Tag Archives: Cailee Spaeny

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery Trailer

Posted on by Arleigh

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the third movie in Rian Johnson’s fun and twisty murder mystery series. Daniel Craig is back as the sharp detective Benoit Blanc, who’s got his work cut out for him with a seemingly impossible case this time. The movie is set in a small-town church with some pretty creepy secrets, and Blanc teams up with a young priest to crack the case. The cast is packed with great talent like Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, and Kerry Washington, so there’s a lot of star power mixed with sharp writing and those clever twists Johnson’s known for.

The movie mixes mystery, drama, and a bit of dark humor while diving into themes like faith, secrets, and lies. Benoit Blanc has to navigate a tangled web of hidden motives and dark pasts—all wrapped in the spooky atmosphere of the church and its community.

It’s dropping in theaters on November 26, 2025, and then hitting Netflix worldwide on December 12, so it’s definitely one to keep an eye out for whether you’re already a fan or just love a good whodunnit.

The Substance Wins In Columbus

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Columbus Film Critics Association has named The Substance the best film of 2024!

Best Film
Anora
The Brutalist
Challengers
Civil War
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Love Lies Bleeding
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
Sing Sing
The Substance

Best Director
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Denis Villeneuve – Dune: Part Two

Best Lead Performance
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Lily-Rose Depp – Nosferatu
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked: Part I
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance
Sebastian Stan – A Different Man

Best Supporting Performance
Yura Borisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor – Nickel Boys
Ariana Grande-Butera – Wicked: Part I
Felicity Jones – The Brutalist
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Edward Norton – A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Pérez
Bill Skarsgård – Nosferatu
Stanley Tucci – Conclave
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

Best Ensemble
Anora
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
The Piano Lesson
Sing Sing
Wicked: Part I

Actor of the Year (for an exemplary body of work)
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown and Dune: Part Two
Nicholas Hoult – The Garfield Movie, Juror #2, Nosferatu, and The Order
Cailee Spaeny – Alien: Romulus and Civil War
Sebastian Stan – The Apprentice and A Different Man
Zendaya – Challengers and Dune: Part Two

Breakthrough Film Artist
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist – (for directing and screenwriting)
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance – (for directing, film editing, and screenwriting)
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing – (for acting)
Mikey Madison – Anora – (for acting)
Dev Patel – Monkey Man – (for acting, directing, producing, and screenwriting)

Best Cinematography
Jarin Blaschke – Nosferatu
Lol Crawley – The Brutalist
Greig Fraser – Dune: Part Two
Jomo Fray – Nickel Boys
Benjamin Kracun – The Substance

Best Film Editing
Sean Baker – Anora
Marco Costa – Challengers
Jerome Eltabet, Coralie Fargeat, and Valentin Féron – The Substance
Nick Emerson – Conclave
Dávid Jancsó – The Brutalist
Nicholas Monsour – Nickel Boys

Best Adapted Screenplay
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes – Nickel Boys
Chris Sanders – The Wild Robot
Peter Straughan – Conclave
Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts – Dune: Part Two

Best Original Screenplay
Sean Baker – Anora
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold – The Brutalist
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Justin Kuritzkes – Challengers

Best Score
Volker Bertelmann – Conclave
Daniel Blumberg – The Brutalist
Kris Bowers – The Wild Robot
Robin Carolan – Nosferatu
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – Challengers
Hans Zimmer – Dune: Part Two

Best Documentary
Daughters
No Other Land
Sugarcane
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Will & Harper

Best Foreign Language Film
All We Imagine as Light
Emilia Pérez
Evil Does Not Exist
Kneecap
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Animated Film
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

Frank Gabrenya Award for Best Comedy
Babes
Hit Man
My Old Ass
A Real Pain
Saturday Night
Thelma

Best Overlooked Film
Didi
His Three Daughters
Hundreds of Beavers
The Last Stop in Yuma County
Snack Shack
Thelma

Here Are The 2024 Nominations of The Columbus Film Critics Association!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Awards season marches on!  Yesterday, the Columbus Film Critics Association announced its nominations for the best of 2024.  The winners will be announced on January 2nd.

Best Film
Anora
The Brutalist
Challengers
Civil War
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Love Lies Bleeding
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
Sing Sing
The Substance

Best Director
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Denis Villeneuve – Dune: Part Two

Best Lead Performance
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Lily-Rose Depp – Nosferatu
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked: Part I
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance
Sebastian Stan – A Different Man

Best Supporting Performance
Yura Borisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor – Nickel Boys
Ariana Grande-Butera – Wicked: Part I
Felicity Jones – The Brutalist
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Edward Norton – A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Pérez
Bill Skarsgård – Nosferatu
Stanley Tucci – Conclave
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

Best Ensemble
Anora
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
The Piano Lesson
Sing Sing
Wicked: Part I

