2023 Cannes Dispatch: That’s a Wrap
Guys, I was so worried. The memory of a film festival, however excellent its selection, can be utterly tarnished by bad jury decisions (we see you, George Miller for Cannes 2016). And to be perfectly honest, I had DOUBTS about this year’s jury. But you know what? Ruben Östlund & Co. did good. I probably would have shifted some of their choices around a little bit, but overall they did not pick one bad film from an exceptional lineup, forever securing the legacy of Cannes’ 76th edition, and that’s more than you can say for most festival juries. More thoughts below. Best Screenplay MONSTER CALLED...
2023 Cannes Dispatch: Will Win / Should Win
Having now seen all 21 films in competition at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, it’s time for predictions. A general observation upfront: Of the 8 times I’ve been to Cannes so far, this year’s comp lineup is – by some margin – the strongest. So many films deserve recognition some truly great ones are destined to go home empty-handed. In...
2023 Cannes Dispatch: ‘Last Summer’ / ‘Perfect Days’
As we enter the home stretch of the 76th Cannes Film Festival, two old-timers join the competition and may have gifted us with this year’s acting winners. First off, we have 74-year-old French director Catherine Breillat’s Last Summer, a remake of the 2019 Danish drama Queen of Hearts – with a French twist. Léa Drucker plays Anne, a successful lawyer...
95 Years of Oscars: Ranking The Best Picture Winners Part Two – #75-51
Welcome to Part Two of our countdown of the greatest Best Picture winners of all time! In Part One, we delved into the assorted range of films that have won this coveted prize through the 95 years of Oscar. Measuring impact, enduring legacy, and overall quality of films, the first portion of the list revealed how some of Hollywood's earliest...
Tina Turner: Soul Survivor
In the long history of women escaping abusive men, few stories are more well known than that of Tina Turner’s eventual exit from her husband and band leader Ike. There are several reasons why we know Tina’s story: Her own fame, the matter of public record, her autobiography with Kurt Loder “I, Tina,” but of course, it’s the cinematic dramatization...
Nantucket Film Festival Announces Additional Films, Signature Programs, and Special Guests
Official release: Nantucket, MA (May 25, 2023) - The Nantucket Film Festival® presented by Bank of America® (NFF) announced additional films, Signature Programs, and special guests for the 28th annual edition, which will run June 21-26. American journalist and veteran television news anchor Brian Williams is set to return as host of the 2023 Screenwriters Tribute presented by Bank of...
2023 Cannes Dispatch: ‘Sleep’ / ‘Omen’
There’s nothing quite like the joy of discovery at film festivals. Being blown away by a Malick or a Tarantino is one thing. Getting the first taste of what will become known as an “Eggert” or a “Ducournau”? That’s just unforgettable. Premiering in the Critics’ Week sidebar of the 76th Cannes Film Festival, South Korean writer/director Jason Yu’s Sleep is...
2023 Cannes Dispatch: Todd Haynes’ ‘May December’
I first saw Todd Haynes’ May December last Saturday at a punishingly late press screening at 11pm, shortly after watching Killers of the Flower Moon. My exhausted brain, which was very much still processing the Osage murders, registered something exciting that it struggled to unpack. So I made it a point to see the film a second time today, and...
Ray Stevenson: Legionnaire
It was never hard to pick Ray Stevenson out in a scene. All you had to do was look for the toughest looking guy in the frame, and if Ray’s in the scene, well, he’s that guy. Stevenson, from Northern Ireland, had a lengthy and varied 30-year career. He broke through on film playing Dagonet in Antoine Fuqua’s ill-fated King...
2023 Cannes Dispatch: ‘Club Zero’ / ‘Fallen Leaves’
Wowsers the hits just keep on coming at Cannes this year. As it turned out, the two competition films that screened today are both absolute winners. It’s not going to be easy for Ruben Östlund and his jury to reach a consensus by week’s end. First up we have Austrian director Jessica Hausner’s English-language satirical drama Club Zero. Set at...
