#mikey pearce

[weclassybouquetfun]

The Oscars are gone, but not forgotten...yet.

While I was completely part of the CONCLAVE Hive

I was forewarned.

I am not mad about ANORA's wins as I quite loved it. I just loved CONCLAVE more (and BETTER MAN even more than all, but it wasn't in contention).

Our Best Actresses and Actors.

Post-Oscars bits and bobs.

In the past some nominees would host a dinner for the fellow nominees in their categories (Whoopi Goldberg and James Franco comes to mind as those who have hosted for their category), but this is the first time I've seen nominees across categories come together outside of the nominee luncheon.

They didn't know they were at the losers table: Sebastian Stan, Edward Norton, Colman Domingo, Demi Moore, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes and Jeremy Strong.

Awards season not just about accolades, it's about the friendships made along the way.

This years Best Actress and Best Supporting Nominees Fernanda Torres and Isabella Rossellini had more in common than some know. Both of their mothers were Oscar winners.

Isabella honoured her mother all season long, and at the Oscars honoured her ex-partner / collaborator David Lynch.

I really thought it was your year, Isabella!

I would have to say Team!Anora had the most fun of all during awards season.

The entire time watching ANORA I thought Mark Eydelshteyn was faking an accent. He sounded like BORAT.

Sir, why aren't you doing European pron?

Yes, because if Mikey gets to be sexy, let's give equal time to Mark.

Homages.

These fanfic writers need to step up with ANORA.

The Oscars was also a time for reunions. The Academy announced that they were returning to the Fab Five method of presenting with having past five winners introduce the actors for each category, but after Karla Sofia Gascón's wildly offensive tweets coming to the fore and her desire to stand ten toes down and sloppily defend herself, they discarded the idea, seemingly because who would praise her?

What could have been again.

I must say, I really enjoyed EMILIA PÉRÉZ and some presume that its nomination was because the industry was trying to show how progressive it was, but I've been to screenings for the film and the audience loved it. I went to one where the couple behind me had already seen it and was excitedly telling their seat mate about it, careful not to spoil anything because they said, "You just have to see it!", but there was genuine enthusiasm for the film. And while I've not read many interviews with writer/director Jacques Audiard, at the post-screening Q&A neither he nor Gascón, Selena Gomez or Zoë Saldaña patted themselves on the back for being revolutionary or touted the project as something that is going to change hearts and minds. The closest anyone came to that was Saldaña who was just proud that there were three Latinas leading a film.

Have to hand it to her, she didn't flinch.

-Some Oscar night moments: Halle Berry getting her revenge kiss on Adrien Brody, Kieran Culkin running to give Jeremy Strong a hug on the red carpet, the men of ANORA greeting, the Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn and YYura Borisov introducing their clip, Colman Domingo hyping up the audience with Frankie Beverly and Maze, Mark Eydelshteyn dancing it up at Neon's party and Adrien Brody's next day Oscar thoughts.

[moviemosaics]

All Acting Nominees for the 97th Academy Awards

[synkverv]

THE PROPOSITION (2005) dir. john hillcoat

the burns brothers + saying each other's names

[mrs-stans]

Sebastian Stan and Fernanda Torres Join Ariana Grande, and More at Santa Barbara Tribute (Exclusive)

Under executive director Roger Durling, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF, February 4-15, 2025) has thrived by not only mounting an eclectic film festival but riding the awards season waves by programming prestige interviews with Oscar contenders.

All the festival’s popular panels are held at State Street’s capacious Arlington Theatre. The festival is adding two new tributees, Oscar nominees Fernanda Torres (“I’m Still Here”) and Sebastian Stan (“The Apprentice”), to TCM host Dave Karger’s popular Virtuosos tribute on February 8th at 8 p.m. They will join panelists Karla Sofía Gascón and Selena Gomez (“Emilia Pérez”), Harris Dickinson (“Babygirl”), Ariana Grande (“Wicked”), Clarence Maclin (“Sing Sing”), Mikey Madison (“Anora”), and John Magaro (“September 5”). The festival may not have foreseen that Torres might be rubbing shoulders with rival Oscar nominee Gascón in the wake of her recent scandal. Netflix may opt not to send Gascón. (Netflix had no response at press time.)

Every year, screenwriters, directors, and producers promote their films on panels, with past speakers like Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Kristen Stewart, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Nolan, Ben Affleck, Brad Pitt, Bong Joon Ho, and more submitting to in-depth tributes.

The panels, tributes, and special screenings lure not only local cinephiles but the area’s few hundred Academy members eager to hear Oscar contenders talk about their creative process. Most of the tributes and panels are held in person at the historic Arlington Theatre, and they’re posted online.

SBIFF 2025, the 40th edition, will open with the U.S. premiere of “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life” and will unspool 12 days of film programming from 60 countries, including 32 world premieres such as Maxim Derevianko’s “Ai Weiwei’s Turandot,” as well as red-carpet tributes to filmmakers and talent including Colman Domingo, Angelina Jolie, Ralph Fiennes, Zoe Saldaña, Timothée Chalamet, Adrien Brody and Guy Pearce. The closing night film is the U.S. premiere of “A Missing Part.” Tickets are available here.

[pupsmailbox]

HORROR ID PACK

NAMES︰ abyss. adelaide. alex. allure. alluria. amnesia. amnesty. annabelle. archer. ash. asher. ashton. athena. axe. axette. bates. beal. belial. belladonna. bellatrix. bellow. billy. blade. blair. bleedesse. bloodiesse. bones. bow. briar. brute. bubba. buffy. butcher. cain. caliburn. calyspo. carcass. carna. carrie. carrion. casey. casper. chainette. chains. charley. charlie. chase. chi. chris. chucky. claire. claymore. clear. colt. connor. corpse. craven. cross. crypt. cybre. cynthia. damien. danger. derry. desdemona. dove. dracula. drow. elisabeta. elm. elmira. elvria. em. enigma. erin. eros. ethan. evelien. eventide. falchion. finale. finalis. finn. fleur. freddy. galatine. ghost. ghostesse. gladius. graves. grim. guts. harker. haunt. hound. howl. hunter. hush. ikino. jace. jane. jason. javelin. jekyll. jesse. john. julie. kateline. kille. killer. killesse. killette. killire. killyr. knifesse. knifette. krueger. lamb. laurie. lavender. lenz. lillith. loomis. lorraine. lucien. lucy. machete. mal. malice. massacresse. massacrette. max. maxine. megan. mia. michael. mike. mikey. molar. mors. morticia. mortis. myer. myers. necro. nephi. night. noir. norman. nyx. nægling. obsidian. onyx. ophelia. pandora. pearce. pike. pin. pointe. pointette. pridwen. pyper. quentin. raven. reaper. renfield. retro. revenant. river. roadkill. rosemary. rot. ryker. sabel. sabre. sacrifesse. salem. samara. sawyer. scum. scythe. seraph. serene. sharpette. sharppe. shaun. shelley. sidney. slash. slasher. slashesse. slashette. slashine. slashire. slashyr. specter. spite. survivesse. survivette. sybil. syd. talia. thomas. vein. verity. vesper. visage. viscera. vivo. warden. weaponesse. weaponette. weaponne. wendy. whisp. william. wraith.