Actor of the Year (for an exemplary body of work)
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown and Dune: Part Two
Nicholas Hoult – The Garfield Movie, Juror #2, Nosferatu, and The Order
Cailee Spaeny – Alien: Romulus and Civil War
Sebastian Stan – The Apprentice and A Different Man
Zendaya – Challengers and Dune: Part Two

Breakthrough Film Artist
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist – (for directing and screenwriting)
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance – (for directing, film editing, and screenwriting)
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing – (for acting)
Mikey Madison – Anora – (for acting)
Dev Patel – Monkey Man – (for acting, directing, producing, and screenwriting)

Best Cinematography
Jarin Blaschke – Nosferatu
Lol Crawley – The Brutalist
Greig Fraser – Dune: Part Two
Jomo Fray – Nickel Boys
Benjamin Kracun – The Substance

Best Film Editing
Sean Baker – Anora
Marco Costa – Challengers
Jerome Eltabet, Coralie Fargeat, and Valentin Féron – The Substance
Nick Emerson – Conclave
Dávid Jancsó – The Brutalist
Nicholas Monsour – Nickel Boys

Best Adapted Screenplay
Robert Eggers – Nosferatu
RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes – Nickel Boys
Chris Sanders – The Wild Robot
Peter Straughan – Conclave
Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts – Dune: Part Two

Best Original Screenplay
Sean Baker – Anora
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold – The Brutalist
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
Justin Kuritzkes – Challengers

Best Score
Volker Bertelmann – Conclave
Daniel Blumberg – The Brutalist
Kris Bowers – The Wild Robot
Robin Carolan – Nosferatu
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – Challengers
Hans Zimmer – Dune: Part Two

Best Documentary
Daughters
No Other Land
Sugarcane
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Will & Harper

Best Foreign Language Film
All We Imagine as Light
Emilia Pérez
Evil Does Not Exist
Kneecap
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Animated Film
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

Frank Gabrenya Award for Best Comedy
Babes
Hit Man
My Old Ass
A Real Pain
Saturday Night
Thelma

Best Overlooked Film
Didi
His Three Daughters
Hundreds of Beavers
The Last Stop in Yuma County
Snack Shack
Thelma

Here Are The 2024 Nominations of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists have announced their nominations for the best of 2024!  And here they are:

BEST FILM 
ANORA
CONCLAVE
EMILIA PÉREZ
NICKEL BOYS
SING SING
THE BRUTALIST
THE SUBSTANCE
WICKED

BEST DIRECTOR
JACQUES AUDIARD – EMILIA PÉREZ
SEAN BAKER – ANORA
EDWARD BERGER – CONCLAVE
BRADY CORBET – THE BRUTALIST
CORALIE FARGEAT – THE SUBSTANCE
PAYAL KAPADIA – ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT

BEST SCREENPLAY, ORIGINAL
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT – PAYAL KAPADIA
ANORA – SEAN BAKER
A REAL PAIN – JESSE EISENBERG
HARD TRUTHS – MIKE LEIGH
THE SUBSTANCE – CORALIE FARGEAT
THE BRUTALIST – BRADY CORBET AND MONA FASTVOLD

BEST SCREENPLAY, ADAPTED
CONCLAVE – PETER STRAUGHAN, ROBERT HARRIS
EMILIA PÉREZ – JACQUES AUDIARD, THOMAS BIDEGAIN, LEA MYSIUS
NICKEL BOYS – RaMell ROSS, JOSLYN BARNES, COLSON WHITEHEAD
NOSFERATU – ROBERT EGGERS
SING SING – JOHN H. RICHARDSON, BRENT BUELL, CLINT BENTLEY
THE WILD ROBOT – CHRIS SANDERS, PETER BROWN

BEST DOCUMENTARY
BLACK BOX DIARIES – SHIDORI ITO
DAHOMEY – MATI DIOP
DAUGHTERS – ANGELA PATTON, NATALIE RAE
THE LAST OF THE SEA WOMEN – SUE KIM
SUGARCANE – EMILY KASSIE, JASON BRAVE NOISECAT
WILL & HARPER – JOSH GREENBAUM

BEST ANIMATED FILM
FLOW
HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS
INSIDE OUT 2
MEMOIR OF A SNAIL
THE WILD ROBOT
WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL

BEST ACTRESS
CYNTHIA ERIVO – WICKED
KARLA SOFIA GASCON – EMILIA PÉREZ
MARIANNE JEAN-BAPTISTE – HARD TRUTHS
MIKEY MADISON – ANORA
DEMI MOORE – THE SUBSTANCE
JUNE SQUIBB – THELMA

BEST ACTRESS, SUPPORTING
JOAN CHEN – DIDI
DANIELLE DEADWYLER – THE PIANO LESSON
AUNJANUE ELLIS-TAYLOR – NICKEL BOYS
MARGARET QUALLEY – THE SUBSTANCE
ISABELLA ROSSELLINI – CONCLAVE
ZOE SALDANA – EMILIA PÉREZ

