If you're tired of all the horse race prognosticating, exhausted by the controversies (#OscarSoWhite, et al), couldn't care less about who's wearing what on the red carpet - and all you really want is to just hear the actors and filmmakers talk about their movies, their craft, and their careers - then Awards Chatter by [...]
As the Oscar ceremony nears, Nashville-based musician and podcaster Nick Flora invited me to continue our annual tradition of talking about our favorite films of the year on his podcast Who Writes This Stuff. And even though Nick's now mostly-retired from the podcasting gig, our film conversation continues. So here's Part 1 of our "Films of 2015" [...]
When two legendary filmmakers sit down to talk for an hour, it's always worthwhile. This discussion, hosted in New York City by the Directors Guild of America, followed a recent DGA screening for Steven Spielberg's Bridge Of Spies. Friend, peer, and fellow icon Martin Scorsese interviews Spielberg about his latest effort, which was recently nominated for 6 Academy [...]
Enough with the glib media coverage. I couldn't care less what J.J. Abrams' Jedi name is or what his lightsaber color would be. Let the filmmaker talk about how and why he made his film the way he did. Cue the DGA Q&A. After a Director's Guild screening of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the [...]
One of the reasons Dances With Wolves was such a big success 25 years ago was because of its Oscar-winning cinematography by Dean Semler. On his blog, Evan E. Richards - a Boston-based visual effects artist, cinematographer, and director - did a 440 image photo essay for the 4-hour cut of Costner's epic (click here). Spoiler alert: it basically [...]
There are always surprises. Despite largely following the script (I predicted 75 of 106 nominees, or 71% correct), there were still a number of gasps when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences announced their nominees for the Best in Film for 2015. I'll break those down, but first: the headline. Leading all contenders this year [...]
A bit belated, but as comprehensive as I could make it: here's my take on the best movies for 2015. It begins with the Top 10, in ascending order, then continues with my 11 through 20 choices, and concludes with a brief listing of the other movies I really enjoyed throughout the year. Many film [...]
Once considered the biggest Academy Awards pre-cursor, the Golden Globes aren't quite the Oscar bellwether they used to be (industry guilds have become the major tea leaves). Still, given its status as a Hollywood tradition - and event - winning a Golden Globe matters. They won't affect the Academy Award nominations (those ballots closed last week), [...]
To everyone who's been complaining that The Force Awakens is just a lazy New Hope redux: STOP! Please read - and watch (video below) - the following. If you still have something to complain about, then at least you'll be complaining about the right thing. (I also addressed this at more length in my Force Awakens breakdown/predictions [...]
Based on how different The Force Awakens is from the Star Wars prequels - both in tone and visual style - it should come as no surprise that creator George Lucas doesn't particularly care for the latest entry into the saga that he began. Still, to hear him actually say it is another thing. After Episode VII's premiere, at which the most praise [...]
I Can't Unsee That Movie: film news and reviews by Jeff Huston 