Photo: EPA
Chris Luckett
Left your Oscar ballot to the last minute? Want to show up your friends with a little friendly competition? Here’s my guide for what to expect tonight during the 88th Academy Awards. Continue reading
Photo: Open Road Films
Chris Luckett
There are just two days left until the Oscars. Have you had trouble finding time to catch up on all the nominated movies? Still want to be able to join in the Oscar conversations at work? Look no further than this six-part guide to the major categories. Today, I look at the nominees for Best Picture.
Photo: Twentieth Century Fox
Chris Luckett
There are dozens of movie awards shows, and dozens more that don’t even have broadcasted ceremonies. While the Academy Awards may be considered the pinnacle here, every country has their equivalent, and arguably no country’s comes as close to Oscar’s prestige as the BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Awards.
In the wake of Valentine’s Day yesterday, many missed the late-night headlines of the winners at last night’s awards ceremony, generally considered to be the best prognosticator of the eventual winners of the Oscars (if you take the Guilds out of the equation). Curious about what to put down for your Oscar pool next week? Until my final predictions are posted, these results may be your best bets. Continue reading
Photo: Twentieth Century Fox
Chris Luckett
While the nominations this year were more predictable than in some years past, the movies that did rise to the top have produced a more interesting race from the outset than we’ve had in quite a while. When the field of Best Picture nominees includes eight incredibly varied films, each quite strong as their respective cinematic goals, it’s a good sign that anything can happen over the next six weeks.
The 88th Academy Award nominees are… Continue reading
Photo: EPA
Chris Luckett
With the Golden Globe Awards taking place this past Sunday, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that nobody actually cares about them. Regardless of how they’re very on by fewer than 90 people and the fact they consider things like The Martian a comedy, The Golden Globes are just the most public awards show for movies in the lead-up to the movie awards that really matter – the Oscars!
Tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn, the world will find out the nominations for the 88th Academy Awards. But what movies can you expect to be up for the treasured trophies? Continue reading
Photo: Hollywood Foreign Press Association
Chris Luckett
The Golden Globe Awards are always unpredictable, as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association exists outside of the world of critics and other awards shows. As comparison: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (who give out the Oscars) is comprised of over 7000 film industry leaders and contributors. The HFPA is comprised of 90 entertainment journalists.
Because of that, it’s much more of a crapshoot in predicting the winners, as a single person’s vote weighs far more heavily and the group as a whole often votes emotionally rather than objectively or even politically. (Recall, if you will, the lambasting they received after the bevy of Golden Globe nominations they gave The Tourist.)
Still, that’s half the fun. People who follow film can pretty accurately predict the Oscars, but the Golden Globes are anyone’s game. Here are my dart-in-the-wall predictions. What are yours? Continue reading
Photo: Paramount Pictures
Chris Luckett
Many of the characters in The Big Short are hotshot brokers and bankers who trade in millions daily (before the financial crisis of 2008). Two, though, are younger guys who’ve never had the chance to land a big deal and just want a shot at the grown-ups table.
Adam MacKay is a talented director who’s always been held back a bit by the comedies he’s made: Step Brothers, The Other Guys, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, and both Anchormans. He wasn’t the logical choice to direct a movie that has no shrieking, streaking, or Will Ferrell. The Big Short is his big shot. Continue reading
The Apple Box 