BEST ACTOR
ADRIEN BRODY – THE BRUTALIST
DANIEL CRAIG – QUEER
COLMAN DOMINGO – SING SING
RALPH FIENNES – CONCLAVE
HUGH GRANT – HERETIC
SEBASTIAN STAN – THE APPRENTICE

BEST ACTOR, SUPPORTING
YURA BORISOV – ANORA
KIERAN CULKIN – A REAL PAIN
CLARENCE MACLIN – SING SING
GUY PEARCE – THE BRUTALIST
STANLEY TUCCI – CONCLAVE
DENZEL WASHNGTON – GLADIATOR II

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST AND CASTING DIRECTOR
ANORA
CHALLENGERS
CONCLAVE
EMILIA PÉREZ
SATURDAY NIGHT
WICKED

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
CONCLAVE
DUNE: PART TWO
NICKEL BOYS
NOSFERATU
THE BRUTALIST
WICKED

BEST EDITING
ANORA
CONCLAVE
EMILIA PÉREZ
FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA
THE BRUTALIST
THE SUBSTANCE

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT
DAHOMEY
EMILIA PÉREZ
FLOW
LA CHIMERA
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS

EDA FEMALE FOCUS: BEST WOMAN DIRECTOR
ANDREA ARNOLD – BIRD
GIA COPPOLA – THE LAST SHOWGIRL
CORALIE FARGEAT – THE SUBSTANCE
PAYAL KAPADIA – ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT
MEGAN PARK – MY OLD ASS
ALICE ROHRWACHER – LA CHIMERA

EDA FEMALE FOCUS: BEST FEMALE SCREENWRITER
ANDREA ARNOLD – BIRD
CORALIE FARGEAT – THE SUBSTANCE
PAYAL KAPADIA – ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT
MEGAN PARK – MY OLD ASS
ALICE ROHRWACHER – LA CHIMERA
ERICA TREMBLAY, MICIANA ALISE – FANCY DANCE

EDA FEMALE FOCUS: BEST ANIMATED/VOICED PERFORMANCE
AYO EDEBIRI – INSIDE OUT 2
MAYA HAWKE – INSIDE OUT 2
LUPITA NYONG’O – THE WILD ROBOT
AMY POEHLER – INSIDE OUT 2
SARAH SNOOK – MEMOIR OF A SNAIL
JACKI WEAVER – MEMOIR OF A SNAIL

EDA FEMALE FOCUS: BEST WOMEN’S BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
NYKIYA ADAMS – BIRD
KARLA SOFIA GASCON – EMILIA PÉREZ
MIKEY MADISON – ANORA
KATY O’BRIAN – LOVE LIES BLEEDING
JUNE SQUIBB – THELMA
MAISY STELLA – MY OLD ASS

EDA FEMALE FOCUS: BEST STUNT PERFORMANCE
NIKKI BERWICK – STUNT COORDINATOR ON GLADIATOR II
ALEX JAY (for ZENDAYA) – DUNE: PART TWO
HAYLEY WRIGHT (for ANYA TAYLOR-JOY) – FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA
KATY O’BRIAN – LOVE LIES BLEEDING
CAILEE SPAENY – ALIEN: ROMULUS
JUNE SQUIBB – THELMA

Film Review: Alien Romulus (dir. by Fede Alvarez)

Posted on by Leonard Wilson

Lately, I don’t trust myself much when it comes to writing movie reviews. I once raved about Batman Begins when it first came out, only to have a friend/co-worker read it, check the movie out based on my thoughts. He returned with a look of disgust on his face…”That was terrible! Grumble grumble Batman, I could barely understand him.”, he said.

I dance around it, when I can. I’m almost Fifty, at an age and a point in my life where I’m easily amused by almost anything, particularly in a world where everything’s in a doomscroll. Sitting in a darkened room, watching a story play out just feels good, even if the story isn’t great. Add to this the notion that everyone will have a film of the week screen captured and spoiled by Saturday Morning (if not already), and sometimes there doesn’t feel like a need to write about these things. You don’t need me, but I’m happy to be here. I’m not helping anyone in making a decision on whether they should see a film, I’m simply cataloging my experience. That’s the beauty of it. No two experiences are similar, and it’s a joy to read how others felt about a movie while discovering my own viewpoints through my writing. This is all still fun to do, I’m finding.

So what does any of this have to do with Fede Alvarez’s Alien Romulus? Not much. I just needed to get thoughts on the page so I could rev up to writing about the film. I also wanted to warn you that I could be high on the euphoria of going to the movies. My take might not be yours, but I’m also playing Devil’s Advocate in trying to weigh what I thought they could have improved on.

Living as miners on a world where sunlight is rare, life is hard for Rain Carradine (Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla, Pacific Rim: Uprising) and her brother, Andy (David Jonsson, HBO’s Industry). When her friends discover a discarded ship called Romulus near an asteroid field, they decide to loot it for the tools they need for an extended hypersleep to a better destination. This becomes a problem when they discover they’re not alone on the ship they targeted. Can they escape these threats before meeting their end?

