THE 86th ACADEMY AWARD WINNERS

THE 86th ACADEMY AWARD WINNERS

BEST PICTURE

12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST DIRECTOR

Alfonso Cuarón, Gravity

BEST ACTOR

Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

BEST ACTRESS

Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

The Great Beauty, Italy

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Spike Jonze, Her

BEST ANIMATED FILM

Frozen

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Catherine Martin and Beverly Dunn, The Great Gatsby

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity

BEST SOUND MIXING

Skip Lievsay, Niv Adiri, Christopher Benstead, and Chris Munro, Gravity

BEST SOUND EDITING

Glenn Freemantle, Gravity

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Steven Price, Gravity

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

"Let It Go", Frozen

Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Catherine Martin, The Great Gatsby

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

20 Feet from Stardom

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT

The Lady In Number 6: Music Saved My Life

BEST FILM EDITING

Alfonso Cuarón, Mark Sanger, Gravity

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

Adruitha Lee, Robin Mathews, Dallas Buyers Club

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

Mr. Hublot

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT

Helium

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Timothy Webber, Chris Lawrence, David Shirk, and Neil Corbould, Gravity

I don't think there were too many surprises from last night. My final outcome on predictions was 19 out of 24, which wasn't too bad. I should have stuck to my initial guesses on Best Picture and Best Costume Design, but I thought I would throw out some surprises. 20 Feet from Stardom took the award home for Best Documentary when many thought The Act of Killing had it in the bag. Ellen Degeneres completely nailed the opening monologue and brought an informal approach to her hosting duties, often times delivering bits from the audience. The selfie that broke Twitter was a fantastic idea and takes a bit of the stuffiness out of the room. I'm sure there will be some curmudgeons that will balk at her casual ways, but I found it entertaining. I will say that some of the bits took too long. The Oscars are always far longer than they need to be. I read many negative comments regarding some of the performances. I really enjoyed Bette Midler, Pink, and Idina Menzel. My biggest beef of the evening came with one of their presenters. Can I just throw it out there that John Travolta should not present again? Why does he always have to present one of the Best Song nominees? He completely butchered Idina Menzel's name. Don't they have rehearsals and pronunciation cards or something to ensure names are pronounced correctly? Travolta and his hair piece were two of the lowest moments of the evening. Some highlights of the evening include Jared Leto, Lupita Nyong'o and Cate Blachett who had wonderful and inspiring speeches. While Gravity took home the most with seven wins, 12 Years a Slave took home the final award for Best Picture.

THE ANNUAL BRITISH ACADEMY OF FILM AND TELEVISION ARTS AWARDS WINNERS

THE ANNUAL BRITISH ACADEMY OF FILM AND TELEVISION ARTS AWARDS WINNERS

The countdown to the Oscars continue as the winners of The BAFTAs were announced Sunday night. There were not too many surprises here, but the equal love for 12 Years a Slave and Gravity still makes your Oscar ballot a bit tricky to fill out.  Despite the win for Jennifer Lawrence, I still think Lupita Nyong'o will take home the Oscar.

 Let's take a take at the BAFTA winners...

BEST FILM
12 Years a Slave

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
Gravity

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
Kieran Evans (Director/Writer) Kelly + Victor

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
The Great Beauty

DOCUMENTARY
The Act of Killing

ANIMATED FILM
Frozen

DIRECTOR
Alfonso Cuarón, Gravity

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell, American Hustle

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope, Philomena

LEADING ACTOR
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave

LEADING ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle

ORIGINAL MUSIC
Steven Price, Gravity

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity

EDITING
Dan Hanley and Mike Hill, Rush

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Catherine Martin and Beverley Dunn, The Great Gatsby

COSTUME DESIGN
Catherine Martin, The Great Gatsby

MAKE UP AND HAIR
Evelyne Noraz and Lori McCoy-Bell, American Hustle

SOUND
Glenn Freemantle, Skip Lievsay, Christopher Benstead, Niv Adiri, and Chris Munro, Gravity

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, David Shirk, Neil Corbould, and Nikki Penny, Gravity

