Tag Archives: Film

Here Are The 2024 Costume Designers Guild Nominations

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

On December 13th, the Costume Designers Guild announced their nominees for the best costuming achievements of 2024.  For the most part, the guilds are actually a better precursor than any of the critic groups, if just because the guilds include people who actually vote on the Oscar nominees.

Here are the film nominees.  The winners will be announced on February 2nd.

Excellence in Contemporary Film
“Challengers” – Jonathan Anderson
“Conclave” – Lisy Christl, CDG
“Emilia Pérez” – Virginie Montel
“The Fall Guy” – Sarah Evelyn, CDG
“The Substance” – Emmanuelle Youchnovski

Excellence in Period Film
“The Book of Clarence” – Antoinette Messam, CDG
“Gladiator II” – Janty Yates, CDG & Dave Crossman
“Maria” – Massimo Cantini Parrini
“Nosferatu” – Linda Muir
“Saturday Night” – Danny Glicker, CDG

Excellence in Sci-Fi/Fantasy Film
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” – Colleen Atwood, CDG
“Borderlands” – Daniel Orlandi, CDG
“Dune: Part Two” – Jacqueline West, CDG
“Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” – Jenny Beavan, CDG
“Wicked” – Paul Tazewell, CDG

Las Vegas Loves Dune: Part Two

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

On December 14th, The Las Vegas Film Critics Society announced its picks for the best of 2024!  Dune: Part Two, after being an also-ran with several of the precursor groups, finally picked up the award for Best Picture and a lot of other awards as well!

Best Picture
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Wicked

Best Actor
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothee Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Hugh Grant – Heretic

Best Actress
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Karla Sofia Gascon – Emilia Perez
Angelina Jolie – Maria
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance

Best Supporting Actor
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence ‘Divine Eye’ Maclin – Sing Sing
Edward Norton – A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Denzel Washington – Gladiator II

Best Supporting Actress
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor – Nickel Boys
Elle Fanning – A Complete Unknown
Ariana Grande – Wicked
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Perez

Best Director
Edward Berger – Conclave
Jon M. Chu – Wicked
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Denis Villeneuve – Dune: Part Two

Best Screenplay Original
Anora
The Brutalist
His Three Daughters
A Real Pain
Saturday Night

Best Screenplay – Adapted
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
Sing Sing

Best Cinematography
The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu

Film Editing
The Brutalist
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys

Best Score
The Brutalist
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
The Wild Robot

Best Song
El Mal – Emilia Perez
Mi Camino – Emilia Perez
Beautiful That Way – The Last Showgirl
Like a Bird – Sing Sing
Kiss the Sky – The Wild Robot

Best Documentary
Daughters
Music by John Williams
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

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

Best International
Emilia Perez
Flow
I’m Still Here
Kneecap
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Costume Design
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II
Nosferatu
Wicked

Best Art Direction
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Gladiator II
Nosferatu
Wicked

Best Visual Effects
Alien: Romulus
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Wicked

Best Action Movie
Deadpool & Wolverine
Dune: Part Two
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II

Best Comedy
Deadpool & Wolverine
The Fall Guy
Hit Man
My Old Ass
Saturday Night

Best Horror/Sci-Fi
Late Night with the Devil
Heretic
Nosferatu
Strange Darling
The Substance

Best Family Film
Inside Out 2
My Penguin Friend
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
Wicked
The Wild Robot

Best Animal Performance
Ukai – Arthur the King
Peggy – Deadpool & Wolverine
Dindim – My Penguin Friend
Rat Cast – Nosferatu
Frodo the Cat – A Quiet Place: Day One

Best Ensemble
Anora
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Perez
Wicked

Best Action Stunts
Dune: Part Two
The Fall Guy
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II
Monkey Man

Breakout Performance (Director)
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain
Anna Kendrick – Woman of the Hour
J.T. Mollner – Strange Darling
Dev Patel – Monkey Man
Sean Wang – Didi

Best Youth Performance – Male (under 21)
Kit Connor – The Wild Robot
Ian Foreman – I Saw the TV Glow
Elliott Heffernan – Blitz
Cooper Hoffman – Saturday Night
Izaac Wang – Didi

Best Youth Performance – Female (under 21)
Cailey Fleming – If
Maisy Stella – My Old Ass
Ingrid Torelli – Late Night with the Devil
Alisha Weir – Abigail
Zoe Ziegler – Janet Planet

William Holden Lifetime Achievement Award
Steve Martin
Demi Moore
Claire Simpson
Isabella Rossellini
Hans Zimmer

Here Are The 2024 Nominations Of The San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

On the 13th, the San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle announced their nominations for the best of 2024!  The winners will be announced tomorrow.

