The NYFCC Honors American Hustle


Oscar season has begun!  This afternoon, The New York Films Critics Circle announced their picks for the best of 2013.  Fortunately, I had the office to myself so I was able to follow along online.  Here are the winners and a few random thoughts:

BEST PICTURE
“American Hustle”

(This is something of a surprise, no?  Most award watchers were expecting 12 Years a Slave to pretty much sweep all of the critics’ awards.  It will be interesting to see if American Hustle does with the other critic groups but, for now, it seems like American Hustle has taken a major step forward to scoring a best picture nomination.)

BEST DIRECTOR
Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave”

(This was much more expected.)

BEST ACTOR
Robert Redford, “All Is Lost”

(Ditto.  I recently saw All Is Lost.  It’s interesting to note that Redford has only a few more lines than Jean Dujardin in The Artist.)

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine”

(Deserved and expected.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers’ Club”

(I haven’t seen this one yet but I hope to soon.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle”

(I was kind of surprised how angry some people on twitter got over Lawrence’s victory.  However, from my own personal experience, being intelligent, talented, and pretty really brings out the haters..)

BEST SCREENPLAY
“American Hustle”

(A lot of people on twitter were upset over this.  I haven’t seen American Hustle yet so I can’t judge.)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Bruno Delbonnel, “Inside Llewyn Davis”

(This was the award that managed to tick off thousands of Gravity fans.  Don’t get me wrong — I liked Gravity.  But some of the pro-Gravity people actually make the pro-Avatar people look calm and collected.)

BEST ANIMATED FILM
“The Wind Rises”

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Blue is the Warmest Color”

(I agree.)

BEST NON-FICTION FEATURE
“Stories We Tell”

(I agree.)

BEST FIRST FEATURE
“Fruitvale Station”

(And, for a third time, I agree.)

One final note — unlike the Academy, in which a simple majority determines the winner, the NYFCC awards were determined by consensus and, as a result, several of the categories apparently required multiple ballots before a winner was agreed upon.  As such, some of the winners listed above are definitely compromise picks.

Myself, I still have to see a lot of the potential Oscar nominees — including 12 Years A Slave, American Hustle, and Dallas Buyers Club.  However, for now, my favorite film of 2013 remains Upstream Color.

And finally — here are the Satellite Nominations


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Along with the Annie Nominations and the Gotham Awards, the Satellite Nominations were announced earlier today.  What are the Satellites?  The Satellites are given out by the International Press Academy.  They apparently used to be a part of the Hollywood Foreign Press (i.e., the people who give out the Golden Globes) but then they broke off to form their own organization and give out their own awards.  The Satellites, themselves, are often viewed as being just as unsavory as the Golden Globes while also being far less influential when it comes to determining what films will end up Oscar-nominated and which films will be snubbed.

That said, I still like the Satellites, just because they nominate such a large number of nominees for each category and you know how I am about long lists.

Here are the major Satellite film nominations.  A full list of nominations (including television nominations) can be found here.

BEST PICTURE
“12 Years a Slave”(Fox Searchlight)
“All Is Lost” (Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions)
“American Hustle” (Sony)
“Blue Jasmine” (Sony Pictures Classics)
“Captain Phillips” (Sony)
“Gravity” (Warner Bros.)
“Inside Llewyn Davis” (CBS Films)
“Philomena” (The Weinstein Company)
“Saving Mr. Banks” (Disney)
“The Wolf of Wall Street” (Paramount)

BEST DIRECTOR
Woody Allen, “Blue Jasmine” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, “Inside Llewyn Davis” (CBS Films)
Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity” (Warner Bros.)
Paul Greengrass, “Captain Phillips” (Sony)
Ron Howard, “Rush” (Universal)
Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave”(Fox Searchlight)
David O. Russell, “American Hustle” (Sony)
Martin Scorsese, “The Wolf of Wall Street” (Paramount)

BEST ACTRESS
Amy Adams, “American Hustle” (Sony)
Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Sandra Bullock, “Gravity” (Warner Bros.)
Judi Dench, “Philomena” (The Weinstein Company)
Adèle Exarchopoulos, Blue Is the Warmest Color (Sundance)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Enough Said” (Fox Searchlight)
Meryl Streep, “August: Osage County” (The Weinstein Company)
Emma Thompson, “Saving Mr. Banks” (Disney)

BEAT ACTOR
Christian Bale, “American Hustle” (Sony)
Bruce Dern, “Nebraska” (Paramount)
Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Wolf of Wall Street” (Paramount)
Chiwetel Ejiofor, “12 Years a Slave”(Fox Searchlight)
Tom Hanks, “Captain Phillips” (Sony)
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features)
Robert Redford, “All Is Lost” (Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions)
Forest Whitaker, “The Butler” (The Weinstein Company)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Sally Hawkins, “Blue Jasmine” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle” (Sony)
Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”(Fox Searchlight)
Julia Roberts, “August: Osage County” (The Weinstein Company)
Léa Seydoux, Blue Is the Warmest Color (Sundance)
June Squibb, “Nebraska” (Paramount)
Emily Watson, “The Book Thief” (20th Century Fox)
Oprah Winfrey, “The Butler” (The Weinstein Company)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Bradley Cooper, “American Hustle” (Sony)
Michael Fassbender, “12 Years a Slave”(Fox Searchlight)
Harrison Ford, “42” (Warner Bros.)
Ryan Gosling, “The Place Beyond the Pines” (Focus Features)
Jake Gyllenhaal, “Prisoners” (Warner Bros.)
Tom Hanks, “Saving Mr. Banks” (Disney)
Casey Affleck, “Out of the Furnace” (Relativity Media)
Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club” (Focus Features)

