ICYMI, the Oscar nominations got dropped today.
However, Condon absolutely crushed me in that movie.
A STELLAR acting performance that took the movie to a whole new level.
(HBO Max)
#2.
Hong Chau:The Whale is an extremely devastating movie, mostly thanks to Brendan Fraser.
Some great solo scenes too in that movie.
Stephanie Hsu:EEAAO is my #1 movie of the year and Hsu is a big reason why.
She essentially plays 2 WILDLY different characters and did both incredibly well.
(Showtime)
#4.
Angela Bassett:Wakanda Forever had some flaws, but Bassett wasn’t one of them.
She was by far the best actor in the entire movie and had a bunch of killer scenes.
(Disney+)
#5.
Jamie Lee Curtis:Like I said, EEAAO rules and Curtis was great in it.
Best supporting actress worthy, though?
Ke Huy Quan:Like Hsu, Quan had to do two VERY different roles and crushed both.
(Showtime)
#2.
Brendan Gleeson:The action of Gleesons character in Banshees, cutting off his closest friend, is bizarre.
But his motivation is relatable thanks to Gleeson doing so well in that role.
(HBO Max)
#3.
(HBO Max)
#4.
(Apple TV+)
#5.
Not enough to warrant a win to me but whatever.
(Rent)
Snub: None.They nailed this.
Maybe Anthony Hopkins in Armageddon Time but that’s not egregious.
Lovable, understandable and also tragic as hell.
Some amazing lines and also great physical acting.
(N/A)
#2.
Colin Farrell:Banshees is basically 2 movies in 1.
The first half is sort of dark comedy and the second half is more of a dark drama.
Farrell is the centerpiece of both sides and crushed it.
(HBO Max)
#3.
Austin Butler:He was the shining light in an otherwise bad movie.
(HBO Max)
#4.
Paul Mescal:Aftersun was a damn fine movie and Mescal was the centerpiece in a really layered role.
Really good stuff but not touching the top-3 here.
(Rent)
#5.
He was super impressive and I can’t wait to see him in more stuff going forward.
She did it perfectly and added a ton of emotional depth, especially in that third act.
(Showtime)
#2.
Cate Blanchett:I’m not huge on Tar but Blanchett was undeniably good in it.
There also wasn’t a ton of distractions or stimulation inn the movie like with EEAAO.
It was basically just her and she carried it.
(Peacock on the 27th)
#3.
(Rent)
DISTANT GAP IN SPACE AND TIME
#4.
Hollywood loves her but honestly, she really fuckin' hams it up in basically every role she has.
(Rent)
#5.
Ana de Armas:Good actress, bad role, even worse movie.
No clue how any critical mind in Hollywood can consider it a top-5 performance of the year.
Her and Diego Calva saved it from being downright unwatchable.
Daniels:EEAAO combined just about every genre you’re free to think of.
It delivered some of the best emotional gut punches of the year.
They took Ke Huy Quan out of a 3 decade retirement and got an oscar-nominated performance out of him.
What more can you ask for to win this award?
(Showtime)
#2.
Martin McDonagh:He basically made 2 totally different movies and combined them into one incredible one.
(HBO Max)
#3.
(Rent)
#4.
Steven Spielberg:I wasn’t huge on The Fabelmans.
I found it pretty self-indulgent, unengaging and honestly disappointing.
(Rent)
#5.
Todd Field:Like I mentioned earlier, Tar just didn’t do it for me.
A mostly forgettable movie that was carried by Cate Blanchett.
(rent)
SNUB: James Cameron- Give him the respect he deserves.
Cinemas biggest asshole/talker that can also walk the walk.
McDonagh always delivers in this area.
(HBO Max)
#2.
EEAAO:Like with Banshees, EEAAO had to balance a lot of comedy and dramatic dialogue.
(Rent)
#3.
Triangle of Sadness:Like Banshees, it’s super sharp and bitingly funny.
Also a ton of drama/tragedy that hits hard.
(Rent)
#4.
(Rent)
#5.
Tar:Just not a Tar guy, baby.
(Rent)
SNUB: The Menu- I’d take that script over Tar/Fabelmans any day of the week.
It should not only have been nominated but it should have been the clear favorite.
Nothing else but Fabelmans is really even in the conversation.
As much as I despise “book is better” people, the book was way better.
I was a underwhelmed overall but the cinematography is top notch, especially among this group.
(Netflix)
P.S.
how much must it suck having to follow up 1917 in that area?
(N/A)
#3.
Bardo:A bad movie that was shot well.
(Netflix)
#4.
Tar:Again, not a Tar guy but it was shot well.
(Rent)
#5.
Elvis:I just despise Baz Luhrmann’s entire visual style to be honest.
When they got to shooting 1:1 recreations of televised Elvis moments, it rocked.
When Baz was doing Baz shit, it looked like a filtered up CGI mess.
That movie was absolutely stunning and deserved a nod.
EEAAO:I’ve been on this since April and it’s not gonna change.
(Showtime)
#2.
Banshees of Inisherin:Like you saw in every nominated category I already wrote about, this movie rocked.
Two very different halves that were both executed incredibly.
Actually, more than just incredibly.
(HBO Max)
#3.
Top Gun: Maverick:This movie had no business being that good.
It goes beyond that, though.
It is an INCREDIBLE blockbuster that also hits basically every critical threshold for an oscar-worthy movie.
(Paramount+)
#4.
Triangle of Sadness:Humor is hilarious, drama is tragic, performances are great.
Can’t ask for much more.
(Rent)
#5.
(Netflix)
#6.
A little long, sure but that third act was KILLER and the effects were undeniably top-tier.
(N/A)
#7.
Not in the upper echelon, though.
(N/A)
#8.
The Fabelmans:Again, mostly disappointed with this one.
Tons of wasted potential.
(Rent)
DISTANT #10.
Elvis:The first 45 minutes of this movie were borderline unwatchable.
RRR, though, was a worldwide phenomenon.
Still can’t figure out why India didn’t submit it for best international film.
