The First "Dune" Trailer is an Exhilarating Mystery

Scene from Dune (2020)

There is a popular notion that "Dune" is an unfilmable book. Even if there is a David Lynch version out there (as well as a fun "could've been" in Jodorowsky's Dune), it remains a cult favorite at best, proving that its towering plot is difficult to pin down into something accessible. And yet there's Denis Villeneuve, eager to take a crack at the source material with his own take. While this should fill the viewer with some skepticism, Villeneuve is a director who has proven himself up to the tasks of at least trying, which in 2020 is more than most filmmakers are willing to try. Come hell or high water, his Dune will be released this winter with a star-studded cast that promises to update everything with more of technical proficiency. If the first trailer is any sign, it's going to be an enjoyable epic the likes of which sci-fi deserves.

Review: "Avengers: Endgame" Gives the Long Goodbye in Beautiful, Messy Ways

Scene from Avengers: Endgame

If the marketing is to be believed, the impact of Avengers: Endgame is a once in a generation achievement. Over the course of 22 movies, Marvel has built a cinematic universe that has come to redefine modern pop culture and turned such esoteric properties as Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel into major icons. It's also the stick in the mud that isn't going anywhere, which can be tiresome for those not willing to put up with its three movies-a-year regiments. In fact, there's another film a few months away (Spider-Man: Far From Home) that zaps the film of certain suspense. With Disney+ also promising a half-dozen shows of various B-Level characters, what is there really to get out of Endgame that warrants it of the major acclaim and billion dollar-opening weekend?

In one sense, Endgame isn't the long goodbye that audiences are promised. Avengers: Infinity War wasn't a moment that killed off half of the cast. How could it? Black Panther was a cultural milestone in the entire superhero genre. To kill off such beloved characters (in a more cynical sense: cash cows) feel foolish. It will take years, maybe even decades (or a century) for these characters to lose their appeal. The weight of supervillain Thanos rings hollow in that way, as audiences are used to these characters surviving impossible feats. While it's true that this isn't a goodbye for 80% of characters that appear in Endgame, those that meet their end do so with the bravura that only a franchise that's existed for 11 years could achieve. Not since Harry Potter has something so weird and genre-specific culminated in something of a miracle. For the 20% that are now in the past, this film serves as a loving tribute not only to what The Avengers means as a franchise but the sacrifices that come with being a superhero.

Theory Thursday: "W." (2008) is Underrated

Scene from W.

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. 

Super Delegates Bonus: George W. Bush in "W." (2008)

Josh Brolin in W.

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.

Super Delegates: Harvey Milk in "Milk" (2008)

Scene from Milk

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.

Review: "Hail, Caesar!" is a Kaleidoscope of Wonder

Scene from Hail, Caesar!

One of the big reasons that directors Joel and Ethan Coen continue to resonate is because they are not limited to a genre in the ways that others are. If they want to make a heist film, they make The Ladykillers. If they want to make a stoner film, they make The Big Lebowski. Their credentials feature an endless barrage of genre-shifting cinema that somehow manages to remain consistently entertaining. With their latest Hail, Caesar!, they seem to take that advice too literally and end up producing a comedy that isn't just a period piece, but a western, musical, bible epic, noir, and even an earlier period piece. To simply explain the film to someone is to suggest that what Hail, Caesar! is is actually films within films (though not in the Inception way) in their loving ode to the power of film and why they are just as tangible to audiences as religion.

Nothing But the Best: "No Country for Old Men" (2007)

Javier Bardem in No Country for Old Men

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.

The First "Hail Caesar!" Trailer Has Way Too Many Recognizable Faces to Fail

George Clooney

Among the directors that I anticipate every new release the most with, directors Joel and Ethan Coen are at the top. For starters, their track record is very impressive with most of their great work still coming out (though that's not to discredit everything else from the past 30 years). With their last film, Inside Llewyn Davis, they brought another masterpiece to the world in the disguise of a folk singer with a cat. This time around, they give us a loving ode to Hollywood's golden era with an all-star cast in the film Hail Caesar. While it's been awhile since they tackled the moving pictures (1991's Barton Fink), it's nice to see them return with a more slapstick attitude about it. At least, that's what's implied by the first trailer.

The First "Sicario" Trailer is an Intense Look in Mexican Drug Cartels

Among the films that I listed from this year's Cannes Film Festival, director Denis Villeneuve's Sicario ranked as one of my more anticipated movies. With last year's great Enemy, he proved to be a director who could make an intricate thriller into one of the most gripping stories of the year. With that in mind, I was curious to see what he would do next and with great reviews for Sicario already leaking out, it looks like another hit for the director. Today, we get our first glimpses into the Mexican cartel film with an all star cast with a trailer. Thankfully, it looks like more of the same from a director who knows how to make espionage and tension into high forms of art.

Review: "Inherent Vice" is a Head Trip of Culture Clash with Wit and Expertise

Director Paul Thomas Anderson's latest opus Inherent Vice is almost too dedicated to the book. How so? The opening monologue by Sortilege (Joana Newsom) is word-for-word the first paragraph of Thomas Pynchon's book. Where in some cases simply reciting text may seem like a lazy offense, this time it reads as a testament to the creatively slurred together sentences of this 60's ode to film noir and drugs. This is the first Pynchon film adaptation and thankfully Anderson knows his stuff by keeping the words the same and using his dry, confusing tone to once again prove why he is one of the greats in modern cinema.

The First "Inherent Vice" Trailer Finally Arrives with a Smoking 70's Cool

Joaquin Phoenix

Ladies and gentlemen, it is a glorious day here at The Oscar Buzz. As a massive fan of The Master, the prospects of a new Paul Thomas Anderson film is always met with arms wide open. The news of his latest, Inherent Vice, has been slowly trickling out over the past few months with news of the Thomas Pynchon adaptation being a more comical take from the director who has given us some of the more somber, meditative films of the young century. He is an artist of the truest form and while he isn't prolific, he is always interesting when he shows up. Well, my friends, the day has finally come and the first trailer for Inherent Vice is upon us. It looks like all of the joyous retro goofiness that those set photos have been promising. Yes, it's a glorious day, indeed.

Review: "Labor Day" is an Insult to Forbidden Love

Left to right: Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin

The ultimate question to ask when considering director Jason Reitman's Labor Day is quite simple: Why? There isn't any shame in a director to experiment after making four highly successful, acclaimed films. But on a deeper level: why trade a winning formula to imitate what feels like the formula other people use to get Oscar nominations? The prospects make no sense despite two terrific leads and potential to raise Joyce Maynard's eponymous novel from romantic escapism into one of the contemporary, human stories that has made Reitman so enduring. From the trailer to the lack of Oscar recognition, what was this film really striving for? Upon viewing it, the viewer is unsatisfied and only left to ask "Why?"

The "Labor Day" Trailer Looks Good, But Probably Not Oscar-Worthy

Left to right: Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin

With October officially reaching the end of the line, it does feel like every potential Oscar contender has at very least released a teaser trailer. This is true for every film that is on statistics website Gold Derby's top 10 current Best Picture potential nominees. That is why is surprising that one of the most anticipated films of the year, director Jason Reitman's Labor Day, has waited this long to finally release a trailer with its Christmas Day limited release quickly approaching. Even with plans to expand in 2014, it almost feels like the release of the trailer parallels the film's actual level of buzz at the current moment, which almost seems to be flat lined. Hopefully things will turn around.