feel the burn!” but you can be damn well sure that he’s thinking it.  In fact, there’s a point in the movie where “Feel the burn!” actually would have been a good line.  Dave and his girlfriend, Lea (Cissie Cameron), set a mutineer on fire.  It’s actually a bit of a sadistic scene and it doesn’t come across as being the big hero moment that it’s obviously meant to be.  But, then again, Dave isn’t yelling because he’s a nice guy.  He’s yelling because he’s played by Reb Brown.  Reb Brown yelled all the way through Strike Force Commando.  Why wouldn’t he do the same for Space Mutiny?

Of course, Dave isn’t the only person barking out orders on the Southern Sun.  Cameron Mitchell plays the ship’s captain, a wise old man who looks like Santa Claus.  John Phillip Law is Kalgon, the main mutineer.  He laughs a lot.  Cissie Cameron is the captain’s daughter.  She falls for Ryder, despite the fact that she appears to be old enough to be Ryder’s mother.  (In real life, Reb Brown and Cissie Cameron are married and Cissie is only a few years older than Reb.  In Space Mutiny, she’s stuck with an unflattering hair style and is made up to look like an aging cheerleading coach.)  There’s also a woman who works on the ship’s bridge.  She’s killed in one scene, just to mysteriously turn up alive in the scene that follows.  In space, no one can hear the script supervisor.  Finally, there’s a group of alien witches who board the ship and spend the entire movie dancing in front of a ball of electricity.  Since they don’t actually interact with any of the main characters, it’s obvious that they were added to pad out the film’s running time.

One of the more interesting things about Space Mutnity is that Kalgon actually has a point.  It does seem kind of stupid to spend several hundred years traveling to just one planet when there’s other planets nearby that the ship could just as easily reach.  Indeed, the mission of the Southern Sun never makes that much sense and the Captain seems to be delusional in his insistence that it does.  The Captain’s unending faith and his long-flowing beard makes him come across like a minor biblical prophet, the type who always had to ask a major prophet to interpret his visions for hm.  The Captain does not come across like someone who really knows what he’s doing.  I don’t care how much Ryder screams, Kalgon had a point!

Today, Space Mutiny is best known for being featured on an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 and for later being taken apart by the Rifftrax crew.  Space Mutiny, though, is such an extremely silly movie that you really don’t even need any professionals to help you snark your way through it.  The film offers up such a treasure trove of material then even the most humorless among your friends will be a comedic genius by the time it ends.  It’s a fun movie, made even more so by the fact that the filmmakers apparently meant for the film to be taken seriously.  There’s a lot of talk about important issues like freedom, duty, and faith.  In the end, what you’ll remember is the screaming.

The San Diego Film Critics Society Honors The Power of the Dog!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the San Diego Film Critics Society announced its picks for the best of 2021 and it was another victory of Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog!

Here are all the winners from San Diego!  Honest question: it was universe does Don’t Look Up deserve the Best Ensemble award more than Mass?

Best Picture
BELFAST (RUNNER-UP)
CODA
DUNE
MASS
THE POWER OF THE DOG (WINNER)

Best Director
Kenneth Branagh – BELFAST (RUNNER-UP)
Jane Campion – THE POWER OF THE DOG (WINNER)
Guillermo del Toro – NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Maggie Gyllenhaal – THE LOST DAUGHTER
Denis Villeneuve – DUNE

Best Actor
Nicolas Cage – PIG (WINNER)
Benedict Cumberbatch – THE POWER OF THE DOG
Peter Dinklage – CYRANO
Andrew Garfield – TICK, TICK…BOOM! (RUNNER-UP)
Jude Hill – BELFAST

Best Actress
Caitriona Balfe – BELFAST (WINNER TIE)
Olivia Colman – THE LOST DAUGHTER
Penelope Cruz – PARALLEL MOTHERS (WINNER TIE)
Emilia Jones – CODA
Kristen Stewart – SPENCER

