Every Best Picture Nominee of the 2010's Ranked: #6-10

Scene from Parasite (2019)

As 2019 reached its end, another decade of cinema had passed. It's amazing to think about how things have evolved since 2010 when the biggest controversies were about recognizing genre movies. Things look different now, especially as genre films like The Shape of Water and Parasite are winning Best Picture and the voting body looks incredibly different with each passing year. With this period in the books, it feels like a good time to celebrate their accomplishments by ranking all 88 titles nominated for Best Picture from worst to best with the goal of seeing which films are more likely to stand the test of time. Join me every Saturday and Sunday as I count them down, five at a time. It's going to be a fun summer looking back on what was, especially as we prepare for the decade ahead and an even more interesting diversity that we haven't even begun to think of.

Review: "The Favourite" is One of the Wickedest, Most Enjoyable Period Pieces in Ages

Scene from The Favourite

The idea of power is alluring. For a certain breed of people, the idea of getting close to it is a dream come true, and they'll stop at nothing to get it. That is at the heart of director Yorgos Lanthimos' first period piece The Favourite, as two women (Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz) enter a grueling battle to be the faithful companion of Queen Anne (Olivia Colman). Whereas most power struggles feel restrained and calculated, this feels like a truly antagonistic film, unafraid to paint Queen Anne at times as ugly and repugnant. Still, in her moments of weakness she turns to Abigail (Stone) and Lady Sarah (Weisz) help. It's a hostile world with lots of grossness and people assaulting each other, and all so that they can get Queen Anne's affection. Thankfully Lanthimos is a filmmaker who uses this icky surface to explore power not as something to be desired, but why would anyone want it in the first place. Thankfully, it's got a reliably pitch black sense of humor to make the awfulness go down smoothly.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Lovely Bones" (2009)

Saoirse Ronan in The Lovely Bones

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.

A24 A-to-Z: #34. "The Lobster" (2016)

Scene from The Lobster

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

Review: "The Lobster" is the Best Romantic Comedy in Years

Scene from The Lobster

There are few movie genres who are in as much of an existential crisis as the romantic comedy. With limited exceptions, the story rarely is capable of escaping the A to B "boy meets girl" logic that services as the groundwork for the best films going back to the screwball comedies of the 1930's. It could be that love is such an inherent thing that nothing has really changed, possibly in centuries. Then there are films like Greek director Giorgos Lanthimos' English language debut The Lobster, which vitalizes the romantic comedy not by providing a traditional love story, but one that creatively and perversely looks into the very idea of what love is. With a strong cast and the most attention-grabbing plot of 2016, The Lobster is both a phenomenal achievement in story telling as well as the best romantic comedy of the year - possibly even the decade.

The First "The Light Between Oceans" Trailer is a Compelling, Twisted Drama

Scene from The Light Between Oceans

It may seem premature to begin talking about any new Oscar season, especially since we're only days away from this year's ceremony. However, there's a new trailer that's been released for The Light Between Oceans, which is the latest film from director Derek Cianfrance. With stars Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander, it's the latest from this ambitious filmmaker whose past films Blue Valentine and The Place Beyond the Pines explored humanity and relationships in new and fascinating ways. With his latest looks to be just as promising, especially with a bizarre premise in which a loving couple find a baby floating in the water.

The First Trailer for Cannes Favorite "The Lobster" is Strangely Funny

Continuing the release of trailers for movies that played at Cannes is the latest from director Giorgos Lanthimos called The Lobster. The Greek director has made a career out of making films that are challenging studies of identity, most prevalent in the films Dogtooth and Alps. With his English debut, he gets a lot of high profile actors to tell what is probably one of the strangest stories yet. If a man doesn't marry, he will turn into a lobster. To most of you, you likely checked out, baffled by that plot description. However, I do think that the first trailer at very least looks to be an entertaining romp.