PRONOUNS︰ aby/abyss. alien/alien. amnesia/amnesia. axe/axe. bat/bat. bite/bite. bla/blade. blade/blade. blood/blood. bone/bone. brain/brain. brutal/brutal. bull/bullet. bullet/bullet. camp/camp. carna/carnage. chain/chain. chain/chainsaw. chainsaw/chainsaw. chase/chase. choke/choke. claw/claw. co/corpse. content/content. copy/copy. cor/corpse. corpse/corpse. cry/cry. cryp/cryptid. crypt/crypt. cut/cut. dae/daem. dae/daer. dark/dark. de/demo. dea/death. death/death. dec/decay. decay/decay. die/die. eldritch/eldritch. elm/elm. evil/evil. fear/fear. fie/fire. fien/fiend. final/final. flesh/flesh. fog/fog. freak/freak. fury/furious. gau/gauze. gauze/gauze. gho/ghost. ghost/ghost. gloom/gloom. gnaw/gnaw. go/gore. gor/gore. gore/gore. gra/grave. grave/grave. gun/gun. gut/gut. hallow/hallow. haun/haunt. haunt/haunt. horr/horror. horror/horror. house/house. hunt/hunt. hush/hush. k9/k9. ki/kill. kill/kill. kni/knife. knife/knife. lash/lash. lethal/lethal. live/live. machete/machete. maim/maim. mallet/mallet. mask/mask. massacre/massacre. med/medical. medi/medical. monster/monster. murder/murder. night/night. no/none. pin/pin. point/point. point/pointy. pois/poison. prey/prey. pyr/pyramid. red/red. reveil/reveil. revive/revive. rib/rib. rip/rip. rodent/rodent. rot/rot. run/run. sacrifice/sacrifice. saw/saw. scream/scream. scythe/scythe. shadow/shadow. sharp/sharp. sharp/sharpen. sharpen/sharpen. sin/sin. slash/slash. slash/slashe. slash/slashed. slash/slasher. slasher/slasher. slice/slice. sly/sly. sni/snipe. sound/sound. stab/stab. stalk/stalk. steel/steel. step/step. survive/survive. survivor/survivor. tear/tear. thon/thon. tomb/tomb. trope/trope. vamp/vamp. victim/victim. voi/void. weapon/weapon. weep/weep. whisp/whisper. wound/wound. wra/wrath. ☠️. ⚰. ⚰️. ⚱. ⛧. ⛨. 🏥. 🏹. 🐀. 💀. 💉. 💣. 📿. 🔪. 🔫. 🕳️. 🛡️. 🥀. 🦴. 🧛‍♂️. 🧟‍♂️. 🧨. 🩸. 🩹.

[animusrox]

Golden Globes Nominations - FILM

Best Motion Picture – Drama​

The Brutalist (A24) A Complete Unknown (Searchlight Pictures) Conclave (Focus Features) Dune: Part Two (Warner Bros. Pictures) Nickel Boys (Orion Pictures/Amazon Mgm Studios) September 5 (Paramount Pictures)

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy​

Anora (Neon) Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) Emilia Pérez (Netflix) A Real Pain (Searchlight Pictures) The Substance (Mubi) Wicked (Universal Pictures)

Best Motion Picture – Animated​

Flow (Sideshow/Janus Films) Inside Out 2 (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) Memoir of a Snail (IFC Films) Moana 2 (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (Netflix) The Wild Robot (Universal Pictures)

Cinematic and Box Office Achievement​

Alien: Romulus (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (Warner Bros. Pictures) Deadpool & Wolverine (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) Gladiator II (Paramount Pictures) Inside Out 2 (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) Twisters (Universal Pictures) Wicked (Universal Pictures) The Wild Robot (Universal Pictures)

Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language​

All We Imagine as Light (Sideshow / Janus Films) – Usa / France / India Emilia Pérez (Netflix) – France The Girl With the Needle (Mubi) – Poland / Sweden / Denmark I’m Still Here (Sony Pictures Classics) – Brazil The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Neon) – Usa / Germany Vermiglio (Sideshow / Janus Films) – Italy

Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama​

Pamela Anderson (The Last Showgirl) Angelina Jolie (Maria) Nicole Kidman (Babygirl) Tilda Swinton (The Room Next Door) Fernanda Torres (I’m Still Here) Kate Winslet (Lee)

Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama​

Adrien Brody (The Brutalist) Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown) Daniel Craig (Queer) Colman Domingo (Sing Sing) Ralph Fiennes (Conclave) Sebastian Stan (The Apprentice)

Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy​

Amy Adams (Nightbitch) Cynthia Erivo (Wicked) Karla Sofía Gascón (Emilia Pérez) Mikey Madison (Anora) Demi Moore (The Substance) Zendaya (Challengers)

Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy​

Jesse Eisenberg (A Real Pain) Hugh Grant (Heretic) Gabriel Labelle (Saturday Night) Jesse Plemons (Kinds of Kindness) Glen Powell (Hit Man) Sebastian Stan (A Different Man)

Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture​

Selena Gomez (Emilia Pérez) Ariana Grande (Wicked) Felicity Jones (The Brutalist) Margaret Qualley (The Substance) Isabella Rossellini (Conclave) Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez)

Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture​

Yura Borisov (Anora) Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain) Edward Norton (A Complete Unknown) Guy Pearce (The Brutalist) Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice) Denzel Washington (Gladiator II)

Best Director – Motion Picture​

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 – Motion Picture​

Jacques Audiard (Emilia Pérez) Sean Baker (Anora) Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold (The Brutalist) Jesse Eisenberg (A Real Pain) Coralie Fargeat (The Substance) Peter Straughan (Conclave)

Best Original Score – Motion Picture​

Volker Bertelmann (Conclave) Daniel Blumberg (The Brutalist) Kris Bowers (The Wild Robot) Clément Ducol, Camille (Emilia Pérez) Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross (Challengers) Hans Zimmer (Dune: Part Two)

Best Original Song – Motion Picture​

“Beautiful That Way” – The Last Showgirl; Music & Lyrics By: Andrew Wyatt, Miley Cyrus, Lykke Zachrisson “Compress / Repress” – Challengers; Music & Lyrics By: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Luca Guadagnino “El Mal” – Emilia Pérez; Music & Lyrics By: Clément Ducol, Camille, Jacques Audiard “Forbidden Road” – Better Man; Music & Lyrics By: Robbie Williams, Freddy Wexler, Sacha Skarbek “Kiss The Sky” – The Wild Robot; Music & Lyrics By: Delacey, Jordan K. Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Maren Morris, Michael Pollack, Ali Tamposi “Mi Camino” – Emilia Pérez; Music & Lyrics By: Clément Ducol, Camille

[dweemeister]

97th Academy Awards reactions

*deep breath* Here goes...

