by Eric Blume
A young Magimel in Benoît Jacquot's A Single Girl (1995).
This weekend, we’re celebrating one of French cinema’s greatest actors, Benoît Magimel, who turns 50 today.
Magimel exploded upon the industry in the mid 1990s, making a string of pictures right after his 21st birthday that involved collaborations with several big names. Benoît Jacquot used his broad, handsome face and hooded eyes to great effect in 1995’s A Single Girl opposite Virginie Ledoyen. The two actors have a truthful, easy spark between them that’s quintessential French post-teen. The next year, he was featured in the excellent Thieves, by then-huge director André Téchiné, alongside two of the country’s finest, Daniel Auteuil and Catherine Deneuve...
A young Magimel in Benoît Jacquot's A Single Girl (1995).
This weekend, we’re celebrating one of French cinema’s greatest actors, Benoît Magimel, who turns 50 today.
Magimel exploded upon the industry in the mid 1990s, making a string of pictures right after his 21st birthday that involved collaborations with several big names. Benoît Jacquot used his broad, handsome face and hooded eyes to great effect in 1995’s A Single Girl opposite Virginie Ledoyen. The two actors have a truthful, easy spark between them that’s quintessential French post-teen. The next year, he was featured in the excellent Thieves, by then-huge director André Téchiné, alongside two of the country’s finest, Daniel Auteuil and Catherine Deneuve...
- 5/11/2024
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
One of our great screen icons, Jessica Lange, celebrates a big birthday this weekend: 75 years, and thankfully still going strong. Lange is one of only 24 actors to win the Triple Crown of Acting.
Lange is a personal favorite actor of mine, and I’ve written about her on the site numerous times, so I thought for her three-quarter-century mark, I’d hold a moment for one of her less-heralded, lesser-known performances, a bit of a departure from her usual delivery: her soft, lightly comic, and sweetly sad performance in Paul Brickman’s 1990 film Men Don’t Leave...
One of our great screen icons, Jessica Lange, celebrates a big birthday this weekend: 75 years, and thankfully still going strong. Lange is one of only 24 actors to win the Triple Crown of Acting.
Lange is a personal favorite actor of mine, and I’ve written about her on the site numerous times, so I thought for her three-quarter-century mark, I’d hold a moment for one of her less-heralded, lesser-known performances, a bit of a departure from her usual delivery: her soft, lightly comic, and sweetly sad performance in Paul Brickman’s 1990 film Men Don’t Leave...
- 4/21/2024
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
I did a bad thing readers. I lost the audio file after meeting with the always opinonated and game Eric Blume and Chris James, who I am lucky to count as friends. We spoke on the evening of the Oscar nominations in late January. I figured better late than never since we had a good time chatting and I realized I sincerely missed podcasting. But I found it this morning buried deep in a unexpected place on my hard drive. How did it get there? Who knows! If you'd like a throwback to a more innocent time before we all knew who would win everything Sunday night listen in on iTunes or Spotify or download the attachment below.
And given my scatterbrained challenges and the odd timing of the post, do tell in the comments:
What are you feeling / thinking Now that you wouldn't have expected back in late January...
And given my scatterbrained challenges and the odd timing of the post, do tell in the comments:
What are you feeling / thinking Now that you wouldn't have expected back in late January...
- 3/9/2024
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
No two people feel the exact same way about any film. Thus, Team Experience is pairing up to debate the merits of this year’s Oscar movies. Here's Ben Miller and Eric Blume on The Color Purple…
Ben: When it comes to Blitz Bazuwale's The Color Purple, I am supremely positive on the film. It's nice to have a film filled with unbridled energy and verve. I don't necessarily see it as a big loser when it comes to Oscar, but I think it deserves much more than it got.
What are your generalized thoughts on the film's quality?
Eric: Ah Ben we're going to have a good time with this one! I watched The Color Purple with my jaw dropped, finding it almost unfathomable how terrible it was. Like, I couldn't quite believe it...
Ben: When it comes to Blitz Bazuwale's The Color Purple, I am supremely positive on the film. It's nice to have a film filled with unbridled energy and verve. I don't necessarily see it as a big loser when it comes to Oscar, but I think it deserves much more than it got.
What are your generalized thoughts on the film's quality?
Eric: Ah Ben we're going to have a good time with this one! I watched The Color Purple with my jaw dropped, finding it almost unfathomable how terrible it was. Like, I couldn't quite believe it...
- 3/7/2024
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
No two people feels the exact same way about any film. Thus, Team Experience is pairing up to debate the merits of this year’s Oscar movies. Here’s Eric Blume and Cláudio Alves on Society of the Snow...
Eric: Hi Cláudio, there are few finer, smarter people to discuss a film with than you. So I'm looking forward to diving into J.A. Bayona's Oscar-nominated Society of the Snow. To me, Bayona has delivered one of the best films ever in the "survival genre," a tiny slice of cinema that admittedly isn't for everyone. And perhaps I'm a sucker for these tales, as I also loved the best most recent example, Danny Boyle's 127 Hours, as well. But what I feel Bayona accomplished here, and it's no small feat, is a one hundred percent believable environment where he gets his actors to a level of despair and desperation very,...
Eric: Hi Cláudio, there are few finer, smarter people to discuss a film with than you. So I'm looking forward to diving into J.A. Bayona's Oscar-nominated Society of the Snow. To me, Bayona has delivered one of the best films ever in the "survival genre," a tiny slice of cinema that admittedly isn't for everyone. And perhaps I'm a sucker for these tales, as I also loved the best most recent example, Danny Boyle's 127 Hours, as well. But what I feel Bayona accomplished here, and it's no small feat, is a one hundred percent believable environment where he gets his actors to a level of despair and desperation very,...
- 2/28/2024
- by Cláudio Alves
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing each Oscar category before the nominations come out. Here's Eric Blume and Glenn Dunks to talk Best Director...
Eric: Hi Glenn, excited to dive into this year's crop of Best Directors with you. To me, the big question is whether all three of the "big gun pictures" will carry their directors to nominations. That's Martin Scorsese for Killers of the Flower Moon; Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer; and Greta Gerwig for Barbie. I personally can't get too excited about Nolan or Scorsese, even though they both do expert work but nothing that rattled my cage. I think one of Gerwig's biggest achievements directing that film...and this is no easy feat...was dealing with what must have been Binders of notes from Mattell and Warner Bros and still delivering the film she set out to make...
Eric: Hi Glenn, excited to dive into this year's crop of Best Directors with you. To me, the big question is whether all three of the "big gun pictures" will carry their directors to nominations. That's Martin Scorsese for Killers of the Flower Moon; Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer; and Greta Gerwig for Barbie. I personally can't get too excited about Nolan or Scorsese, even though they both do expert work but nothing that rattled my cage. I think one of Gerwig's biggest achievements directing that film...and this is no easy feat...was dealing with what must have been Binders of notes from Mattell and Warner Bros and still delivering the film she set out to make...
- 1/19/2024
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing each Oscar category before the nominations are announced. Here's Eric Blume and Lynn Lee to talk Best Cinematography...
Eric: We have the pleasure of discussing the insanely talented cinematography candidates this year. It seems like this year's two big awards players, Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon, will certainly make the slate here...so, can I say, why I am not particularly excited about the work of either Hoyte van Hoytema and Rodrigo Prieto for these two films? Don't get me wrong, both are beautifully lensed films and these men are brilliantly talented, but their work seemed more standard than inspired.
Neither world, neither Oppenheimer's labs and offices nor Moon's flat plains, are the most visually exciting terrains, and while both men work with their respective directors to build a few lovely frames, I was definitely more knocked out by the imagery in some other films this year.