Best Film
Anora
The Brutalist
Hard Truths
Nickel Boys
Sing Sing

Best Director
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Brady Corbet
Hard Truths – Mike Leigh
Nickel Boys – RaMell Ross
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

Best Actress
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Karla Sofía Gascón – Emilia Pérez
Angelina Jolie – Maria
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance

Best Actor
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Daniel Craig – Queer
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave

Best Supporting Actress
Joan Chen – Dìdi (弟弟)
Carol Kane – Between the Temples
Isabella Rossellini – Conclave
Ariana Grande – Wicked
Zoe Saldana – Emilia Pérez

Best Supporting Actor
Yura Borisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong – The Apprentice

Best International Feature Film
All We Imagine as Light
Emilia Pérez
I’m Still Here
Kneecap
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Documentary Feature
Daughters
No Other Land
Sugarcane
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

Best Animated Feature
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir Of A Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

Best Original Screenplay
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold
Hard Truths – Mike Leigh
A Real Pain – Jesse Eisenberg
The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

Best Adapted Screenplay
Conclave – Peter Straughan
Dune: Part Two – Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts
Emilia Pérez – Jacques Audiard
Nickel Boys – RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes
Sing Sing – Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield

Best Cinematography
The Brutalist – Lol Crawley
Conclave – Stéphane Fontaine
Dune: Part Two – Greig Fraser
Nickel Boys – Jomo Fray
Nosferatu – Jarin Blaschke

Best Editing
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Dávid Jancsó
Challengers – Marco Costa
Conclave – Nick Emerson
September 5 – Hansjörg Weißbrich

Best Original Score
The Brutalist – Daniel Blumberg
Challengers – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Conclave – Volker Bertelmann
Emilia Pérez – Clément Ducol, Camille
The Wild Robot – Kris Bowers

Best Production Design
The Brutalist – Judy Becker
Conclave – Suzie Davies, Roberta Federico
Dune: Part Two – Zsuzsanna Sipos, Shane Vieau, Patrice Vermette
Nosferatu – Craig Lathrop
Wicked – Nathan Crowley, Lee Sandales

Special Citation for Independent Cinema
Exhibiting Forgiveness
Rumours
The Secret Art of Taking Flight

The Brutalist Wins In Boston

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Boston Online Film Critics Association has announced its picks for the best films of the year!

Best Film
1. THE BRUTALIST
2. THE SUBSTANCE
3. ANORA
4. I SAW THE TV GLOW
5. DUNE: PART TWO
6. NICKEL BOYS
7. HARD TRUTHS
8. FLOW
9. WICKED
10. NOSFERATU

Best Director
Brady Corbet – THE BRUTALIST

Best Actress
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – HARD TRUTHS

Best Actor
Adrien Brody – THE BRUTALIST

Best Supporting Actor
Guy Pearce – THE BRUTALIST

Best Supporting Actress
Margaret Qualley – THE SUBSTANCE

Best Screenplay
Sean Baker – ANORA

​Best Ensemble
CONCLAVE

Best Score
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross – CHALLENGERS

Best Cinematography
Lol Crawley – THE BRUTALIST

Best Editing
Joe Walker – DUNE: PART TWO

Best Documentary
NO OTHER LAND

Best International Feature
THE BEAST

Best Animated Film
FLOW

Nickels Boys Wins In Toronto

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Toronto Film Critics Association has announced their picks for the best films of 2024!

Best Film
Winner: ​Nickel Boys

Best Director
Winner: ​RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys

Best Original Screenplay
Winner: All We Imagine As Light

Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner: ​Nickel Boys

Best Foreign Language Film
Winner: ​All We Imagine As Light

Best Performance In A Canadian Film
Winner: Félix-Antoine Duval – Shepherds

Best Lead Performance
Winners: ​Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths & Mikey Madison – Anora

Best Supporting Performance
Winner: Yura Borisov – Anora & Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain

Best Breakthrough Performance
Winner: Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing

Allan King Best Documentary
Winner: Dahomey

Best Animated Feature
Winner: Flow

Best First Feature
Winner: ​Woman of the Hour – Directed by Anna Kendrick

Rogers Best Canadian Film
Rumours
Shepherds
Universal Language

Rogers Best Canadian Documentary
Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story
Yintah
Your Tomorrow

Special Citation: No Other Land

Special Citation: Serena Whitney and The Revue Film Society

Live Tweet Alert: Watch SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT PART 2 With #ScarySocial!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly live tweets on twitter.  I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and I am one of the five hosts of #MondayActionMovie!  Every week, we get together.  We watch a movie.  We tweet our way through it.

Tonight, for #ScarySocial, I will be hosting the holiday film that launched a thousand memes, SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT PART 2!

GARBAGE DAY!