First off, to my followers who couldn't care less... why do I care about the Oscars so damn much? Film, as an artform, is among the multidisciplinary of all. The Academy Awards are a reminder that yes, there are big-name actors and actresses who are spoiled and make big figures. But outnumbering them in the county north of where I live are craftspeople - cinematographers, editors, composers, production designers, makeup artists, hairstylists, sound editors and mixers, and more than make this artform complete. You don't know their names and you don't know their faces, as Conan O'Brien (great job btw!) reminded us all at the beginning of tonight's monologue. They are the ones for whom an Academy Award nomination mean so much for.

After my disappointment in Supporting Actor (Kieran Culkin is committing category fraud and plays the same role always), we went to both animated categories. For more than a decade, I've been advocating for animation beyond the major American studios and Hayao Miyazaki. I've had limited success in getting followers and friends to seek those films out. So when Gints Zilbalodis and his team from Flow won the Animated Feature Oscar tonight, I was overjoyed and very, very emotional. For little Latvia, with not much of a film history, they've circled around this unlikely movie. No dialogue, a meditation of our existence and how we can get along with another so unlike us, only a handful of animators spread out from Latvia, France, and Belgium? No movie like this should be anywhere near a category that has been the province of Disney, DreamWorks, Pixar, and maybe if Studio Ghibli has a film that year. But Flow did it. And I hope Gints and team have an easier time making their next film.

This is going to be a seminal moment for animated movies outside the major American and Japanese studios - I just know it. The standards at Disney, DreamWorks, and Pixar have slipped (Illumination never had standards) over the last 15 years. I blame the success of Shrek and Despicable Me for a lot of what has happened in major American studio animation for chasing the least common denominator. These American major animation studios need an ass-kicking. Flow's win is for all of those non-Miyazaki-directed features or smaller animated features that made it to the big stage but never had a chance (like Adam Elliot for Memoir of a Snail - the nomination was the win for Snail) or never even got a sniff from Academy members.

Then, for the first time in many years, my favorite Animated Short won. In the Shadow of the Cypress' filmmakers are from Iran, and they were having a lot of visa troubles trying to get to the U.S. It also didn't help that their nation gave them little to no support while making their film and afterwards. Having landed at LAX three hours before the ceremony, they seemed almost lost for words during their acceptance speech. Congratulations to Shirin Sohani and Hossein Molayemi!

My night peaked after BOTH of my animated favorites won. I could've just called it a night there, but there was much more ceremony to go...

OK. To the categories you folks actually care for. I like Anora, and I especially like Mikey Madison in it. But is it really the sort of film that can put Sean Baker equal to Walt Disney and Bong Joon-ho as the only individuals to have won four Academy Awards in a single night? I don't think so. Anora is not on Parasite's level. 5/6 seems a little overboard for me - especially in Director and Editing (good lord the middle act of the film really drags). It'll be interesting how this film will age. We will see in time.

My personal #1 would have gone to The Brutalist - a movie I admired deeply, but wouldn't call a personal favorite. After Adrien Brody won Actor, I pretty much knew that night was done. I'm glad Brody won his, but I wish more folks realized how crucial Guy Pearce is to the success of that film. I don't necessarily think it uses VistaVision all that well, so I call into question the Cinematography win.

And though I'm fine with The Brutalist's score, the only reason why this won was because of DUH DUH DUH DUHHHHH at the start of the film. Because AMPAS voters don't know what good music is, let alone a good film score, they just award it to anything that has a memorable riff for a few seconds. Sorry Kris Bowers and Wild Robot! Sorry to the un-nominated Amelia Warner and Young Woman and the Sea! Developing a motif is alien to AMPAS voters now!

I am also OK with Zoe Saldaña winning Supporting Actress in a movie I dislike in Emilia Pérez (the concerns about how Mexican culture are depicted are warranted, the depiction of a sex change as "morally purifying" is problematic to say the least, and the film utterly fails as a musical and did not deserve Original Song). She's the best part of that movie, aside from the cinematography (which deserves a better movie. I think that makes her the first person to portray a major bridge crew office in a Star Trek movie or TV series to win an Oscar (I am not counting Michelle Yeoh because that was a bit role, not a regular role, in Discovery). LLAP.

And speaking of non-English language films... Walter Salles' excellent I'm Still Here with a performance by Fernanda Torres that would've had my Best Actress vote. Congratulation to Brazil on their first ever International Feature win (shame that Black Orpheus was considered France)! And I hope we see more Brazilian movies here in American theaters, too.

Conclave was trashy fun. And I'm glad it won for its screenplay (in another year, Fiennes might take Actor for me). It got my mom out to a rare trip to the movie theater, and was a rare moment I got to enjoy a movie with her in a theater (she's Buddhist, but she was there for all the religious drama and the costumes). This will age very well, and I already see the fandom sprouting on tumblr - watch out!

Wicked fans in my life were disappointed to see only two wins for the film. I'm a Wicked fan too, having loved the musical since my high school days. But I'm not the biggest fan of how it was adapted to the screen. There are a few problems here for Wicked's success this awards season. First, Wicked is a first part of two. AMPAS voters are disinclined to vote for a non-ending "part" if they know there are more parts coming. Second, the correlation between box office and likelihood of success at the Academy Awards ended decades ago. If we nominated highest-grossing films, the MCU would have won Best Picture across the 2010s. Good luck with the second part later this year... although, I will say Act II of Wicked is musically and dramatically less interesting than Act I. How much will Jon M. Chu pad the film?

Did the message of The Substance actually play out? A completely deserved Makeup and Hairstyling win, though!

Nickel Boys was my overall #2, never really had a chance at anything.... so I'm glad it made it here anyways.

And as someone who is no fan of Timothée Chalamet and who hated Dune the book, I am fine with Dune: Part Two's wins in Sound and VFX alone. And as someone who thought that A Complete Unknown was just an unremarkable concert film, I am fine with it being shut out.

I only saw No Other Land and Sugarcane in Documentary Feature. I cannot comment on their worthiness, having not seen the other nominees. But No Other Land - which I saw at the Art Theatre in Long Beach on Saturday morning - having no U.S. distributor (even at this stage) is shameful. The filmmakers should not have had to self-distribute their film. It is a good documentary that isn't nearly as harrowing as some other (worse) docs I've seen get distribution. In similar fashion, shame on Japanese studios for refusing to distribute fellow nominee Black Box Diaries in its native country.

The repulsively made A Lien (why is the title spelled like this? how the hell do you actually pronounce this?) lost in Live Action Short after sacrificing filmmaking craft for timeliness. The decidedly un-cinematic Incident - which shows no filmmaking prowess beyond some slick editing - lost in Documentary Short. Thank the fucking lord. That I Am Not a Robot and The Only Girl in the Orchestra won in their places, respectively, puzzles me a bit. You can find I Am Not a Robot on YouTube in most countries via The New Yorker. The Only Girl in the Orchestra is on Netflix.

