What’s more powerful: words or actions? Usually it’s the latter, yet in the case of Aneil Karia and Riz Ahmed’s brilliant and sobering short film, the former shines ever brighter and clearer. The Long Goodbye is a personal statement from the two above-mentioned entertainers, and an incredibly pointed narrative. Just a mere 11 minutes, and you are thrust into a world of experiences that many social groups have had to endure for generations. To say this is powerful doesn’t give it enough weight. But simply, it does the job because it is true. Karia uses sharp visuals – mostly editing and natural light – to convey an accurate portrayal that,…
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Full List of Nominations for the 86th Annual Academy Awards
Nominations for the 86th Academy Awards were announced this morning and the interweb is all a buzz either cheering or sneering at the nominees. 2013 was a strong year for film and those lucky/good enough to warrant an invite to Hollywood’s glitziest night are some truly deserving pictures and personalities. But just like film and our opinions of them, the nominations are all subjective. Most of the nominees in this the crop of Oscar hopefuls have been making waves for a while (even as far back as their respective festival runs) but some, like Lone Survivor, managed to grab a last minute nod(s) of recognition Sony’s American Hustle and Warner Bros’…
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The 85th Annual Academy Awards – Full Winners List
Last night, the 85th Annual Academy Awards ceremony went off without a hitch and aside from some real shockers (like Ang Lee beating out Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino winning for best screenplay) it was an immensely delightful few hours. Despite what some think about Seth MacFarlane he really brought some life to the evening replete with some crass but still witty jokes, classic zingers, sock puppets as well as song and dance numbers that just made you smile. Like him or not we, and the crowd at the BigFanBoy/GoSeeTalk Oscar screening at The Angelika Film Center Dallas, thought he was a treat. But he was only the first in a…
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Ohhh, Look…Looking Back – 84 Years of Oscar Retrospective
This weekend the pinnacle of film award shows, the 85th Annual Academy Awards, will recognize the best the best from 2012 as directors, thespians, technicians, etc. will all be lauded for their efforts to the entertainment world. They each, but in unison, have and continue to work tirelessly to create some of the most memorable, iconic, and legendary films in history. This video takes a look at the films that have endured and lived in the hearts and minds of film fans across the globe. Hardly a definite retrospective, this breezy but concise 4-minute short titled “Best Picture Oscar Winners” and set to music from Max Richter, is created by Nelson Carvajal. It briefly highlights…
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Here Are Your Nominees For the 85th Academy Awards
This morning, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled the full list of nominees for the 85 Annual Academy Awards and it’s a surprising compilation. Like yesterday’s BAFTA nomination announcement there’s some love for Life of Pi and Django Unchained so that makes me happy. Also I’m happy to see all 5 animated films (and the superb Paperman short) get recognized. Take that BAFTAs! If you haven’t already seen the list, have a look at all of the 2013 nominees below. PICTURE: Amour Argo Beasts of the Southern Wild Django Unchained Les Misérables Life of Pi Lincoln Silver Linings Playbook Zero Dark Thirty DIRECTOR: Michael Haneke – Amour Benh Zeitlin – Beasts…
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Oscar Shortlist For Docs Is Anything But
Get this: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ shortlist for the Best Documentary category is fifteen films long. Fifteen! Sort of makes you question the entire use of the phrase “shortlist”, especially given that their other shortlists are, you know, actually short. We can chalk this up to some pretty significant rules changes to qualification in that particular area, instituted by the Academy this year. It’s not unusual for the AMPAS to alter or fine-tune the rules for submission and eligibility year to year– as the culture of film ebbs, flows, and otherwise changes, it’s likely a necessity, else the Academy is just fickle– but as Deadline reports,…
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Oscar's Make-Up Shortlist Might Throw You For a Loop
Well, here’s some cool news– especially if you liked Rian Johnson’s Looper anywhere near as much as we did. The AMPAS released the last seven films still in competition for this year’s “Best Makeup” category, and while I can think of a lot of other areas where Looper deserves recognition (and in which it might still receive said recognition, for all I know), it’s still nice to see Johnson’s film competing with giants like Spielberg and Jackson. On that note, I’m probably not the only person who finds the absence of Cloud Atlas to be more than a little startling. If that picture– which we also liked–seemed like it had…
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Ohhh, Look…'The Fansastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore' Oscar-Winning Short Film
Last night William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg’s The Fansastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore won an Oscar for Best Animated Short. Those of you curious to know why it won can find out for yourself as the delightful 15 minute film is now available for all to see. Combining nostalgic visuals with a peppy and heartfelt tale this short film is a sheer delight. Have a look, a laugh and enjoy… Thanks to Collider for the heads up. Now if you got a kick out of that and want to take the fun of the short even further than visual enjoyment this might interest you. Last December the filmmakers released…
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The 84th Annual Academy Award Winners (Plus Tribute To The Snubbed Films of 2011)
The 84th Annual Academy Awards came to a close at the Kodak Theater (we’ll move past the fact they’re filing for Chapter 11) with some big wins from some expected but very deserving films and film makers. Hugo and The Artist went toe to toe and both walked away with 5 golden statues. The supporting/leading actor categories were really a tough call as the fields were all populated with masterful performances and talented individuals. But in the end Christopher Plummer, Octavia Spencer, Jean Dujardin and Meryl Streep took the wins for their fine, crowd pleasing and powerful roles. With such a wide range of some really quality films this year it really was…
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Full List Of Nominees For The 84th Annual Academy Awards Released
As far as awards go, the Academy Awards is the Super Bowl of the film/entertainment world recognizing (and snubbing) the very best of what the previous calendar year had to offer. In what some consider a stellar year for films there are some crowd pleasing favorites which have made such an impact and have kept strong buzz going throughout all of 2011. When the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the nominations for the 84th Academy Awards this morning, it was no surprise who some of the front-runners would be. Pulling in some big nominations were The Descendants, The Artist and Hugo. But little engines that could like…