I was really impressed by Alien Romulus in a number of ways. One, I argued that the last trailer gave away too much information on the plot. I was terribly incorrect. For all that was shown, it barely touched the surface of the entire story. I found that pretty refreshing in this day and age where movie trailers rarely leave anything out. Two, there are a number of practical effects used in this film, from the animatronic, jumpy facehuggers that get more up close and personal than one would ever want to the classic Xenomorph scaling walls and dripping acid. I felt like it learned a bit or two from Alien Covenant (of which I’m not a fan) and considerably toned down the CGI where it could. The results are damn good, given this is the 9th go around in the Alien Franchise (if you want to include the two Alien vs. Predator films). Alvarez really gets the atmosphere right. Hallways are creepy and dimly lit, feeling much like Creative Assembly did with Alien Isolation (which of course built theirs from the original Alien). The space station, flight sequences and the asteroid belt are all on par what with we saw with Prometheus. The film even manages to travel in some new directions with both Xenomorph development and by the end will have you wanting to rewatch the series again. Is it all perfect? No, but I can’t say anything like that about Alien Resurrection.

From an acting standpoint, this movie clearly belongs to both Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson. They easily carry the film with their performances. With the exception of Isabela Merced (Dora the Explorer), I can’t say much about the other characters. I can at least say her character and performance here was far better than what she did in Madame Web earlier this year. Those three are only ones that are given any true character development through the course of the film. This isn’t to say that we don’t get good performances from Archie Renaux (Tyler), Aileen Wu (Navarro), and Spike Fearn (Bjorn). They just weren’t as memorable to me. We know the others want to move on to better things, but we never really get to know them well enough to root for or against them.

For the horror aspect, let’s face it. After so many movies, it’s a little difficult to be afraid of the Xenomorph. And yet, more with the facehuggers than with the human sized aliens, Alien Romulus does find a way to make the monsters creepy and amazingly quick. I had a few moments where I did my usual “watch the corners”, and avoided looking at the screen directly. There aren’t too many jumpscares, though they are there.

If Romulus suffers from any problems, it’s that the cast was too small for all of the elements thrown at them. I understand that it’s more of a personal story, so you’re not having a group of decimated Marines like in James Cameron’s Aliens or even a number of dead prisoners such as you had with David Fincher’s Alien3, but it was easier to get a feel of how dangerous the Xenomorphs when people were hunted left and right in different ways. The death sequences in Romulus all felt interesting, but there just weren’t enough of them for my taste. Another problem I had with the film was that it tried too hard in the last act to pay homages to other films in the series. Some of them worked well (particularly one introducing some to weapons) , and others kind of didn’t. At one point, you’re finding that the movie pulls lines and or whole sequences from the other films, which doesn’t make sense in some situations given where Romulus sits in the Alien timeline.

Imagine watching a fight in space between two Green Lanterns and one says to the other “Do you bleed?” as a reference to Batman v. Superman. Sure, it might be nice to hear, but who bleeds in space? It’s somewhat similar with Romulus in that fashion. Is that all Nostalgia is now, just re-spitting lines from older films that were more effective back then? Sitting in the front row on the sides (my favorite area), I want to say there were at least 4 walkouts during my showing, with one person coming back with drinks.

Musically, Benjamin Wallfisch does a good job here. He doesn’t try to recreate Jerry Goldsmith’s score the way Jed Kurzel did with Alien Covenant, though there are some wild heavy beats that could work better in a trance song. The sound in the film is also pretty nice, with the skittering and screeching bounding off the walls perfectly in the Regal RPX setup.

Overall, I really enjoyed Alien Romulus. While there are some elements I would have fixed (particularly with characterization and moving away from trying to reference the other films), I feel It’s a solid entry in the series, especially when I compare it to Alien Covenant or Alien Resurrection.

The Final Alien Romulus Trailer shows more than it should.

Posted on by Leonard Wilson

When I recommended AMC’s Interview With the Vampire to my cousin, she watched the final episode of Season 2 in reverse, despite having read the novels numerous times. She doesn’t handle anxiety when it comes to stories very well, and as such, she never reads a book or watches anything unless she can know the ending in advance. Watching her view a film for the first time is like tossing a person into a room with whatever they fear. She gets squirmy, and asks tons of questions. Whenever I watch a new movie, I tell her everything about it, scene for scene (which is partially how I got into writing about movies). On the one hand, you could argue that knowing ruins all the surprises. On the other, you’ve moviegoers that spoil movies online while they’re still in the theatre.

She’d be fine with the final trailer for Fede Alvarez’s Alien Romulus, which really does give too much of the story away. If you’re planning to go in blind this August, I wouldn’t recommend watching this. I love how they worked in Ripley’s “Lucky Star” song into this. It looks great, and anything’s a step up from Alien Covenant.

Enjoy!

Here Are The 2023 Gotham Award Winners!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

In one of the first events of Awards Season, The Gotham Awards were handed out tonight, with Past Lives picking up the award for best film.  Below, all of the winners are listed in bold!

