Maggie Smith has left us, though she leaves a monumental legacy and career that will never be forgotten. For the younger generation, Smith will be best known for her work in the Harry Potter series. Older generations will remember her from her two Oscar wins, one for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and the other for California Suite. The BBC is posting live tributes to the actress, follow along here. The BBC reports a statement from her two...

Netflix released a somber trailer for Angelina Jolie's showcase turn in Pablo Larrain's Maria. There are only two words uttered by her in the trailer, "not today." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEtgEc9vlkI The question: is this Angelina's Year? My guess is that it's not. That's mainly because of Mikey Madison in Anora. The other big reason is that the film Anora is more popular overall. With Pablo Larrain we don't get so much of a story as we do a portrait. And as...

For the first time this Oscar season, the DGA and the PGA will hold their awards on the same night, February 8, 2025. I am almost entirely sure this has never happened in the awards' history. We've had the Producers Guild and the Screen Actors Guild on the same weekend, but not two major award wins that dramatically shifted the race on the same night. Both of these award shows will go late into the evening, with award watchers...

One of the best films I've seen this year was Jesse Eisenberg's A Real Pain. A cracklingly good screenplay, expertly acted, with a strong turn by Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain is the kind of movie that draws you into a specific world and through a range of emotions that hang on long after the film comes to an end. Here is the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2et8Vpu7Ls And poster:

One of the great things about being "canceled" and exiled out into the Land of the Proles is that you don't have to be afraid of saying something that might offend someone. We live in a time when a tiny but screeching minority of voices has the majority by the balls. No one will speak up for fear of their careers being destroyed overnight. But once the worst that can happen to you has happens to you, you're like...

Disclaimer has received excellent reviews across the board, as episodes of it have been shown at film festivals. The series will premiere on October 11. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=so6XoqZgbVM Here is the explainer: A forbidden Italian summer. A deadly secret. A grieving father’s revenge. DISCLAIMER* — a gripping seven-part psychological thriller premieres October 11 on Apple TV+ https://apple.co/_Disclaimer DISCLAIMER* is a gripping psychological thriller in seven chapters, starring Academy Award winners Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline. Written and directed by five-time Academy...

If there is one above-the-line Oscar category that is incredibly hard to define and identify a strong correlation between winners, it is that of Best Director. While acting races usually come down to narrative/overall performance, and writing awards serve as consolation prizes or preludes to the Best Picture Oscar, Best Directing stands alone in many ways. Often, in recent years, it's a technical showcase being recognized (Iñárritu for The Revenant, Cuaron for Roma and Gravity); other times, it’s making history...