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
“Bethlehem,” Israel
“Blue Is the Warmest Color,” France
“The Broken Circle Breakdown,” Belgium
“Circles,” Serbia
“Four Corners,” South Africa
“The Great Beauty,” Italy
“The Hunt,” Denmark
“Metro Manila,” United Kingdom
“The Past,” Iran
“Wadjda,” Saudia Arabia

BEST ANIMATED PICTURE
“Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2” (Sony)
“The Croods” (DreamWorks)
“Epic” (20th Century Fox)
“Ernest & Celestine” (GKIDS)
“Frozen” (Disney)
“Monsters University” (Disney-Pixar)
“Turbo” (DreamWorks)
“The Wind Rises” (Studio Ghibli)

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“20 Feet from Stardom” (Radius-TWC)
“The Act of Killing” (Drafthouse Films)
“After Tiller (Oscilloscope)
“American Promise (Rada Film Group)
“Blackfish (Magnolia Pictures)
“Evocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie (Ironbound Films)
“Sound City (Roswell Films)
“The Square (City Drive Entertainment Group)
“Stories We Tell (Roadside Attractions)
“Tim’s Vermeer (Sony Pictures Classics)

Here Are 2013 The Annie Nominations!


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The 2013 Annie Nominations were announced earlier today.  The Annies honor the best of the year’s animated features and television series.  The race for the Best Animated Feature Oscar is unusually competitive this year so it’s interesting to note that Frozen, Monsters U., Despicable Me 2, and The Croods received the most Annie nominations this year.

Below are the major nominations.  A full list of the nominees can be found by clicking here.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
A Letter to Momo – 
GKIDS
Despicable Me 2 – 
Universal Pictures
Ernest & Celestine
 – GKIDS
Frozen – 
Walt Disney Animation Studios
Monsters University – 
Pixar Animation Studios
The Croods
 – DreamWorks Animation
The Wind Rises
 – The Walt Disney Studios
BEST ANIMATED SPECIAL PRODUCTION
Chipotle Scarecrow
 – Moonbot Studios
Listening Is an Act of Love
 – StoryCorps
Room on the Broom – 
Magic Light Pictures
Toy Story OF TERROR!
- Pixar Animation Studios

BEST ANIMATED SHORT SUBJECT
Despicable Me 2 – Puppy
 – Universal Pictures
Get A Horse!
 – Walt Disney Animation Studios
Gloria Victoria
 – National Film Board of Canada
My Mom is an Airplane
 – Acme Filmworks
The Numberlys – 
Moonbot Studios

BEST ANIMATED TV/BROADCAST COMMERCIAL
Despicable Me 2 – Cinemark
 – Universal Pictures
Sound of the Woods – Acme Filmworks
The Polar Bears Movie
 – CAA Marketing

Best General Audience Animated TV/Broadcast Production For Preschool Children
Bubble Guppies
 – Nickelodeon Animation Studio
Disney Sofia the First
 – Disney Television Animation
Doc McStuffins
 – Disney Television Animation
Justin Time
 – Guru Studio
Peter Rabbit – Nickelodeon Animation Studio

Best Animated TV/Broadcast Production For Children’s Audience
Adventure Time – 
Cartoon Network Studios
Beware the Batman
 – Warner Bros. Animation
Disney Gravity Falls
 – Disney Television Animation
Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness – 
Nickelodeon Animation Studio
Regular Show – 
Cartoon Network Studios
Scaredy Squirrel – 
Nelvana Ltd.
Teen Titans Go!
 – Warner Bros. Animation
The Legend of Korra
 – Nickelodeon Animation Studio

Best General Audience Animated TV/Broadcast Production
Archer
 – FX Networks
Bob’s Burgers – 
Bento Box Entertainment
Disney Tron Uprising
 – Disney Television Animation
Futurama
 – 20th Century Fox Television
Motorcity
 – Titmouse Inc.

Best Animated Video Game
Diggs Nightcrawler
 – Moonbot Studios
Tiny Thief
 – 5 ANTS
The Last of Us – 
Naughty Dog

Best Student Film
Chicken or the Egg
 – Ringling College of Art and Design
Kellerkind – Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg
Miss Todd
 – Kristina Yee
Move Mountain
 – Kirsten Lepore
SEMÕFORO – 
University of Southern California
The Final Straw
 – Ringling College of Art and Design
Trusts & Estates
 – CalArts
Wedding Cake – 
Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg

12 Random Things That I Am Thankful For In 2013


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Happy Thanksgiving!