Eric: We have the pleasure of discussing the insanely talented cinematography candidates this year. It seems like this year's two big awards players, Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon, will certainly make the slate here...so, can I say, why I am not particularly excited about the work of either Hoyte van Hoytema and Rodrigo Prieto for these two films? Don't get me wrong, both are beautifully lensed films and these men are brilliantly talented, but their work seemed more standard than inspired.
Neither world, neither Oppenheimer's labs and offices nor Moon's flat plains, are the most visually exciting terrains, and while both men work with their respective directors to build a few lovely frames, I was definitely more knocked out by the imagery in some other films this year.
- 1/18/2024
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing each Oscar category as we head into the precursors. Here's Eric Blume and Nick Taylor to talk Best Original Screenplay...
Portrait of Nick and Eric discussing the Best Original Screenplay race
Eric: Hi Nick, we have some great options in the Original Screenplay category this year. It feels like there's two guarantees for a nomination: Greta Gerwig's Barbie (unless it changes categories and is nominated for Adapted instead) and David Hemingson's The Holdovers. I like both of those pictures enormously, and both films succeed largely on the words and structure of their screenplays. The Holdovers is essentially out of a Screenwriting 101 class, in the best way possible, in that it has all the classic elements that scripts are built upon, but Hemingson executes everything very artfully so it feels satisfying rather than him hitting points...
Portrait of Nick and Eric discussing the Best Original Screenplay race
Eric: Hi Nick, we have some great options in the Original Screenplay category this year. It feels like there's two guarantees for a nomination: Greta Gerwig's Barbie (unless it changes categories and is nominated for Adapted instead) and David Hemingson's The Holdovers. I like both of those pictures enormously, and both films succeed largely on the words and structure of their screenplays. The Holdovers is essentially out of a Screenwriting 101 class, in the best way possible, in that it has all the classic elements that scripts are built upon, but Hemingson executes everything very artfully so it feels satisfying rather than him hitting points...
- 12/23/2023
- by Nick Taylor
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
It’s always fun when “the conversation” starts to brew for Oscar nominations every year, seeing which actors are gaining traction for a potential nomination. What’s interesting this year is that there are an unusually high number of actors who currently have four acting nominations under their belt who all stand good-to-great chances of joining The Five Club with nods this year. Five Oscar nominations is a big deal. Only 22 actors currently have five, and the names are among some of our best from older Hollywood, to the modern age to contemporary. It’s very nice company to be in.
Let’s take a look at the actors who stand a very real shot of being a part of The Five Club this year…...
It’s always fun when “the conversation” starts to brew for Oscar nominations every year, seeing which actors are gaining traction for a potential nomination. What’s interesting this year is that there are an unusually high number of actors who currently have four acting nominations under their belt who all stand good-to-great chances of joining The Five Club with nods this year. Five Oscar nominations is a big deal. Only 22 actors currently have five, and the names are among some of our best from older Hollywood, to the modern age to contemporary. It’s very nice company to be in.
Let’s take a look at the actors who stand a very real shot of being a part of The Five Club this year…...
- 11/5/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
By: Christopher James
Emmys voting closed yesterday, but it will be a while before we know who our winners are.
Currently, the Primetime Emmys are scheduled for Monday, January 15th on Fox. The Creative Arts Emmys will take place the weekend before on Saturday, January 6th and Sunday, January 7th, with an edited version of the ceremony airing on Fxx on Saturday, January 13th on Fox. The reason for the push is the ongoing WGA and SAG strikes, which The Film Experience stands with the striking members.
Since voting has closed, there’s nothing more that nominees or studios can do to curry votes or campaign. We’re in a holding period. That doesn’t mean the coverage will stop, but it does mean we can space it out more before we head into Oscar madness.
Expect weekly category analyses across the comedy, drama and limited series/TV movie fields each Tuesday,...
Emmys voting closed yesterday, but it will be a while before we know who our winners are.
Currently, the Primetime Emmys are scheduled for Monday, January 15th on Fox. The Creative Arts Emmys will take place the weekend before on Saturday, January 6th and Sunday, January 7th, with an edited version of the ceremony airing on Fxx on Saturday, January 13th on Fox. The reason for the push is the ongoing WGA and SAG strikes, which The Film Experience stands with the striking members.
Since voting has closed, there’s nothing more that nominees or studios can do to curry votes or campaign. We’re in a holding period. That doesn’t mean the coverage will stop, but it does mean we can space it out more before we head into Oscar madness.
Expect weekly category analyses across the comedy, drama and limited series/TV movie fields each Tuesday,...
- 8/29/2023
- by Christopher James
- FilmExperience
The show blog must go on.
In lieu of the WGA and SAG strikes, the Emmys have officially moved away from their September 18th date. This is the first time the Emmys have postponed their date since 2001, after the September 11th attacks. No new dates have been announced for both the Primetime Emmy Awards and the Creative Arts Emmys. It stands to reason that the show will not be rescheduled until the strike ends. As stated earlier on the site, The Film Experience stands with SAG-AFTRA and the WGA in their quest for fair wages. Hopefully, all production (including our beloved award shows) can return once the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) agrees to negotiate with the guilds in earnest.
In the meantime, all this means for us is that there’s just more time to celebrate the amazing work of television that is being honored this year.
In lieu of the WGA and SAG strikes, the Emmys have officially moved away from their September 18th date. This is the first time the Emmys have postponed their date since 2001, after the September 11th attacks. No new dates have been announced for both the Primetime Emmy Awards and the Creative Arts Emmys. It stands to reason that the show will not be rescheduled until the strike ends. As stated earlier on the site, The Film Experience stands with SAG-AFTRA and the WGA in their quest for fair wages. Hopefully, all production (including our beloved award shows) can return once the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) agrees to negotiate with the guilds in earnest.
In the meantime, all this means for us is that there’s just more time to celebrate the amazing work of television that is being honored this year.
- 7/28/2023
- by Christopher James
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
It seems inconceivable that Brian Cox will not win an Emmy for his towering, iconic performance as Logan Roy, the heart and soul (relatively speaking) of one of television’s all-time greatest shows, Succession. And yet, it appears he will not! Cox only has a handful of episodes, far less a cumulative punch than his fellow nominees for Best Actor in Drama Series. He simply didn’t have enough screen time in this final season to pull through with a victory. If Kieran Culkin and Sarah Snook win the lead Emmys (which I strongly believe they will), that means that all of Cox’s key co-stars will walk away from the series with the industry’s highest honor, while its central figure will go unrewarded. It’s a great example of the randomness and silliness of awards shows. It's not that his co-stars didn't absolutely deserve it,...
It seems inconceivable that Brian Cox will not win an Emmy for his towering, iconic performance as Logan Roy, the heart and soul (relatively speaking) of one of television’s all-time greatest shows, Succession. And yet, it appears he will not! Cox only has a handful of episodes, far less a cumulative punch than his fellow nominees for Best Actor in Drama Series. He simply didn’t have enough screen time in this final season to pull through with a victory. If Kieran Culkin and Sarah Snook win the lead Emmys (which I strongly believe they will), that means that all of Cox’s key co-stars will walk away from the series with the industry’s highest honor, while its central figure will go unrewarded. It’s a great example of the randomness and silliness of awards shows. It's not that his co-stars didn't absolutely deserve it,...
- 7/27/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
For Pride Month, Team Experience has been looking at LGBTQ+ related Oscar nominations. We've decided to extend the series for a few more episodes. Pretend it's still June for a bit!
by Eric Blume
It’s wonderful fun to revisit 1999’s Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner, director Pedro Almodóvar’s All About My Mother. Although it’s a beautifully textured, multi-layered tapestry of themes and emotions, it has to be one of the unusual films to ever win this big prize. The plot involves, among other thing: a nurse going onstage as an unrehearsed cover for Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire; a HIV-positive, pregnant nun; two heterosexual women united by giving birth to sons named Esteban from the same transgender woman; and numerous conversations and jokes about acquired tits.
