Oscar

With a terrible inevitability, this is set to be the Enheimer Oscars. The Barb half has faded almost entirely from the conversation, and now even the scandal of its snubs seems to be a non-talking point. Seriousness and maleness and nuclear bombs make for plausible Oscar prizes, it seems, not female-centred comedy. Greta Gerwig’s monumental box office achievement with her sprightly, spectacular Barbie was the talk of the town last summer as part of the #Barbenheimer double-header. It launched a zillion op-ed pieces about…

We’re just days away from The Academy Awards, and as both a movie fan and a noted prognosticator, I couldn’t be more fired up. There are a ton of worthy films and stars up for awards this year, and while there are overwhelming favorites in several categories, there’s also room for plenty of surprises in several more, which is always the perfect balance. I don’t want all chaos, but a little bit of uncertainty goes a long way in making the night more exciting.I can’t promise I’ll help you win your office Oscar pool, but I…

The portmanteau genre remains stubbornly alive, if only because awards season keeps on bringing us enjoyable anthologised releases of short films up for prizes. And so it proves again as British-based Shorts TV is releasing all the shorts up for Oscars this Sunday. These are in three categories – live action, animation and documentary – and it is in the first of these I have to say we find something mildly controversial which I have heard discussed by British industry professionals with pursed-lipped disapproval.Wes…

Burger runs are becoming as much a part of the entertainment industry’s awards season as the red carpet, and Shake Shack is looking for a piece of the action. The New York-based chain is launching a contest on how long it will take the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to get through its annual awards ceremony on Sunday, March 10. It will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, and ABC will broadcast it beginning 4 p.m., with red carpet coverage beginning at 10 a.m. If the show goes over or under 3 hours…

If the best picture Oscar was handed out to the film that elicited the warmest collective glow from cinemagoers, bookmakers would have long since stopped accepting bets on The Holdovers. Does anyone anywhere actively dislike Alexander Payne’s boarding school drama? If they do they’re keeping very quiet. It’s a film that, in its dopamine hit of warm nostalgia, seems pretty much backlash proof.Curiously though, it’s that same quality that, for some, will mean that The Holdovers wouldn’t be a deserving best picture winner.…

Mad Max: Fury RoadImage: Warner Bros.If you subscribe to Apple TV+ for its outstanding line-up of sci-fi TV shows (For All Mankind, Foundation, Severance, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, the just-announced Neuromancer), there’s a bonus waiting for you next time you sign on. While you’ll still find mostly Apple-produced projects, there’s now a category marked “Limited Time: Great Movies on Apple TV+” filled with licensed titles.While the selection isn’t huge, and it doesn’t dig very deep into the genre realm—sorry, horror…

A film about a dark visionary who bestrode the 20th century and changed history might be the Oscar favourite, but there’s another biopic to consider, also of a man whose genius made him one of the past century’s greatest figures, one whose creativity and musical gifts brought – and continue to bring – joy to millions. A man who also changed the world, but unequivocally for the better. I’m talking about Leonard Bernstein, of course, and Bradley Cooper’s Maestro, which looks at the great US conductor and composer through…

Dame Helen Mirren has been recreated in Barbie form, complete with her Oscar.The one-of-a-kind doll shows the actor, who narrates the recent Barbie film, in the outfit she wore on the red carpet at the Cannes film festival last year.She can be seen carrying a blue fan and a miniature Oscars statue, in recognition of the Academy Award she won for The Queen in 2007.“To be chosen by Barbie as a role model is a huge compliment, and something I would never have imagined in my wildest dreams happening to me at this stage in my…

Paul Giamatti has enjoyed an illustrious career in Hollywood, starring in everything from family-friendly fluff (Big Fat Liar stans, rise) to bonafide Oscar favorites (like 12 Years A Slave). The beloved actor’s work in both films and television has earned him some 19 nominations from major awards bodies like the BAFTAs, the Emmys, and the Golden Globes, but he undoubtedly has his sights set on Oscar glory at the upcoming 96th Academy Awards.  Giamatti is nominated in the Best Actor category for his starring role in…

Annette Bening has been a household name for the majority of her decades-long career in film and television. During that time, she’s earned recognition and nominations from major awards bodies like the BAFTAs, the Golden Globes, the Emmys, the SAG Awards and the Tony Awards, becoming one of the most decorated performers in the process.  Bening added to her collection of nominations just this year, when she received an Academy Award nod for Best Actress for her role as journalist and long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad in…