Last-Second 2020 Oscar Nomination predictions

Nominations will be out tomorrow so here are my last-second guesses.

PICTURE

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Mank

Minari

Nomadland

One Night in Miami

Promising Young Woman

Sound of Metal

The Trial of the Chicago 7

Maybe: Da 5 Bloods, News of the World

Should Be But Won't: The Outpost

There will likely be 9 nominees, so there's my top 8, and I think one of those two titles will be the final one.

DIRECTOR

Lee Isaac Chung, Minari

Emerald Ferrell, Promising Young Woman

David Fincher, Mank

Aaron Sorkin, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Chloe Zhao, Nomadland

Maybe: Regina King, One Night in Miami

Should Be But Won't: Josephine Decker, Shirley

ACTOR

Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal

Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Anthony Hopkins, The Father

Delroy Lindo, Da 5 Bloods

Gary Oldman, Mank

Maybe: Steven Yuen, Minari

Should Be But Won't: Kingsley Ben-Adir, One Night in Miami

ACTRESS

Viola Davis, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman

Frances McDormand, Nomadland

Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Rosamund Pike, I Care a Lot

Maybe: Andra Day, The Unites States v. Billie Holiday

Should Be But Won't: Elizabeth Moss, Shirley

SUPPORTING ACTOR

Sasha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Daniel Kaluuya, Judas & the Black Messiah

Bill Murray, On the Rocks

Leslie Odom Jr., One Night in Miami

Paul Raci, Sound of Metal

Maybe: Chadwick Boseman, Da 5 Bloods

Should Be But Won't: Michael Stuhlbarg, Shirley

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilms

Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy

Olivia Colman, The Father

Amanda Seyfried, Mank

Youn Yuh-jung, Minari

Maybe: Jodie Foster, The Mauritanian

Should Be But Won't: Elizabeth Debicki, Tenet

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Mank

Minari

Promising Young Woman

Sound of Metal

The Trial of the Chicago 7

Maybe: Another Round

Should Be But Won't: Palm Springs

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Father

First Cow

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Nomadland

One Night in Miami

Maybe: The White Tiger

Should Be But Won't: The Outpost

The 78th Annual Golden Globe Nominations

This has been the weirdest year for Hollywood. I have never felt more unattached to the industry. My usual 50-ish movies a year in theaters disappeared. I've seen one movie in a theater in the past ten months. But some theaters are managing to stay open and hopefully some time this year, attendance will get back to a more normal level.

The Golden Globes this year also look like the wackiest crop in a long time. Sacha Baron Cohen nominated for acting twice? Better Call Saul is not nominated for Best TV Drama but Ratched is?

==MOVIES==

Best Motion Picture – Drama 

“The Father” (Sony Pictures Classics) 

“Mank” (Netflix) 

“Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures) 

“Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features) 

“The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) 

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy 

“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” (Amazon Studios) 

“Hamilton” (Walt Disney Pictures) 

“Palm Springs” (Neon) 

“Music” (Vertical Entertainment)

“The Prom” (Netflix) 

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama

Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”) 

Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) 

Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”) 

Gary Oldman (“Mank”) 

Tahar Rahim (“The Mauritanian”)

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama

Viola Davis (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) 

Andra Day (“The United States vs. Billie Holiday”) 

Vanessa Kirby (“Pieces of a Woman”) 

Frances McDormand (“Nomadland”) 

Carey Mulligan (“Promising Young Woman”) 

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy 

Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”) 

James Corden (“The Prom”)

Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton”) 

Dev Patel (“The Personal History of David Copperfield”) 

Andy Samberg (“Palm Springs”)

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy 

Maria Bakalova (“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”) 

Kate Hudson (“Music”)

Michelle Pfeiffer (“French Exit”) 

Rosamund Pike (“I Care a Lot”)

Anya Taylor-Joy (“Emma”)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture

Sacha Baron Cohen (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”) 