Best Feature
Passages
Ira Sachs, director; Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt, producers (MUBI)

Past Lives
Celine Song, director; David Hinojosa, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon, producers (A24)

Reality
Tina Satter, director; Brad Becker-Parton, Riva Marker, Greg Nobile, Noah Stahl, producers (HBO Films)

Showing Up
Kelly Reichardt, director; Neil Kopp, Vincent Savino, Anish Savjani, producers (A24)

A Thousand and One
A.V. Rockwell, director; Julia Lebedev, Rishi Rajani, Eddie Vaisman, Lena Waithe, Bred Weston, producers (Focus Features)

Best International Feature
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh, director; Graham Broadbent, Peter Czernin, Sarah Harvey, producers (Searchlight Pictures)

Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, director; Marie-Ange Luciani, David Thion, producers (NEON)

Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, director; Ed Guiney, Yorgos Lanthimos, Andrew Lowe, Emma Stone, producers (Searchlight Pictures)

Tótem
Lila Avilés, director; Lila Avilés, Tatiana Graullera, Louise Riousse, producers (Sideshow/Janus Films)

The Zone of Interest
Jonathan Glazer, director; Ewa Puszczynska, James Wilson, producers (A24)

Best Documentary Feature
20 Days in Mariupol
Mstyslav Chernov, director; Raney Aronson-Rath, Mstyslav Chernov, Derl McCrudden, Michelle Mizner, producers (PBS Distribution)

Against the Tide
Sarvnik Kaur, director; Koval Bhatia, Sarvnik Kaur, producers (Snooker Club Films, A Little Anarky Films)

Apolonia, Apolonia
Lea Glob, director; Sidsel Lønvig Siersted, producer (Danish Documentary Production)

Four Daughters
Kaouther Ben Hania, director; Nadim Cheikhrouha, producer (Kino Lorber)

Our Body
Claire Simon, director; Kristina Larsen, producer (Cinema Guild)

Breakthrough Director Award, Presented by Cadillac

Raven Jackson, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt (A24)

Georgia Oakley, Blue Jean (Magnolia Pictures)

Michelle Garza Cervera, Huesera (XYZ Films)

Celine Song, Past Lives (A24)

A.V. Rockwell, A Thousand and One (Focus Features)

Best Screenplay

All of Us Strangers, Andrew Haigh (Searchlight Pictures)

Anatomy of a Fall, Justine Triet, Arthur Harari (NEON)

May December, Samy Burch (Netflix)

R.M.N., Cristian Mungiu (IFC Films)

The Zone of Interest, Jonathan Glazer (A24)

Outstanding Lead Performance

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Origin (NEON)

Lily Gladstone, The Unknown Country (Music Box Films)

Greta Lee, Past Lives (A24)

Franz Rogowski, Passages (MUBI)

Babetida Sadjo, Our Father, The Devil (Cineverse)

Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers (Searchlight Pictures)

Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla (A24)

Teyana Taylor, A Thousand and One (Focus Features)

Michelle Williams, Showing Up (A24)

Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Outstanding Supporting Performance

Juliette Binoche, The Taste of Things (IFC Films)

Penélope Cruz, Ferrari (NEON)

Jamie Foxx, They Cloned Tyrone (Netflix)

Claire Foy, All of Us Strangers (Searchlight Films)

Ryan Gosling, Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Glenn Howerton, BlackBerry (IFC Films)

Sandra Hüller, The Zone of Interest (A24)

Rachel McAdams, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Lionsgate)

Charles Melton, May December (Netflix)

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Breakthrough Series – Under 40 minutes
Beef, Lee Sung Jin, creator; Ravi Nandan, Alli Reich, Jake Schreier, Ali Wong, Steven Yeun, executive producers (Netflix)

High School, Clea DuVall, Sara Quin, Tegan Quin, creators; Clea Duvall, Dede Gardner, Laura Kittrell, Jeremy Kleiner, Sara Quin, Tegan Quin, Carina Sposato, executive producers (Amazon Freevee)

I’m A Virgo, Boots Riley, creator; Tze Chun, Michael Ellenberg, Marcus Gardley, Carver Karaszewski, Jharrel Jerome, Boots Riley, Rebecca Rivo, Lindsey Springer, executive producers (Prime Video)

Rain Dogs, Cash Carraway, creator; Cash Carraway, Sally Woodward Gentle, Lee Morris, executive producers (HBO | Max)

Swarm, Donald Glover, Janine Nabers, creators; Ibra Ake, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover, Janine Nabers Jamal Olor, Steven Prinz, Michael Schaefer, Fam Udeorji, executive producers (Amazon Studios)

Breakthrough Series – Over 40 minutes
Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire
Rolin Jones, creator; Mark Johnson, Rolin Jones, Anne Rice, Christopher Rice, Alan Taylor, executive producers (AMC)