That none of these unlikely and uncommercial plot strands feel forced or shocking is due to the artistry of Almodóvar.
by Eric Blume
It’s wonderful fun to revisit 1999’s Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner, director Pedro Almodóvar’s All About My Mother. Although it’s a beautifully textured, multi-layered tapestry of themes and emotions, it has to be one of the unusual films to ever win this big prize. The plot involves, among other thing: a nurse going onstage as an unrehearsed cover for Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire; a HIV-positive, pregnant nun; two heterosexual women united by giving birth to sons named Esteban from the same transgender woman; and numerous conversations and jokes about acquired tits.
That none of these unlikely and uncommercial plot strands feel forced or shocking is due to the artistry of Almodóvar.
- 7/1/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
Marcello Mastroianni’s 1977 Best Actor Oscar nomination for Ettore Scola’s film A Special Day was one of the first examples of a straight actors being recognized for playing a gay role. Prior to that, we’d only had Peter Finch in Sunday Bloody Sunday and Al Pacino in Dog Day Afternoon, and neither of those actors had such an entrenched persona of the “macho lover” as did Mastroianni.
A Special Day gives us not just one Italian cinema icon playing against type, but two...
Marcello Mastroianni’s 1977 Best Actor Oscar nomination for Ettore Scola’s film A Special Day was one of the first examples of a straight actors being recognized for playing a gay role. Prior to that, we’d only had Peter Finch in Sunday Bloody Sunday and Al Pacino in Dog Day Afternoon, and neither of those actors had such an entrenched persona of the “macho lover” as did Mastroianni.
A Special Day gives us not just one Italian cinema icon playing against type, but two...
- 6/25/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience has been pairing or tripling up to discuss the Oscar categories. Here's the (presumed) final award of Sunday night with Elisa Giudici, Nathaniel R, and Eric Blume...
Nathaniel: Hello team. The final category. Best Picture is such a big big topic, 1434 minutes big. Or 24 and a half hours big if you wanted to watch all the films back to back... though, really, why would you? That's a lot of movie and it's also a lot of Movie-Movie since these mostly aren't shy and self-effacing films. With the exception of Women Talking, if all of these movies were at a party together they'd each try to be the life of it. Or at least life-adjacent. Banshees of Inisherin might just gab away in a corner and The Fabelmans might just watch everyone / everything... but quite enthusiastically!
I picture Avatar The Way of Water arriving first, because it can't...
Nathaniel: Hello team. The final category. Best Picture is such a big big topic, 1434 minutes big. Or 24 and a half hours big if you wanted to watch all the films back to back... though, really, why would you? That's a lot of movie and it's also a lot of Movie-Movie since these mostly aren't shy and self-effacing films. With the exception of Women Talking, if all of these movies were at a party together they'd each try to be the life of it. Or at least life-adjacent. Banshees of Inisherin might just gab away in a corner and The Fabelmans might just watch everyone / everything... but quite enthusiastically!
I picture Avatar The Way of Water arriving first, because it can't...
- 3/11/2023
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing the various Oscar categories. Here's Ben Miller, Elisa Guidici, and Nick Taylor discussing Best Supporting Actor.
Nick Taylor: Hi there, Elisa and Ben! Boy do I feel like we have the easiest acting category to evaluate for this year’s ceremony. Eric Blume and Chris James went over this category over two months ago and though their predictions didn't exactly match they both foresaw 4/5ths of Oscar’s lineup. My predictions were rubber-stamping the SAG list, so seeing Judd Hirsch and especially Brian Tyree Henry get in at the last minute felt like a real surprise to me. Ke Huy Quan, Brendan Gleeson, and Barry Keoghan made it as they were expected to, and even with Keoghan scoring a win with BAFTA, I think Quan’s looking like the most secure acting winner going into Oscar night.
With that being said, and before we get too far into the race,...
Nick Taylor: Hi there, Elisa and Ben! Boy do I feel like we have the easiest acting category to evaluate for this year’s ceremony. Eric Blume and Chris James went over this category over two months ago and though their predictions didn't exactly match they both foresaw 4/5ths of Oscar’s lineup. My predictions were rubber-stamping the SAG list, so seeing Judd Hirsch and especially Brian Tyree Henry get in at the last minute felt like a real surprise to me. Ke Huy Quan, Brendan Gleeson, and Barry Keoghan made it as they were expected to, and even with Keoghan scoring a win with BAFTA, I think Quan’s looking like the most secure acting winner going into Oscar night.
With that being said, and before we get too far into the race,...
- 3/6/2023
- by Nick Taylor
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing the various Oscar categories. Here's Eric Blume and Nick Taylor discussing Best Director.
Portrait of a young director via The Fabelmans
Eric Blume: Hi Nick! I'm excited to talk Best Director with you. This year's line-up, while I'd swap out a name or two in there personally, is extraordinarily strong, perhaps one of our best ever? Before we get to each one, who were personal favorites of yours that didn't make the ballot?
Nick Taylor: It’s a very strong lineup! Only one of the names Oscar picked would be close to my own ballot, but I see plenty of strengths in the work the Academy nominated, and the competitiveness of this field leading up to nomination morning means nobody coasted to their slots...
Portrait of a young director via The Fabelmans
Eric Blume: Hi Nick! I'm excited to talk Best Director with you. This year's line-up, while I'd swap out a name or two in there personally, is extraordinarily strong, perhaps one of our best ever? Before we get to each one, who were personal favorites of yours that didn't make the ballot?
Nick Taylor: It’s a very strong lineup! Only one of the names Oscar picked would be close to my own ballot, but I see plenty of strengths in the work the Academy nominated, and the competitiveness of this field leading up to nomination morning means nobody coasted to their slots...
- 3/4/2023
- by Nick Taylor
- FilmExperience
The team is pairing off to discuss each Oscar race. Here's Eurocheese and Eric Blume...
Eric: Euro, I'm so happy to be discussing the nominees for Best Adapted Screenplay with you. Personally, I feel like it's one of our weakest years in this category. Before we get into each nominee and the race, do you have any candidates you personally loved that didn't make the slate?
Eurocheese: It is strange how all the top contenders, and frankly most of the great films of the year, were original storylines. Even Glass Onion, sneaks into this category thanks to its lead detective but it's really an Original Screenplay...
Eric: Euro, I'm so happy to be discussing the nominees for Best Adapted Screenplay with you. Personally, I feel like it's one of our weakest years in this category. Before we get into each nominee and the race, do you have any candidates you personally loved that didn't make the slate?
Eurocheese: It is strange how all the top contenders, and frankly most of the great films of the year, were original storylines. Even Glass Onion, sneaks into this category thanks to its lead detective but it's really an Original Screenplay...
- 3/2/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
The team is pairing off to discuss each Oscar race. Here's Glenn Dunks and Eric Blume...
Elvis Cinematography by Mandy Walker Oscar Nominated
Glenn: Hi Eric, let's talk all things camera and light—it's Best Cinematography. Can I just start by asking one big question regarding this particular category. What happened to Top Gun: Maverick here? Claudio Miranda, previous Oscar winner for Life of Pi, was supposed to be our runaway favorite and yet on nomination morning, Lydia Tár claimed one final scalp amid her reign of terror. And a second question, I suppose. Did that Top Gun miss just hand this trophy to All Quiet on the Western Front? As much as I am craving a win for Mandy Walker (for many reasons including how historic it would be), I just can't see anything but the German war movie coming out on top here.
Eric: Glenn, two excellent questions.