BRITISH SHORT ANIMATION
Sleeping with the Fishes

BRITISH SHORT FILM
Room 8

THE EE RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public)
Will Poulter

THE 71st GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS WINNERS

THE 71st GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS WINNERS

Here are the winners for the 71st Golden Globe Awards brought to you by The Hollywood Foreign Press Association

BEST MOTION PICTURE-DRAMA

THE WINNER: 12 Years a Slave

OTHER NOMINESS:
Captain Phillips
Gravity
Philomena
Rush

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS-DRAMA

THE WINNER: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

OTHER NOMINEES:
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Judi Dench, Philomena
Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks
Kate Winslet, Labor Day

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR-DRAMA

THE WINNER: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

OTHER NOMINESS:
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Idris Elba, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips
Robert Redford, All is Lost

BEST MOTION PICTURE-COMEDY/MUSICAL

THE WINNER: American Hustle

OTHER NOMINESS:
Her
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska
The Wolf of Wall Street

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS-COMEDY/MUSICAL

THE WINNER: Amy Adams, American Hustle

OTHER NOMINEES:
Julie Delpy, Before Midnight
Greta Gerwig, Frances Ha
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Enough Said
Meryl Streep, August: Osage County

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR-COMEDY/MUSICAL

THE WINNER: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street

OTHER NOMINEES:
Christian Bale, American Hustle
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Oscar Isaac, Inside Llewyn Davis
Joaquin Phoenix, Her

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

THE WINNER: Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle

OTHER NOMINEES:
Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squibb, Nebraska

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

THE WINNER: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

OTHER NOMINEES:
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Daniel Bruhl, Rush
Bradley Cooper, American Hustle
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave

BEST DIRECTOR
THE WINNER: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

OTHER NOMINEES:
Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
Alexander Payne, Nebraska
David O. Russell, American Hustle

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
THE WINNER:   Frozen

OTHER NOMINEES:
The Croods
Despicable Me 2

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
THE WINNER: The Great Beauty, Italy

OTHER NOMINEES:
Blue is the Warmest Color, France
The Hunt, Denmark
The Past, Iran
The Wind Rises, Japan

BEST SCREENPLAY
THE WINNER: Spike Jonze, Her

OTHER NOMINEES:
Bob Nelson, Nebraska
Jeff Pope, Steve Coogan, Philomena
John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave
Eric Warren Singer, David O. Russell, American Hustle

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
THE WINNER: Alex Ebert, All is Lost

OTHER NOMINEES:
Steven Price, Gravity
John Williams, The Book Thief
Hans Zimmer, 12 Years a Slave
Alex Heffes, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
THE WINNER: "Ordinary Love", Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

OTHER NOMINEES:
"Atlas", The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
"Let It Go", Frozen
"Please Mr. Kennedy", Inside Llewyn Davis
"Sweeter than Fiction", Once Chance

The 2014 Cecil B. DeMille Awards was presented to Woody Allen who, naturally, was not present so Diane Keaton accepted the awards upon his behalf.

What are your thoughts? Did the right people win? Any surprises or snubs?

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER--The 2013 Full Uncensored Directors and Writers Roundtable

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER--The 2013 Full Uncensored Directors and Writers Roundtable

Earlier this month, I posted "The Actors Roundtable" from The Hollywood Reporter and now two more have been released in this series, "The Directors Roundtable" and "The Writers Roundtable". I love watching them discuss various aspects of their careers and how they got to where they are at in the industry. It is interesting hearing what motivates them and scares them.

Don’t forget to check back in as I will continue to post these roundtables as they are released.  I have also provided link to my reviews of the films I have seen so far.

