A24 A-to-Z: #56. "The Florida Project" (2017)

Scene from The Florida Project

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Tangerine" (2015)

Scene from Tangerine

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.

What "The Danish Girl," Says About the Oscar's Problematic Relationship with LGBT Movies

Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl

Last night, I decided to catch up on the missing links in my Oscar-nominated movies for this year. I decided to tackle director Tom Hooper's The Danish Girl: a film that I inevitably had high hopes for, if just because of what 2015 was symbolically in the LGBT community. Beyond America legalizing gay marriage, it was the time when we had multiple noteworthy trans celebrities, cinema was hitting new strides with Tangerine, and Transparent was continuing its yearlong (and arguably still going) success. Transgender culture is probably more accepted than it ever had been, and The Danish Girl could be the period to the sentence. Of course, that is problematic to say, but what became abundantly clear is that it was actually doing the opposite. Despite its romanticism, The Danish Girl featured stereotypes akin to the gay best friend with flamboyancy and a lisp. While it took some reading to fully understand why, it's generally one of the problems with The Academy's recent crop of nominees.

A Round-Up of 2015 Films I Forgot to Write About

Scene from Anomalisa

With the holiday festivities eating up a lot of time over the past month, I must apologize for not reviewing movies as frequently as I should. While I did my best to write full length reviews for the heavyweights; including Joy, The Hateful Eight, and The Revenant; I forgot to write about smaller films that I had mentioned in some capacity over the preceding months. While I still have a few that I need to catch up on, the following is a brief review roundup of a few titles that I promised to mention, but lost time to write a legitimate review on (though maybe some will get a lengthier piece if time permits). The titles include: Carol, Anomalisa, Tangerine, and more.

A Look at Transgender Culture at the Oscars

Scene from The Danish Girl

Among the most anticipated films from this year's Oscar season is director Tom Hooper's The Danish Girl, starring Eddie Redmayne as the first transgender woman. While the film is likely to rake up attention for its subject matter, it isn't the first LGBT film to tackle such subjects and get some Oscar love for it. It's not even the only trans film of 2015 that has gotten acclaim (just look at Tangerine). With the release of a film that's sure to rack up plenty of attention in the months to come, here's a look back at the films that won and were nominated for their representation of trans characters in the media, including one familiar Best Picture winner.

Check Out This Year's Nominees for The Spirit Awards

Scene from Anomalisa

As November has dwindled down, it's time to start looking ahead to the big awards season. While we're in the middle of a barrage of great films coming out, there hasn't been really any focus yet - largely because there hasn't been any major awards show yet. Today marks the announcement of the 31st Annual Independent Spirit Awards nominations, which is set on commemorating the best in independent cinema from the past year. While the Golden Globes are likely to be more of an indicator of The Academy Awards to come, there's no denying that the general impact of The Spirit Awards has grown over the past decade; even almost unanimously tying with the 2013 Oscar winners. What lies in store for this year's line-up? There's a few great surprises, of which likely will tell us of the films that we'll be discussing about for the next few months.

The Duplass Brothers Are Hoping to Make "Tangerine" Actress First Transgender Oscar Nominee

Scene from Tangerine

As I have stated many times throughout this past year, things are looking to be far more interesting for LGBT culture in the mainstream. As silly as it may sound, the culture has shifted quite impressively in ways that are being impacted in media. The Amazon Prime series Transparent has continually racked up awards and nominations. Likewise, gay marriage is now legal in America, and Caitlin Jenner became a highly influential transgender woman. With a lot of gay-themed movies either out (Stonewall, Freeheld) or coming very soon (Carol, The Danish Girl), it looks to be at least a more noteworthy time. This will also be a very interesting time for another reason. Thanks to new Academy members Mark and Jay Duplass, this is going to be the first year that a transgender actress is campaigning for an Oscar nomination.