Elvis Cinematography by Mandy Walker Oscar Nominated
Glenn: Hi Eric, let's talk all things camera and light—it's Best Cinematography. Can I just start by asking one big question regarding this particular category. What happened to Top Gun: Maverick here? Claudio Miranda, previous Oscar winner for Life of Pi, was supposed to be our runaway favorite and yet on nomination morning, Lydia Tár claimed one final scalp amid her reign of terror. And a second question, I suppose. Did that Top Gun miss just hand this trophy to All Quiet on the Western Front? As much as I am craving a win for Mandy Walker (for many reasons including how historic it would be), I just can't see anything but the German war movie coming out on top here.
Eric: Glenn, two excellent questions.
- 3/1/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is pairing up to debate the merits of each of the big awards season movies this year. Here’s Abe Friedtanzer & Eric Blume on one of the Oscar frontrunners...
Eric: Abe, here we are again with another split decision. But unlike our discussion about The Whale, which you loved and I didn't, we're swapping sides for The Banshees of Inisherin. I absolutely loved this film. I'd go as far as to say it's close to a masterpiece. It's a piercing and painful meditation on loneliness, a heartbreaking and lyrical stare in the face at death. Martin McDonagh is tackling The Big Themes with ferocity and honesty, and I was deeply moved. But let's start with why you didn't care for the film...
Eric: Abe, here we are again with another split decision. But unlike our discussion about The Whale, which you loved and I didn't, we're swapping sides for The Banshees of Inisherin. I absolutely loved this film. I'd go as far as to say it's close to a masterpiece. It's a piercing and painful meditation on loneliness, a heartbreaking and lyrical stare in the face at death. Martin McDonagh is tackling The Big Themes with ferocity and honesty, and I was deeply moved. But let's start with why you didn't care for the film...
- 1/23/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
No two people feel the exact same way about any film. Thus, Team Experience is pairing up to debate the merits of each of the awards movies this year. Here’s Eric Blume and Cláudio Alves on Germany's Oscar contender.
Eric: Claudio, let's get down and dirty on Edward Berger's All Quiet on the Western Front. I'm in camp "love" and I think you're in camp "don't love"? The only real dissent I've heard from folks is that "it says nothing new about war" (which I look forward to addressing). But let's start with overall impressions of the film.
CLÁUDIO: Well, it's adapting a seminal anti-war novel – maybe The anti-war novel pre-wwii – already made into a Best Picture Oscar winner before. So it's not like it had much hope of saying something new about its subject. Nevertheless, Edward Berger and company bring plenty of "new things" to the narrative...
Eric: Claudio, let's get down and dirty on Edward Berger's All Quiet on the Western Front. I'm in camp "love" and I think you're in camp "don't love"? The only real dissent I've heard from folks is that "it says nothing new about war" (which I look forward to addressing). But let's start with overall impressions of the film.
CLÁUDIO: Well, it's adapting a seminal anti-war novel – maybe The anti-war novel pre-wwii – already made into a Best Picture Oscar winner before. So it's not like it had much hope of saying something new about its subject. Nevertheless, Edward Berger and company bring plenty of "new things" to the narrative...
- 1/19/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
No two people feel the same exact way about any film. Thus, Team Experience is pairing up to debate the merits of each of the big awards season movies this year. Here’s Abe Friedtanzer & Eric Blume on The Whale
Abe: Eric, I distinctly remember last year when I mentioned that my favorite movie was Coda that you wanted to start a series where you just kept telling me how bad it was. Well, fortunately or unfortunately, I hear you detest my favorite movie of 2022 just as much, so now you get that chance! I was recently a guest on The Rolling Tape podcast where we had five panelists discussing The Whale and expected someone to be in the "hate it" camp, but it turns out we all loved it. For me, the experience of seeing it in a completely packed press and industry screening at the Toronto International Film...
Abe: Eric, I distinctly remember last year when I mentioned that my favorite movie was Coda that you wanted to start a series where you just kept telling me how bad it was. Well, fortunately or unfortunately, I hear you detest my favorite movie of 2022 just as much, so now you get that chance! I was recently a guest on The Rolling Tape podcast where we had five panelists discussing The Whale and expected someone to be in the "hate it" camp, but it turns out we all loved it. For me, the experience of seeing it in a completely packed press and industry screening at the Toronto International Film...
- 1/14/2023
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Here are Chris James and Eric Blume to discuss one of Oscar's trickiest categories, Best Supporting Actor:
Eric: Chris, so happy to be reunited with you, this time to discuss the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. This category is always one of the weirdest and often the worst... I'm still not done being angry that arguably-bad Troy Kotsur beat the genius work of Kodi Smit-McPhee last year. But that's how this award often goes.
Let's start with our "locks". I think we have two: Brendan Gleeson and Ke Huy Quan. And that's great news, because they're both splendid performances and either would be one of the best winners in this category for the last decade. Gleeson is the embodiment of tragicomedy, and Quan finds that perfect note between farce and realism in an incredibly playful piece of acting. How do you feel about Gleeson and Quan personally, and would you agree they're locks?...
Eric: Chris, so happy to be reunited with you, this time to discuss the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. This category is always one of the weirdest and often the worst... I'm still not done being angry that arguably-bad Troy Kotsur beat the genius work of Kodi Smit-McPhee last year. But that's how this award often goes.
Let's start with our "locks". I think we have two: Brendan Gleeson and Ke Huy Quan. And that's great news, because they're both splendid performances and either would be one of the best winners in this category for the last decade. Gleeson is the embodiment of tragicomedy, and Quan finds that perfect note between farce and realism in an incredibly playful piece of acting. How do you feel about Gleeson and Quan personally, and would you agree they're locks?...
- 12/24/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience will be discussing each Oscar category as we head into the precursors. Here's Eric Blume and Glenn Dunks...
The Fabelmans
Eric: Glenn, before we get to this year's nominees, I just want to celebrate the Academy's relative great taste in this category compared to most others. It's phenomenal that only once in the last 14 years has this award gone to a straight white American man. In those years, we've had three women, two Asian men, two Brits, and a French guy who have won, plus three great Latin filmmakers (including double wins for Iñárritu and Cuarón). It's the category where they now have diversity and true talent. I might have chosen differently in any given year, but none of the filmmakers are bad or untalented. Tom Hooper beating David Fincher didn't land back then and certainly hasn't aged well, but regardless it's a great category filled with remarkable work.
The Fabelmans
Eric: Glenn, before we get to this year's nominees, I just want to celebrate the Academy's relative great taste in this category compared to most others. It's phenomenal that only once in the last 14 years has this award gone to a straight white American man. In those years, we've had three women, two Asian men, two Brits, and a French guy who have won, plus three great Latin filmmakers (including double wins for Iñárritu and Cuarón). It's the category where they now have diversity and true talent. I might have chosen differently in any given year, but none of the filmmakers are bad or untalented. Tom Hooper beating David Fincher didn't land back then and certainly hasn't aged well, but regardless it's a great category filled with remarkable work.
- 12/14/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Spoiler Alert: Do Not Read Unless You Have Viewed All Seven Episodes.
by Eric Blume
One of the things that separates The White Lotus from many other TV programs, which are usually divided amongst several writers and directors, is that the show has a very, very specific point-of-view. Even though other great television series have a unified tone and the individual episodes are kept in harmony by the showrunner, it’s a different thing to have the same person actually writing and directing every episode. Mike White views the universe and views characters comically. He sees the world as an outsider does, with an arched eye towards human behavior, and he sees people as funny and full of contradictions. He also lends to White Lotus a truly gay sensibility, in terms of the way he frames his actors, the way he films male and female bodies, and the way his...
by Eric Blume
One of the things that separates The White Lotus from many other TV programs, which are usually divided amongst several writers and directors, is that the show has a very, very specific point-of-view. Even though other great television series have a unified tone and the individual episodes are kept in harmony by the showrunner, it’s a different thing to have the same person actually writing and directing every episode. Mike White views the universe and views characters comically. He sees the world as an outsider does, with an arched eye towards human behavior, and he sees people as funny and full of contradictions. He also lends to White Lotus a truly gay sensibility, in terms of the way he frames his actors, the way he films male and female bodies, and the way his...
