February 25, 2018March 4, 2018 by admin

Those Non-Acting Oscars

Movies
A Fantastic Woman, Aaron Sorkin, Abacus: Small Enough To Jail, Alessandra Querzola, Alex Gibson, Alexandre Desplat, Arjen Tuiten, Baby Driver, Beauty And The Beast, Ben Morris, Benj Pasek, Blade Runner 2049, Brad Zoern, Bruno Delbonnel, Call Me By Your Name, Carter Burwell, Chris Corbould, Chris Overton, Christian Cooke, Christopher Townsend, Coco, Common, Consolata Boyle, Dan Laustsen, Dan Lemmon, Dan Sudick, Dana Murray, Daniel Barrett, Daniel Phillips, Darkest Hour, Dave Mullins, David Malinowski, David Parker, Dear Basketball, Dee Rees, DeKalb Elementary, Dennis Gassner, Derin Seale, Diane Warren, Disney, Doug Hemphill, Dunkirk, Edith+Eddie, Emily V. Gordon, Faces Places, Ferdinand, Gabriel Grapperon, Garden Party, Gary A. Rizzo, Gary Fettis, Gerd Nefzer, Get Out, Glen Gauthier, Glen Keane, Gregg Landaker, Greta Gerwig, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2, Guillermo del Toro, Guy Williams, Hans Zimmer, Heaven Is A Traffic Jam On The 405, Heroin(e), Hoyte van Hoytema, I Tonya, Icarus, Jacqueline Durran, Jakob Schuh, James Ivory, James Mangold, Jan Lachauer, Jeff Melvin, Jeff White, Joe Letteri, Joel Whist, John Nelson, John Williams, Jon Gregory, Jonathan Amos, Jonathan Fawkner, Jonny Greenwood, Jordan Peele, Josh Lawson, Julian Slater, Justin Paul, Katie Spencer, Katja Benrath, Kazuhiro Tsuji, Kevin Wilson Jr., Knife Skills, Kobe Bryant, Kong: Skull Island, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Kumail Nanjiani, Lady Bird, Last Men In Aleppo, Lee Smith, Logan, Lou Sheppard, Lou, Loveless, Loving Vincent, Lucy Sibbick, Luis Sequeira, Mac Ruth, Mark Bridges, Mark Mangini, Mark Weingarten, Marshall, Martin McDonagh, Mary H. Ellis, Mary J. Blige, Matthew Wood, Max Porter, Michael Green, Michael H. Weber, Michael Semanick, Mike Meinardus, Mike Mulholland, Molly's Game, Mudbound, My Nephew Emmett, Nathan Crowley, Nathan Robitaille, Neal Scanlan, Negative Space, Nelson Ferreira, On Body And Soul, Oscars, Paul Denham Austerberry, Paul Lambert, Paul Machliss, Phantom Thread, Pixar, Rachel Morrison, Rachel Shenton, Raphael Saadiq, Reed Van Dyk, Ren Klyce, Revolting Rhymes, Richard King, Richard R. Hoover, Robert Lopez, Roger A. Deakins, Ron Bartlett, Ru Kuwahata, Sarah Greenwood, Scott Benza, Scott Frank, Scott Neustadter, Shane Vieau, Sidney Wolinsky, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Stephen Rosenbaum, Strong Island, Stuart Wilson, Sufjan Stevens, Tatiana S. Riegel, Taura Stinson, The Big Sick, The Boss Baby, The Breadwinner, The Disaster Artist, The Eleven O'Clock, The Greatest Showman, The Insult, The Shape Of Water, The Silent Child, The Square, Theo Green, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, Tim Cavagin, Tobias Rosen, Traffic Stop, Vanessa Taylor, Victor Caire, Victoria & Abdul, Virgil Williams, War For The Planet Of The Apes, Watu Wote/All Of Us, Wonder
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The 90th Academy Awards are going down next Sunday night, so here’s my uneducated predictions for the non-acting awards. I have seen a couple of these movies, so I will still mostly be going on gut feel and word of mouth with just a little bit of personal experience.