It was a fun night, and we ended mostly in a timely fashion! And in one day, I can stop thinking about movies through an awards lens again for several months. Thanks to many of my followers and friends for the company this awards season! 31 Days of Oscar ends tomorrow.

[oscarwoodland]

My Final Oscar Predictions: Will Win, Could Win, Wild Card Win

With the Oscars only four days away, I figured it was time to finally lock in my predictions. Here I'm doing my will win (my final prediction) my could win (my second pick) and my wild card win (my third pick). Thanks to the chaos of this year, the could wins and wild card wins are possible in a lot of cases. Here goes!

Best Picture

Will Win: Anora

I think all three of the movies that I'm listing in this category have an equal shot at winning the night's ultimate prize. My pick here is purely me going with my gut.

Could Win: The Brutalist

See above. My gut is just telling me Anora a little harder.

Wild Card Win: Conclave

With the BAFTA and the SAG ensemble win behind it, as well as just being a solid, sturdy pick, it'll be Conclave if not Anora or The Brutalist.

Best Actor

Will Win: Adrien Brody, The Brutalist

With the exception of SAG, he's won all the major precursors and is probably the most consistently awards-loved part of The Brutalist.

Could Win: Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown

Has been the only other Best Actor nominee to really catch up with Brody (notably winning SAG). He's definitely been campaigning hard, I just don't think it's happening this year.

Wild Card Win: Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

I feel like the more obvious pick here would be Ralph Fiennes for Conclave, but it just doesn't seem like he's getting much love individually for that film. So I went with Stan, who I was surprised to see on a secret ballot and who I think might get some political love in voting, even if it doesn't translate to a win.

Best Actress

Will Win: Demi Moore, The Substance

Has won most of the major precursors, has a great narrative, it just seems like things are aligned in her favor.

Could Win: Mikey Madison, Anora

This is yet another category where the "will win" is not guaranteed. Madison's story is interesting: she was the frontrunner until the Globes, seemed to slip away, and then came back with the Independent Spirit Awards. I'm leaning a little more towards Moore, but I still think she can pull off a win.

Wild Card Win: Fernanda Torres, I'm Still Here

There is a third option, which is that Moore and Madison split the vote and Torres winds up taking the win. She had a shock win with the Globes, and it's still possible for her.

Best Supporting Actor

Will Win: Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain

This is the pick I'm the most confident in. He's won every single precursor and has been the favorite the entire season. It's going to be him.

Could Win: Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice

If you'd asked me a week ago I'd probably have put Strong at the bottom for most likely to win Best Supporting Actor. However, he did show up on multiple secret ballots - while I know that that's a very small sample size, it's still much more than I was expecting.

Wild Card Win: Guy Pearce, The Brutalist

If for some reason it's not Kieran Culkin, and if the secret ballots misled me, it'll probably be Guy Pearce.

Best Supporting Actress

Will Win: Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez

While Emilia Pérez has been embroiled in controversy after controversy and has destroyed its chances in most categories, Saldaña, the favorite before the major controversy, seems to have escaped relatively unscathed. Of course we won't find out if that's really true until Sunday night, but there haven't been any major warning signs against her win.

Could Win: Felicity Jones, The Brutalist

Once again I am being guided by the secret ballots and hope that I am not being led astray. If anyone is going to prevent Saldaña's win, I think it's Jones.

Wild Card Win: Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown

Potentially random guess, but between Isabella Rossellini having about eight lines in Conclave and my gut telling me that Ariana Grande's campaign is dead in the water, I think Barbaro is my third place pick.

Best Director

Will Win: Sean Baker, Anora

This is based purely off of my prediction for Anora to win Best Picture.

Could Win: Brady Corbet, The Brutalist

See above.

Wild Card Win: Coralie Fargeat, The Substance

I do think it's really just down to Baker and Corbet, but since I have to make a third place pick I think Fargeat is the most likely of the remaining directors.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Will Win: Peter Straughan, Conclave

Has won before, is the only film in this category I think can win Best Picture, it's happening.

Could Win: Joslyn Barnes and RaMell Ross, Nickel Boys

Has gotten a surprising amount of screenplay love previously.

Wild Card Win: Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar, Sing Sing

If it's winning anything it's winning screenplay. Seems possible.

Best Original Screenplay

Will Win: Jesse Eisenberg, A Real Pain

Screenplay (both adapted and original) is an interesting category because it's one the Academy enjoys using to reward films that don't win Best Picture - maybe it's just because of the fact that there will always inherently be one winner that doesn't win Picture. I think A Real Pain could be another example of this, regardless of which movie wins the big title.

Could Win: Sean Baker, Anora

This is another category I'm unsure of. Again, I have Anora winning Best Picture, but like I said above, the Academy loves to give this award to movies that don't win big. I'm a little more confident on A Real Pain, but this is very much possible.

Wild Card Win: Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold, The Brutalist

See everything I said above about Anora. Very possible, but I'm less convinced of it than the other two, since I feel that it's gotten much less love for its screenplay compared to them.

[raidpirate52]

My Backyard Sports Character tier list 2.0 featuring up to the Atari era. My opinions are my own and I'm sorry if your favorite is ranked low, it's just my personal opinion. You're free to your own.

Source: Note that I personally added the Atari-era characters via uploading images and they're not apart of the original tier list, nor are the commentators or Mr. Clanky.

S: Pablo Sanchez, Ashley Webber, Sidney Webber, Luanne Lui, Reese Worthington, Ace Patterson, Create-A-Player, Vinnie the Gooch, Buddy Cheque

A: Ernie Steele, Dante Robinson, Ronny Dobbs, Angela Delvecchio, Marky DuBois, Mikey Thomas, Sunny Day, Chuck Downfield

B: Stephanie Morgan, Kenny Kawaguchi, Kiesha Phillips, Achmed Khan, Ricky Johnson, Amir Khan, Vicki Kawaguchi, Mr. Clanky

C: Jocinda Smith, Sally Dobbs, Maria Luna, Tony Delvecchio, Annie Frazier, Pete Wheeler, Earl Grey

D: Gretchen Hasselhoff, Kaytoo the Yeti, Billie Jean Blackwood, Lisa Crocket, Kimmy Eckman, Joey Macadoo, Arthur Chen, Samantha Pearce, Erik Stream

F: Abner Doubleplay, Barry deJay, Jimmy Knuckles, Jorge Garcia, Dmitri Petrovich

[harmonicabisexuals]

Oscars Predictions

bold names are what i think is gonna win, asterisks (***) are what i want to win

Best Picture

Anora  The Brutalist A Complete Unknown  Conclave  Dune: Part Two  Emilia Pérez  I’m Still Here  Nickel Boys  The Substance  Wicked 

Directing

Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez Sean Baker, Anora Brady Corbet, The Brutalist Coralie Fargeat, The Substance James Mangold, A Complete Unknown

Actor in a Leading Role

Adrien Brody, The Brutalist Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown Colman Domingo, Sing Sing Ralph Fiennes, Conclave Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

Actress in a Leading Role

Cynthia Erivo, Wicked Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez Mikey Madison, Anora Demi Moore, The Substance Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here***