Daniel Kaluuya (“Judas and the Black Messiah”) 

Jared Leto (“The Little Things”)

Bill Murray (“On the Rocks”) 

Leslie Odom, Jr. (“One Night in Miami”)  

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture 

Glenn Close (“Hillbilly Elegy”) 

Olivia Colman (“The Father”) 

Jodie Foster (“The Mauritanian”)

Amanda Seyfried (“Mank”) 

Helena Zengel (“News of the World”)

Best Director – Motion Picture

Emerald Fennell, “Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features)

David Fincher, “Mank” (Netflix) 

Regina King, “One Night in Miami” (Amazon Studios) 

Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) 

Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures) 

Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language 

“Another Round” (Samuel Goldwyn Films) 

“La Llorona” (Shudder) 

“The Life Ahead” (Netflix) 

“Minari” (A24) 

“Two of Us” (Magnolia Pictures)

Best Motion Picture – Animated 

“The Croods: A New Age” (Universal Pictures) 

“Onward” (Walt Disney Pictures) 

“Over the Moon” (Netflix) 

“Soul” (Walt Disney Pictures) 

“Wolfwalkers” (Cartoon Saloon) 

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture 

“Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features) 

“Mank” (Netflix) 

“The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) 

“The Father” (Sony Pictures Classics) 

“Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures) 

Best Original Score – Motion Picture 

“The Midnight Sky” (Netflix) – Alexandre Desplat 

“Tenet” (Warner Bros.) – Ludwig Göransson 

“News of the World” (Universal Pictures) – James Newton Howard 

“Mank” (Netflix) – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross 

“Soul” (Pixar) – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste 

Best Original Song – Motion Picture

“Fight for You” from “Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros.) – H.E.R., Dernst Emile II, Tiara Thomas 

“Hear My Voice” from “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) – Daniel Pemberton, Celeste

“Io Si (Seen)” from “The Life Ahead” (Netflix) – Diane Warren, Laura Pausini, Niccolò Agliardi 

“Speak Now” from “One Night in Miami” (Amazon Studios) – Leslie Odom Jr, Sam Ashworth 

“Tigress & Tweed” from “The United States vs. Billie Holliday” (Hulu) – Andra Day, Raphael Saadiq

==TELEVISION==

Best Television Series – Drama 

“The Crown” (Netflix)

“Lovecraft Country” (HBO Max) 

“The Mandalorian” (Disney Plus) 

“Ozark” (Netflix)

“Ratched” (Netflix)

Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy

“Emily in Paris” (Netflix)

“The Flight Attendant” (HBO Max)

“The Great” (Hulu) 

“Schitt’s Creek” (CBC) 

“Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus) 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama

Jason Bateman (“Ozark”) 

Josh O’Connor (“The Crown”) 

Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”)

Al Pacino (“Hunters”) 

Matthew Rhys (“Perry Mason”) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama 

Olivia Colman (“The Crown”) 

Jodie Comer (“Killing Eve”)

Emma Corrin (“The Crown”) 

Laura Linney (“Ozark”) 

Sarah Paulson (“Ratched”) 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy 

Don Cheadle (“Black Monday”)

Nicholas Hoult (“The Great”) 

Eugene Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”) 

Jason Sudeikis (“Ted Lasso”) 

Ramy Youssef (“Ramy”) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy 

Lily Collins (“Emily in Paris”)

Kaley Cuoco (“The Flight Attendant”) 

Elle Fanning (“The Great”) 

Jane Levy (“Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist”) 

Catherine O’Hara (“Schitt’s Creek”) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series 

Cate Blanchett (“Mrs. America”) 

Daisy Edgar-Jones (“Normal People”)

Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”) 

Nicole Kidman (“The Undoing”) 

Anya Taylor-Joy (“The Queen’s Gambit”)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series

Bryan Cranston (“Your Honor”)

Jeff Daniels (“The Comey Rule”) 