If you want to join us on Saturday night, just hop onto twitter, start the film at 9 pm et, and use the #ScarySocial hashtag!  The film is available on Prime and Tubi!  I’ll be there co-hosting and I imagine some other members of the TSL Crew will be there as well.  It’s a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy!

 

Live Tweet Alert: Join #FridayNightFlix For Strange Brew!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly live tweets on Twitter and Mastodon.  I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and I am one of the five hosts of #MondayActionMovie!  Every week, we get together.  We watch a movie.  We tweet our way through it.

Tonight, at 10 pm et, #FridayNightFlix presents Canada’s Strange Brew!

If you want to join us this Friday, just hop onto twitter, start the movie at 10 pm et, and use the #FridayNightFlix hashtag!  It’s a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy.

Strange Brew is available on Prime!  See you there!

RUSH HOUR – 1998, a special year for this fan of Hong Kong action cinema!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

1998 was certainly a special year for me as a fan of Hong Kong cinema but first let me provide a little context… After 150 years of British rule, Hong Kong was being handed over to communist China on July 1, 1997. This left a lot of uncertainty in Hong Kong’s local film industry. Because of that uncertainty, many of Hong Kong’s most popular filmmakers decided it was time to take their talents abroad. Director John Woo had already left for America in the early 90’s and had made successful films like HARD TARGET, BROKEN ARROW and FACE/OFF. This gets us to 1998, the year that many of Hong Kong’s biggest action stars would release their first American films. Chow Yun-fat would reprise his popular, honorable hitman role in his first American film, THE REPLACEMENT KILLERS, which was produced by John Woo and directed by Antoine Fuqua. Jet Li would make a strong impact as the badass villain in the 4th installment of the LETHAL WEAPON franchise. And then there’s Jackie Chan, probably the biggest of all the Hong Kong movie stars. Jackie had been banging around Hollywood as early as 1980 without a lot of fanfare in the west. But in 1996 Chan had a solid American box office hit when his Hong Kong production RUMBLE IN THE BRONX was dubbed and released in America. Armed with that success and a sizable budget provided by an American studio, Chan would get his own big release in 1998, the action-comedy RUSH HOUR!

In RUSH HOUR, Jackie Chan plays inspector Lee, a Hong Kong police detective who’s also a friend to Chinese Consul Han (Tzi Ma), currently serving in Los Angeles. When Consul Han’s daughter Soo Yung is kidnapped, he asks Lee to come to America to assist him and the FBI in rescuing her. The FBI doesn’t really want Lee’s help so they ask the Los Angeles police department to assign someone, anyone, to stay with Lee and keep an eye on him so he doesn’t get in the way of their investigation. Enter fast-talking, LAPD Detective James Carter. After some initial clashes and disagreements, the mismatched duo eventually begins working together to find the criminal mastermind behind the kidnapping, Juntao.

I watched RUSH HOUR at the movie theater on my birthday in 1998. I loved every second of it. A few weeks later I was on a business trip in Chicago, I told my boss how good the film was, and we went to see it as well. I enjoyed it just as much the 2nd time. I’m a big fan of “buddy cop” films like LETHAL WEAPON and BAD BOYS, and RUSH HOUR is an excellent addition to that sub-genre of action films. Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker have an excellent chemistry together. Their comedic interplay is hilarious and entertaining. It’s one of the main reasons I enjoy the movie so much. Jackie Chan was 44 years old when RUSH HOUR was released, but he was still extremely athletic so his brand of martial arts action and comedy still worked. The movie would go on to gross just short of $250 million at the worldwide box office and establish Jackie Chan as a bonafide star in the American film market. 2001’s RUSH HOUR 2 would be an even bigger hit, making almost $350 million worldwide. No one works harder or gives more of himself to his film productions than Jackie Chan, and it was nice seeing him achieve the truly worldwide success that he had earned! 

THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT (1996) – the $4 Million script!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

Shane Black wrote a couple of my favorite action movies during my teenage years, LETHAL WEAPON and THE LAST BOY SCOUT. His scripts are characterized by strong violence balanced out by a healthy amount of comedic banter. That lethal (pun intended) combination made Shane Black a star in his own right, with his work being very much in demand. In 1994 he sold his script for THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT for the unheard price of $4 Million. After hitting this payday, Black would go dark for the next decade and not release another screenplay until 2005’s KISS KISS BANG BANG, which was also his directorial debut. 

THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT opens with Samantha Caine playing Mrs. Claus in her small town’s Christmas parade. She has a nice boyfriend, an 8 year old daughter, and she’s a member of the PTA. This is pretty good for a lady that doesn’t remember a damn thing about her life prior to 8 years ago. After celebrating her friends at a Christmas party, she’s driving a soused old man (Alan North) home when she hits a deer and flies right through the window and lands on a snowbank. This wakes up some of her memories and she starts having a few quick flashbacks and some odd dreams from her past, including the name Charly Baltimore. She also learns that she can easily break a buck deer’s neck and handle knives like a champ! Around this same time, low-rent private detective Mitch Hennessy (Samuel L. Jackson) who has been paid a retainer by Ms. Caine to be on the lookout for any clues related to her past, gets lucky and finds a letter from Caine to a supposed former lover. He heads her way to give her the update. When a local news program shows the beautiful Ms. Caine in the parade, some enemies from her past see the story and head to town to try to kill her. Surviving the attempt on her life, and now with Hennessy by her side, Samantha leaves to find out who she really is and unravel the secrets of her past. Is she a chef? Is she a school teacher? Is she a badass hit woman named Charly Baltimore? The fun is in finding out! 

Geena Davis is so good in her role as Samantha Caine / Charly Baltimore. She’s simultaneously beautiful, funny, sexy, cute as a button, and badass. She was married to the director, Renny Harlin, when the film was made and they both went all out to create a strong, female action hero. I think they succeeded admirably. Samuel L. Jackson is just so good in this type of role. He’s sarcastic and funny, a little sleazy, and very much a reluctant hero who does the right thing when he has to. In 2019, Jackson would go so far as to tell late night host Jimmy Fallon that Mitch Hennessy is his personal favorite role. The remainder of the cast is fine, with Brian Cox particularly standing out. His declarative statement about the ultimate results of a small lapdog continually licking his asshole really hit home for me and is reason enough alone to watch this film.  

Ultimately, even though I personally went to see it during its theatrical run, THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT underwhelmed at the box office in 1996. It grossed around $90 million worldwide on a budget of around $65 million. But that’s fine to me, I enjoyed it in 1996, and I enjoyed it again when I watched it today! 

Here’s Al Capone With The 2024 Nominations of the Chicago Film Critics Association!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Chicago Film Critics Association has announced their nominations for the best of 2024!  The winners will be announced on December 12 …. hey, that’s right around the corner.

BEST PICTURE
Anora
The Brutalist
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
I Saw the TV Glow
Nickel Boys
The Substance

BEST DIRECTOR
Sean Baker – Anora
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Coralie Fargeat – The Substance
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys
Jane Schoenbrun – I Saw the TV Glow

BEST ACTOR
Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
Keith Kupferer – Ghostlight

BEST ACTRESS
Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Hard Truths
Mikey Madison – Anora
Demi Moore – The Substance
Léa Seydoux – The Beast

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Yura Borisov – Anora
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
Adam Pearson – A Different Man

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Ariana Grande-Butera – Wicked
Natasha Lyonne – His Three Daughters
Margaret Qualley – The Substance
Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Anora by Sean Baker
The Brutalist by Brady Corbet & Mona Fastvold
Challengers by Justin Kurtizkes
A Real Pain by Jesse Eisenberg
The Substance by Coralie Fargeat

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Beast by Bertrand Bonello, Guillaume Bréaud, & Benjamin Charbit
Conclave by Peter Straughan
Nickel Boys by RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes
Nosferatu by Robert Eggers
Sing Sing by Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Dahomey
Daughters
No Other Land
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Sugarcane

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
All We Imagine as Light
Emilia Pérez
Evil Does Not Exist
Red Rooms
The Seed of the Sacred Fig

BEST ART DIRECTION/PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
Nosferatu
The Substance
Wicked

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Brutalist – Lol Crawley
Challengers – Sayombhu Mukdeeprom
Dune: Part Two – Greig Fraser
Nickel Boys – Jomo Fray
Nosferatu – Jarin Blaschke

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Dune: Part Two – Jacqueline West
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Jenny Beavan
Maria – Massimo Cantini Parrini
Nosferatu – Linda Muir
Wicked – Paul Tazewell

BEST EDITING
Anora – Sean Baker
The Brutalist – Dávid Jancsó
Challengers – Marco Costa
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – Eliot Knapman & Margaret Sixel
Nickel Boys – Nicolas Monsour

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Brutalist – Daniel Blumberg
Challengers – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
Dune: Part Two – Hans Zimmer
Nosferatu – Robin Carolan
Wicked – John Powell & Stephen Schwartz
The Wild Robot – Kris Bowers

BEST USE OF VISUAL EFFECTS
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Hundreds of Beavers
The Substance
Wicked

MILOS STEHLIK AWARD FOR BREAKTHROUGH FILMMAKER
Mike Cheslik – Hundreds of Beavers
Vera Drew – The People’s Joker
Payal Kapadia – All We Imagine as Light
Greg Kwedar – Sing Sing
RaMell Ross – Nickel Boys

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Lily Collias – Good One
Karla Sofía Gascón – Emilia Pérez
Brigette Lundy-Paine – I Saw the TV Glow
Clarence Maclin – Sing Sing
Adam Pearson – A Different Man