My Top 25 Favorite Films of the Decade

Scene from The Master (2012)

The following is an excerpt from my new e-book "A Decade Now Available for Streaming: Celebrating the Films That Helped Define the 2010's," which is currently available for $2 on Amazon. It's a celebration of the best films of the past decade, including these 25 films that stand out as something special to me personally. If you want to read more, the e-book goes into detail on 75 more films that defined the decade and made going to the cinema an exciting past time. 

Composing Greatness: #11. The Freshman Class of the 2010's - "Jackie" (2016)

Scene from Jackie (2016)

Welcome to Composing Greatness: a column dedicated to exploring the work of film composers. This will specifically focus on the films that earned them Oscar nominations while exploring what makes it so special. This will be broken down into a look at the overall style, interesting moments within the composition, and what made the score worth nominating in the first place. This will also include various subcategories where I will rank the themes of each film along with any time that the composer actually wins. This is a column meant to explore a side of film that doesn't get enough credit while hopefully introducing audiences to an enriched view of more prolific composers' work. This will only cover scores/songs that are compiled in an easily accessible format (so no extended scores will be considered). Join me every Sunday as I cover these talents that if you don't know by name, you recognize by sound.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Jackie" (2016)

Natalie Portman in Jackie

As awards seasons pick up, so do the campaigns to make your film have the best chances at the Best Picture race. However, like a drunken stupor, sometimes these efforts come off as trying too hard and leave behind a trailer of ridiculous flamboyance. Join me on every other Saturday for a highlight of the failed campaigns that make this season as much about prestige as it does about train wrecks. Come for the Harvey Weinstein comments and stay for the history. It's going to be a fun time as I explore cinema's rich history of attempting to matter.

Here's My Official Predictions For This Year's Oscar Winners

This is it. At 4 PM PST (check your local listings for more information), the 89th Academy Awards will officially be underway with Jimmy Kimmel hosting. It will finally answer the questions that many have been pondering over. What will won't La La Land win? Will Casey Affleck or Denzel Washington take Best Actor? Will Arrival get anything? All of these questions will be answered in what will hopefully be a great ceremony. While we wait to find out what goes down this year, it's time to lock down predictions for this year's Academy Awards. I have mine right after the jump. Feel free to add your own predictions in the comments, and I shall have recap coverage out on Monday. Enjoy your Oscar Sunday, and do it right.

Natalie Portman, Best Documentary Short Nominees Are Not Attending the Oscars

Natalie Portman in Jackie

Even if there's plenty to look forward to on Oscar Sunday, there will be a few missing faces at the ceremony. A few weeks back, The Salesman's Asghar Farhadi and Taraneh Alidoosti announced that they wouldn't go due to the Muslim Ban. Now there's more names added to the list. While there's plenty related to the the Muslim Ban, there's one particular absence that is brought about for different reasons. Best Actress nominee Natalie Portman (Jackie) has already missed the Spirit Awards and is looking to be staying home tomorrow night as well. Read on to discover which stars won't be on the R.S.V.P. list.

An Appreciation Piece for Mica Levi's "Jackie" Score

Scene from Jackie

There's a lot to love about this year's Best Original Score category. For starters, it is packed with first time nominees (and for some reason Thomas Newman for Passengers). It makes the category far more exciting than normal, and even features a variety of excellent compositions. While it does seem likely that Justin Hurwitz will win for La La Land, I want to give a quick shout out to possibly the biggest surprise nominee of the bunch: Mica Levi (Jackie). Even if I fear that she won't win, I feel that her nomination is an excellent addition to the eclectic scores that normally wouldn't be considered. In fact, it's probably my favorite from the list. 

Check Out 2017's Academy Award Nominees Here

The moment is finally here. After months of speculating, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) have announced the nominees for this year's Oscars ceremony. The announcement was held this morning with a special video production to make this year extra special. With La La Land leading the pack, it was an exciting year full of diversity both in genres as well as race. So, who made the cut? The following is a rundown of every category and every nominee, including additional thoughts for each field regarding how exciting this year's Oscar race is. So without further ado, a look at the Oscar nominees of 2017, celebrating the best and brightest in film.

