Cinema and Popcorn

Only five women have ever been nominated for the Academy Awards' director honor throughout the award's history: Lina Wertmüller (1976’s Seven Beauties ), Jane Campion (1993’s The Piano ), Sofia Coppola (2003’s Lost in Translation ), Kathryn Bigelow (2009’s The Hurt Locker ) and Greta Gerwig (2017’s Lady Bird ). Only Bigelow got a win in this field, holding the record of the first and only female Best Director winner. Last year, there were some projects under Oscar buzz during the awards season, but no female director got a Best Director nomination at the Oscars - Chloé Zhao ( The Rider ), Debra Granik ( Leave No Trace ), Marielle Heller ( Can You Ever Forgive Me? ) or even Lynne Ramsay ( You Were Never Really Here ) present critically acclaimed projects that earned them a big couple of prestigious honors, but none of them was able to make the Best Director's nominees shortlist. Will 2019 be any different? Well, 2019 seems to be another female directors' ri...

Alfre Woodard 's starring vehicle that earned Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize - Dramatic has finally got a trailer! It's Woodard's show! Rave reviews plus this kind of performance from such a respected veteran actress... I smell award recognition no matter how late the movie's release is.

WAVES , AN UPCOMING AWARDS-SENSATION?   After getting enthusiastic reviews at Telluride and some award talk, Waves made its way to TIFF and critics keep raving Trey Edward Shults' latest. An African-American family saga, Waves seems to deliver heart-wrenching punch to its audiences. An excellent ensemble performance from a brilliant cast, dazzling cinematography, editing and score, with an intense narrative and directing style, Waves seems to be made for indie awards' tastes. Will the movie get recognition from major award associations? No matter what, critics and audiences say this movie is art and it deserves to be celebrated.   MARRIAGE STORY AND THE TWO POPES : NETFLIX CHAMPIONS?   After Telluride (and, in Marriage Story 's case, Venice), both The Two Popes and Noah Baumbach's latest keep collecting rave reviews. In fact, both managed to keep an approval rating of 100% - a win for Netflix, no matter what. Initially, I thought Netflix was going to bui...

I've just (re)read " Little Women " by Louisa May Alcott and I couldn't help but remember Winona Ryder 's performance as "Jo". Saoirse Ronan has big shoes to fill.

I think I need some time to think about this win before I can comment...! I'm shocked Todd Philips took home one of the most prestigious prizes in cinema for a DC Comics movie. I considered Joaquin Phoenix as a potential winner of the Volpi Cup for Best Actor (it would to be his 2nd Volpi Cup, something rare!). I thought Roman Polanski 's J'accuse ( An Officar and a Spy ) would win the top prize (which would be scandalous for international press), but I'm still so surprised about Joker win that I totally ignored Polanski's latest has just won the Grand Jury Prize - which would be declared "scandalous" by the press, but everybody's attentions are on the Golden Lion!

BEST PICTURE The AMPAS loves war epics - 1917 , CHECKED! The AMPAS loves movies about old Hollywood days - Once Upon a Time in Hollywood , CHECKED! The AMPAS loves movies about WWII and the Holocaust - Jojo Rabbit , it can be too much of a comedy for such a serious subject, but CHECKED! An indie drama that feels authentic and teaches its audience a lesson about family values - The Farewell , CHECKED! A crime saga from Martin Scorsese - The Irishman , CHECKED! A testosterone fueled movie about cars, with great sound and editing work and some box-office hit potential, Ford v. Ferrari (and Telluride reviews are great), CHECKED! A commentary about politics and USA's international affairs in Middle East and so on - The Report , CHECKED! So, I feel kinda safe about these predctions so far, but I believe Oscars will end up getting 8 Best Picture nominees, so my 8th pick is Harriet . I know the trailer looks too generic and kinda cheesy à la TV movie, but it is a movie about freedmon...