Dead Ringers
Alice Birch, creator; Alice Birch, Anne Carey, Sean Durkin, Megan Ellison, Erica Kay, Ali Krug, Sue Naegle, Stacy O’Neil, David Robinson, James G. Robinson, Polly Stokes, Barbara Wall, Rachel Weisz, executive directors (Prime Video)

The English
Hugo Blick, creator; Hugo Blick, Emily Blunt, Greg Brenman, executive producers (Prime Video)

The Last of Us
Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, creators; Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin, Rose Lam, Asad Qizilbash, Carolyn Strauss, Carter Swan, Evan Wells, executive producers; (HBO | Max)

A Small Light
Tony Phelan, Joan Rater, creator; Susanna Fogel, William Harper, Avi Nir, Tony Phelan, Joan Rater, Lisa Roos, Alon Shtruzman, Peter Traugott, executive producers (National Geographic)

Telemarketers
Adam Bhala Lough, Sam Lipman-Stern, directors; Nancy Abraham, Dani Bernfeld, David Gordon Green, Lisa Heller, Jody Hill, Brandon James, Sam Lipman-Stern, Adam Bhala Lough, Danny McBride, Tina Nguyen, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Greg Stewart, executive producers (HBO | Max)

Outstanding Performance in a New Series
Jacob Anderson, Anne Rice’s Interview with The Vampire (AMC)

Dominique Fishback, Swarm (Amazon Studios)

Jharrel Jerome, I’m A Virgo (Prime Video)

Natasha Lyonne, Poker Face (Peacock)

Bel Powley, A Small Light (National Geographic)

Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us (HBO | Max)

Chaske Spencer, The English (Prime Video)

Rachel Weisz, Dead Ringers ((Prime Video)

Ali Wong, Beef (Netflix)

Steven Yeun, Beef (Netflix)

Here Are The 2023 Gotham Nominations (Only A Week Late!)

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Wow!  I’ve been so busy coordinating this year’s Horrorthon that I totally missed the fact that the Gotham nominations were announced on October 24th!  In the past, the Gothams only honored films that were made for a certain low budget.  This year is the first time that they’ll be honoring films of any budget.  To me, that would seem to defeat the purpose of the awards but whatever.  Everyone wants to be an Oscar precursor nowadays.

Anyway, this is really late on my part but here are this year’s Gotham nominations!  Whether or not these nominations will give a boost to any of these film’s Oscar chances remains to be seen.  The winners will be announced on November 27th!

Best Feature
Passages
Ira Sachs, director; Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt, producers (MUBI)

Past Lives
Celine Song, director; David Hinojosa, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon, producers (A24)

Reality
Tina Satter, director; Brad Becker-Parton, Riva Marker, Greg Nobile, Noah Stahl, producers (HBO Films)

Showing Up
Kelly Reichardt, director; Neil Kopp, Vincent Savino, Anish Savjani, producers (A24)

A Thousand and One
A.V. Rockwell, director; Julia Lebedev, Rishi Rajani, Eddie Vaisman, Lena Waithe, Bred Weston, producers (Focus Features)

Best International Feature
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh, director; Graham Broadbent, Peter Czernin, Sarah Harvey, producers (Searchlight Pictures)

Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, director; Marie-Ange Luciani, David Thion, producers (NEON)

Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, director; Ed Guiney, Yorgos Lanthimos, Andrew Lowe, Emma Stone, producers (Searchlight Pictures)

Tótem
Lila Avilés, director; Lila Avilés, Tatiana Graullera, Louise Riousse, producers (Sideshow/Janus Films)

The Zone of Interest
Jonathan Glazer, director; Ewa Puszczynska, James Wilson, producers (A24)

Best Documentary Feature
20 Days in Mariupol
Mstyslav Chernov, director; Raney Aronson-Rath, Mstyslav Chernov, Derl McCrudden, Michelle Mizner, producers (PBS Distribution)

Against the Tide
Sarvnik Kaur, director; Koval Bhatia, Sarvnik Kaur, producers (Snooker Club Films, A Little Anarky Films)

Apolonia, Apolonia
Lea Glob, director; Sidsel Lønvig Siersted, producer (Danish Documentary Production)

Four Daughters
Kaouther Ben Hania, director; Nadim Cheikhrouha, producer (Kino Lorber)

Our Body
Claire Simon, director; Kristina Larsen, producer (Cinema Guild)

Breakthrough Director Award, Presented by Cadillac

Raven Jackson, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt (A24)

Georgia Oakley, Blue Jean (Magnolia Pictures)

Michelle Garza Cervera, Huesera (XYZ Films)

Celine Song, Past Lives (A24)

A.V. Rockwell, A Thousand and One (Focus Features)

Best Screenplay

All of Us Strangers, Andrew Haigh (Searchlight Pictures)

Anatomy of a Fall, Justine Triet, Arthur Harari (NEON)

May December, Samy Burch (Netflix)

R.M.N., Cristian Mungiu (IFC Films)

The Zone of Interest, Jonathan Glazer (A24)