Oscars 2024: Stunning Trailer for ‘The Color Purple’ Musical Shows Huge Potential
Warner Bros. released the first full look at the upcoming The Color Purple musical, starring Fantasia, Taraji P. Henson, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, Danielle Brooks, H.E.R., The Little Mermaid sensation Halle Bailey, and many more. It's immediately apparent that the film, hailing from director Blitz Bazawule, looks to stand totally on its own when compared to Steven Spielberg's Oscar-nominated original...
‘The Little Mermaid:’ Halle Bailey’s Star-Making Performance Lifts Disney’s Best Live-Action Adaptation
Poor unfortunate soul. That's what I'd call anyone daring to attempt a live-action remake of the insanely beloved 1989 animated classic The Little Mermaid. That film, widely credited for re-energizing a sagging Disney animation industry, made the animated musical a hot property and gave millions of children around the world their first modern day princess. And it wasn't beloved by...
2023 Cannes Dispatch: Justine Triet’s Courtroom Drama ‘Anatomy of a Fall’
Today’s dispatch may turn into a Sandra Hüller tribute, but I suspect few people would complain. The German actress, who broke out big time with Toni Erdmann, stunned in the early Palme d’Or favorite The Zone of Interest two days ago. And now, she’s wowed again for her starring role in French director Justine Triet’s courtroom drama Anatomy of a...
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‘White House Plumbers’ Cinematographer Steven Meizler Creates a Paranoid Visual Pallet Out Of Our Cinematic Past
When sitting down with director David Mandel to discuss the potential visual pallets for the HBO limited series White House Plumbers, cinematographer Steven Meizler (2021 Emmy winner for The Queen's Gambit) discovered both artists had a mutual affection for the paranoid political thrillers of the 1970s. All the President's Men, yes, as that film tells the flip side of the same Watergate...
2023 Emmys: A Window Closes and Team ADTV Offers Their Emmy Underdogs
Wednesday, May 31, marks the final day of eligibility for the 2023 Emmy season. After that, you're on your own, kid. And a handful of series are tossing caution to the wind and are debuting new episodes at the very last minute to qualify. Disney+'s American Born Chinese dropped all episodes, something they very rarely do with their higher-profile Marvel projects,...
Ted Lasso’s Jodi Balfour Reveals What Jack, Roy, and Jamie Might Have in Common As Keeley’s Partners
Awards Daily talks to Jodi Balfour about romancing Keeley Jones (Juno Temple) in Season 3 of Ted Lasso. Like so many of us, Jodi Balfour loved the coziness of Ted Lasso seasons 1 and 2. So when she was cast as Jack, Keeley's new love interest, she was a little anxious about boarding an award-winning juggernaut. "It was like this...
‘Last Flight Home’ Director Ondi Timoner On the Importance of End Of Life Rights
Awards Daily talks to director Ondi Timoner about her very personal documentary Last Flight Home, which tells the story of her father's final two weeks of life. Director Ondi Timoner never intended for the footage of her father in the final weeks of his life to be turned into the documentary Last Flight Home, but she realized there was something...
‘Being Mary Tyler Moore’ Director James Adolphus On Why Moore Never Saw Herself as a Feminist
Awards Daily talks to director James Adolphus about his new HBO documentary, Being Mary Tyler Moore, and the lady behind the smile. Director James Adolphus gets a little embarrassed when asked what drew him to his latest project, the HBO documentary Being Mary Tyler Moore. "Before I joined this project, I didn't know anything at all about Mary Tyler Moore,"...
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2024 Oscar TRACKER
SO FAR...
Best Picture Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best Director
Adapted Screenplay
Cinematography
Best Editing
Production Design
Sound Mixing + Editing
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Visual Effects
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Animated Feature
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you can already discard Close your eyes for being the Spanish submission... it's a long film, slowburn, almost 3 hours…
you're disoriented, THE film that probably could have won Palm d'Or was Victor Erice's Close your eyes... just check out…
It's crazy how competitive International Feature can be already if these films are all chosen: The Zone of Interest (UK/Poland)…
Perhaps I'm just being cautious about these movies' chances but at the moment I feel like Anatomy of a Fall…
The burning question I have is would Scorsese's film won a big prize? The blazing question I truly have is…