Best Song: "Streets of Philadelphia" (1993)

Scene from Philadelphia

Welcome to Best Song, a new weekly column released on Sunday dedicated to chronicling the Best Original Song category over the course of its many decades. The goal is to listen to and critique every song that has ever been nominated in the category as well as find the Best Best Song and the Best Loser. By the end, we'll have a comprehensive list of this music category and will hopefully have a better understanding not only of the evolution, but what it takes to receive a nomination here. It may seem easy now, but wait until the bad years.

The Runner-Ups: Mia Wasikowska in "Stoker" (2013)

Scene from Stoker

Every Oscar season, there are a handful of actors who get tagged with the "snubbed" moniker. While it is always unfortunate to see our favorites not honored with at very least a nomination, there's another trend that goes largely unnoticed: those who never even got that far. The Runner-Ups is a column meant to honor the greats in cinema who put in phenomenal work without getting the credit that they deserved from The Academy. Join me every Saturday as I honor those who never received any love. This list will hopefully come to cover both the acting community, and the many crew members who put the production together.

Theory Thursday: "Joy" is Jennifer Lawrence's Best Performance

Jennifer Lawrence

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

Birthday Take: Octavia Spencer in "The Help" (2011)

Octavia Spencer

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.

Super Delegates: Richard M. Nixon in "Frost/Nixon" (2008)

Frank Langella

Welcome to Super Delegates, a bi-monthly column released on Tuesdays and are done in part to recognize politics on film, specifically in regards to Oscar-nominated works. With this being an election year in the United States, it feels like a good time to revisit film history's vast relationship with politicians of any era and determine what makes them interesting while potentially connecting them to the modern era. The series plans to run until the end of this 2016 election cycle, so stay tuned for every installment and feel free to share your thoughts on films worthy of discussion in the comments section.

Happy 1,000th Entry!: A Look at My Favorite Films Since 2012

Scene from The Master

Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to announce that this marks the 1,000th entry from The Oscar Buzz. Over the past 3.5 years, I am proud to have covered all things Academy Awards as well as expanding to its history and my own personal tastes. It has been a fun ride, and I hope to continue to provide insightful content for my readers. For now, I thought that I would do as I do with every odd anniversary and celebrate by sharing a little bit more about me through film. In this case, I am going to share my 10 favorite movies since 2012 when this blog first started up. Admittedly, it's hard to narrow down the list, but these 10 films in some ways represent what I look for in films. Some of them extend beyond Oscar-nominated fare. Some of them were ironically inches from winning Best Picture. Whatever the case, these are the ones I enjoy. If you'd like, feel free to share your favorite film of the past few years and why that is in the comments below.

Best Song: "A Whole New World" (1992)

Scene from Aladdin

Welcome to Best Song, a new weekly column released on Sunday dedicated to chronicling the Best Original Song category over the course of its many decades. The goal is to listen to and critique every song that has ever been nominated in the category as well as find the Best Best Song and the Best Loser. By the end, we'll have a comprehensive list of this music category and will hopefully have a better understanding not only of the evolution, but what it takes to receive a nomination here. It may seem easy now, but wait until the bad years.

Super Delegates Bonus: Lyndon B. Johnson in "All the Way" (2016)

Bryan Cranston

Welcome to Super Delegates Bonus. As a subsidiary of Super Delegates, the sporadic additional column is meant to explore depictions of politicians on film outside of the conventional methods of the column. This ranges from everything such as political candidates in TV movies and miniseries to real life candidates providing feedback on their pop culture representation. While not as frequent or conventional, the goal is to help provide a vaster look at politics on film as it relates to the modern election year. Join in and have some fun. One can only imagine what will be covered here.

The Runner-Ups: Edward G. Robinson in "Double Indemnity" (1944)

Scene from Double Indemnity

Every Oscar season, there are a handful of actors who get tagged with the "snubbed" moniker. While it is always unfortunate to see our favorites not honored with at very least a nomination, there's another trend that goes largely unnoticed: those who never even got that far. The Runner-Ups is a column meant to honor the greats in cinema who put in phenomenal work without getting the credit that they deserved from The Academy. Join me every Saturday as I honor those who never received any love. This list will hopefully come to cover both the acting community, and the many crew members who put the production together.