The Directors Roundtable

Alfonso Cuarón, Gravity
Lee Daniels, Lee Daniels’ The Butler
Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
David O. Russell, American Hustle
Ben Stiller, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty




The Writers Roundtable

George Clooney, The Monuments Men
Jonas Cuarón, Gravity
Julie Delpy, Before Midnight
Grant Heslov, The Monuments Men
Nicole Holofcener, Enough Said
John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave
Danny Strong, Lee Daniels’ The Butler





In case you missed it, "The Actors Roundtable" can be found here

Movie Review: GRAVITY

GRAVITY
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Starring: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris

Be ready to be blown away by one of the best movies you will see all year. Dr. Ryan Stone (Bullock) and experienced astronaut Matt Kowalski (Clooney) are doing their routine checks aboard their space shuttle floating around space like it is no big deal. It's all just part of their job. After seeing Gravity, that is a job I never ever want. I can barely climb up a ladder without my fear of falling kicking in. They receive communication from their command station (Ed Harris!) that a chain reaction of debris is heading their way, and they must abort their mission.

There was no way of preventing it as the debris collides with the shuttle. Communication has been lost, the shuttle has been destroyed, and Dr. Stone and Kowalski are left tethered together floating in the abyss of space. They are the lone survivors of their crew now facing the eternal idea that they may never see home again. Their only hope lies in the International Space Station if they can successfully navigate themselves over to it.

I first became aware of director Alfonso Cuarón over a decade ago. I rented his 2001 hit Y Tu Mamá También and loved it. That was not his first film, but it was the one that got me hooked to him as a filmmaker. He upped the ante with Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by proving those films could be more than just fun movies for kids. This is his first film since 2006's Children of Men. I would say that if it takes him this long in between projects, but the end result is Gravity, I respect that time. Not only does he direct the film, but he wrote the intelligent screenplay with his son, Jonas Cuarón. You may be surprised, yet relieved, to hear there is a sense of humor that comes with some of the dialogue. The film is so intense and anxiety ridden that you need those moments of humor to balance that tense state of being. I do not want to give too much away about the characters and their state of mind throughout this, but the script allows them to have the appropriate reactions and emotional sense regarding the situation they are in. Once you see it, you will understand what I am talking about. It does not get bogged down in a “woe is me” type tone.

Throughout the film, I realized how casting these two leads was vital in making this movie work. You need two powerhouse actors, especially the one playing Dr. Stone, that not only can carry a movie but make it stay interesting, edge of your seat, and captivating for ninety minutes. These survival stories can go south quickly if left in the wrong hands. Clooney and Bullock are exactly the kind of actors the film needed to make the tone work. These are two very smart actors that know how to stay in control of every scene and know exactly what is needed to keep the film moving. Bullock is given a small but vital back story, and in turn, delivers a powerful performance that will most likely garner another Best Actress nomination. She brings a maternal warmth and sense of humor that help elevate this story and make it a personal journey instead of just some movie about two astronauts in space.

EVERYTHING about this film is breathtaking and magical. Between the visual effects, cinematography, and sound design, I never once felt like I was watching these two actors act against a green screen. I never worried and wondered about what contraption they were wearing to capture and create the special effects. This is a crowning achievement in film making that captures what going to the movies is all about. Cuarón has given the audience the ability to go outside of themselves to go to a place beyond our everyday life. I am the kind of film buff that loves the special features and behind the scenes documentaries. I want to get in on that process and learn all about what it takes to bring the stories I love to life to the big screen. Gravity is a different story. At this time after my first viewing, I do not want to know. I do not want to lose that magical place I was sent to for ninety minutes. I do not want to know about the technicalities that went in to making this film happen. I do not want to know how they were able to make Clooney and Bullock appear to spend the entire film in zero gravity.

Like 2001: A Space Odyssey some forty-five years ago, Gravity is one of the best achievements in the sci-fi genre. I would hope that it will be remembered as one of the greats. It may inspire young kids who envision themselves to be the next great filmmaker or it may inspire a new love of space and the vast universe we cannot begin to comprehend. It is one of those cinematic adventures that is best left to experience yourself as any review will simply not do it justice. You may be skeptical about 3D (I hear you on that one!), but rest assured here. Films like Gravity are the kind that 3D is meant for over some action flick converted in post-production. It is not some gimmicky ploy to rob the audience of an extra $3. It sucks you into the world and enhances that feeling of getting lost in space. I recommend viewing it on the biggest screen with the best sound system. You might as well fully immerse yourself into it to fully ejoy the experience.

RATING: ***** (5 out of 5 stars)