- 12/13/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience will be discussing each Oscar category as we head into the precursors. Here's Christopher James and Eric Blume...
Babylon
Chris: The Cinematography category has recently skewed heavily towards Best Picture nominees. Years like 2012 - 2015 would often have 2-3 nominees from outside the Best Picture race. However, the past three years have only had one non-Best Picture nominee crack the lineup. Sensing this trend, I'm starting my predictions by looking at the most likely overlaps between Picture and Cinematography this year. Janusz Kaminski is in good position for lensing The Fabelmans. Not only is it the presumed Best Picture frontrunner, but Kaminski is a two-time winner who has recently scored nominations for Spielberg projects like West Side Story, Lincoln and War Horse.
Bigger is often better, so I'm considering the other epics in the Best Picture race. Even with mixed reactions, Babylon is a large beast and Linus Sandgren...
Babylon
Chris: The Cinematography category has recently skewed heavily towards Best Picture nominees. Years like 2012 - 2015 would often have 2-3 nominees from outside the Best Picture race. However, the past three years have only had one non-Best Picture nominee crack the lineup. Sensing this trend, I'm starting my predictions by looking at the most likely overlaps between Picture and Cinematography this year. Janusz Kaminski is in good position for lensing The Fabelmans. Not only is it the presumed Best Picture frontrunner, but Kaminski is a two-time winner who has recently scored nominations for Spielberg projects like West Side Story, Lincoln and War Horse.
Bigger is often better, so I'm considering the other epics in the Best Picture race. Even with mixed reactions, Babylon is a large beast and Linus Sandgren...
- 12/9/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
Showtime's limited series The First Lady kicked off its premiere episode last week. It's a bit of a mixed bag out of the gate. The episode consists of several 10-minute-ish scenes covering each of our protagonists: Michelle Obama (Viola Davis); Betty Ford (Michelle Pfeiffer); and Eleanor Roosevelt (Gillian Anderson). A ticker on the bottom of the screen whisks us backward and forward between these women whose stories are about forty years apart from each other.
There's not a great deal of grace in this back-and-forth execution, feeding us small glimpses of each lady in semi-satisfying increments that don't seem to have a meaningful connection between them outside of generic "I'm my own person" theme. It's probably easiest to tackle these three stories independently, because episode one doesn't give us much of a linking thread or powerful throughline yet, and because there are pleasures to be had within...
Showtime's limited series The First Lady kicked off its premiere episode last week. It's a bit of a mixed bag out of the gate. The episode consists of several 10-minute-ish scenes covering each of our protagonists: Michelle Obama (Viola Davis); Betty Ford (Michelle Pfeiffer); and Eleanor Roosevelt (Gillian Anderson). A ticker on the bottom of the screen whisks us backward and forward between these women whose stories are about forty years apart from each other.
There's not a great deal of grace in this back-and-forth execution, feeding us small glimpses of each lady in semi-satisfying increments that don't seem to have a meaningful connection between them outside of generic "I'm my own person" theme. It's probably easiest to tackle these three stories independently, because episode one doesn't give us much of a linking thread or powerful throughline yet, and because there are pleasures to be had within...
- 4/23/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
ABC/Art Streiber
My Oscar assignment for the site was to do a review of the show's hosts and cover the evening's best jokes. But the next day, it's difficult-come-impossible to do such a thing, because there really was little to no humor in the show! In fact, the evening drove into such an abyss of darkness that it was actually full-on depressing. What can one say about a program that is meant to honor the highest artistic achievements of the craft, when there is no attention given to art, achievement, or craft?
I will do my best to quickly execute my given assignment nonetheless. There were jokes in there somewhere...
ABC/Art Streiber
My Oscar assignment for the site was to do a review of the show's hosts and cover the evening's best jokes. But the next day, it's difficult-come-impossible to do such a thing, because there really was little to no humor in the show! In fact, the evening drove into such an abyss of darkness that it was actually full-on depressing. What can one say about a program that is meant to honor the highest artistic achievements of the craft, when there is no attention given to art, achievement, or craft?
I will do my best to quickly execute my given assignment nonetheless. There were jokes in there somewhere...
- 3/29/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing the various Oscar categories. Here's Baby Clyde, Elisa Giudici, Abe Friedtanzer and Eric Blume to discuss Best Picture. We're not saving it for last. This conversation began Before the PGA went to Coda but ends afterwards...
the five films with the most nominations this year.
Abe Friedtanzer: I'm thrilled to be talking the top Oscar prize with my esteemed colleagues Eric, Elisa, and Baby Clyde. I do think there's plenty to discuss here, but I believe that one film is very far out in front. That's The Power of the Dog, of course, which some may doubt after it missed out on an ensemble nomination from SAG. There is absolutely momentum for Coda after its win there and its triumph the night after that with the Hollywood Critics Association. But Dog also underperformed with nominations from the latter group, so the comparison isn't all that helpful.
the five films with the most nominations this year.
Abe Friedtanzer: I'm thrilled to be talking the top Oscar prize with my esteemed colleagues Eric, Elisa, and Baby Clyde. I do think there's plenty to discuss here, but I believe that one film is very far out in front. That's The Power of the Dog, of course, which some may doubt after it missed out on an ensemble nomination from SAG. There is absolutely momentum for Coda after its win there and its triumph the night after that with the Hollywood Critics Association. But Dog also underperformed with nominations from the latter group, so the comparison isn't all that helpful.
- 3/21/2022
- by Abe Friedtanzer
- FilmExperience
We're celebrating each of the upcoming Honorary Oscar winners with a few pieces on their career.
by Eric Blume
Ingmar Bergman’s 1968 film Shame features one of Liv Ullmann’s greatest performances. This was the third collaboration between the two artists, and the film is the middle portion of Bergman’s unofficial “Island Trilogy” that started with The Hour of the Wolf and concluded with The Passion of Anna. Ullmann’s face is like the face of the film: beauty going blankly sour…...
by Eric Blume
Ingmar Bergman’s 1968 film Shame features one of Liv Ullmann’s greatest performances. This was the third collaboration between the two artists, and the film is the middle portion of Bergman’s unofficial “Island Trilogy” that started with The Hour of the Wolf and concluded with The Passion of Anna. Ullmann’s face is like the face of the film: beauty going blankly sour…...
- 3/17/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is discussing the various Oscar categories. Here's a particularly volatile race given that BAFTA, Cca, and Ace Eddie Awards all chose different winners.
Eric Blume: Tim and Carlos, we're the lucky gang to discuss the Oscar nominees in the Best Film Editing category. This year our five nominated films are:
Don't Look Up Dune King Richard The Power of the Dog tick, tick...Boom!
Last year's win for The Sound of Metal was uniquely exciting as it was an out-of-the-box winner in terms of its smallness (this award often goes to "big" movies). Maybe that means people are thinking a bit more carefully about this category? I bring this up in hopes there might be some genuine support for my favorite pick of this bunch, which is the editing duo for tick, tick...Boom...
Eric Blume: Tim and Carlos, we're the lucky gang to discuss the Oscar nominees in the Best Film Editing category. This year our five nominated films are:
Don't Look Up Dune King Richard The Power of the Dog tick, tick...Boom!
Last year's win for The Sound of Metal was uniquely exciting as it was an out-of-the-box winner in terms of its smallness (this award often goes to "big" movies). Maybe that means people are thinking a bit more carefully about this category? I bring this up in hopes there might be some genuine support for my favorite pick of this bunch, which is the editing duo for tick, tick...Boom...