Outstanding Lead Performance

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Origin (NEON)

Lily Gladstone, The Unknown Country (Music Box Films)

Greta Lee, Past Lives (A24)

Franz Rogowski, Passages (MUBI)

Babetida Sadjo, Our Father, The Devil (Cineverse)

Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers (Searchlight Pictures)

Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla (A24)

Teyana Taylor, A Thousand and One (Focus Features)

Michelle Williams, Showing Up (A24)

Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Outstanding Supporting Performance

Juliette Binoche, The Taste of Things (IFC Films)

Penélope Cruz, Ferrari (NEON)

Jamie Foxx, They Cloned Tyrone (Netflix)

Claire Foy, All of Us Strangers (Searchlight Films)

Ryan Gosling, Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Glenn Howerton, BlackBerry (IFC Films)

Sandra Hüller, The Zone of Interest (A24)

Rachel McAdams, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Lionsgate)

Charles Melton, May December (Netflix)

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Breakthrough Series – Under 40 minutes
Beef, Lee Sung Jin, creator; Ravi Nandan, Alli Reich, Jake Schreier, Ali Wong, Steven Yeun, executive producers (Netflix)

High School, Clea DuVall, Sara Quin, Tegan Quin, creators; Clea Duvall, Dede Gardner, Laura Kittrell, Jeremy Kleiner, Sara Quin, Tegan Quin, Carina Sposato, executive producers (Amazon Freevee)

I’m A Virgo, Boots Riley, creator; Tze Chun, Michael Ellenberg, Marcus Gardley, Carver Karaszewski, Jharrel Jerome, Boots Riley, Rebecca Rivo, Lindsey Springer, executive producers (Prime Video)

Rain Dogs, Cash Carraway, creator; Cash Carraway, Sally Woodward Gentle, Lee Morris, executive producers (HBO | Max)

Swarm, Donald Glover, Janine Nabers, creators; Ibra Ake, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover, Janine Nabers Jamal Olor, Steven Prinz, Michael Schaefer, Fam Udeorji, executive producers (Amazon Studios)

Breakthrough Series – Over 40 minutes
Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire
Rolin Jones, creator; Mark Johnson, Rolin Jones, Anne Rice, Christopher Rice, Alan Taylor, executive producers (AMC)

Dead Ringers
Alice Birch, creator; Alice Birch, Anne Carey, Sean Durkin, Megan Ellison, Erica Kay, Ali Krug, Sue Naegle, Stacy O’Neil, David Robinson, James G. Robinson, Polly Stokes, Barbara Wall, Rachel Weisz, executive directors (Prime Video)

The English
Hugo Blick, creator; Hugo Blick, Emily Blunt, Greg Brenman, executive producers (Prime Video)

The Last of Us
Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, creators; Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin, Rose Lam, Asad Qizilbash, Carolyn Strauss, Carter Swan, Evan Wells, executive producers; (HBO | Max)

A Small Light
Tony Phelan, Joan Rater, creator; Susanna Fogel, William Harper, Avi Nir, Tony Phelan, Joan Rater, Lisa Roos, Alon Shtruzman, Peter Traugott, executive producers (National Geographic)

Telemarketers
Adam Bhala Lough, Sam Lipman-Stern, directors; Nancy Abraham, Dani Bernfeld, David Gordon Green, Lisa Heller, Jody Hill, Brandon James, Sam Lipman-Stern, Adam Bhala Lough, Danny McBride, Tina Nguyen, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Greg Stewart, executive producers (HBO | Max)

Outstanding Performance in a New Series
Jacob Anderson, Anne Rice’s Interview with The Vampire (AMC)

Dominique Fishback, Swarm (Amazon Studios)

Jharrel Jerome, I’m A Virgo (Prime Video)

Natasha Lyonne, Poker Face (Peacock)

Bel Powley, A Small Light (National Geographic)

Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us (HBO | Max)

Chaske Spencer, The English (Prime Video)

Rachel Weisz, Dead Ringers ((Prime Video)

Ali Wong, Beef (Netflix)

Steven Yeun, Beef (Netflix)

Lisa Marie’s Oscar Predictions For September

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Well, it’s that time of the month again!  Here are my Oscar predictions for September!  The festival season has brought along a host of new contenders.

For instance, American Fiction made a splash at the Toronto International Film Festival and it looks like both it and Jeffrey Wright are going to emerge as legitimate contenders come awards season.  In the past, a film like Dream Scenario would probably be considered too strange for the Academy but, after A24’s success with Everything Everywhere All At Once, it seems like anything’s possible.  If nothing else, A24 knows how to sell a film.

Personally, I’d love it if Richard Linklater’s Hit Man picked up a few nominations, even though I haven’t seen it yet and I’m not even sure when Netflix is going to release it.  (Linklater is the patron saint of Texas filmmaking, so I’ll always hope the best for anything he’s involved with.)