Hugh Grant (“The Undoing”) 

Ethan Hawke (“The Good Lord Bird”) 

Mark Ruffalo (“I Know This Much Is True”) 

Best Television Limited Series or TV Movie 

“Normal People” (Hulu/BBC) 

“The Queen’s Gambit” (Netflix) 

“Small Axe” (Amazon Studios/BBC) 

“The Undoing” (HBO) 

“Unorthodox” (Netflix) 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television 

John Boyega (“Small Axe”) 

Brendan Gleeson (“The Comey Rule”) 

Dan Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”) 

Jim Parsons (“Hollywood”)

Donald Sutherland (“The Undoing”) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television 

Gillian Anderson (“The Crown”) 

Helena Bonham Carter (“The Crown”) 

Julia Garner (“Ozark”) 

Annie Murphy (“Schitt’s Creek”) 

Cynthia Nixon (“Ratched”)

2017 Academy Award Winners

BEST PICTURE - The Shape of Water
BEST DIRECTOR - Guillermo Del Toro, The Shape of Water
BEST ACTOR - Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour
BEST ACTRESS - Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing MO
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing MO
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Allison Janney, I Tonya
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY - Jordan Peele, Get Out
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY - James Ivory, Call Me By Your Name
BEST ANIMATED FILM - Coco
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM - A Fantastic Woman
BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM - Icarus
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY - Blade Runner 2049
BEST FILM EDITING - Dunkirk
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS - Blade Runner 2049
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN - The Shape of Water
BEST COSTUME DESIGN - Phantom Thread
BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING - Darkest Hour
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE - Alexandre Desplat, The Shape of Water
BEST ORIGINAL SONG - "Remember Me", Coco
BEST SOUND EDITING - Dunkirk
BEST SOUND MIXING - Dunkirk
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT - Heaven Is A Traffic Jam on the 405
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT - The Silent Child
BEST ANIMATED SHORT - Dear Basketball

75th Annual Golden Globe Award Results

MOVIES
BEST DRAMA - Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri
BEST COMEDY - Lady Bird
BEST ACTOR DRAMA - Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour
BEST ACTRESS DRAMA - Frances McDormand, Three Billboards
BEST ACTOR COMEDY - James Franco, The Disaster Artist
BEST ACTRESS COMEDY - Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird
BEST DIRECTOR - Guillermo Del Toro, The Shape of Water
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Allison Janney, I Tonya
BEST ANIMATED FILM - Coco
BEST FOREIGN FILM - In the Fade
BEST SCREENPLAY - Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards
BEST SCORE - Alexander Desplat, The Shape of Water
BEST SONG - "This Is Me", The Greatest Showman

TELEVISION
BEST COMEDY - The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon)
BEST DRAMA - The Handmaid's Tale (Hulu)
BEST MINISERIES - Big Little Lies (HBO)
BEST ACTRESS COMEDY - Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon)
BEST ACTOR COMEDY - Aziz Ansari, Master of None (Netflix)
BEST ACTRESS DRAMA - Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid's Tale (Hulu)
BEST ACTOR DRAMA - Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us (NBC)
BEST ACTRESS MINI - Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies (HBO)
BEST ACTOR MINI - Ewan McGregor, Fargo (FX)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Laura Dern, Big Little Lies (HBO)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Alexander Skarsgard, Big Little Lies (HBO)

CECIL B. DEMILLE - Oprah Winfrey

How was the show? Seth Meyers did a decent job as host. His bit where he had women and minorities give the punchline to arguably racist or sexist jokes fell flat, but overall, he navigated the sensitive waters quite well. His "In Memorium" joke about Harvey Weinstein cut deep, especially since they skipped the In Memorium this year. That's usually one of the highlights of the show.

The Globes are usually a zany affair, but it felt like a smug funeral with everyone wearing black. Natalie Portman pointing out the Best Director nominees were all male stepped on Guillermo Del Toro's moment. Oprah Winfrey launched her 2020 presidential campaign with a stirring speech.

Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations 2017

Theatrical Motion Pictures

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Timothée Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name
James Franco, The Disaster Artist
Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out
Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour
Denzel Washington, Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Judi Dench, Victoria & Abdul
Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water
Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Margot Robbie, I, Tonya
Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Steve Carell, Battle of the Sexes
Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project
Woody Harrelson, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water
Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Mary J. Blige, Mudbound
Hong Chau, Downsizing
Holly Hunter, The Big Sick
Allison Janney, I, Tonya
Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
The Big Sick — Adeel Akhtar, Holly Hunter, Zoe Kazan, Anupam Kher, Kumail Nanjiani, Ray Romano, Zenobia Shroff
Get Out — Caleb Landry Jones, Daniel Kaluuya, Catherine Keener, Stephen Root, Lakeith Stanfield, Bradley Whitford, Allison Williams
Lady Bird — Timothée Chalamet, Beanie Feldstein, Lucas Hedges, Tracy Letts, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Laurie Metcalf, Jordan Rodrigues, Saoirse Ronan, Odeya Rush, Marielle Scott, Lois Smith
Mudbound — Jonathan Banks, Mary J. Blige, Jason Clarke, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Mitchell, Rob Morgan, Carey Mulligan
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri — Abbie Cornish, Peter Dinklage, Woody Harrelson, John Hawkes, Lucas Hedges, Željko Ivanek, Caleb Landry Jones, Frances McDormand, Clarke Peters, Sam Rockwell, Samara Weaving

Television Programs

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock: The Lying Detective
Jeff Daniels, Godless
Robert De Niro, Wizard of Lies
Geoffrey Rush, Genius
Alexander Skarsgard, Big Little Lies

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Laura Dern, Big Little Lies
Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies
Jessica Lange, Feud
Susan Sarandon, Feud
Reese Witherspoon, Big Little Lies

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
David Harbour, Stranger Things
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things
Claire Foy, The Crown
Laura Linney, Ozark
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Robin Wright, House of Cards

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Aziz Ansari, Master of None
Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Sean Hayes, Will & Grace
William H. Macy, Shameless
Marc Maron, GLOW

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Uzo Aduba, Orange Is The New Black
Alison Brie, GLOW
Jane Fonda, Grace and Frankie
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
The Crown — Claire Foy, Victoria Hamilton, Vanessa Kirby, Anton Lesser, Matt Smith
Game of Thrones — Alfie Allen, Jacob Anderson Pilou Asbæk, Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, John Bradley, Jim Broadbent, Gwendoline Christie, Emilia Clarke, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Liam Cunningham, Peter Dinklage, Richard Dormer, Nathalie Emmanuel, James Faulkner, Jerome Flynn, Aidan Gillen, Iain Glen, Kit Harington, Lena Headey, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Conleth Hill, Kristofer Hivju, Tom Hopper, Anton Lesser, Rory McCann, Staz Nair, Richard Rycroft, Sophie Turner, Rupert Vansittart, Maisie Williams
The Handmaid’s Tale — Madeline Brewer, Amanda Brugel, Ann Dowd, O-T Fagbenle, Joseph Fiennes, Tattiawna Jones, Max Minghella, Elisabeth Moss, Yvonne Strahovski, Samira Wiley
Stranger Things — Sean Astin, Millie Bobby Brown, Cara Buono, Joe Chrest, Catherine Curtin, Natalie Dyer, David Harbour, Charlie Heaton, Joe Keery, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Dacre Montgomery, Paul Reiser, Winona Ryder, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Finn Wolfhard
This Is Us — Eris Baker, Alexandra Breckenridge, Sterling K. Brown, Lonnie Chavis, Justin Hartley, Faithe Herman, Ron Cephas Jones, Chrissy Metz, Mandy Moore, Chris Sullivan, Milo Ventimiglia, Susan Kelechi Watson, Hannah Zeile