- 3/14/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Our Oscar Volleys series is down to our last two categories. Here are Tim Brayton and Eric Blume to talk Best Director. (This volley was recorded before the BAFTA announcement but since those nominations are juried they probably won't have much bearing on Oscar outcomes.)
Eric Blume: Tim, I'm thrilled to talk shop about the Best Director category. Let's start with Jane Campion, Denis Villeneuve, and Kenneth Branagh who all seem unlikely to miss. I'm personally thrilled that Campion might ride her crest all the way to a win. Nobody else could have made The Power of the Dog work so layered and subtle, or told that story without it seeming heavy-handed, obvious, or silly. The film gives Campion the chance to do her specialty: embroiling us in a narrative and in character motivations so intensely strange yet fully human that we're transported by our own confusion and curiosity. She...
Eric Blume: Tim, I'm thrilled to talk shop about the Best Director category. Let's start with Jane Campion, Denis Villeneuve, and Kenneth Branagh who all seem unlikely to miss. I'm personally thrilled that Campion might ride her crest all the way to a win. Nobody else could have made The Power of the Dog work so layered and subtle, or told that story without it seeming heavy-handed, obvious, or silly. The film gives Campion the chance to do her specialty: embroiling us in a narrative and in character motivations so intensely strange yet fully human that we're transported by our own confusion and curiosity. She...
- 2/3/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Our Oscar Volleys continue with Eric Blume, Baby Clyde, and Gabriel Mayora with surprising confessions, hot takes, and unexpected sentiment.
Eric Blume: I suspect we have three locks for nominations in this category: Paul Thomas Anderson for Licorice Pizza, Kenneth Branagh for Belfast, and Adam McKay for Don't Look Up! I am a colossal fan of PTA, but it makes me sad to think he could finally win his Oscar for one of his weaker pictures. I am mystified by the rave reaction to Licorice Pizza, which is wonderful in patches, but the screenplay is so meandering and fails to culminate in anything dramatically. Plus, it's a genre we've seen hundreds of times. PTA is able to bring his directorial dazzle to it, but as a script, it's severely undercooked. I do think Don't Look Up! has a magnificent setup for a comedy, but the jokes are flabby and tepid,...
Eric Blume: I suspect we have three locks for nominations in this category: Paul Thomas Anderson for Licorice Pizza, Kenneth Branagh for Belfast, and Adam McKay for Don't Look Up! I am a colossal fan of PTA, but it makes me sad to think he could finally win his Oscar for one of his weaker pictures. I am mystified by the rave reaction to Licorice Pizza, which is wonderful in patches, but the screenplay is so meandering and fails to culminate in anything dramatically. Plus, it's a genre we've seen hundreds of times. PTA is able to bring his directorial dazzle to it, but as a script, it's severely undercooked. I do think Don't Look Up! has a magnificent setup for a comedy, but the jokes are flabby and tepid,...
- 2/2/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Oscar Volleys continue with Eric Blume and Ben Miller discussing Best Supporting Actor.
Eric Blume: Happy to reteaming with you, Ben, to discuss that woebegone category of Best Supporting Actor. Nobody in the running can touch what Kodi Smit-McPhee accomplishes in The Power of the Dog, a bravura combination of sleight-of-hand and lived-in work. The movie feels like an instant classic. Kodi delivers the gift of making you want to re-watch his performances instantly to see his choices in a new context when he unfurls the full characterization. There's depth and artistry to this performance, while appearing effortless: it's a stunning piece of acting. But he's not the only lock...
Eric Blume: Happy to reteaming with you, Ben, to discuss that woebegone category of Best Supporting Actor. Nobody in the running can touch what Kodi Smit-McPhee accomplishes in The Power of the Dog, a bravura combination of sleight-of-hand and lived-in work. The movie feels like an instant classic. Kodi delivers the gift of making you want to re-watch his performances instantly to see his choices in a new context when he unfurls the full characterization. There's depth and artistry to this performance, while appearing effortless: it's a stunning piece of acting. But he's not the only lock...
- 2/2/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
Continuing our Oscar Volley series at The Film Experience. Eric Blume, Elisa Giudici, and Glenn Dunks talk Best Cinematography.
Greig Fraser shooting Timothée Chalamet in the desert for Dune (2021)
Eric Blume: Glenn and Elisa, Do we all agree that we probably have two "locks" for Best Cinematography nominations: Delbonnel for The Tragedy of Macbeth, and Greig Fraser for Dune? Those feel like two very worthy nominees to me. While I think Joel Coen's conception of his film is limited and flawed, I admired Delbonnel's execution of Coen's concept, really leaning into that austere Calvinist guilt like we got in Carl Theodore Dreyer movies, and stealing from Sven Nykvist's framing in Bergman movies...yet netting out in its own unique visual scheme to highlight those sets and costumes. And I thought Fraser's work made Denis Villeneuve's arid sci-fi epic surprisingly sensual, which helped the film (which is dense...
Greig Fraser shooting Timothée Chalamet in the desert for Dune (2021)
Eric Blume: Glenn and Elisa, Do we all agree that we probably have two "locks" for Best Cinematography nominations: Delbonnel for The Tragedy of Macbeth, and Greig Fraser for Dune? Those feel like two very worthy nominees to me. While I think Joel Coen's conception of his film is limited and flawed, I admired Delbonnel's execution of Coen's concept, really leaning into that austere Calvinist guilt like we got in Carl Theodore Dreyer movies, and stealing from Sven Nykvist's framing in Bergman movies...yet netting out in its own unique visual scheme to highlight those sets and costumes. And I thought Fraser's work made Denis Villeneuve's arid sci-fi epic surprisingly sensual, which helped the film (which is dense...
- 2/1/2022
- by EricB
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
While Nathaniel updates the Oscar charts over the next two days, I thought I'd chime on with some thoughts on one of the year's most packed-with-candidates categories, Best Actor. It's always good for Tfe readers to talk about the big races, and I'm here to offer a perhaps unpopular take. Since the debut of King Richard at TIFF in September, many have crowned Will Smith as the runaway winner of this year's Oscar. Smith is a well-liked, bona fide movie star with twenty years of box office hits and solid performances. He may indeed be our victor. But after finally catching up with the film this past weekend, I'm going to put it out there that I don't think his victory as assured as so many do.
Sure, Smith gives a charismatic and spirited performance in the film, and his megawatt charm holds the picture together despite its weaknesses and cliches.
While Nathaniel updates the Oscar charts over the next two days, I thought I'd chime on with some thoughts on one of the year's most packed-with-candidates categories, Best Actor. It's always good for Tfe readers to talk about the big races, and I'm here to offer a perhaps unpopular take. Since the debut of King Richard at TIFF in September, many have crowned Will Smith as the runaway winner of this year's Oscar. Smith is a well-liked, bona fide movie star with twenty years of box office hits and solid performances. He may indeed be our victor. But after finally catching up with the film this past weekend, I'm going to put it out there that I don't think his victory as assured as so many do.
Sure, Smith gives a charismatic and spirited performance in the film, and his megawatt charm holds the picture together despite its weaknesses and cliches.
- 12/12/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is celebrating Winona Ryder for her 50th birthday this week
by Eric Blume
With more than a half dozen films behind her, this week's birthday girl Winona Ryder received her first major awards attention with 1990’s Mermaids. This slight comedy-drama, directed by Richard Benjamin, garnered the young actress "Best Supporting Actress" from the National Board of Review and a Golden Globe nomination, too. While that praise seems a little generous in hindsight, the film features some lovely work from Winona who is up against a very wobbly picture...
by Eric Blume
With more than a half dozen films behind her, this week's birthday girl Winona Ryder received her first major awards attention with 1990’s Mermaids. This slight comedy-drama, directed by Richard Benjamin, garnered the young actress "Best Supporting Actress" from the National Board of Review and a Golden Globe nomination, too. While that praise seems a little generous in hindsight, the film features some lovely work from Winona who is up against a very wobbly picture...