Best Original Screenplay

Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani, The Big Sick
Jordan Peele, Get Out
Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
Guillermo del Toro and Vanessa Taylor, The Shape Of Water
Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

I’ve actually seen three of these films, and, while I would love for Emily and Kumail to win, my money is going on Jordan Peele for Get Out.

Best Adapted Screenplay

James Ivory, Call Me By Your Name
Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist
Scott Frank, James Mangold, and Michael Green, Logan
Aaron Sorkin, Molly’s Game
Virgil Williams and Dee Rees, Mudbound

I’ve only seen one of these, but my guess is that the legend behind the story of The Disaster Artist will earn it the nod.

Best Animated Feature

The Boss Baby
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand
Loving Vincent

I’ve only heard of two of these, one of which is from the good folks at Pixar, so I’ll go with that.

Best Cinematography

Roger A. Deakins, Blade Runner 2049
Bruno Delbonnel, Darkest Hour
Hoyte van Hoytema, Dunkirk
Rachel Morrison, Mudbound
Dan Laustsen, The Shape Of Water

Well, again I’ve seen none of these, so I will go with the war epic Dunkirk.

Best Costume Design

Jacqueline Durran, Beauty And The Beast
Jacqueline Durran, Darkest Hour
Mark Bridges, Phantom Thread
Luis Sequeira, The Shape Of Water
Consolata Boyle, Victoria & Abdul

Another category where I’m at a loss, so I’ll go with the live action Disney hit.

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January 17, 2013January 17, 2013 by admin

Midseason Review – Thursdays

Thursday night is traditionally the busiest night of the week. Here’s our look back at my pre-season thoughts on what’s on the slate for this season.

7:00

The Big Bang Theory – Entering its 6th season, the show is at its ratings high point. They pick up right where last season left off, with Howard married and in space.

Ratings-wise, the show continues to grow, which is somewhat amazing for an older show. It continues to be consistently funny, despite what the haters might say.

30 Rock – Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin return for the 7th and final season. I will certainly look forward to these last 13 episodes.

The end is near for 30 Rock, and they seem to be bringing back most, if not all, of their stable of guest stars for final appearances. Last week saw appearances from Chris Parnell’s Dr. Leo Spaceman, Will Arnett’s Devin Banks, Steve Buscemi’s Lenny Wosniak, and Chloë Grace Moretz as Kaylie Hooper.

Last Resort – Early reports are that this show had the best pilot of the season, but left some doubts as to how it could continue on on a week to week basis. I’m looking forward to seeing for myself.

An intriguing premise that just didn’t find any type of viewership. ABC gave them enough notice to have episode 13 provide some sort of an ending, which we will see next week.

7:30

Up All Night – Christina Applegate and Will Arnett return in the last minute renewal from last spring. The status quo gets shaken up a bit as Ava’s show was cancelled in last week’s season premiere, putting Applegate’s Reagan and Maya Rudolph’s Ava out of work.

NBC pulled the show off the air and is completely retooling the show, moving from a single camera show to a multi-camera show shot in front of a studio audience. Ratings have not been great, so this is a last ditch effort to keep the show on the air in some fashion.

8:00

Person Of Interest – The enigmatic hit returns for its second season. Michael Emerson was not given as much to do last season as one would have hoped following Lost, but his role did pick up somewhat towards the end of the year.

I do find myself more invested in this show as time goes on.

The Office – The producers had previously announced that this season would be the show’s last. With original EP Greg Daniels returning to bring the show to its conclusion. Last week’s season premiere introduced some new, younger employees that might cause Jim and Pam to re-evaluate their lot in life.

One of the behind the scenes deals that allowed the show to return for one final season was extra time off for John Krasinski and Ed Helms to accomodate their movie shooting schedules, which has led to some silly plots, especially for Helms’ Andy.

Grey’s Anatomy – The 9th season opens a few months after the plane crash that closed out last season. There will be some cast shakeups, as Chyler Leigh is gone and Eric Dane is leaving. While not as good as it once was (and what show is after 9 years), it is still an entertaining way to pass an hour.

A new team of interns included Tina Majorino, who I have enjoyed since her time on Veronica Mars.

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September 27, 2012September 22, 2012 by jim

2012 New Fall Season – Thursdays

Thursday night is traditionally the busiest night of the week. Here’s what’s on the slate for this season.