January 26, 2019

SAG AWARDS 2019: TV PREDICTIONS

Maybe we’ll see a lot of repeat wins, maybe it’ll be MAISEL’s and VERSACE’s year, or maybe the SAG Awards will mix it up this year. Here’s what I think will happen


Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
THE AMERICANS
BETTER CALL SAUL
THE HANDMAID’S TALE
OZARK
THIS IS US

I hope it’s not THIS IS US, but the SAG-AFTRA do tend to repeat winners, a lot, so I think the Pearsons, etc. will be up to collect their Actors again.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Julia Garner, OZARK
Laura Linney, OZARK
Elisabeth Moss, THE HANDMAID’S TALE
Sandra Oh, KILLING EVE
Robin Wright, HOUSE OF CARDS

They could finally give this one to Moss, who lost out to Claire Foy over the last two years. However, I think it will be Sandra Oh.

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman, OZARK
Sterling K. Brown, THIS IS US
Joseph Fiennes, THE HANDMAID’S TALE
John Krasinski, Tom Clancy’s JACK RYAN
Bob Odenkirk, BETTER CALL SAUL

There don’t seem to be any strong frontrunners, so I think they’ll give it again to Sterling K. Brown. The SAG-AFTRA love repeat wins (remember when Alec Baldwin won seven consecutive years for 30 ROCK?). So even though I don’t think Brown deserves it, he will most likely win.


Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
GLOW
ATLANTA
BARRY
THE KOMINSKY METHOD
THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL

I think thus is MAISEL’s year, especially after it wasn’t recognized last year.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Alison Brie, GLOW
Alex Borstein, THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL
Rachel Brosnahan, THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL
Jane Fonda, GRACE & FRANKIE
Lily Tomlin, GRACE & FRANKIE

Rachel Brosnahan was overlooked last year too. I think the SAG-AFTRA have to more than make it up to her for that. And she definitely deserves it for season two also.

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Alan Arkin, THE KOMINSKY METHOD
Michael Douglas, THE KOMINSKY METHOD
Bill Hader, BARRY
Henry Winkler, BARRY
Tony Shaloub, THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL

The SAG-AFTRA like Tony Shaloub. He won twice for MONK. But since he didn’t even make the cut last year, I think they’ll give it to Michael Douglas instead.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series
Amy Adams, SHARP OBJECTS
Patricia Clarkson, SHARP OBJECTS
Patricia Arquette, ESCAPE AT DANNEMORA
Penélope Cruz, THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
Emma Stone, MANIAC

I think it’ll be Patricia. Which one? Arquette.

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series
Antonio Banderas, GENIUS: PICASSO
Darren Criss, THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
Hugh Grant, A VERY ENGLISH SCANDAL
Anthony Hopkins, KING LEAR
Bill Pullman, THE SINNER

This is Darren Criss’ year. He’s taking this one home, just as he did with the Emmy and the Golden Globe.

January 22, 2019

OSCARS 2019: THE COMPLETE LIST OF NOMINEES

After Kevin Hart's ouster as host of the 2019 Oscars, it's becoming increasingly clear that the Academyand probably ABC, the broadcasting network—have decided to go without a host this year. However, the nominations for the awards did have hosts, so to speak. 

On Tuesday, January 22, 2019, the nominees in all 24 categories of the 91st Oscars were announced by SILICON VALLEY actor, Kumail Nanjiani and BLACK-ISH star, Tracee Ellis Ross.

You can watch the nominations announcement here, or scroll down for the entire list:

 


THE COMPLETE LIST OF OSCAR NOMINATIONS:


Best motion picture of the year
  • “Black Panther” Kevin Feige, Producer
  • “BlacKkKlansman” Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Raymond Mansfield, Jordan Peele and Spike Lee, Producers
  • “Bohemian Rhapsody” Graham King, Producer
  • “The Favourite” Ceci Dempsey, Ed Guiney, Lee Magiday and Yorgos Lanthimos, Producers
  • “Green Book” Jim Burke, Charles B. Wessler, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly and Nick Vallelonga, Producers
  • “Roma” Gabriela Rodríguez and Alfonso Cuarón, Producers
  • “A Star Is Born” Bill Gerber, Bradley Cooper and Lynette Howell Taylor, Producers
  • “Vice” Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Adam McKay and Kevin Messick, Producers
Performance by an actress in a leading role
  • Yalitza Aparicio in “Roma”
  • Glenn Close in “The Wife”
  • Olivia Colman in “The Favourite”
  • Lady Gaga in “A Star Is Born”
  • Melissa McCarthy in “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Performance by an actor in a leading role
  • Christian Bale in “Vice”
  • Bradley Cooper in “A Star Is Born”
  • Willem Dafoe in “At Eternity's Gate”
  • Rami Malek in “Bohemian Rhapsody”
  • Viggo Mortensen in “Green Book”
Performance by an actress in a supporting role
  • Amy Adams in “Vice”
  • Marina de Tavira in “Roma”
  • Regina King in “If Beale Street Could Talk”
  • Emma Stone in “The Favourite”
  • Rachel Weisz in “The Favourite”
Performance by an actor in a supporting role
  • Mahershala Ali in “Green Book”
  • Adam Driver in “BlacKkKlansman”
  • Sam Elliott in “A Star Is Born”
  • Richard E. Grant in “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
  • Sam Rockwell in “Vice”
 Achievement in directing
  • “BlacKkKlansman” Spike Lee
  • “Cold War” Paweł Pawlikowski
  • “The Favourite” Yorgos Lanthimos
  • “Roma” Alfonso Cuarón
  • “Vice” Adam McKay
 Adapted screenplay
  • “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
  • “BlacKkKlansman” Written by Charlie Wachtel & David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott & Spike Lee
  • “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” Screenplay by Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty
  • “If Beale Street Could Talk” Written for the screen by Barry Jenkins
  • “A Star Is Born” Screenplay by Eric Roth and Bradley Cooper & Will Fetters
Original screenplay
  • “The Favourite” Written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara
  • “First Reformed” Written by Paul Schrader
  • “Green Book” Written by Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly
  • “Roma” Written by Alfonso Cuarón
  • “Vice” Written by Adam McKay
Best animated feature film of the year
  • “Incredibles 2” Brad Bird, John Walker and Nicole Paradis Grindle
  • “Isle of Dogs” Wes Anderson, Scott Rudin, Steven Rales and Jeremy Dawson
  • “Mirai” Mamoru Hosoda and Yuichiro Saito
  • “Ralph Breaks the Internet” Rich Moore, Phil Johnston and Clark Spencer
  • “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
Achievement in cinematography
  • “Cold War” Łukasz Żal
  • “The Favourite” Robbie Ryan
  • “Never Look Away” Caleb Deschanel
  • “Roma” Alfonso Cuarón
  • “A Star Is Born” Matthew Libatique
Achievement in costume design
  • “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” Mary Zophres
  • “Black Panther” Ruth Carter
  • “The Favourite” Sandy Powell
  • “Mary Poppins Returns” Sandy Powell
  • “Mary Queen of Scots” Alexandra Byrne
Best documentary feature
  • “Free Solo” Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Evan Hayes and Shannon Dill
  • “Hale County This Morning, This Evening” RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes and Su Kim
  • “Minding the Gap” Bing Liu and Diane Quon
  • “Of Fathers and Sons” Talal Derki, Ansgar Frerich, Eva Kemme and Tobias N. Siebert
  • “RBG” Betsy West and Julie Cohen
Best documentary short subject
  • “Black Sheep” Ed Perkins and Jonathan Chinn
  • “End Game” Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman
  • “Lifeboat” Skye Fitzgerald and Bryn Mooser
  • “A Night at The Garden” Marshall Curry
  • “Period. End of Sentence.” Rayka Zehtabchi and Melissa Berton
Achievement in film editing
  • “BlacKkKlansman” Barry Alexander Brown
  • “Bohemian Rhapsody” John Ottman
  • “The Favourite” Yorgos Mavropsaridis
  • “Green Book” Patrick J. Don Vito
  • “Vice” Hank Corwin
Best foreign language film of the year
  • “Capernaum” Lebanon
  • “Cold War” Poland
  • “Never Look Away” Germany
  • “Roma” Mexico
  • “Shoplifters” Japan
Achievement in makeup and hairstyling
  • “Border” Göran Lundström and Pamela Goldammer
  • “Mary Queen of Scots” Jenny Shircore, Marc Pilcher and Jessica Brooks
  • “Vice” Greg Cannom, Kate Biscoe and Patricia DeHaney
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
  • “Black Panther” Ludwig Goransson
  • “BlacKkKlansman” Terence Blanchard
  • “If Beale Street Could Talk” Nicholas Britell
  • “Isle of Dogs” Alexandre Desplat
  • “Mary Poppins Returns” Marc Shaiman
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
  • “All The Stars” from “Black Panther”
    Music by Mark Spears, Kendrick Lamar Duckworth and Anthony Tiffith; Lyric by Kendrick Lamar Duckworth, Anthony Tiffith and Solana Rowe
  • “I'll Fight” from “RBG”
    Music and Lyric by Diane Warren
  • “The Place Where Lost Things Go” from “Mary Poppins Returns”
    Music by Marc Shaiman; Lyric by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman
  • “Shallow” from “A Star Is Born”
    Music and Lyric by Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt
  • “When A Cowboy Trades His Spurs For Wings” from “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs”
    Music and Lyric by David Rawlings and Gillian Welch
Achievement in production design
  • “Black Panther” Production Design: Hannah Beachler; Set Decoration: Jay Hart
  • “The Favourite” Production Design: Fiona Crombie; Set Decoration: Alice Felton
  • “First Man” Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Kathy Lucas
  • “Mary Poppins Returns” Production Design: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
  • “Roma” Production Design: Eugenio Caballero; Set Decoration: Bárbara Enríquez
Best animated short film
  • “Animal Behaviour” Alison Snowden and David Fine
  • “Bao” Domee Shi and Becky Neiman-Cobb
  • “Late Afternoon” Louise Bagnall and Nuria González Blanco
  • “One Small Step” Andrew Chesworth and Bobby Pontillas
  • “Weekends” Trevor Jimenez
Best live action short film
  • “Detainment” Vincent Lambe and Darren Mahon
  • “Fauve” Jeremy Comte and Maria Gracia Turgeon
  • “Marguerite” Marianne Farley and Marie-Hélène Panisset
  • “Mother” Rodrigo Sorogoyen and María del Puy Alvarado
  • “Skin” Guy Nattiv and Jaime Ray Newman
Achievement in sound editing
  • “Black Panther” Benjamin A. Burtt and Steve Boeddeker
  • “Bohemian Rhapsody” John Warhurst and Nina Hartstone
  • “First Man” Ai-Ling Lee and Mildred Iatrou Morgan
  • “A Quiet Place” Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl
  • “Roma” Sergio Díaz and Skip Lievsay
Achievement in sound mixing
  • “Black Panther” Steve Boeddeker, Brandon Proctor and Peter Devlin
  • “Bohemian Rhapsody” Paul Massey, Tim Cavagin and John Casali
  • “First Man” Jon Taylor, Frank A. Montaño, Ai-Ling Lee and Mary H. Ellis
  • “Roma” Skip Lievsay, Craig Henighan and José Antonio García
  • “A Star Is Born” Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic, Jason Ruder and Steve Morrow
Achievement in visual effects
  • “Avengers: Infinity War” Dan DeLeeuw, Kelly Port, Russell Earl and Dan Sudick
  • “Christopher Robin” Christopher Lawrence, Michael Eames, Theo Jones and Chris Corbould
  • “First Man” Paul Lambert, Ian Hunter, Tristan Myles and J.D. Schwalm
  • “Ready Player One” Roger Guyett, Grady Cofer, Matthew E. Butler and David Shirk
  • “Solo: A Star Wars Story” Rob Bredow, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan and Dominic Tuohy