Theory Thursday: "Funny People" is Underrated

Scene from Funny People

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

Birthday Take: Trent Reznor in "The Social Network" (2010)

Scene from The Social Network

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.

Review: "Money Monster" is a Tense and Often Enjoyable Financial Thriller

George Clooney

Nowadays, the issue of money has become a big issue on film. Last year saw the Oscar-winning film The Big Short tackle the housing collapse, while Martin Scorsese tackled corporate greed a few years prior with The Wolf of Wall Street. With Money Monster, director Jodie Foster makes her return to cinema after three years with a tense political thriller that is meant to explore the themes of greed from a more universal standpoint. The story focuses on a TV personality (George Clooney) who becomes victim to an investor (Jack O'Connell) who lost thousands due to his bad advice. What happens from there is a mixture of soapbox politics, sly dark humor, and tense action. It may not be the most succinct statement of our financial times, but it continues the trend of being highly entertaining. 

A Look Back at the First Academy Awards Ceremony

Left to right: Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Mary Pickford

On May 16, 1929, the much beloved Academy Awards held their first ceremony. With the award show now drawing millions worldwide, it's funny to note how low key and small the event was during its first year. Unlike the 86 ceremonies to follow, the first year lacked any of the thrills that the award would develop as time went on. In fact, everyone who showed up to the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles, California already knew the winners. It had been announced three months prior, and this event - with tickets at $5 a head - was merely an excuse to hand out the trophies, which were yet to be called Oscars. With adoring fans waiting outside to motivate the stars, the ceremony took 15 minutes to complete, and it's only become more interesting since.

Best Song: "Beauty and the Beast" (1991)

Scene from Beauty and the Beast

Welcome to Best Song, a new weekly column released on Sunday dedicated to chronicling the Best Original Song category over the course of its many decades. The goal is to listen to and critique every song that has ever been nominated in the category as well as find the Best Best Song and the Best Loser. By the end, we'll have a comprehensive list of this music category and will hopefully have a better understanding not only of the evolution, but what it takes to receive a nomination here. It may seem easy now, but wait until the bad years.

The Runner-Ups: The Editing of "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" (2010)

Michael Cera in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Every Oscar season, there are a handful of actors who get tagged with the "snubbed" moniker. While it is always unfortunate to see our favorites not honored with at very least a nomination, there's another trend that goes largely unnoticed: those who never even got that far. The Runner-Ups is a column meant to honor the greats in cinema who put in phenomenal work without getting the credit that they deserved from The Academy. Join me every Saturday as I honor those who never received any love. This list will hopefully come to cover both the acting community, and the many crew members who put the production together.

Birthday Take: Katharine Hepburn in "Woman of the Year" (1942)

Katharine Hepburn in Woman of the Year

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.

The First Trailer for "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" Brings Ang Lee Back in Top Form

Scene from Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

It has been quite awhile since we last heard from director Ang Lee. In 2012, he brought the world the dazzling, Oscar-winning Life of Pi. It was a film that not only revolutionized CG characters, but managed to bring spiritual themes to blockbuster entertainment in accessible ways. Lee has always been an adventurous director by choosing to tackle any and all genres and taboo subjects that he deems worthy. With his latest Billy Lynn's Halftime Walk, he returns after four years with a trailer that promises a different take on war veterans. While labeled a comedy first and foremost, the general vibes of the first trailer are of the familiar, haunting trauma that one faces in time of war - and it looks exciting nonetheless.

A Look at Woody Allen and Separating the Art and the Artist

Woody Allen

While my main goal on this blog is to not get too political, it's hard sometimes to avoid discussing certain things. If you're anyone who follows the media circuit, you'll know that this was a big day for Woody Allen. For starters, his new film Cafe Society opened Cannes. However, it was overshadowed by a variety of events including Ronan Farrow's excellent piece regarding the media's handling of Allen's own molestation charges. This has raised the obvious statement, and one when pieced together with a recent interview that suggested that he saved his wife and adopted daughter (the same person) Soon-Yi from misery, is that he's a creepy pervert. Here's my opinion: I acknowledge that all of this really does it make more conflicting for me to like his work, but it's also harder to not admit that I still like his work. It's time that I discuss the unfortunate deed of separating the artist from the artist.