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
Black-ish — Anthony Anderson, Miles Brown, Deon Cole, Laurence Fishburne, Jenifer Lewis, Peter Mackenzie, Marsai Martin, Jeff Meacham, Tracee Ellis Ross, Marcus Scribner, Yara Shahidi
Curb Your Enthusiasm — Ted Danson, Larry David, Susie Essman, Jeff Garlin, Cheryl Hines, JB Smoove
GLOW — Britt Baron, Alison Brie, Kimmy Gatewood, Betty Gilpin, Rebekka Johnson, Chris Lowell, Sunita Mani, Marc Maron, Kate Nash, Sydelle Noel, Marianna Palka, Gayle Rankin, Bashir Salahuddin, Rich Sommer, Kia Stevens, Jackie Tohn, Ellen Wong, Britney Young
Orange Is The New Black — Uzo Aduba, Emily Althaus, Danielle Brooks,  Rosal Colón, Jackie Cruz, Francesca Curran, Daniella De Jesús, Lea DeLaria, Nick Dillenburg, Asia Kate Dillon, Beth Dover, Kimiko Glenn, Annie Golden, Laura Gómez, Diane Guerrero, Evan Arthur Hall, Michael J. Harney, Brad William Henke, Mike Houston, Vicky Jeudy, Kelly Karbacz, Julie Lake, Selenis Leyva, Natasha Lyonne, Taryn Manning, Adrienne C. Moore, Miriam Morales, Kate Mulgrew, Emma Myles, John Palladino, Matt Peters, Jessica Pimentel, Dascha Polanco, Laura Prepon, Jolene Purdy, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Nick Sandow, Abigail Savage, Taylor Schilling, Constance Shulman, Dale Soules, Yael Stone, Emily Tarver, Michael Torpey, Lin Tucci
Veep — Dan Bakkedahl, Anna Chlumsky, Gary Cole, Margaret Colin, Kevin Dunn, Clea Duvall, Nelson Franklin, Tony Hale, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Sam Richardson, Paul Scheer, Reid Scott, Timothy Simons, Sarah Sutherland, Matt Walsh

Stunt Ensembles

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
Baby Driver
Dunkirk
Logan
War for the Planet of the Apes
Wonder Woman

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Comedy or Drama Series
Game of Thrones
GLOW
Homeland
Stranger Things
The Walking Dead

Life Achievement Award

54th Annual SAG Life Achievement Award: Morgan Freeman

Criminal - DVD Review

Starring Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Tommy Lee Jones, Gal Gadot, Ryan Reynolds, Alice Eve, Michael Pitt, Jordi Molla, Scott Adkins and Amaury Nolasco.
Written by Douglas Cook & David Weisberg.
Directed by Ariel Vromen.

★★

A centrally interesting idea is at the center of this otherwise dumb movie.

Ryan Reynolds plays Bill Pope, a CIA agent who gets killed in the line of duty. He has vital information so his boss (Gary Oldman) orders a doctor who's been experimenting on memory transfers in mice brains, to do his first human test. They need someone with poor frontal lobe development, so their subject is Jericho Stewart (Kevin Costner), a sociopath doing a life sentence.

The memory transfer works, but Jericho escapes from CIA custody before divulging the memories that they want.

Costner's performance is really good. It's not quite the character we've seen from him before. He's a man who's never felt remorse or felt a sense of right and wrong, but a side effect of getting Bill's memories is getting his emotions. But Oldman's CIA director is so moronic through this whole movie that it felt like artificial antagonism. There's a gritty messiness to it I kinda enjoyed, but I can't really say it was good. More of a painless time-killer.

Jared Hess to direct third Shanghai Noon movie

- Jared Hess (Masterminds, Napoleon Dynamite) will direct Shanghai Dawn, the third film in the Shanghai series that stars Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson. The first two were 2000's Shanghai Noon and 2003's Shanghai Knights.

