Every Best Picture Nominee of the 2010's Ranked: The Top 5

Scene from Mad Max: Fury Road

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.

Composing Greatness: #13. The Freshman Class of the 2010's - "Moonlight" (2016)

Scene from Moonlight (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.

The First Trailer for "If Beale Street Could Talk" Finds the "Moonlight" Director Returning to Oscar Conversation

Scene from If Beale Street Could Talk

It was only last year that the Academy experienced one of the most exciting Best Picture wins in over a decade. Director Barry Jenkin's Moonlight was a film that undid a long pattern of milquetoast winners dominated by white leads and filmmakers. It was rejuvenating and just what cinema needed in 2016. So, what does Jenkins have in store next? He's returned with another film, based on a James Baldwin story, called If Beale Street Could Talk. With positive reviews swelling ahead of the film festivals, it's already an exciting time to expect another return to Oscar glory. If the teaser, released on Baldwin's birthday, is any indication, this is going to be another great turn for Jenkins and another impeccable cast likely to dominate the season.

A24 A-to-Z: #42. "Moonlight" (2016)

Scene from Moonlight

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.

What "The Shape of Water" Winning Best Picture Means to Me

Credit: Naki for Variety

There's certain things that people have come to expect from a Best Picture winner at The Academy Awards. They are prestigious dramas conveying deep and conflicting resonance of the moment it came out. It's supposed to be serious, often contextualizing a piece of history through an artistic prism. But, as someone who has loved classic monster movies, I've also known that another thing is true: genre movies don't win. Comedies or musicals maybe, but never sci-fi, horror, fantasy, or anything considered niche. After all, the Best Picture winner is something agreed upon of thousands of people from differing tastes. So to see The Shape of Water win two of film's most prestigious awards this past Sunday gave me an incredible feeling. Somehow it validated the idea that The Oscars have always preached: all movies matter. For the first time this millennium, that's felt like more than hyperbole.

Check This Out: The A24 Podcast

For readers of The Oscar Buzz, there's a certain knowledge of how much I admire the studio A24. I have dedicated an entire column to it called A24 A-to-Z, which just finished the films of 2015. With the studio looking to have a great 2018, it does seem exciting to announce that they also have started their own podcast, aptly titled The A24 Podcast. So, what is it about? To be honest, it's not entirely clear yet. However, their first episode does feature a lengthy discussion between two of the studio's biggest names, both of whom have received Best Director nominations at The Oscars. Greta Gerwig and Barry Jenkins bring a certain chemistry to the first episode that suggests that even if this is just more filmmakers talking shop, it's going to be fun for those who are as obsessed with A24 as I am. 

Nothing But the Best: "Moonlight" (2016)

Scene from Moonlight

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "La La Land" (2016)

Scene from La La Land

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.

Coming This June: A24 A-to-Z

I do apologize for being quiet in recent weeks. In all honesty, I have been doing my best to get through the final month of school through rigorous studying. Those who have paid attention noticed that I still produce work a few times a week, but currently find it hard. School and personal matters are keeping me from staying on top of current trends as much as I should - and most of what I do focus on is TV related, which I feel is antithetical to The Oscar Buzz's content (though I do highly recommend The Leftovers). If you want that content, please check it out on Optigrab. For now, I want to announce what will be coming this June. It's a new column, and probably one as ambitious as my Nothing But the Best column was initially. Ladies and gentlemen, I want to introduce to you A24 A-to-Z. As the title suggests, it focuses on A24's rich filmography. But why them? Well, I'll tell you why after the jump.

A Play By Play of That Best Picture Accident

It's a moment that nobody can forget. At the end of this year's Oscars ceremony, it looked like La La Land won Best Picture. With everyone doing the ritual speeches, a commotion formed behind them. As a producer ran forward, he announced that there had been a mistake. The film that everyone predicted to have won didn't win at all. In fact, it was Moonlight. Not only was it the moment of the evening, but it was the moment that recap coverage has loved to focus on. So, what exactly did happen? To the best of my ability, I have pieced together the story based on interviews that have come out in the days since, hopefully painting a full picture of the most eventful 10 minutes of Oscar history to happen this century - or at least since Crash won Best Picture over Brokeback Mountain.