January 7, 2019

GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS 2019—THE UPSETS AND THE HIGHLIGHTS

A slightly subdued, yet entertaining Golden Globe Awards kick-started an interesting awards season, while the hosts, Golden Globe winners Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg did not disappoint

Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh
 This sure is shaping up to be a very interesting awards season. I mean, from the get-go, a drama about a complicated romance between a veteran musician and a rising star has been considered a frontrunner. And then another movie takes away the top prize instead, but even that is about the rise of a (real-life and legendary) musician. Yes, a lot of people feel that A Star Is Born was snubbed with Bohemian Rhapsody winning best picture drama, but the point is that such films have rarely been the top picks or even frontrunners at major awards. It makes me happy though, because these are simple, honest stories, about complex characters, yet not being about the socio-economic and political conditions of the times they’re set in. And we have a lot of the latter as well this year, by way of BlackkKlansman, Vice, If Beale Street Could Talk, and so on.

Glenn Close and Rami Malek win lead actress and actor, drama, respectively
THE SPEECHES
While I’ll admit, though I loved both films, I did like Bohemian Rhapsody a little better than A Star Is Born, I’m not sure if I’d pick Malek over Cooper for best actor. Rami Malek was excellent, no doubt, but Bradley Cooper was a different person in A Star Is Born, and I still think he stands a better chance at the Oscars. I did love Rami Malek’s speech though. It was among my favorite acceptances of the evening. The humility and his dedication to Freddie Mercury were really endearing. Having seen him through three seasons of MR. ROBOT, it’s good to see him achieve all this. My favorite speech was Glenn Close’s though. Her sincerity was so moving as she spoke to the women and how they see themselves as nurturers, who must care for their kids and husbands, but mustn’t lose sight of doing for themselves what they can and are capable of doing. Now I haven’t seen The Wife yet, but knowing how amazing Close is as an actress, I’m sure she deserved it. (Again, Lady Gaga was a discovery in A Star Is Born, but Glenn Close!) And did anyone else catch her sweet moment between Glenn Close and her Fatal Attraction co-star Michael Douglas when she was going up to accept her award?

THE AMERICANS wins best TV series drama
THE WINS
Patricia Arquette also made a powerful statement in her speech, for winning supporting actress in TV for SHARP OBJECTS. She said that her director, Jean-Marc Vallée had been very demanding, in that he expected everything from her except for sex, and that that was how it always should be. I also enjoyed Carol Burnett’s speech, and how she was thankful for the times when she was making spectacular television, and how it was when it was possible. It was good to see a dedicated career achievement award for television, and an apt person to start with, and hence name the ‘Carol Burnett Award’ after. It was also great to see Chuck Lorre winning for THE KOMINSKY METHOD, and how he was moved, not expecting to be a person 'this happens to'. 

In television, I was surprised to see Richard Madden win for BODYGUARD, but it was well deserved. And this is what I like about the Globes. They’re so open to rewarding new shows and nominees, managing to throw a few surprises our way every year. A pleasant surprise was THE AMERICANS winning best series drama, finally getting the recognition at at least one major awards show, with the top prize, and well-deservedly so, for its fantastic final season. A little less surprising, but equally satisfying was Sandra Oh winning for KILLING EVE. It’s not uncommon for people in the news and limelight vis-à-vis the awards season itself to win, but I’m quite sure this had more to do with a brilliant portrayal of the courageous, yet scared and conflicted Eve Polastri. And her speech was such a breath of fresh air and honesty. She has won a Globe before for GREY’S ANATOMY, but this was special because she was the lead!

Best actress drama winner for KILLING EVE, Sandra Oh
THE HOSTS
And that honesty was something Sandra Oh brought to the stage even as a co-host of the evening. In the midst of the humor and the banter, she made a statement of how significant her being chosen to host (as an Asian) was, and how real that moment was. She and Andy Samberg were everything we expected they would be—hilarious, even if they weren’t likely to be edgy. On the contrary, they decided to present praise for audience members in their opening monologue as a mock roast, and while some bits may have fallen flat, most of it worked. Even Jim Carrey being thrown off into to TV section was quite funny (because he was nominated not for film, but for his TV series, KIDDING)—until he explained why he could only see their lips moving from the far end of the room that was the TV section. One part that completely fell flat was the ‘flu shots’ bit they did, instead of ordering pizza à la Ellen DeGeneres. It’s a good thing that they ended it as quickly as it began. The part I found the funniest was when they said they were presenting the highlights of the Globes from over the years, and they only showed the moments when  they’d won in the past—Oh for GREY’S, and Samberg for BROOKLYN NINE-NINE, more recently.

ALL GOLDEN GLOBE 2019 WINNERS
And while we look forward to the upcoming developments in this awards season, take a look at all those who took home the new and updated bronze-base Golden Globe Award statuettes of 2019:

Best Motion Picture—Drama
Black Panther
BlackkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
If Beale Street Could Talk
A Star Is Born

Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture—Drama
Glenn Close, The Wife
Lady Gaga, A Star Is Born
Nicole Kidman, Destroyer
Melissa McCarthy, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Rosamund Pike, A Private War

Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture—Drama
Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born
Willem Dafoe, At Eternity's Gate
Lucas Hedges, Boy Erased
Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody
John David Washington, BlackkKlansman

Best Motion Picture—Musical Or Comedy
Crazy Rich Asians
The Favourite
Green Book
Mary Poppins Returns
Vice

Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture—Musical Or Comedy
Emily Blunt, Mary Poppins Returns
Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Elsie Fisher, Eighth Grade
Charlize Theron, Tully
Constance Wu, Crazy Rich Asians

Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture—Musical Or Comedy
Christian Bale, Vice
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mary Poppins Returns
Viggo Mortensen, Green Book
Robert Redford, The Old Man & The Gun
John C. Reilly, Stan & Ollie

Christian Bale
Best Motion Picture—Animated
Incredibles 2
Isle Of Dogs
Mirai
Ralph Breaks The Internet
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

Best Motion Picture—Foreign Language
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Girl (Belgium)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)

Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In Any Motion Picture
Amy Adams, Vice
Claire Foy, First Man
Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk
Emma Stone, The Favourite
Rachel Weisz, The Favourite

Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role In Any Motion Picture
Mahershala Ali, Green Book
Timothée Chalamet, Beautiful Boy
Adam Driver, BlackkKlansman
Richard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Sam Rockwell, Vice

Best Director—Motion Picture
Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born
Alfonso Cuarón, Roma
Peter Farrelly, Green Book
Spike Lee, BlackkKlansman
Adam McKay, Vice

Best Screenplay—Motion Picture
Alfonso Cuarón, Roma
Deborah Davis & Tony McNamara, The Favourite
Barry Jenkins, If Beale Street Could Talk
Adam McKay, Vice
Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie & Peter Farrelly, Green Book

Best Original Score—Motion Picture
Marco Beltrami, A Quiet Place
Alexandre Desplat, Isle Of Dogs
Ludwig Göransson, Black Panther
Justin Hurwitz, First Man
Marc Shaiman, Mary Poppins Returns

Best Original Song—Motion Picture
“All The Stars” — Black Panther
“Girl In The Movies” — Dumplin’
“Requiem For A Private War” — A Private War
“Revelation”, Boy Erased
“Shallow” — A Star Is Born

Best Television Series—Drama
THE AMERICANS
BODYGUARD
HOMECOMING
KILLING EVE
POSE

Best Performance By An Actress In A Television Series—Drama
Caitriona Balfe, OUTLANDER
Elisabeth Moss, THE HANDMAID'S TALE
Sandra Oh, KILLING EVE
Julia Roberts, HOMECOMING
Keri Russell, THE AMERICANS

Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series—Drama
Jason Bateman, OZARK
Stephan James, HOMECOMING
Richard Madden, BODYGUARD
Billy Porter, POSE
Matthew Rhys, THE AMERICANS

Best Television Series—Musical Or Comedy
BARRY
THE GOOD PLACE
KIDDING
THE KOMINSKY METHOD
THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL

Best Performance By An Actress In A Television Series—Musical Or Comedy
Kristen Bell, THE GOOD PLACE
Candice Bergen, MURPHY BROWN
Alison Brie, GLOW
Rachel Brosnahan, THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL
Debra Messing, WILL & GRACE

Rachel Brosnahan
Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series—Musical Or Comedy
Sacha Baron Cohen, WHO IS AMERICA
Jim Carrey, KIDDING
Michael Douglas, THE KOMINSKY METHOD
Donald Glover, ATLANTA
Bill Hader, BARRY

Best Television Limited Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
THE ALIENIST
THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
ESCAPE AT DANNEMORA
SHARP OBJECTS
A VERY ENGLISH SCANDAL

Best Performance By An Actress In A Limited Series Or A Motion Picture Made For Television
Amy Adams, SHARP OBJECTS
Patricia Arquette, ESCAPE AT DANNEMORA
Connie Britton, DIRTY JOHN
Laura Dern, THE TALE
Regina King, SEVEN SECONDS

Best Performance By An Actor In A Limited Series Or A Motion Picture Made For Television
Antonio Banderas, GENIUS: PICASSO
Daniel Brühl, THE ALIENIST
Darren Criss, THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
Benedict Cumberbatch, PATRICK MELROSE
Hugh Grant, A VERY ENGLISH SCANDAL

Darren Criss
Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In A Series, Limited Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Alex Borstein, THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL
Patricia Clarkson, SHARP OBJECTS
Penélope Cruz, THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
Thandie Newton, WESTWORLD
Yvonne Strahovski, THE HANDMAID'S TALE

Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role In A Series, Limited Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Alan Arkin, THE KOMINSKY METHOD
Kieran Culkin, SUCCESSION
Edgar Ramírez, THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
Ben Whishaw, A VERY ENGLISH SCANDAL
Henry Winkler, BARRY