Best Supporting Actor
Ben Affleck – THE TENDER BAR (RUNNER-UP)
Ciaran Hinds – BELFAST
Jason Isaacs – MASS (WINNER)
Troy Kotsur – CODA
Kodi Smit-McPhee – THE POWER OF THE DOG

Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchett – NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Ariana DeBose – WEST SIDE STORY (RUNNER-UP)
Ann Dowd – MASS
Ruth Negga – PASSING (WINNER)
Martha Plimpton – MASS

Best Comedic Performance
Bradley Cooper – LICORICE PIZZA (WINNER)
Leonardo DiCaprio – DON’T LOOK UP
Jamie Dornan – BARB AND STAR GO TO VISTA DEL MAR
David Harbour – BLACK WIDOW (RUNNER-UP)
Simon Rex – RED ROCKET

​Best Youth Performance (Performers under the age of 16)
Mckenna Grace – GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE (RUNNER-UP)
Jude Hill – BELFAST (WINNER)
Daniel Ranieri – THE TENDER BAR
Saniyya Sidney – KING RICHARD (RUNNER-UP)
Demi Singleton – KING RICHARD

Best Original Screenplay
Pedro Almodovar – PARALLEL MOTHERS
Kenneth Branagh – BELFAST (RUNNER-UP)
Fran Kranz – MASS (WINNER)
Adam McKay – DON’T LOOK UP (RUNNER-UP)
Michael Sarnoski – PIG

Best Adapted Screenplay
Jane Campion – THE POWER OF THE DOG (WINNER)
Joel Coen – THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH
Guillermo del Toro, Kim Morgan – NIGHTMARE ALLEY (RUNNER-UP)
Rebecca Hall – PASSING
Sian Heder – CODA

Best Documentary
FLEE (RUNNER-UP)
MY NAME IS PAULI MURRAY
SUMMER OF SOUL (WINNER)
VAL
THE VELVET UNDERGROUND

Best Animated Film
ENCANTO
FLEE (RUNNER-UP)
LUCA (WINNER)
THE MITCHELLS VS. THE MACHINES
RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON

​Best Foreign Language Film
DRIVE MY CAR
I’M YOUR MAN (RUNNER-UP)
LAMB
PARALLEL MOTHERS (WINNER)
THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD

Best Editing
Úna Ní Dhonghalle – BELFAST (RUNNER-UP)
Paula Huidobro – CODA
Myron Kerstein – IN THE HEIGHTS (WINNER)
Joshua L. Pearson – SUMMER OF SOUL
Joe Walker – DUNE

Best Cinematography
Alice Brooks – IN THE HEIGHTS
Bruno Delbonnel – THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH (RUNNER-UP)
Greig Fraser – DUNE (WINNER)
Dan Laustsen – NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Ari Wegner – THE POWER OF THE DOG

Best Production Design
Jim Clay – BELFAST
Tamara Deverell – NIGHTMARE ALLEY (WINNER)
Grant Major – THE POWER OF THE DOG
Adam Stockhausen, Rena DeAngelo – THE FRENCH DISPATCH (RUNNER-UP)
Patrice Vermette, Richard Roberts, Zsuzsanna Sipos – DUNE

Best Visual Effects
DUNE (WINNER)
THE GREEN KNIGHT
NIGHTMARE ALLEY
SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS
SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME

Best Costumes
Jenny Beavan – CRUELLA (WINNER)
Odile Dicks-Mireaux – LAST NIGHT IN SOHO
Antionette Messam – THE HARDER THEY FALL (RUNNER-UP)
Jacqueline West, Bob Morgan – DUNE
Janty Yates – HOUSE OF GUCCI

Best Sound Design
Malte Bieler, Brandon Jones – A QUIET PLACE PART II (RUNNER-UP TIE)
Simon Chase, James Mather – BELFAST (RUNNER-UP TIE)
Theo Green, Dave Whitehead – DUNE (WINNER)
Nathan Robitaille – NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Dave Whitehead – THE POWER OF THE DOG (RUNNER-UP TIE)

Best Use of Music
BELFAST (RUNNER-UP TIE)
CRUELLA
IN THE HEIGHTS (RUNNER-UP TIE)
LAST NIGHT IN SOHO (WINNER)
WEST SIDE STORY (RUNNER-UP TIE)