Review: "Jackie" Turns a Familiar Moment Into an Original, Heart-Wrenching Drama

Natalie Portman

Throughout history, public leaders have been turned into mythic giants with infallible gifts. They lead their countries through hard times often at the risk of legacy-ruining scrutiny. While time has a habit of only enforcing this mindset more, it does feel important to remember the one truth: they were just humans. Never has that been more apparent in late 20th century American history than on November 22, 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. It's a moment that history won't let anyone forget, even as it's over 50 years old. Yet there's one side that's often overlooked that was there that day. His wife Jacqueline Kennedy was by his side, but whose story has rarely been given attention. Director Pablo Larrain's Jackie uses this construct to explore more universal themes with a script whose prose reads as a long essay on the grieving process. With poetic language and even more beautiful cinematography, the film sparks with life in one of the most original biopics to come out this past year.

A Look at How Cinema Has Made John F. Kennedy the "Absent President"

Scene from Forrest Gump

What do we mean when we talk about President John F. Kennedy in film? Had the answer applied to any other leader of the free world, the answer would be simple. These were men who lead the country through historical periods and should be honored with a noble retelling of their legacy. But over the past 25 years especially, has there been a president more undermined by cinema's potential than Kennedy? With the recent release of director Pablo Larrain's Jackie, it feels like an important time to analyze why one of the most revered presidents of the late 20th century is largely absent, even in his own filmography. It's not likely because he didn't mean anything, but that he has become symbolic of something greater than his career.

"La La Land" Becomes a Box Office Hit in Limited Release

Scene from La La Land

It's the most wonderful time of year. For movie fans, Oscar season is in full gear and has a variety of options that you can see. With the recent Golden Globes nominations out, there's no shortage of options for your movie buck. In fact, the past month has produced a variety of box office records that are worth keeping an eye on. For starters, Disney's Moana continues to top the charts for a third week. However, it is the limited releases that have had the most interesting numbers. Following an impressive opening by Moonlight a few weeks back, director Damien Chazelle's musical La La Land has not only opened with good numbers, but has become the highest per screen average opening for 2016. In fact, a lot of Oscar-potential movies had a good weekend.

Check Out This Year's Golden Globe Awards Nominations

Scene from Deadpool

This morning, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) released the nominees for their annual Golden Globes ceremony. Along with being one of the first major awards of the season, it is always a curious bunch of nominees to look at. This year proved to be no different, reflecting the best in drama while also giving us some semblance of potential upsets for awards shows to come. The following is a list of the movie nominees, including the good, the bad, and whatever Deadpool's Best Comedy or Musical nominations are supposed to be. Oh well, it wouldn't be awards season without The Academy's drunk cousin giving out nominations to off the wall selections. Read the list after the jump as well as personal commentary on each category.

Check Out the Nominees for the 2016 Spirit Awards

Scene from Moonlight

It's that time of year again. With a little over one month of the year to go, awards season has officially launched with its first major awards ceremony. The Film Independent Spirit Awards have officially announced their nominees in all of the categories with major players like Spotlight, Jackie, and Manchester by the Sea coming out strong. The following is a list of every category and its nominees. What do you think of the results? Make sure to leave your thoughts in the comments and be sure to check out the ceremony on February 25: the day before Oscar Sunday. More information will be given as it develops.

The "Jackie" Trailer Adds a Beautiful Sense of Woe to a Tragic Story

Natalie Portman

It seems poignant that with the 2016 American presidential election almost a week old, it's time for the Oscar race to turn to its own political royalty story. Director Pablo Larrain's Jackie has been effectively receiving praise from its various festival appearances and looks to pit Oscar-winner Natalie Portman back into the Best Actress race for her role as Jackie Onassis Kennedy. The teaser produced an electric series of images that if nothing else was beautiful to look at. In the first full trailer, we get to hear Mrs. Kennedy tell her tale of woe and add context to the imagery. The results keep it locked as one of the year's most exciting releases of the Fall season.

The First "Jackie" Trailer is a Beautiful, Somber Look Into the First Lady's Camelot

Natalie Portman in Jackie

There are countless films about American Presidents. It is in telling their stories that cinema is able to understand the country's rich history, especially as conflicts blur between politics and personal desires. With limited exceptions, the First Ladies have often been written out of the picture or at best reduced to a supporting role. It is one of the reasons that director Pablo Larrain's Jackie joins this Oscar season with a vibrant and promising chance. With Natalie Portman starring as former First Lady Jacqueline "Jackie" Kennedy, the film has been receiving acclaim at almost every major film festival and looks to see Portman receiving her first Oscar nomination since 2010's Black Swan. From the looks of the first trailer, it looks like more than a sure thing.