Why "Moonlight" Winning Best Picture is a Big Deal

By all accounts, the 89th annual Academy Awards ceremony was going according to plan. Over the course of the evening through 24 categories, the nominees who had won almost every preliminary got up and gave acceptance speeches. There was nothing new. There rarely is when it comes to the Oscars. Viola Davis won. Emma Stone won It was a predictable even. That is, until the last category was announced. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announced La La Land, which was predicted to sweep the entire ceremony. Moments later, it was revealed that there was a mistake and that Moonlight actually won. While this is a moment that will be analyzed for decades to come, it should also be seen as a ceremonious moment that hopefully marks a change in the Academy Awards. Hopefully, this is the moment where things become more inclusive.

Check Out the Winners of this Year's Academy Awards!

Now that Oscar Sunday is behind us, it's time to start the regular coverage of the highs and lows of this year's ceremony. Before we get to how well Jimmy Kimmel did as host or who gave the best speech, we must get to what we really care about: who won. As many likely know, the Best Picture presentation was the highlight of the night, as the winner went from being La La Land to Moonlight. But, who else won big last night? Read on to get a full rundown of this year's batch of Oscar winners.

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.

Ranking This Year's Best Picture Nominees

There is officially two weeks left to go before Oscar Sunday. With everyone clamoring to see all of the nominees beforehand, it only seems right to start calculating which ones are standing out above the rest. In this piece, I will be exploring the Best Picture field by ranking the really strong group of nominees. So, which ones stand out as favorites? They're all pretty good this year, and even the bottom half have strong moments. The following is my personal ranking from best to worst, and I look forward to any comments regarding your favorites and whether or not the class of 2016 Best Picture nominees has anything exceptional about it.

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.

Here's the List for This Year's Golden Globe Winners

Scene from La La Land

Yesterday was a big day for movie lovers as The Golden Globes gave out awards to the best in TV and film. While this year's nominees were at times baffling (it's par for the course), the results were surprising often in a good way. With La La Land winning seven awards - the most by one film - it is looking more and more likely that Damien Chazelle's musical will take all of the trophies home come Oscar night. For those who want to know who won, keep reading. It was definitely a year of interesting diversity, and that's the perfect set-up for what this Oscar season needs. The only question is how much overlap we expect to get.

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.

Review: "Moonlight" Embraces the Complex Beauty of Black Lives in Exciting New Ways

Scene from Moonlight

Director Barry Jenkins has produced something magnificent with his latest film Moonlight. In an era where cutting edge cinema is often spoken about in a technical sense, he has found a way to explore it in a spiritual sense. With a story that spans three key periods of a black man's life, he has found a new and exciting way to explore the black experience through an art house gaze. With limited exception, the story of Chiron is one that is personal and captures a beauty rarely seen in American cinema. The film's title refers to the way that black skin shines in the moonlight. To say the least, few have captured it as beautifully and artfully as Jenkins has, leading to the question as to why that is. It may only be a small piece of the bigger puzzle, but it is evidence that black lives can be beautiful, even in dire circumstances.

"Moonlight" Becomes a Box Office Hit with the Highest Per Screen Average of 2016

Scene from Moonlight

If you're one of the loyal Oscar fans, you'll know why you should be keeping an eye out for director Barry Jenkin's Moonlight. The film currently holds a 99% on critics aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes and has been slowly hyped up as one of the first films to warrant Oscar buzz during this Fall season. While other films based around black culture (The Birth of a Nation) seemed to come and go without much notice, Moonlight will at least be around for a short while thanks to its impressive feat. After opening this past weekend, it is currently the highest box office debut on a per screen average not only for the week or month, but for 2016 in general.