Breakthrough Artist
Alana Haim – LICORICE PIZZA
Jude Hill – BELFAST (RUNNER-UP)
Emilia Jones – CODA (WINNER)
Fran Kranz – MASS
Anthony Ramos – IN THE HEIGHTS

Best Ensemble
DON’T LOOK UP (WINNER)
DUNE
THE HARDER THEY FALL
IN THE HEIGHTS
MASS

Best Body of Work
Jonny Greenwood – LICORICE PIZZA, THE POWER OF THE DOG & SPENCER

End of a Gun (2016, directed by Keoni Waxman)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

Decker (Steven Seagal) is a former DEA agent who now lives in France.  Lisa Durant (Jade Ewen) is a stripper who Decker saves from getting beat up one night.  Decker and Lisa become lovers and Lisa recruits Decker to help her steal two million dollars from a sadistic drug lord named Gage (Florin Piersic, Jr.).  Gage doesn’t like having his money stolen so he has his men kidnap Lisa.  Decker eventually gets around to trying to do something about it.

First question: Why is this movie set in France?  There’s nothing notably French about the story or any of the characters.  According to Wikipedia, End of a Gun was filmed in Romania, New Orleans, and Atlanta.  The movie does include stock footage of the Eiffel Tower and there’s a French flag in one scene.

Second question: who was this movie made for?  Will Seagal fans want to see their man Steve standing in a corner while his stunt double handles all of the action?  I know Seagal has claimed that he did all of his own stunts in End of a Gun but it’s hard not to notice that Decker’s face is never visible whenever he fights anyone.  Even though Seagal is not as heavy as he’s been in some of his direct-to-video films, he still seems out of breath for much of the film.  Seagal still whispers all of his lines.

Seagal is not in much of End of a Gun.  Most of the movie is about Gage looking for Decker and Lisa.  That works to the film’s advantage.  The more Seagal is in a film, the more difficult it gets not to focus on his deficiencies as an actor.  Steve showed up long enough to pick up his paycheck and probably sat in on the stripper casting call.  It’s all in a day’s work.

Here are The Nominees Of The Seattle Film Critics Society!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the Seattle Film Critics Society announced their nominees for the best of 2021!  They even give out an award for villain of the year, which I really like.

The winners will be announced on January 17th.  The nominees are below:

Best Picture of the Year
CODA (Apple TV+)
Drive My Car (Janus Films)
Dune (Warner Bros.)
The Green Knight (A24)
In the Heights (Warner Bros.)
Licorice Pizza (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
Pig (NEON)
The Power of the Dog (Netflix)
Titane (NEON)
West Side Story (20th Century Studios)

Best Director
Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog
Julia Ducournau – Titane
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi – Drive My Car
David Lowery – The Green Knight
Denis Villeneuve – Dune

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Nicolas Cage – Pig
Benedict Cumberbatch – The Power of the Dog
Andrew Garfield – tick, tick…BOOM!
Dev Patel – The Green Knight
Simon Rex – Red Rocket

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Alana Haim – Licorice Pizza
Lady Gaga – House of Gucci
Renate Reinsve – The Worst Person in the World
Agathe Rousselle – Titane
Kristen Stewart – Spencer

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Colman Domingo – Zola
Troy Kotsur – CODA
Vincent Lindon – Titane
Kodi Smit-McPhee – The Power of the Dog
Jeffrey Wright – The French Dispatch

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Ariana DeBose – West Side Story
Ann Dowd – Mass
Kirsten Dunst – The Power of the Dog
Aunjanue Ellis – King Richard
Ruth Negga – Passing

Best Ensemble Cast
Dune – Jina Jay, Francine Maisler, casting directors
In the Heights – Tiffany Little Canfield, Bernard Telsey, casting directors
Licorice Pizza – Cassandra Kulukundis, casting director
Mass – Henry Russell Bergstein, Allison Estrin, casting directors
The Power of the Dog – Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba, Nina Gold, casting directors