- 10/25/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
With the Emmy Awards ahead of us this coming weekend, it seems like a good time to start discussing a show that will likely make a killing at next year's Emmys, Mike White's HBO show The White Lotus. It's been the talk of the industry this summer, and rightfully so, as there's nothing quite like it. This intense ensemble comedy-drama-satire-tragedy is incredibly dense, so to start off the discussion, I thought I'd offer just a few of the very difficult things that writer-director Mike White accomplished with such intelligent success...
With the Emmy Awards ahead of us this coming weekend, it seems like a good time to start discussing a show that will likely make a killing at next year's Emmys, Mike White's HBO show The White Lotus. It's been the talk of the industry this summer, and rightfully so, as there's nothing quite like it. This intense ensemble comedy-drama-satire-tragedy is incredibly dense, so to start off the discussion, I thought I'd offer just a few of the very difficult things that writer-director Mike White accomplished with such intelligent success...
- 9/14/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
We'll be celebrating each of the upcoming Honorary Oscar winners with a few pieces on their career. First up is Danny Glover who turns 75 today. Happy Birthday to a fine American actor!
by Eric Blume
Danny Glover shows up about fifteen minutes into director Robert Benton’s 1984 Oscar winner Places in the Heart, looking dapper and handsome in his worn suit, with an effortless charm that belies his character’s backstory. He insinuates his way into the life of widowed Edna Spalding and into the film’s narrative. Sadly he always stays on the sidelines but Glover provides a radiance and a verve that display his burgeoning talent and resourcefulness.
Places in the Heart marked Glover’s first large-scale film role, and he seizes the role of drifter Moses and does everything he can with it...
by Eric Blume
Danny Glover shows up about fifteen minutes into director Robert Benton’s 1984 Oscar winner Places in the Heart, looking dapper and handsome in his worn suit, with an effortless charm that belies his character’s backstory. He insinuates his way into the life of widowed Edna Spalding and into the film’s narrative. Sadly he always stays on the sidelines but Glover provides a radiance and a verve that display his burgeoning talent and resourcefulness.
Places in the Heart marked Glover’s first large-scale film role, and he seizes the role of drifter Moses and does everything he can with it...
- 7/22/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
As an FYC for all things Mare of Easttown, Eric and Nathaniel got together for a conversation about what a rich viewing experience the HBO miniseries was.
Eric Blume: Nathaniel, now that Mare of Easttown has wrapped, I'm sure viewers will want to talk about it, least of all because it features Kate Winslet giving one of the greatest performances of her life. But more on that later. First, let's talk about overall impressions of the show. While it certainly has its flaws, one of the things I loved about it the most was its capture of small details in the lives of the characters and the setting. I spent the first 18 years of my life in Pennsylvania, and the show captures so many of the nuances of Pa life. I loved how everyone was a cousin (cousins are a thing in Pa); how people just walked into the...
Eric Blume: Nathaniel, now that Mare of Easttown has wrapped, I'm sure viewers will want to talk about it, least of all because it features Kate Winslet giving one of the greatest performances of her life. But more on that later. First, let's talk about overall impressions of the show. While it certainly has its flaws, one of the things I loved about it the most was its capture of small details in the lives of the characters and the setting. I spent the first 18 years of my life in Pennsylvania, and the show captures so many of the nuances of Pa life. I loved how everyone was a cousin (cousins are a thing in Pa); how people just walked into the...
- 6/22/2021
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Welcome back to the Supporting Actress Smackdown. Each month we pick an Oscar vintage to explore through the lens of actressing at the edges. This episode goes back to the turn of the millenium, when Almost Famous, Pollock, Billy Elliot, and Chocolat were new in theaters and the following actresses were having a moment...
The Nominees 2000 provided a bevy of possibilities in the supporting actress category but Oscar ignored the gifted comediennes (Parker Posey in Best in Show and Elaine May in Smalltime Crooks), the foreign divas (Catherine Deneuve in Dancer in the Dark and Zhang Ziyi in Crouching Tiger), indie darlings (Lupe Ontiveros in Chuck & Buck) and even women in Best Picture contenders. What they came up with instead was an almost eerily archetypical shortlist which included five different kinds of traditional Oscar-friendly roles: long-suffering wife, feisty grandmother, manic pixie dream girl, mama bear, and the tough mentor.
The Nominees 2000 provided a bevy of possibilities in the supporting actress category but Oscar ignored the gifted comediennes (Parker Posey in Best in Show and Elaine May in Smalltime Crooks), the foreign divas (Catherine Deneuve in Dancer in the Dark and Zhang Ziyi in Crouching Tiger), indie darlings (Lupe Ontiveros in Chuck & Buck) and even women in Best Picture contenders. What they came up with instead was an almost eerily archetypical shortlist which included five different kinds of traditional Oscar-friendly roles: long-suffering wife, feisty grandmother, manic pixie dream girl, mama bear, and the tough mentor.
- 5/21/2021
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Team Experience is celebrating John Waters for his 75th birthday this week
by Eric Blume
John Waters’ 1981 film Polyester satirizes the “women’s picture” genre, but in the way that only Waters would spin it. His heroine, Francine Fishpaw, played of course by muse Divine, is trapped in a horrific marriage to the owner of the local porn movie palace. Her daughter is a nympho and her son has taken his foot fetish to a comically violent place. Sex and vice surround Francine, and she’s just soldiering on, nobly of course.
The beauty of Waters and his sensibility is this: imagine someone making this movie today. You can’t, because the basic elements are too far out there...
by Eric Blume
John Waters’ 1981 film Polyester satirizes the “women’s picture” genre, but in the way that only Waters would spin it. His heroine, Francine Fishpaw, played of course by muse Divine, is trapped in a horrific marriage to the owner of the local porn movie palace. Her daughter is a nympho and her son has taken his foot fetish to a comically violent place. Sex and vice surround Francine, and she’s just soldiering on, nobly of course.
The beauty of Waters and his sensibility is this: imagine someone making this movie today. You can’t, because the basic elements are too far out there...
- 4/23/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
We have our strongest list of contenders for the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar that we’ve had in years…I’d argue one of the strongest ever. These five films represent vastly different stories and emphasize different screenwriting strengths, and involve an array of intelligent decisions from the writers in delivering the best cinematic experience possible based on their source material...
We have our strongest list of contenders for the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar that we’ve had in years…I’d argue one of the strongest ever. These five films represent vastly different stories and emphasize different screenwriting strengths, and involve an array of intelligent decisions from the writers in delivering the best cinematic experience possible based on their source material...
- 4/1/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
Today is the centennial of French Oscar-winner Simone Signoret. Daniel paid lovely tribute to her last night for her brief role in 1950's La Ronde. Her next big film, director Jacques Becker's 1952 movie Casque d'Or, made her a star six years before Oscar embraced her with Room at the Top. Becker captures all of Signoret's magic in this turn-of-the-century Paris underworld story. It doesn't hurt that he has his cinematographer, Robert Le Febvre, lighting her in a gloriously celestial way throughout the movie...
Today is the centennial of French Oscar-winner Simone Signoret. Daniel paid lovely tribute to her last night for her brief role in 1950's La Ronde. Her next big film, director Jacques Becker's 1952 movie Casque d'Or, made her a star six years before Oscar embraced her with Room at the Top. Becker captures all of Signoret's magic in this turn-of-the-century Paris underworld story. It doesn't hurt that he has his cinematographer, Robert Le Febvre, lighting her in a gloriously celestial way throughout the movie...