Actor in a Supporting Role

Yura Borisov, Anora Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown*** Guy Pearce, The Brutalist*** Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice

Actress in a Supporting Role

Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown Ariana Grande, Wicked Felicity Jones, The Brutalist*** Isabella Rossellini, Conclave Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

A Complete Unknown  Conclave*** Emilia Pérez  Nickel Boys  Sing Sing 

Writing (Original Screenplay)

Anora***  The Brutalist  A Real Pain  September 5  The Substance 

Cinematography

The Brutalist  Dune: Part Two Emilia Pérez Maria Nosferatu***

Costume Design

A Complete Unknown  Conclave  Gladiator II  Nosferatu Wicked

Film Editing

Anora  The Brutalist  Conclave Emilia Pérez  Wicked

Makeup and Hairstyling

A Different Man  Emilia Pérez  Nosferatu  The Substance  Wicked 

Music (Original Score)

The Brutalist (Daniel Blumberg) Conclave (Volker Bertelmann)*** Emilia Pérez (Clément Ducol and Camille) Wicked (John Powell and Stephen Schwartz) The Wild Robot (Kris Bowers)

International Feature Film

I’m Still Here (Brazil)*** The Girl With the Needle (Denmark) Emilia Pérez (France) The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Germany) Flow (Latvia)

Production Design

The Brutalist  Conclave  Dune: Part Two  Nosferatu***  Wicked 

Sound

A Complete Unknown  Dune: Part Two Emilia Pérez  Wicked  The Wild Robot 

Visual Effects

Alien: Romulus  Better Man  Dune: Part Two  Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes  Wicked 

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

Let's talk about The Oscars for a bit. I plan to watch the ceremony on Sunday throughout the night (hopefully I'll find some good streaming link). But before that, I want to add here the nominations list. Vanity Fair just released its 2025 Oscar ballot. Anyone can save it and if you want to share your predictions, thoughts, I encourage you to do it in the comments, reblogs, etc.

I'll also only talk about a few categories, the ones that interest me or I'm familiar with most of the nominations in it.

What has been clear though is that, as opposed to last year and Oppenheimer taking almost everything, this year it is too unpredictable with no clear winner in sight in major categories.

1. Best Picture

Winner: I'm inclined towards either Anora or Conclave. These movies started getting a lot more traction in the last few weeks and they seem to be the obvious choice for critics/industry voters, etc.

My choice: The Brutalist. It is the most incrdible accomplishment this year in American cinema and it excels in each aspect, from acting, storytelling, cinematography...

2. Director

Winner: It's tough here. Corbet won the Golden Globe, but Fargeat and Baker have high chances too. The latter especially if Anora wins best picture.

My choice: Brady Corbet

3. Actress in a leading role

Winner: Either Demi Moore or Fernanda Torres. The real battle is between those two and Mikey Madison, but she has the lowest chances in the bunch.

My choice. Fernanda Torres. Demi Moore had a great role, it was an amazing comeback, a perfect Hollywood story if she wins (a lot of things align for her), but if Demi was ACTING, Fernanda Torres in I'm Still Here was acting. Very different approaches and I guess it's also a matter of taste. Either way, whoever wins out of these two, I would be ok with the choice.

4. Actor in a leading role

Winner: It's between Brody and Fiennes, but Chalamet might surprise everyone. He definitely did at the SAG Awards last Sunday so who knows? Brody is a favorite and he deserves the accolades. Ralph Fiennes if he wins, it would be a career Oscar because how did he not get one until now??? This is really a strong category because in a way, really all the nominees would deserve it. Colman Domingo was amazing in Sing Sing and Sebastian Stan in The Apprentice too, although the Academy might not rush yet to give him something.

My choice: Honestly, I don't feel strongly about any of them in the sense that I'm dying for one particular actor to win. I've seen all performances and all I can say is that if Brody takes home his second Oscar, it would be deserved.

5. Actress in a Supporting Role.

Winner: Zoe Saldana. But what a weak category! I wouldn't vote for anyone. Or maybe for Isabella Rossellini because she is coming closer to an actual supporting role, but perhaps it was too small.

My choice: None of them really...

6. Actor in a Supporting Role

Winner: Kieran Culkin. As opposed to the actress categ, this one is doing a bit better. Although I do understand people's complaints about Culkin because of category fraud. Just as Saldana, which is really unfair for all the other actors who actually had supporting roles.

My choice: Guy Pearce because he should have gotten a lot more recognition for his role or Jeremy Strong. That birthday scene at Mar-a-Lago when he's close to dying is unforgettable and a shame that he didn't win anything for it.

7. Original Screenplay

Winner: The Substance

My choice: The Substance

(What the hell is that September 5 propaganda even doing there??)

8. International Feature

Winner: Emilia Perez. They have to give something to that film after the entire campaign went to shit.

My choice: I'm Still Here. I want Brazilians to win. I really do. This award and/or Torres getting it for acting would be amazing.

9. Cinematography

Winner: The Brutalist

My choice: The Brutalist

10. Documentary Feature

Winner: No Other Land

I can't pick any because I haven't watched the docs, but most of the talks are around No Other Land. And they're having Gal Gadot presenting for this category! Oh boy...

[9eeeeevvvvvaaaaa6]

‼️🚨 ATTENTION EVERYBODY 🚨‼️

The nominations for this year's Academy Awards have been announced. Emilia Pérez" leads the field.

After two disaster-related shifts, Rachel Sennott and Bowen Yang revealed on Thursday afternoon, the works and stars were hoping this year at the 97th place. The genre-explosive musical "Emilia Pérez" by French director Jacques Audiard is the favourite in the award ceremony, which will be held on 2nd. March will be held. The film, already successful at the Golden Globes, brings together 13 nominations, announced the Academy on Thursday. This is followed by the fictional biography "The Brutalist" and the Disney (?!) musical "Wicked" with 10 chances of winning each.

Foreignoscar without Austria

In the race for the foreign Oscar is "Die Saat des heiligen Feigenbaum" by the director Mohammad Rasoulof, who lives in Germany. The native Iranian measures herself here with the omnipresent "Emilia Pérez" as well as the Danish production "The Girl with the Needle", "I'm Still Here" from Brazil and the Latvian animation strip "Flow". The Austrian entry "Des Teufels Beitrag" by Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala had not made it to the pre-selection before.

The favourites and their number of nominations

"Emilia Pérez" (13) "Wicked" und "Der Brutalist" (10) "Konklave", "Like A Complete Unknown" (8) "Anora" (6) "Dune: Part Two", "The Substance" (5) "Nosferatu" (4) "I'm Still Here", "Sing Sing", "Der wilde Roboter" (3) "A Real Pain", "Flow", "Nickel Boys", "The Apprentice" (2)

The nominees in the categories

Actor in a Supporting Role Yura Borisov, Anora Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown Guy Pearce, The Brutalist Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice

Costume Design A Complete Unknown Conclave Gladiator II Nosferatu Wicked

Makeup and Hairstyling A Different Man Emilia Pérez Nosferatu The Substance Wicked

Music (Original Score) The Brutalist Conclave Emilia Pérez Wicked The Wild Robot

Music (Original Song) "Never Too Late” from Elton John: Never Too Late “El Mal” from Emilia Pérez “Mi Camino” from Emilia Pérez “Like A Bird” from Sing Sing “The Journey” from The Six Triple Eight

Animated Short Film Beautiful Men In the Shadow of the Cypress Magic Candies Wander to Wonder Yuck!