Best Action Choreography
In the Heights
No Time to Die
Nobody
Raging Fire
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Best Screenplay
Drive My Car – Ryûsuke Hamaguchi & Takamasa Oe
The Green Knight – David Lowery
Mass – Fran Kranz
Pig – Michael Sarnoski
The Power of the Dog – Jane Campion

Best Animated Feature
Encanto (Walt Disney Pictures) – Jared Bush, Byron Howard, director; Charise Castro Smith, co-director
Flee (NEON) – Jonas Poher Rasmussen, director
Luca (Walt Disney Pictures) – Enrico Casarosa, director
The Mitchells vs. The Machines (Netflix) – Michael Rianda, director; Jeff Rowe, co-director
Raya and the Last Dragon (Walt Disney Pictures) – Don Hall, Carlos López Estrada, director; Paul Briggs, John Ripa, co-director

Best Documentary Feature
Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry (Apple TV+) – R.J. Cutler, director
Flee (NEON) – Jonas Poher Rasmussen, director
The Rescue (National Geographic Documentary Films/Greenwich Entertainment) – Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, directors
Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (Hulu) – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, director
Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror (Severin Films) – Kier-La Janisse, director

Best Film Not in the English Language
Drive My Car (Janus Films) – Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, director
Flee (NEON) – Jonas Poher Rasmussen, director
The Hand of God (Netflix) – Paolo Sorrentino, director
Titane (NEON) – Julia Ducournau, director
The Worst Person in the World (NEON) – Joachim Trier, director

Best Cinematography
Dune – Greig Fraser
The Green Knight – Andrew Droz Palermo
The Power of the Dog – Ari Wegner
The Tragedy of Macbeth – Bruno Delbonnel
West Side Story – Janusz Kaminski

Best Costume Design
Cruella – Jenny Beavan
Dune – Jacqueline West, Robert Morgan
The Green Knight – Malgosia Turzanska
House of Gucci – Janty Yates
Spencer – Jacqueline Durran

Best Film Editing
Drive My Car – Azusa Yamazaki
Dune – Joe Walker
The Power of the Dog – Peter Sciberras
Titane – Jean-Christophe Bouzy
West Side Story – Michael Kahn, Sarah Broshar

Best Original Score
Dune – Hans Zimmer
The French Dispatch – Alexandre Desplat
The Green Knight – Daniel Hart
The Power of the Dog – Jonny Greenwood
Spencer – Jonny Greenwood

Best Production Design
Dune – Patrice Vermette (Production Design); Zsuzsanna Sipos (Set Decoration)
The French Dispatch – Adam Stockhausen (Production Design); Rena DeAngelo (Set Decoration)
The Green Knight – Jade Healy (Production Design); Jenny Oman (Set Decoration)
Nightmare Alley – Tamara Deverell (Production Design); Shane Vieau (Set Decoration)
West Side Story – Adam Stockhausen (Production Design); Rena DeAngelo (Set Decoration)

Best Visual Effects
Dune – Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, Brian Connor, Gerd Nefzer
The Green Knight – Eric Saindon, Michael Cozens
The Matrix Resurrections – Dan Glass, Huw J. Evans, Tom Debenham, J.D. Schwalm
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – Christopher Townsend, Joe Farrell, Sean Walker, Dan Oliver
Spider-Man: No Way Home – Kelly Port, Chris Waegner, Scott Edelstein, Dan Sudick

Best Youth Performance (18 years of age or younger upon start of filming):
Jude Hill – Belfast
Cooper Hoffman – Licorice Pizza
Emilia Jones – CODA
Woody Norman – C’mon C’mon
Joséphine Sanz – Petite Maman

Villain of the Year:
Baron Vladimir Harkonnen – Dune – portrayed by Stellan Skarsgård
The Green Goblin/Norman Osborn – Spider-Man: No Way Home – portrayed by Willem Dafoe
Phil Burbank – The Power of the Dog – portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch
Rufus Buck – The Harder They Fall – portrayed by Idris Elba
Xu Wenwu – Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – portrayed by Tony Leung