There’s still quite a ways to go until the year ends and the race is very much in flux but we are finally at the point where we can look at a few films and say, with more than a little confidence, “That’s going to be nominated.”

Below are my predictions for September.  Be sure to also check out my predictions for March and April and May and June and July and August!

Best Picture 

Air

American Fiction

Barbie

The Bikeriders

The Holdovers

Killers of the Flower Moon

Oppenheimer

Poor Things

Rustin

The Zone of Interest

Best Director

Greta Gerwig for Barbie

Jonathan Glazer for The Zone of Interest

Cord Jefferson for American Fiction

Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer

Martin Scorsese for Killers of the Flower Moon

Best Actor

Leonardo DiCaprio in Killers of the Flower Moon

Colman Domingo in Rustin

Paul Giamatti in The Holdovers

Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer

Jeffrey Wright in American Fiction

Best Actress

Jodie Comer in The Bikeriders

Natalie Portman in May December

Margot Robbie in Barbie

Cailee Spaeny in Priscilla

Kate Winslet in Lee

Best Supporting Actor

Willem DaFoe in Poor Things

Robert De Niro in Killers of the Flower Moon

Robert Downey, Jr. in Oppenheimer

Ryan Gosling in Barbie

Dominic Sessa in The Holdovers

Best Supporting Actress

Emily Blunt in Oppenheimer

Lily Gladstone in Killers of the Flower Moon

Sandra Huller in Zone of Interest

Julianne Moore in May December

Da’Vine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers

Film Review: Pacific Rim Uprising (dir. by Steven S. DeKnight)

Posted on by Leonard Wilson

Moving to directing isn’t always smooth

Pacific Rim Poster

.Duel was a success for Steven Spielberg, and Alex Garland had a wonderful success with Ex Machina. Conversely, Cinematographer Wally Pfister’s Transcendence wasn’t as well received. Though he has worked on TV, Pfister hasn’t had a motion picture follow-up (though I’m eager to see him do so). Everyone moves in different directions and at their own pace. Steven S. DeKnight is well-known for his work on Daredevil and the Spartacus series on Starz. He makes the leap to directing with Pacific Rim Uprising, the results of which are a mixed bag for me. I saw the original four times in the cinema. Uprising has some fun moments, most of them with John Boyega (John Boyega, Star Wars: The Last Jedi) and Cailee Spaeny (The Shoes), but it wasn’t particularly memorable for me. I don’t know if I could actually say I hated it. That doesn’t mean that the kids won’t love it. There are some good moments of action that are reminiscent of Saban’s Power Rangers, and the movie provides exactly what it advertises – Jaeger on Kaiju action.

Uprising takes place ten years after the end of Pacific Rim, focusing on Jake Pentacost (John Boyega, Star Wars: The Last Jedi) son of the now legendary Stacker Pentacost. The world has moved on from the Kaiju crisis in various ways. When a new threat looms on the horizon, Jaeger pilots are needed once again. Jake would rather not get involved, plowing his trade as Jaeger tech smuggler. When he meets up with Amara Namani, a young hacker (Spaeny), both are brought into the newest rendition of the Jaeger Program. This also leads to a family reunion of sorts with Jake’s sister, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi), who now heads the program. We even have our favorite scientist duo returning in Gottlieb (Burn Gorman, Game of Thrones) and Geiszler (Charlie Day). With all this familarity, you’d think that more of the same is the perfect recipe for a sequel.

The plot could have used a little more development, at least in comparison to the first firm. Uprising does stand on its own, and I could see some interesting arcs develop in future films. My problem with it was just that I didn’t feel a sense of worry for anyone. In the first film, there was this sense of escalation. Every incident was increasingly more dangerous for everyone involved. I didn’t quite feel that this film, but it makes up for it for having some interesting action scenes. DeKnight keeps the scenes short and sweet, and the flow of the movie is quite good, despite the lack of fights. Those moments are few and far between, which kind of left me a little drowsy waiting for them.

From a character standpoint, the real gems in Uprising are Jake and Amara. Boyega and Spaeny are great in just about every scene they’re in. Scott Eastwood isn’t bad either, actually, though he really isn’t given much to work with. Everyone else appears to be filling in roles. While it would’ve been nice to see more characterization in the rest of the crew, they do what they need to in order to keep the story moving.

Visually, Pacific Rim Uprising hits all the right notes. The Kaiju are strange and the Jaegers are impressive. The action moves in such a way where you’re not too lost with what you’re viewing. If there are any problems in this area, it’s that they appeared too clean (and that’s just a nitpick, really). Where the Original used nighttime or rainy shots to mask the effects (much like the first T-Rex encounter in Jurassic Park), most of Uprising’s effects are in broad daylight. It looks great, but also had a HDR quality to it that (for me) felt like you were watching a high end demo reel. The 3D also helped with the effects there.

Overall, I’d easily catch Pacific Rim Uprising again once it hits the digital circuit. It might be worth the viewing on an IMAX screen or even in 3D, but it isn’t anything anyone needs to rush to see.