Live-Action Short Film A Lien Anuja I’m Not a Robot The Last Ranger The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

Writing (Adapted Screenplay) A Complete Unknown Conclave Emilia Pérez Nickel Boys Sing Sing

Writing (Original Screenplay) Anora The Brutalist A Real Pain September 5 The Substance

Actress in a Supporting Role Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown Ariana Grande, Wicked Felicity Jones, The Brutalist Isabella Rossellini, Conclave Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pére

Documentary Feature Film Black Box Diaries No Other Land Porcelain War Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat Sugarcane

Documentary Short Film Death by Numbers I Am Ready, Warden Incident Instruments of a Beating Heart The Only Girl in the Orchestra

International Feature Film Brazil, I’m Still Here Denmark, The Girl With the Needle France, Emilia Pérez Germany, The Seed of the Sacred Fig Latvia, Flow

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

Production Design The Brutalist Conclave Dune: Part Two Nosferatu Wicked

Sound A Complete Unknown Dune: Part Two Emilia Pérez Wicked The Wild Robot

Visual Effects Alien: Romulus Better Man Dune: Part Two Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Wicked

Actor in a Leading Role Adrien Brody, The Brutalist Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown Colman Domingo, Sing Sing Ralph Fiennes, Conclave Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

Actress in a Leading Role Cynthia Erivo, Wicked Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez Mikey Madison, Anora Demi Moore, The Substance Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here

Directing Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez Sean Baker, Anora Brady Corbet, The Brutalist Coralie Fargeat, The Substance James Mangold, A Complete Unknown

Best Picture Anora The Brutalist A Complete Unknown Conclave Dune: Part Two Emilia Pérez I’m Still Here Nickel Boys The Substance Wicked

Source:

[genreneutralfilm]

2025 Academy Award Nomination Predictions

Oscar Nomination Morning is tomorrow! So I’ve compiled my list of what I’ve predicted the nominations will look like. I’ve listed them all below in order of likelihood to be nominated. 

2024 was genuinely one of my favorite years of movies since I've been following this closely so I am very excited about tomorrow.

Best Picture-

Anora

The Brutalist

Emilia Perez

Conclave

Dune: Part Two

Wicked

The Substance

A Complete Unknown 

A Real Pain

Sing Sing

Best Director-

Brady Corbet- The Brutalist

Sean Baker- Anora

Emilia Perez- Jacques Audiard

Coralie Fargeat- The Substance

Edward Berger- Conclave

Best Actress- 

Demi Moore- The Substance

Mikey Madison- Anora

Kara Sofia Gascon- Emilia Perez

Cynthia Erivo- Wicked

Pamela Anderson- The Last Showgirl

Best Actor-

Adrien Brody- The Brutalist

Timothee Chalamet- A Complete Unknown

Ralph Fiennes- Conclave

Colman Domingo- Sing Sing

Daniel Craig- Queer

Best Supporting Actress-

Zoe Saldana- Emilia Perez

Ariana Grande- Wicked

Isabella Rossellini- Conclave

Margaret Qualley- The Substance

Jamie Lee Curtis- The Last Showgirl

Best Supporting Actor- 

Kieran Culkin- A Real Pain

Edward Norton- A Complete Unknown

Yura Borisov- Anora

Guy Pearce- The Brutalist

Clarence Maclin- Sing Sing

Original Screenplay-

Anora

The Brutalist

A Real Pain

The Substance

Challengers

Adapted Screenplay- 

Conclave

Emilia Perez

Nickel Boys

Sing Sing

A Complete Unknown

International Feature-

Emilia Perez

The Seed of the Sacred Fig

I’m Still Here

The Girl with the Needle

Kneecap

Documentary Feature-

Daughters 

Black Box Diaries

No Other Land

The Remarkable Life of Ibelin

Dahomey

Animated Feature-

The Wild Robot

Flow

Inside Out 2

Memoir of a Snail

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

Cinematography-

Dune: Part Two

The Brutalist

Nickel Boys

Nosferatu

Conclave

Editing-

Anora

Dune: Part Two

Conclave

The Substance

Challengers

Production Design-

Wicked

Dune: Part Two

Nosferatu

The Brutalist 

The Substance 

Costume Design-

Wicked

Dune: Part Two

Gladiator II

Nosferatu

Conclave

Makeup and Hairstyling-

The Substance

Wicked

Nosferatu

Dune: Part Two

A Different Man

Visual Effects-

Dune: Part Two

Wicked

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Alien: Romulus

Gladiator II

Sound-

Dune: Part Two

Wicked

A Complete Unknown

Alien: Romulus

Emilia Perez

Score-

Emilia Perez

The Brutalist

Conclave

The Wild Robot

Challengers

Original Song-

El Mal- Emilia Perez

Mi Camino- Emilia Perez

Kiss The Sky- The Wild Robot

Compress/Repress- Challengers

The Journey- The Six Triple Eight

Documentary Short-

The Only Girl in the Orchestra

Incident

I Am Ready, Warden

Once Upon a Time in Ukraine

Chasing Roo 

Animated Short-

ME

A Bear Named Wojtek

Beautiful Men

In the Shadow of the Cypress

A Crab in the Pool

Live Action Short-

Anuja

The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

The Masterpiece

A Lien

Paris 70

[chinchillasorchildren]

Well...

Best Picture

Anora

The Brutalist

A Complete Unknown

Conclave

Dunc-O-Rama Canto Due

Emilia Perez

Nickel Boys

A Real Pain

Sing Sing

Wicked

Just out of reach: September 5, The Substance

Director

Jacques Audiard - Emilia Perez

Sean Baker - Anora

Edward Berger - Conclave

Brady Corbet - The Brutalist

Coralie Fargeat - The Substance/James Mangold - A Complete Unknown

Is the spice still flowing?: Jon Chu (Wicked), Denis Villeneuve (Dune Pt 2), RaMell Ross (Nickel Boys)

Actor

Adrien Brody - The Brutalist

Timothee Chalamet - A Complete Unknown

Ralph Fiennes - Conclave

Colman Domingo - Sing Sing

Sebastian Stan - A Different Man/The Apprentice

End of the road probably: Daniel Craig (Queer), Jesse Eisenberg (A Real Pain)

Actress

Karla Sofia Gascon - Emilia Perez

Marianne Jean Baptiste - Hard Truths

Mikey Madison - Anora

Demi Moore - The Substance

Fernanda Torres - I'm Still Here

Margot Robbie 2.0: Cynthia Erivo (Wicked)

