Everything Everywhere Eyes

The eyes have it. First time seeing this poster today. How can I not share it?

And The Oscar Goes To… 2023 – Everything Sweep!

Not much for watching the actual Oscars. We opted to screen Women Talking instead. What an absolute joy. Review coming soon. After the movie, I discovered my favorite movie of the year, Everything Everywhere All At Once won both the Best Actor and Actress in a Supporting Role.

Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis won for Everything Everywhere All At Once. My boos.

Then Best Director went to Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for Everything Everywhere All at Once.

And the Daniels won for Best Writing (Original Screenplay).

Paul Rogers won Best Film Editing for Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Wow – our gal Michelle Yeoh won Best Actress!!! for Everything Everywhere All at Once.

And finally Everything Everywhere All At Once won Best Picture!!! Congrats to all.

Sarah Polley won Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) for Women Talking. Just saw the film tonight – amazing!

Oscar Nominations: 2023

The Oscar nominations were announced this morning. For the first time in a long time (ever?), my favorite film of the year, Everything Everywhere All at Once (EEAAO) was nominated for eleven awards, the most for any film. Yay!

I have a lot of catching up to do. Aside from EEAAO, I have only seen Elvis and Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris. I am shocked Nope received zero nominations. That’s just ridiculous. Meanwhile a beautiful moment from EEAAO. They so deserved the noms.

2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame had a great year of inductees in 2022. I watched first and foremost for The Eurythmics. Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart continue to be one of my favorite bands of all-time. Annie’s solo career blew me away, in particular her first two albums. Check out my favorite albums page on Reel Charlie featuring The Eurythmics album, Savage, and Annie Lennox’s solo album, Diva.

Other memorable moments during the special included Dolly Parton, Carly Simon, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and Allen Grubman.

So thrilleed the definitions of rock are being expanded to include some of my favorite artists. The finale with Dolly, Pat Benetar, Brandi Carlisle, Sheryl Crow, Simon Le Bon, Annie Lennox, Pink, and Rob Halford singing Jolene was crazy good. 4 out of 5 specifically for The Eurythmics and Dolly.

2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony currently streams on HBO Max.

The Eurthymics album, Savage (full)

Annie Lennox’s album, Diva (full)

Cash Prize Opportunities for LGBTQ Writers! (Lambda Literary)

From Lambda Literary,

Every year, Lambda administers a number of cash awards for LGBTQ+ authors in varying stages of their careers. In 2022, we are delighted to offer five of these prizes, including the new J. Michael Samuel Prize for Emerging Writers Over 50. Applications are open through February 15th, 2022.

Awards include:
The Randall Kenan Prize for Black LGBTQ Fiction
Jim Duggins Outstanding Mid-Career Novelists’ Prize
Judith A. Markowitz Award for Emerging LGBTQ Writers
Jeanne Córdova Prize for Lesbian/Queer Nonfiction
*NEW* J. Michael Samuel Prize for Emerging Writers Over 50

We will be accepting applications for all prizes until 11:59PM ET (GMT-5) on February 15, 2022. Please read the application requirements thoroughly before applying, as we have updated our process for the current year.

And of course, please do not hesitate to contact us with any queries: awards@lambdaliterary.org

For more information, see Lambda’s detail page for the prizes.

Thoroughly Modern Millie

I swear I watched at least part of Thoroughly Modern Millie at some point over the last dozen years Reel Charlie’s been in existence. But I have no record of it. So I sat down and caught up with this crazy, kooky musical tribute to the Roaring Twenties now that it’s got a fantastic Blu-ray release. Full disclosure I am extremely picky with my musicals. I used to say I didn’t like them, but that’s just not true. I adore certain musicals. My 2017 post, Do I Love Musicals confirms that. But I am picky and unfortunately Thoroughly Modern Millie didn’t grab me for the entire 138 minutes. Parts of it were fun, parts of it were tedious, and parts of it were offensive – particularly the Asian stereotypes and tropes which I will have a difficult time enjoying this film in the future knowing how crass the creators were with the Asian characters. Seriously Chinese white slave traders using a laundry truck as their transport? Yikes. Millie’s based on the British musical Chrysanthemum, which opened in London in 1956 and features an amazing cast including Julie Andrews, Mary Tyler Moore, Carol Channing (Raspberries!), John Gavin, James Fox, Pat Morita, Jack Soo, Philip Ahn, and Beatrice Lillie. Incredible costumes, sets, and locations makes this film a visual treat. And of course the music – most of it is sing along, laugh along, late 60’s magic. My buddy Elmer Bernstein won an Oscar for his score. For me, Thoroughly Modern Millie was a fun film to have in while I was doing other things. I never do that, so I am shuddering even typing that sentence. I give 100% of my attention to films and television 99.9% of the time. This time, Millie worked best for me as background. 3 out of 5.