- 3/26/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
It's difficult to write reviews these days, because it feels like no film is ever actually "released", and all of us are scrambling to find what movies are even available, how they're available, if they're VOD, or on a streaming service, etc. Sony Pictures Classics might have made a fumble mostly holding back from view director Florian Zeller's The Father, taken from his own play, starring Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman: if more people could see it, everyone would be talking about it.
The Father is one of those Movies They Don't Make Anymore, i.e., a damn adult drama that challenges your mind and heart. This is a film where the entire creative team treats the audience with dignity and respect, trusting that you're listening and paying attention, and they will reward you with literate ideas, high drama, and an emotional experience. But The Father...
It's difficult to write reviews these days, because it feels like no film is ever actually "released", and all of us are scrambling to find what movies are even available, how they're available, if they're VOD, or on a streaming service, etc. Sony Pictures Classics might have made a fumble mostly holding back from view director Florian Zeller's The Father, taken from his own play, starring Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman: if more people could see it, everyone would be talking about it.
The Father is one of those Movies They Don't Make Anymore, i.e., a damn adult drama that challenges your mind and heart. This is a film where the entire creative team treats the audience with dignity and respect, trusting that you're listening and paying attention, and they will reward you with literate ideas, high drama, and an emotional experience. But The Father...
- 1/23/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
David Lynch during quarantine this past summer
One of the greatest living American film directors, David Lynch, turns 75 today, so it's only fitting we take a moment to celebrate this unique visionary and his wonderful contributions to our cinema. Lynch is so rightfully esteemed and exulted that it's easy to forget he's only made ten feature films during his 40+ years in the industry!
But right out of the box, with 1977's Eraserhead, he delivered a film so singular that it was clear a new voice had arrived. He followed it with 1980's The Elephant Man, for which he received his first Best Director nomination, and while his second film was a bankrolled studio movie on one hand, it still bears Lynch's dark imagination throughout. Lynch was the perfect director to see the soul of John Merrick, as he's always seen the beauty in the "ugly" and spent...
David Lynch during quarantine this past summer
One of the greatest living American film directors, David Lynch, turns 75 today, so it's only fitting we take a moment to celebrate this unique visionary and his wonderful contributions to our cinema. Lynch is so rightfully esteemed and exulted that it's easy to forget he's only made ten feature films during his 40+ years in the industry!
But right out of the box, with 1977's Eraserhead, he delivered a film so singular that it was clear a new voice had arrived. He followed it with 1980's The Elephant Man, for which he received his first Best Director nomination, and while his second film was a bankrolled studio movie on one hand, it still bears Lynch's dark imagination throughout. Lynch was the perfect director to see the soul of John Merrick, as he's always seen the beauty in the "ugly" and spent...
- 1/20/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
We've discussed Let Them All Talk a few times, but mostly in the ccontext of Meryl Streep. In honor of director Steven Soderbergh's birthday, I'd like to root for this weird little movie currently streaming on HBOMax.
Before the film came out, a friend of mine texted and said, "I feel like Soderbergh doesn't even make movies anymore...he just does experiments." And that feels true. Several years ago now, Soderbergh toyed with retiring, saying something along the lines of if he had to shoot one more over-the-shoulder shot, he was going to kill himself. While that may sound a bit pretentious, it also makes sense...
We've discussed Let Them All Talk a few times, but mostly in the ccontext of Meryl Streep. In honor of director Steven Soderbergh's birthday, I'd like to root for this weird little movie currently streaming on HBOMax.
Before the film came out, a friend of mine texted and said, "I feel like Soderbergh doesn't even make movies anymore...he just does experiments." And that feels true. Several years ago now, Soderbergh toyed with retiring, saying something along the lines of if he had to shoot one more over-the-shoulder shot, he was going to kill himself. While that may sound a bit pretentious, it also makes sense...
- 1/15/2021
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
Yesterday, Variety leaked word that STX will provide a late-entry film into the Oscar race. The Mauritanian, which was formerly titled Prisoner 760 (going from one bad title to another), is The Last King of Scotland director Kevin Macdonald's latest film. It stars A Prophet's leading man Tahir Rahim as a tortured captive in Guatanamo Bay and Jodie Foster as his lawyer. Variety critic Clayton Davis claims that Rahim and Foster deliver electrifying performances, and that they could find themselves in the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress races, respectively.
Macdonald has had a bit of an erratic career since he directed Forest Whittaker to an Oscar back in 2006. His last film, the documentary Whitney, profiled the singer with limited depth but curiosity and sympathy. It'll be good to see him return to the arena of global politics, which seems to be his strength...
Yesterday, Variety leaked word that STX will provide a late-entry film into the Oscar race. The Mauritanian, which was formerly titled Prisoner 760 (going from one bad title to another), is The Last King of Scotland director Kevin Macdonald's latest film. It stars A Prophet's leading man Tahir Rahim as a tortured captive in Guatanamo Bay and Jodie Foster as his lawyer. Variety critic Clayton Davis claims that Rahim and Foster deliver electrifying performances, and that they could find themselves in the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress races, respectively.
Macdonald has had a bit of an erratic career since he directed Forest Whittaker to an Oscar back in 2006. His last film, the documentary Whitney, profiled the singer with limited depth but curiosity and sympathy. It'll be good to see him return to the arena of global politics, which seems to be his strength...
- 11/24/2020
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
There are few things in life more exquisite than watching Nicole Kidman unravel. And she does so with her usual panache in the new HBO miniseries The Undoing, from director Susanne Bier.
HBO is releasing the six episodes week by week, so we're currently only two episodes in, but what we have on our hands with The Undoing is a genuine potboiler! The program slowly lays out its icy upper east side NYC terrain with careful deliberation, only to end the initial episode with a fun corker that sets Nicole into a fiery actressy spiral...
There are few things in life more exquisite than watching Nicole Kidman unravel. And she does so with her usual panache in the new HBO miniseries The Undoing, from director Susanne Bier.
HBO is releasing the six episodes week by week, so we're currently only two episodes in, but what we have on our hands with The Undoing is a genuine potboiler! The program slowly lays out its icy upper east side NYC terrain with careful deliberation, only to end the initial episode with a fun corker that sets Nicole into a fiery actressy spiral...
- 11/3/2020
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
by Eric Blume
Baby Boom, directed by Charles Shyer with a script by him and his then-wife Nancy Meyers, encapsulates 1987 beautifully. From young James Spader's Wham!-like hair to Keaton's fashions to the dated woman-in-the-workplace-can-she-have-it-all plot, it could be a time capsule film for the year and its essence. While we're celebrating 1987, this film couldn't be a better example of exactly where we were.
And yes, Baby Boom is a mercilessly commercial enterprise, engineered with cliche characters and "adorable" cutaway shots to the child inherited by the "Tiger Lady", J.C. Wiatt, played by Diane Keaton. I can't defend this movie as a work of fine cinema, but I've returned to it over a dozen times for the sheer joy in Keaton's peerless performance...
Baby Boom, directed by Charles Shyer with a script by him and his then-wife Nancy Meyers, encapsulates 1987 beautifully. From young James Spader's Wham!-like hair to Keaton's fashions to the dated woman-in-the-workplace-can-she-have-it-all plot, it could be a time capsule film for the year and its essence. While we're celebrating 1987, this film couldn't be a better example of exactly where we were.
And yes, Baby Boom is a mercilessly commercial enterprise, engineered with cliche characters and "adorable" cutaway shots to the child inherited by the "Tiger Lady", J.C. Wiatt, played by Diane Keaton. I can't defend this movie as a work of fine cinema, but I've returned to it over a dozen times for the sheer joy in Keaton's peerless performance...
- 11/3/2020
- by Eric Blume
- FilmExperience
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