- Rebecca Ferguson (Mission Impossible 5) has joined The Greatest Showman on Earth, a musical about P.T. Barnum. It stars Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle WIlliams, and Zendaya.

- Gary Oldman is set to play Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour, all about the Prime Minster when things weren't going so well for Great Britain during WWII. Lily James (Cinderella), Ben Mendelsohn, John Hurt and Kristen Scott Thomas co-star.

Lawless - DVD Review

Starring Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Guy Pearce, Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman and Dane DeHaan.
Directed by John Hillcoat.

★★½

Tom Hardy has star power and he exudes it here.  He's Forrest, one of the three Bondurant brothers, hillbilly moonshiners who refused to pay off the law during Prohibition.  Forrest is the brains of the bunch.  Brawn, too, though older brother Howard (Jason Clarke) is capable of delivering his own psycho butt-whippin'.

But the main protagonist is the sensitive youngest brother (Shia LaBeouf), who wants to be part of the business.  He idolizes gangsters and puts up their newspaper clippings like a 10-year-old girl and her One Direction posters.  Gary Oldman makes an appearance as one such gangster, but his part's so small, it's more of an extended cameo.

The villain here is Guy Pearce as a creepy federal officer from Chicago who wants his piece and who will kill to get it.

There's a stop-and-start lurching to the pace that subtracts from the enjoyment.  I really wanted to love this movie but must admit it was merely okay.

The Dark Knight Rises - Movie Review

Starring Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Matthew Modine, Nestor Carbonell, Ben Mendelsohn, Aiden Gillen, Juno Temple and Tom Conti.
Directed by Christopher Nolan.

★★★½

My wife and I saw this on a Saturday.  The theater's newly-hired security company was prominent and visible.  Signs said they reserved the right to search any bags or purses.  I asked a security a few questions about how many guys they had on site or how many theaters his company had been hired for, but he didn't know.  I appreciated the visibility on the night after the Aurora shooting, but if this is the new normal, I'm going to resent it.

The first four previews (The Watch, Total Recall, The Bourne Legacy, The Expendables 2) had copious amounts of gunfire in each.  Then we got The Campaign, The Hobbit and Man of Steel.

I'll say that Batman Begins / The Dark Knight are the best 1-2 superhero movies ever made (with all due respect to Donner's Superman I & II), and so I had high expectations for this, and at the same time, I tried muting them to not be disappointed.

It's been eight years since the events of The Dark Knight.  Eight years since Harvey Dent died and Batman took the blame.  Batman's retired, and crime is down in Gotham thanks to The Dent Act, which made it easier for cops to catch criminals.  Bruce Wayne himself is becoming more withdrawn and reclusive, to the point where people wonder if he's deformed.

Meanwhile a new evil is on its way to Gotham.  Bane.  He's a mercenary with an unknown past.  He wears a mask that garbles his voice.  It's a cross between Sean Connery and James Mason by way of General Grievous.  I'd heard he was hard to understand so I'd focus whenever he spoke.  I caught 90% of his lines, but it shouldn't be something I have to think about.

Also slinking around is cat burglar Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), and she was my biggest question mark going in, and I can say she was great.  Michelle Pfeiffer will always be in my heart, but Hathaway has the playful sensuality, the physicality, and the depth needed when Catwoman's trying to figure out just whose side she's on.

But wait, there's more.  We also have Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a young cop who keeps wondering when the Batman might return.  He plays into the film's events as much as anyone else.

It's difficult to get much more into the plot without giving away key twists, but suffice to say it's 160 minutes long, and the time flies.  Every scene cuts to the next, and there's not a line of dialogue wasted.  It's densely plotted, but I was never lost.