Traditionally here in the States, Thanksgiving is the forgotten holiday that sits between Halloween and Christmas.  This is the time of year that those of us in the States are supposed to think about what we are thankful for.  According to the people in Washington, this year we’re also supposed to talk to all of the members of our family about politics.  They’ve even made talking points available, just in case you have a relative who isn’t crazy about your personal ideology.  To me, though, that seems kind of foolish.  Why would you ruin a perfectly good Thanksgiving with politics when you could spend your time thinking, talking, and arguing about movies and television?

After all, Presidents are only around for, at the most, eight years.  Movies are forever.

With that in mind, here are twelve random things that I am thankful for in 2013.

1) I’m thankful that there are still visionaries like Shane Carruth who can make films like Upstream Color.

2) I’m thankful for actors, like Robert Downey, Jr., who are capable of making mainstream films, like Iron Man 3, memorable.

3) I’m thankful that a show like Breaking Bad got a chance to remind us of just how good television can be.

4) I’m thankful for Blue Is The Warmest Color.

5) I’m thankful that at least some people understand that The Counselor is one of the best films of 2013.

6) I’m thankful that this October was this site’s most succesful horror month yet!

7) I’m thankful that, in 2013, we can still watch movies like The Passion of Joan of Arc.

8) I’m thankful that I actually saw Tyler Perry’s Temptation because, otherwise, I would not believe that such an inept and deeply offensive film could have been made.

9) I am thankful for Icona Pop’s I Love It, which is currently my favorite song to play while I’m dancing around the house in my underwear.

10) I am thankful that the series finale of The Office was everything that it should have been.

11) I am thankful that Dexter finally ended because, seriously, the show was getting so bad that it was running the risk of overshadowing how good the first few seasons actually were.

12) Finally, and most importantly, I am thankful for our readers and for our subscribers.  Y’all are the ones who make all of this worthwhile.  Thank you!

6 Trailers For Which To Be Thankful


With Thanksgiving late but approaching, what better time to offer up another edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers?

Enjoy!

1) The Great Texas Dynamite Case (1976)

2) Unholy Rollers (1974)

3) Eat My Dust (1976)

4) Stingray (1978)

5) The Explosive Generation (1961)

6) Skatetown USA (1979)

(Yes, I’ve shared this one before but I just happen to like it.)

What do you think, Trailer Kitty?

thanksgiving-cat-is-not-happy

Here Are The 19 Films Eligible To Be Nominated For Best Animated Feature


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Oscar season continues!  The Academy today released it’s list of the films that are eligible for Best Animated Feature.  Here are the 19 films that are in the running.

Per Academy Rules, no less than two  and no more than 5 of these films will ultimately be nominated.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Epic
Ernest and Celestine
The Fake
Free Birds
Frozen
Khumba
The Legend of Sarila
A Letter to Momo
Monsters University
O Apóstolo
Planes
Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie — Rebellion
Rio: 2096 A Story of Love and Fury
The Smurfs 2
Turbo
The Wind Rises

despicable-me-2-minions-spinoff-movie-universal

6 Trailers For Halloween, Part 3


Hi there and welcome to the 3rd and final part of this special Halloween edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers!

For this final edition, we take a look at horror films that were nominated for Oscars.  Because of their Oscar pedigree, these films are rarely referred to as being exploitation films.   However, have no doubt — at heart, these films all belong in the grindhouse.

1) The Exorcist (1973)

Among other nominations, The Exorcist was the first horror film to ever receive a nomination for best picture of the year.  The Exorcist, however, lost the Oscar to The Sting.

2) Jaws (1975)

Jaws was nominated for best picture in 1975 but lost to One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest.

3) The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

The Silence of the Lambs was the first horror movie to win best picture.

4) The Sixth Sense (1999)

The Sixth Sense was nominated for best picture but lost to American Beauty.

5) Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Ruth Gordon won the Oscar for best supporting actress for her performance in this film.

6) Shadow of the Vampire (2000)

Willem DaFoe was nominated for best supporting actor but lost to Benicio Del Toro in Traffic.

What do you think, Trailer Kitties?

Trailer Kitties

6 Trailers For Halloween, Part 2


Hi there and welcome to part 2 of this special Halloween edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers!  Today, we’re looking at some of my favorite Italian horror films!

1) Suspiria (1977)

2) Bay of Blood (1971) (a.k.a. Carnage, Twitch of the Death Nerve)

3)  Dellamorte Dellamore (1994)

4) A Blade In The Dark (1983)

5) Zeder (1983)

6) Zombi 2 (1979)

What do you think, Trailer Kitty?

Trailer Kitty 2

6 Trailers For Halloween, Part 1


With Halloween rapidly approaching, it’s time for another 3-part edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers!  Today, we start things off by revisiting 6 trailers from a very familiar franchise.

1) Halloween (1978)

2) Halloween 2 (1981)

3) Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (1982)

4) Halloween 4 (1988)

5) Halloween 5 (1989)

6) Halloween 6 (1995)

What do you think, Trailer Kitty?

Trailer Kitty