Thoroughly Modern Millie streams on various platforms for a rental fee and is available on disk from your local public library.

Emmys 2021

Big congratulations to my favorite performers and outstanding shows including:

Best Drama: “The Crown” (Netflix)
Best Actor, Drama: Josh O’Connor, “The Crown”
Best Actress, Drama: Olivia Colman, “The Crown”
Best Actress, Limited Series or TV Movie: Kate Winslet, “Mare of Easttown”
Best Actress, Comedy: Jean Smart, “Hacks”
Supporting Actor, Drama: Tobias Menzies, “The Crown”
Supporting Actress, Drama: Gillian Anderson, “The Crown”
Supporting Actor, Limited Series or Movie: Evan Peters, “Mare of Easttown”
Supporting Actress, Limited Series or a Movie: Julianne Nicholson, “Mare of Easttown”
Guest Actress, Drama: Claire Foy, “The Crown”

And a very special conDRAGulations to RuPaul who made Emmys history as the most-awarded black artist ever. So thrilled.

Emmy Nominations 2020

The Emmy nominations were announced today. I scrolled through the list on my lunch hour. I was going to post about my favorite performances. But then I came across this from The Hollywood Reporter,

Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

Uzo Aduba

Courtesy of Pari Dukovic/FX

Holland Taylor (Hollywood)
Uzo Aduba (Mrs. America)
Margo Martindale (Mrs. America)
Tracey Ullman (Mrs. America)
Toni Collette (Unbelievable)
Jean Smart (Watchmen)

OMG, this is perhaps the first time I have ever seen a nominations list where I’ve screamed, “I love her, I love her, I love her, I love her, I love her, I love her, I love her. Forget about the Emmys, someone needs to create a series with all six of these amazing actors together. Yikes. Meanwhile who am I going to root for?

Here are my favorites from the rest of the categories:

Best Drama Series:
Better Call Saul (AMC)
The Crown (Netflix)
Ozark (Netflix)
Succession (HBO)

Best Comedy Series:
The Kominsky Method (Netflix)
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon)

Best Limited Series:
Unbelievable (Netflix)

Best Actor in a Drama Series:
Jason Bateman (Ozark)
Brian Cox (Succession)
Billy Porter (Pose)
Jeremy Strong (Succession)

Best Actress in a Drama Series:
Olivia Colman (The Crown)
Laura Linney (Ozark)

Best Actress in a Comedy Series:
Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)

Best Actor in a Limited Series or a Television Movie:
Jeremy Pope (Hollywood)

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
Giancarlo Esposito (Better Call Saul)
Nicholas Braun (Succession)
Kieran Culkin (Succession)

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Laura Dern (Big Little Lies)
Meryl Streep (Big Little Lies)
Helena Bonham Carter (The Crown)
Julia Garner (Ozark)
Sarah Snook (Succession)

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Alan Arkin (The Kominsky Method)

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Alex Borstein (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Marin Hinkle (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Kate McKinnon (Saturday Night Live)

Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie:
Dylan McDermott (Hollywood)

Read the full list at The Hollywood Reporter,

Why Have There Been No Great Women Cinematographers (According to Hollywood)? (Hyperallergic)