Never the big threats they could have been: Nicole Kidman (Babygirl), Pam Anderson (The Last Showgirl), Angelina Jolie (Maria)

Supporting Actor

Yura Borisov - Anora

Kieran Culkin - A Real Pain

Edward Norton - A Complete Unknown

Guy Pearce - The Brutalist

Jeremy Strong - The Apprentice

Alt: Clarence Maclin (Sing Sing)

Supporting Actress

Jamie Lee Curtis - The Last Showgirl

Selena Gomez - Emilia Perez

Ariana Grande - Wicked

Isabella Rosselini - Conclave

Zoe Saldaña - Emilia Perez

The Maggie Gyllenhaal-print: Monica Barbaro (A Complete Unknown)

Adapted Screenplay

A Complete Unknown

Conclave

Emilia Perez

Nickel Boys

Sing Sing

Original Screenplay

Anora

The Brutalist

Hard Truths

A Real Pain

The Substance

Editing

Anora

The Brutalist

Conclave

Dune Part 2

Emilia Perez

Cinematography

The Brutalist

Conclave

Maria

Nickel Boys

Nosferatu

They should have re-released in the fall: Dune Part 2

Downballot/recency bias beneficiary: A Complete Unknown

If they really feel like trolling: Wicked

Production Design

The Brutalist

Conclave

Dune Part 2

Nosferatu

Wicked

Alts: The Substance, Gladiator 2, A Complete Unknown

Costume Design

The Brutalist

Dune Part 2

Gladiator 2

Nosferatu

Wicked

Alts: Maria, The Substance, A Complete Unknown, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Animated Feature

Flow

Inside Out 2

Memoir of a Snail

Moana 2

The Wild Robot

Documentary Feature

Black Box Diaries

Daughters

Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat

Sugarcane

Will and Harper

....will they?: No Other Land, Dahomey

International Feature

Emilia Perez (Mexico)

The Girl With the Needle (Denmark)

I'm Still Here (Brazil)

The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Germany)

Vermiglio (Italy)

Score

The Brutalist

Challengers

Conclave

Emilia Perez

The Wild Robot

Never count him out: The Room Next Door

Sound

A Complete Unknown

Dune Part 2

Emilia Perez

Gladiator 2

Wicked

VFX

Better Man

Dune Part 2

Gladiator 2

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Wicked

Hair and Makeup

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Emilia Perez

Nosferatu

The Substance

Wicked

[femme-foucault]

Alright "final" Oscar nom predictions:

The Oscar nominations were supposed to come out on the 17th but were pushed back due to the wildfires, so now they are out on the 23rd. I know the main story on Film Internet right now is the AI controversy with The Brutalist, but since that story didn't break until after voting ended, I don't see that controversy hurting nominations for that film. It might affect wins, but it depends. So I'm keeping it in my predictions for now.

As usual, my predictions are in alphabetical order, not by personal preference.

Best Picture: Anora, The Brutalist, A Complete Unknown, Conclave, Dune Pt 2, Emilia Perez, A Real Pain, Sing Sing, The Substance, Wicked

Yes, I'm still hope-dicting Sing Sing. The BAFTA noms gave me some hope. Let me be delusional. It could very well be Nickel Boys instead of Sing Sing.

Director: Jacques Audiard (Emilia Perez), Sean Baker (Anora), Edward Berger (Conclave) Brady Corbet (The Brutalist), Coralie Fargeat (The Substance)

Ugh, I caved and predicted Audiard even though I'm not happy about it. I would love to see Villeneuve (Dune Pt 2) get in here but I highly doubt it. I know Fargeat is a stretch but they are going to want a woman in there because of all the pushback in the past few years and Fargeat has been nominated at a number of pre-cursors.

Best Actress in a Lead Role: Cynthia Erivo (Wicked), Karla Sofia Gascon (Emilia Perez), Mikey Madison (Anora), Demi Moore (The Substance)....and someone else idk.

No idea who that fifth slot is, but I highly doubt it's Angelina Jolie (Maria) anymore and I've taken Nicole Kidman out of my predictions too because her movie (Babygirl) has not been nominated as much as people thought it would be just a month ago. In that climate, I do think Erivo is getting in for Wicked -- she won't win, but with Jolie and Kidman out I'd be surprised if she wasn't nominated. After the Globes, maybe Fernanda Torres (I'm Still Here)?

Best Actor in a Lead Role: Adrien Brody (The Brutalist), Timothee Chalamet (A Complete Unknown), Daniel Craig (Queer), Colman Domingo (Sing Sing), Ralph Fiennes (Conclave)

Craig is the one I am weakest on but we'll see.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Jamie Lee Curtis (The Last Showgirl), Ariana Grande (Wicked), Felicity Jones (The Brutalist), Isabella Rossellini (Conclave), Zoe Saldana (Emilia Perez)

Honestly, Saldana and Grande are the only ones I am 100% sure of. It's a two-woman race there, but anyone else could be nominated. Now I have finally seen The Brutalist, I think Jones is this year's Emily Blunt -- the "tag along" nomination that accompanies two competitive acting performances in a best picture front runner (even though The Brutalist is much more divisive than Oppenheimer and I think a weaker movie (I was with it right up until the last 20 minutes, which I wasn't a fan of)). Selena Gomez might get in for EP if that movie over-performs even though she was terrible in that movie but being terrible has never stopped them from nominating someone before.

Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Yura Borisov (Anora), Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain), Edward Norton (A Complete Unknown), Guy Pearce (The Brutalist), Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice)

I put Borisov in because he keeps being nominated at precursors, though if anyone misses, it's him, not Pearce -- even though Pearce didn't get nominated at SAG. I have fiiiiiinally taken out Clarence Maclin even though he gave my favorite male supporting role of the year because Sing Sing is not getting the love it deserves :(

Adapted Screenplay: A Complete Unknown, Conclave, Dune Pt 2, Emilia Perez, Sing Sing

I am going on a limb and guessing Dune Pt 2, even though I don't think the first one got in. I think Conclave wins here.

Original Screenplay: Anora, A Real Pain, The Substance....Idk what else, but Anora is probably winning. Especially because it looks like Emilia Perez might be winning Best Picture noooooooooooo so I could see it being like last year, where the two screenplay awards go to movies that weren't winning anything else that they wanted to award.

No real guesses for all the techies because there is always a few tech categories in something that I haven't seen. I think Dune Pt 2 is going to be nominated in many tech categories, but I still think Wicked is probably winning Costume and Production Design (though pre-AI controversy, I could have seen The Brutalist taking the latter) unless Emilia Perez just really over-performs.

[dweemeister]

Reactions to the 97th Academy Awards nominations

Well, I've taken more than a full day to process most things. Forgot to post this last evening, so this is a bit delayed. But here goes nothing:

Full disclosure: I have seen 7/10 Best Picture nominees. Emilia Pérez I have procrastinated on because I unfortunately have not been able to drown out all the discourse surrounding it. Nickel Boys has not been given a wider release by MGM and I'm Still Here - Brazil's first ever nominee in Best Picture - has not even ventured outside the major cities.