Super Delegates: Mike Morris in "The Ides of March" (2011)

George Clooney

Welcome to Super Delegates, a bi-monthly column released on Tuesdays and are done in part to recognize politics on film, specifically in regards to Oscar-nominated works. With this being an election year in the United States, it feels like a good time to revisit film history's vast relationship with politicians of any era and determine what makes them interesting while potentially connecting them to the modern era. The series plans to run until the end of this 2016 election cycle, so stay tuned for every installment and feel free to share your thoughts on films worthy of discussion in the comments section.

Best Song: "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)" (1990)

Scene from Dick Tracy

Welcome to Best Song, a new weekly column released on Sunday dedicated to chronicling the Best Original Song category over the course of its many decades. The goal is to listen to and critique every song that has ever been nominated in the category as well as find the Best Best Song and the Best Loser. By the end, we'll have a comprehensive list of this music category and will hopefully have a better understanding not only of the evolution, but what it takes to receive a nomination here. It may seem easy now, but wait until the bad years.

Ranking the Oscar Winning Mothers (Since 2010)

Scene from Room

With today marking Mother's Day, it only feels right to pay some sort of tribute to the women who helped to raise and make all of us the people that we are. For many, it is a joyous celebration that is met with feasts an gifts. In the case of the Oscars, it is one of the most nominated professions in the organization's existence. To say the least, there aren't too many years where an actress portraying a mother hasn't at very least been nominated somewhere - thus making a thorough listing of every performance a tad difficult. That is why I am choosing to focus on the Oscar-winning mothers since 2010. While the limitations would suggest that there wouldn't be many, there's actually seven between the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress category. The following is a ranking of these mothers, who in some way embody the complex and rich tapestry of what their jobs entail.

The Runner-Ups: Shelley Duvall in "3 Women" (1977)

Shelley Duvall

Every Oscar season, there are a handful of actors who get tagged with the "snubbed" moniker. While it is always unfortunate to see our favorites not honored with at very least a nomination, there's another trend that goes largely unnoticed: those who never even got that far. The Runner-Ups is a column meant to honor the greats in cinema who put in phenomenal work without getting the credit that they deserved from The Academy. Join me every Saturday as I honor those who never received any love. This list will hopefully come to cover both the acting community, and the many crew members who put the production together.

Why Orson Welles Makes Me Sad

Orson Welles in Touch of Evil

Orson Welles is a genius.

It is a simple idea that many, myself included, believe to be true. Over the course of his career, he found exciting ways to captivate audiences and make you care about the magic of the arts. From his early days producing radio dramas like "The War of the Worlds" to Citizen Kane and beyond. The fact is that you can look at his body of work and find a treasure trove of art that, even if you don't like it, can appreciate its craft. However, there's a certain something that comes as a downside of being a curious cinephile like myself: you learn too much. For whatever reason, I see Welles' career more as a tragedy than a triumph, and it at times depresses me to think of what he inevitably became. While I respect the man's work, including and up through his untimely death shortly after F for Fake, I also have trouble thinking of him too much for a lot of other reasons. He was an artist, but also sort of a jerk.

Theory Thursday: "Dancer in the Dark" is the Best (Non-American) Palme d'Or Winner

Scene from Dancer in the Dark

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

Birthday Take: Audrey Hepburn in "Roman Holiday" (1953)

Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.

Nothing But the Best: "Braveheart" (1995)

Mel Gibson

Welcome to the series Nothing But the Best in which I chronicle all of the Academy Award Best Picture winners as they celebrate their anniversaries. Instead of going in chronological order, this series will be presented on each film's anniversary and will feature personal opinions as well as facts regarding its legacy and behind the scenes information. The goal is to create an in depth essay for each film while looking not only how the medium progressed, but how the film is integral to pop culture. In some cases, it will be easy. Others not so much. Without further ado, let's start the show.

Best Song: "Under the Sea" (1989)

Scene from The Little Mermaid

Welcome to Best Song, a new weekly column released on Sunday dedicated to chronicling the Best Original Song category over the course of its many decades. The goal is to listen to and critique every song that has ever been nominated in the category as well as find the Best Best Song and the Best Loser. By the end, we'll have a comprehensive list of this music category and will hopefully have a better understanding not only of the evolution, but what it takes to receive a nomination here. It may seem easy now, but wait until the bad years.