It's not as "fun" as TDK.  It doesn't have that energetic villain like Heath Ledger's Joker.  How could it?  Bane was a daring choice.  He matches Batman's mind and strength.  Most villains Batman can just beat up, but he can't do that with Bane.  Really wish the voice had been effortless to listen to.

The movie does feel like the final chapter in a trilogy, and the events of the first two movies culminate here.  It's all one story, all part of Christopher Nolan's vision.  I'm glad I saw it; I loved the experience; I can't say this is one where I'll be watching it over and over.

Gary Oldman joins RoboCop remake

I'm now officially okay with RoboCop being remade.  Gary Oldman will play the scientist who helps transform the mostly-dead Murphy into RoboCop.  Joel Kinnaman (AMC's The Killing) has already been cast as Murphy.  Director Jose Padilha had said he plans to spend more time exploring the transformation from human cop to cyborg law enforcer.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - Movie Review

★★★½


Starring Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Colin Firth, Toby Jones, Mark Strong, Ciaran Hinds, Benedict Cumberbatch, John Hurt, David Dencik, Kathy Burke and Simon McBurney.
Directed by Tomas Alfredson.

Gary Oldman made his name by playing frenetic, over-the-top personalities (Sid & Nancy, Dracula, Immortal Beloved, True Romance) but he's reintroduced himself to a new generation as the mild-mannered Jim Gordon in the Dark Knight movies, and now here he is as George Smiley. Smiley barely moves, speaks low. He's a British gentleman. He's also one of the best spies in the world.

Smiley is brought out of retirement to help out. Seems there is a mole at the top. The boss is named Control (John Hurt), and Smiley is the only man he can trust with the job. Control knows it's one of his top four agents, and he gives each of them a nickname. Perhaps you've seen the title of the movie?

Smiley never shows what he is thinking, but to the scrutinizing audience, we can catch those glimpses of him locking information away.

It's based on the classic John le Carre spy novel, and it rewards the audience members that pay attention and leaves behind those that don't. As glued as I was to what was going on, even though there's very little actual action, I must admit that the reveal of the mole didn't have the emotional impact for me I'd hoped, I guess because it didn't make much difference in the grand scheme of things who the mole actually was.

Gary Oldman has never been nominated for an Academy award. That is not right.

Jennifer Lopez as Carmen Sandiego?

- Jennifer Lopez will produce and possibly star in a big-screen live-action version of Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego.

- Anthony LaPaglia, Misty Upham and RZA are the latest to join Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained. They join Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Dennis Christopher, Don Johnson, Laura Cayouette and Gerald McRaney.

- Everyone wants Gary Oldman. (They should; he's one of the best.) Warner Bros. wants him to play The Colonel in the live-action remake of Akira, to star Garrett Hedlund (Tron Legacy). They also want him to play Merlin in their planned Arthur & Lancelot movie. Oldman has Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy opening later this year (for which he's getting Oscar buzz) and The Wettest County in the World, starring Shia LaBeouf and Tom Hardy, and then he'll be in The Dark Knight Rises this summer.

Kung Fu Panda 2 - Movie Review

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Starring the voices of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Gary Oldman, Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan, David Cross, Lucy Liu, James Hong, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dennis Haysbert. Directed by Jennifer Yuh.

Saw this at the $1 theater. Should come out on DVD pretty soon, actually.

I really enjoyed Kung Fu Panda, and I was worried the sequel might diminish the memory off the original. My fears were unfounded, although I will say this isn't as good as the first.

Jack Black voices Po, the Baby-Huey of a panda who's now really good at kung fu, to where he can stand tall with the furious five. A new threat is sweeping across China. Turns out China's emperor family are peacocks, and the evil prodigal son Lord Shen (Gary Oldman) has returned to reclaim his throne. He's raised an army of assassins and brought a secret weapon to help him conquer the country. But the subplot is that Po, adopted by a goose, wants to learn about his biological parents, where he comes from.

There's more fighting and a bit darker tone this time around. It's also left wide open for Kung Fu Panda 3.