At this moment, The Brutalist would be #1 on my ballot. I think it's a magnificently directed, sometimes overly self-serious epic about a failed American Dream, but especially about the relationship between artist and patron. I think Adrien Brody is even better in this lead role than he was in The Pianist (2002), which he won Best Actor for what feels like eons ago. I think Guy Pearce is underrated in Supporting Actor, and I still wonder how this was made for less than $10 million. I know this is a cynical movie and paints midcentury America in a poor light, but how I wish director Brady Corbet in Q&As and interviews would not so easily declare that the American Dream is a sham. You film is an immigrant's story (and a beautifully told one). Not the immigrant's story.

Wicked is in trouble, Best Picture-wise. It missed in Director, and it missed for its screenplay. No film since Grand Hotel (1932) has ever won Best Picture without either a Director or Screenplay nomination. That just feels like too much history for Wicked - which I very much enjoyed, but am more ambivalent about the direction - to overcome. So if Ariana Grande - who should be considered a co-lead, not supporting - doesn't win in March, can we please take a deep breath before we post stuff online?

Did Anora and Conclave peak too early in awards season? I'd like to see Mikey Madison take home Best Actress, but the film has been losing ground to Emilia Pérez for some time. And I can see many older members of the Academy thinking that it's essentially softcore porn (which parts of it can be, but the film is far much more than that). Conclave fits that mold of "Film the Academy Really Respects, but Doesn't Love Enough to Put Down as Their #1 Choice". Director Edward Berger is on my shitlist after All Quiet on the Western Front (2022, Germany; the link takes you to my write-up to the film and why I think the film is a terrible adaptation of the original novel). But, other than the oppressively dark color palette that looks terrible on home screens, I really liked that tale of Vatican drama. I would be fine with Fiennes winning, if it came to that.

A Complete Unknown - which is essentially a concert movie that told us little more about Bob Dylan that I already knew - overperformed. James Mangold in Director? No. Monica Barbaro in Supporting Actress? Eh. Adapted Screenplay? Please. And the kicker: I've never really taken to Timothée Chalamet, and I think it bewildering he becomes the youngest actor to receive a second Best Actor nomination since James Dean (posthumously, for 1955's East of Eden and 1956's Giant). Best Actor skews older than Actress, sure. This one was powered by older AMPAS voters, wasn't it?

I saw The Substance on Sunday after I missed its original release back in September/October. Too busy with work and body horror is one of my almost "no-go" subgenres. I admired the film far more than I liked it. And I had the biggest grin on my face as we got to the chaos of the final half hour. It's a fascinating film, and congratulates Coralie Fargeat on the Director nomination (I agree!). Would I vote for The Substance in any category? No, except for Makeup and Hairstyling. I thank that one's a shoo-in for reasons I won't go into here.

Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Two got a lot less love than the first part. Now, I thoroughly dislike the source material (I was assigned it during summer school and adding to this... the teacher who taught it was not great) and I'm very ambivalent towards some of the people who appear in these movies (read: Chalamet). But the movie just continued to remind that there's a far superior movie made with very similar themes that was also set in a desert. And in fact, author Frank Herbert was inspired by that movie when he wrote Dune. The movie? Lawrence of Arabia (1962). By the time I reminded myself of the Dune-Lawrence connection a third of the way through the former's second part, I watched the remainder out of obligation. I suspect AMPAS voters want to award Villeneuve if he completes Dune: Messiah... and that's not even a guarantee.

A24 really botched the release of Sing Sing, did they? I know A24 has its fans online, especially among younger cinephiles. But - giving you some inside scoops here - theater owners from outside the big cities tend not to like the fact that A24 tends to super-promote one movie at a time (like I Saw the TV Glow or Civil War earlier in 2024) and give short shrift to the others. A24 is also notoriously bad at following up non-big city theaters about their release strategies and intentions. Sing Sing dearly paid the price for the studio's concentration on The Brutalist.

Did we really just fucking nominate The Apprentice for Actor and Supporting Actor? I haven't seen the film, but do we REALLY want Donald Trump to chime in on the Academy Awards season? I think AMPAS is in the mood to "send a message" rather than honor quality filmmaking right now, and that 's being shown here and - ostensibly - with those 13 nominations for Emilia Pérez.

The little Latvian movie that could, Flow, becomes only the third animated movie to have been nominated for International Feature (Waltz with Bashir and Flee before it). It overperformed on the day, and it's what I would vote for on Animated Feature. Made on free software for a pittance, it is incredible what director Gints Zilbalodis was able to do. It'll cross borders and generations, easily.

Elsewhere among animated works, I'm overjoyed for Memoir of a Snail and Adam Elliot. Australia's stop-motion animation poster child is a name that more people should be familiar with, and this nomination is very much overdue. Not enough people saw this film, though. So the nomination is 100% a win. Pity that Mars Express couldn't find a way to break through here, but even fewer people saw that in theaters, comparatively.

Inside Out 2 is gonna find a way to win this over The Wild Robot and Flow, isn't it? AMPAS loves their Pixar and Disney. They have never given an Oscar to someone outside a major American studio or anyone not named Hayao Miyazaki (I acknowledge that he is a fantastic filmmaker, but unlike some of his other anime colleagues, Miyazaki gets far on name recognition alone and he gets a lot of big Hollywood figures to campaign for his films).

Speaking of The Wild Robot! Kris Bowers' score to the film is the score of the year. Bowers is one of a few young handful of composers who I hope usher in a new age of Hollywood film score composers that will not only usher in a promising future, but also understand the value of melody and the richness of what orchestras - or orchestras combined with electronic elements - can provide (which I think many recent film score composers are abandoning).

And now I risk the wrath of people - largely folks my age and younger and the Letterboxd crowd - on this website. As a film score diehard and multi-instrumentalist, seeing all that praise for Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' score to Challengers (which I think should've been nominated for Editing, but nothing more) was, frankly, grating to me. I thought the score was play far too loudly in emotional scenes. And just because the whole fucking score is banger club/workout music does not necessarily make for what I consider to be effective film scoring. (If you think I'm delusional... the music branch of the Academy includes composers and lyricists and producers but does not include the musicians who play those scores. Many of those who play on film scores hail from small ensembles or orchestras, and probably think similarly and might even consider Reznor and Ross' process to be a threat to their futures in film scoring). In short: I'm fine with Challengers not being nominated in Score.

But fucking hell. That is one of the worst Best Original Song slates I can remember in sometime. My god.

Congratulations to France's Miyu Studios, who either produced/co-produced/distributed three of the five nominees in Best Animated Short. And just going to show how democratic the short film categories are, there were three past nominees on the shortlist for Animated Short, each of whom are major figures in the world of contemporary animated shorts - Don Hertzfeldt (World of Tomorrow), Dice Tsutsumi (The Dam Keeper), and Torill Kove (The Danish Poet and Me and My Moulton). Not a single one of the previous nominees made it.

Three monkey movies in Visual Effects (Better Man, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Wicked)? Hilarious.