As we prepare for another Oscar night, I thought I’d share a great article on women cinematographers and why they are not better represented during awards season. I made my peace with the Oscars over the past few years. As a child and into my early adulthood, I didn’t know any better. I thought the awards were the be-all, end-all. Then I discovered indie films, particularly John Sayles, John Waters, the New Queer Cinema of the 1990’s with the best gay and lesbian filmmakers and I became a snob. Not really. I just understood there were a lot of other outstanding films made each year that never saw the light of the Academy. In 2000, Ellen Burstyn (Requiem for a Dream) lost to Julia Roberts (Erin Brockovich) and I stopped watching the Oscars, until I came to Fairfield Public Library where I co-hosted an Oscars program for several years with some film fanatic library colleagues and once again discovered the joy of Hollywood’s seal of approval cinema. Now after not doing the program for two years, I’m back to where I started, completely disinterested in the awards. Maybe not as disinterested as sporting events, but close. For various reasons, I have no desire to watch Ford v Ferrari (dudes and cars), The Irishman (boring), Joker (violence), Little Women (how many times will this be remade?), Marriage Story (sad), 1917 (war is pretty), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (violence is pretty). I loved Parasite and haven’t seen JoJo Rabbit. I do hope Antonio Banderas wins for Best Actor in Pain and Glory, but I’m sure this is going to be Joaquin Phoenix or Brad Pitt’s year. I hope I don’t sound bitter, because I’m not. Mainstream entertainment is what it is. In the film arm of entertainment there are just so many amazing films created each year and it’s bizarre we still have this white bread awards show congratulating itself for a great campaign. Yes the winners are directly related to how much money is spent promoting the films. Sound familiar? After we get rid of Citizen’s United, perhaps we can re-vamp the Academy. Do I sound radical? Perhaps. But it’s nothing many friends of mine discuss year after year after year. Sure there’s a love/hate aspect to these awards. But for me, it mostly comes down to indifference. Want to see a great indie film from 2019? Check out The Last Black Man in San Francisco. Truly a film lover’s paradise. Even EW agrees. Meanwhile click on over to Hyperallergic and read about the wonder of women cinematographers. And whether you are glued to the TV tonight watching the Oscars, read about them tomorrow, or say, “what award?” enjoy your Sunday.

Read the Why Have There Been No Great Women Cinematographers (According to Hollywood)? over at Hyperallergic.
Thanks to my good friend Barbara for finding this article.
Reel Charlie Celebrates 10 Years features a film a year. 4 of the 11 are Oscar nominated/winning films, so I guess I’m not a complete hater after all.

Reel Charlie’s favorite reviews (one for each year)
2009: Los abrazos rotos (Broken Embraces)
Favorites for 2009

2010: Clapham Junction
favorites for the decade (2000 – 2010)

2011: Weekend
Reel Charlie: Best of 2011

2012: Pariah
Best of 2012

2013: How to Survive a Plague (nominee)
Reel Charlie’s Best of 2013

2014: 12 Years a Slave (winner)
Best of Reel Charlie 2014

2015: Tangerine
Reel Charlie’s Best of 2015

2016: Moonlight (winner)
Reel Charlie’s Best of 2016

2017: Manchester by the Sea (nominee)
Best of Reel Charlie 2017

2018: God’s Own Country
Best of Reel Charlie 2018

2019 (so far): Russian Doll
finally a TV show

 

How to Watch Every Best Picture Oscar Winner (tvguide.com)

From tvguide.com,

Winning an Oscar is really exciting. I mean, I would not know because I do not currently have an Oscar to my name, but I imagine it’s a really big deal. It’s why people campaign for months and months ahead of the Academy Awards every single year without fail. Just look at how hard Leonardo DiCaprio went to secure that golden statuette!

Anyway, there have been 91 Best Picture winners since the Oscars began way back in the 1920s, and while we can argue forever about whether or not each film actually deserved to win that year, that is not why you’re here. No, you want to know how and where you can stream all those Best Picture-winning films, from timeless classics like Casablanca to more recent winners like The Departed, and we’re more than happy to tell you.

So, ahead of this year’s Oscars, which will be held Sunday, Feb. 9, here is how you can watch every single previous Best Picture winner, organized by year.

See the full list here. I wish they had included Kanopy.
Special thanks to my good friend Nina for discovering this great resource.