I can’t wait for this! I just finished the book, which was powerful and shocking, and to me it seems the perfect material for Jane Campion’s sensibilities as a director. And Benedict Cumberbatch looks great too. It’s on Netflix Dec 1st and is expected to be a major Oscar player.
Asghar Farhadi's New Movie 'A Hero' is Iran's Oscar Entry
I never miss a Farhadi movie and this one got great reviews in Cannes, so be on the lookout in early January. The Iranian director is a master storyteller, with A Separation, Everybody Knows, The Salesman, and The Past in his repertoire.
Snakes Attack in New 'Benedetta' Trailer
This lesbian nun drama from Paul Verhoeven still looks silly and over the top and I still can’t wait to see it. It’s coming out Dec 3rd.
Lady Gaga Camps it Up in New 'House of Gucci' Trailer
This still looks campy and ridiculous but possibly entertaining? I guess we’ll have to see. I don’t associate that tone with anything Ridley Scott has EVER done, so if it’s what it looks like, that’s new for him (trying new things at 83!).
Buzz Lightyear Gets an Origin Story
Well, this is…weird. I don’t know what this is supposed to be, because Buzz Lightyear, the toy, was supposedly based on a superhero character that existed within the Toy Story universe, so is this a fictional movie within said TS universe, about that superhero space ranger guy? Or is it supposed to be like, a real guy that the toys/character was based on? Also, it’s gotta be a bit odd to some that Tim Allen, who’s kind of synonymous with Buzz Lightyear, isn’t the voice here all of a sudden (it’s Chris Evans now).
Rebecca Hall’s Passing gets a lot of attention from the Gotham awards
'The Lost Daughter,' 'Passing' Top Gotham Nominees
Rebecca Hall’s Passing gets a lot of attention from the Gotham awards
The first awards nominations of the season are here, as the Gothams announce their nominees. They went with obscure films overall, thought a couple are though to be potential Oscar contenders as well, like The Lost Daughter and Passing (and hopefully CODA, but who knows). The Gothams are not an influential group for the most part- they’ve very indie and very small and chosen by about four or five people (seriously). The big news with them this year was their decision to get rid of gendered categories altogether- this resulted in massive lists of acting nominees that seemed to basically be combining all the women and men together, making this effort seem rather pointless (clearly they were worried about the pre-stated fear that gender neutral categories would result in all male nominees, but if they were going to prevent that by choosing five men and five women anyway, why not just leave the original categories as they were?)
2021 GOTHAM AWARD NOMINATIONS
Best Feature
“The Green Knight”
“The Lost Daughter”
“Passing”
“Pig”
“Test Pattern”
Best Documentary Feature
“Ascension”
“Faya Dayi”
“Flee”
“President”
“Summer Of Soul (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
Best International Feature
“Azor”
“Drive My Car”
“The Souvenir Part II”
“Titane”
“What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?”
“The Worst Person In The World”
Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award
Maggie Gyllenhaal for “The Lost Daughter”
Edson Oda for “Nine Days”
Rebecca Hall for “Passing”
Emma Seligman for “Shiva Baby”
Shatara Michelle Ford for “Test Pattern”
Best Screenplay
“The Card Counter,” Paul Schrader
“El Planeta,” Amalia Ulman
“The Green Knight,” David Lowery
“The Lost Daughter,” Maggie Gyllenhaal
“Passing,” Rebecca Hall
“Red Rocket,” Sean Baker & Chris Bergoch
Outstanding Lead Performance
Olivia Colman in “The Lost Daughter”
Frankie Faison in “The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain”
Michael Greyeyes in “Wild Indian”
Brittany S. Hall in “Test Pattern”
Oscar Isaac in “The Card Counter”
Taylour Paige in “Zola”
Joaquin Phoenix in “C’mon C’mon”
Simon Rex in “Red Rocket”
Lili Taylor in “Paper Spiders”
Tessa Thompson in “Passing”
Outstanding Supporting Performance
Reed Birney in “Mass”
Jessie Buckley in “The Lost Daughter”
Colman Domingo in “Zola”
Gaby Hoffmann in “C’mon C’mon”
Troy Kotsur in “CODA”
Marlee Matlin in “CODA”
Ruth Negga in “Passing”
Breakthrough Performer
Emilia Jones in “CODA”
Natalie Morales in “Language Lessons”
Rachel Sennott in Shiva Baby”
Suzanna Son in “Red Rocket”
Amalia Ulman in “El Planeta”
CODA is an early favorite of mine, so I’m happy to see it on here, but I haven’t seen much yet
Nicole Kidman Attempts to Pull Off an Unlikely Lucille Ball in 'Being the Ricardos'
The teaser for Aaron Sorkin’s Lucille Ball biopic is finally here. I was fairly horrified by the casting of Nicole Kidman as Lucy (who stepped in after Cate Blanchett had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts) and this teaser really does nothing to assuage my fears, as the voiceover I’m hearing in this is 100% Nicole Kidman, 0% Lucille Ball. And we also don’t really get to see her either, so are they hiding her? Probably. I’m also not crazy about the Javier Bardem casting, who doesn’t resemble Desi Arnaz in the slightest.
Olivia Colman Stars in Maggie Gyllenhaal's Directorial Debut 'The Lost Daughter'
Based on an Elena Ferrante novel, this film got rave reviews from the Venice and New York film festivals, with most saying it feels nothing like a debut feature from actress turned director Maggie Gyllenhaal. This is a bit of opaque trailer, but Colman (who really can do no wrong apparently) is playing a woman with a tragic past, while Jessie Buckley plays her younger self, and Normal People’s Paul Mescal shows up in this as well (too bad about Dakota Johnson though- ick. Not a fan). It’s on Netflix Dec 31st.
Michael Keaton Returns as Batman in 'Flash' Teaser
It’s exciting to see Michael Keaton return as Batman, but I just wish it wasn’t in the long delayed and finally happening Flash movie. This Ezra Miller guy creeps me the hell out.
First Trailer for 'The Batman' Premieres at DC Fandome
Well, here it is. The second trailer for The Batman keeps that Nirvana cover, but still barely shows off Paul Dano’s Riddler, for some reason. And in case you keep forgetting (like I do), that IS Colin Farrell as the Penguin complete transformed to look, not like a penguin, but like a different actor they wished they had cast instead. I’m sorry, but Robert Pattinson looks terrible here in a suit that makes him look really small versus the previous Batmans, and that closeup of him screaming at the glass? Cringe. So obviously someone with a little boy’s face under that mask. Real intimidating. And Catwoman is in this one quite a bit but she still has literally no costume. Super lame.
Andrew Garfield Plays the Creator of 'Rent' in 'Tick, Tick...Boom!'
It sure feels like there’s been a lot of musicals this year, with more upcoming, like this film about the too short life of Jonathan Larson, who wrote Rent and died before he could see it debut on Broadway. This movie is actually based on his other play, which was semi-autobiographical itself, leaving the potential for poignancy extremely high. It’s Lin-Manuel Miranda’s directorial debut as well, but I’m always annoyed at trailers for musicals that don’t show off the singing (at least Cyrano did). This one premieres at the AFI fest in November before streaming on Netflix Nov. 19th.
See Magic Houses in Disney's 'Encanto'
The full trailer for Encanto kind of leaves me cold, honestly, but I haven’t been a big fan of recent Disney fare. Zootopia was the only one in the last decade that I really liked. As someone who’s actually seen every one of their full length animated features though, I feel the need to check this one out. I just hope it’s better than Raya and the Last Dragon.
