10th Anniversary: The Young Victoria

by Cláudio Alves

It's difficult to follow the Oscar race each year without developing a prejudice against prestige biopics. At times it seems its the genre where creativity goes to die, where formulas thrive and the appearance of respectability is more important than genuine artistic merit. These words are perchance, too harsh, because specific qualities do manage to shine through the baseline of expected mediocrity on numerous occassions. Take The Young Victoria, Jean-Marc Vallée's perfectly serviceable retelling of Queen Victoria's early years and marriage to Prince Albert. Rewatching it ten years after its initial release, the film isn't as despairingly dry as you may have remembered. The Young Victoria is one of Emily Blunt's lesser efforts, but she's luminous nonetheless, bringing a sense of modernity that rubs abrasively against the historical setting. She never convinces as a 19th-century ruler, but that manages to feel more like a feature than a fault. As for Rupert Friend's Albert, he remains a charming romantic ideal, establishing great chemistry with Blunt.

And then, of course, there are Sandy Powell's Oscar-winning costumes…

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Soundtracking: Rachel Getting Married

by Chris Feil

Jonathan Demme’s career was populated with a musical sensibility that bordered on spirituality, more obviously so in his many music documentaries and the definitive Stop Making Sense. His narrative films could stealthily incorporate a hum of music integral to the world he was presenting, as keenly observed as his character details. From Something Wild to Philadelphia to even Ricki and the Flash, Demme would use music to make his stories come alive in authentic ways. Rachel Getting Married, his late career masterpiece, has a musical language all its own, one that represents the film’s simmering grief and provides its necessary catharsis.

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Campaign flex - Lupita comes on strong

Between this hard-to-miss Variety ad and her recent campaign flex, reprising "Red" from Us at a haunted house, Lupita Nyong'o's Best Actress dream doesn't feel so far-fetched does it? Are you starting to be convinced that her second nomination could happen? We're getting there.

Horror is a great genre for actresses, as Jason's column often reminds us, but when it comes to Oscar nominations for the genre, they only happen if the movie was a huge hit (think The Sixth Sense, The Exorcist, Silence of the Lambs, etcetera). Us has got that part covered, too, since it's the only original film to secure a spot in the box office top ten of 2019 which is otherwise full of spin-offs and sequels. 

"Bombshell" and "Rocketman" are the stars of the Makeup and Hairstyling Honors this year.

by Nathaniel R

The acronym MUAHS always amused us since it sounds like a goofy platonic kiss --“Mwahh!” Perhaps that’s appropriate since Make Up involves many pairs of lips. The Makeup and Hairstylists Guild, an organization about 2100 members wide, have announced their nominees for 2019 in movies and television and theatre. The gala where the winners will be announced is on Saturday, January 11, 2020. “Bombshell” and “Rocketman” lead the movie portion of the awards... 

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Gervais is Golden again

Bucking the would be trend of hostless awards ceremonies, Ricky Gervais will host the Golden Globes this year on January 5th on NBC. The ceremony is noteably two days before final Oscar ballots are due so those speeches could matter. This is the fifth time Gervais has hosted and his blurb sounds threatening if you know how harsh his humour can get with Hollywood’s A list…

 This is the very last time I’m doing this, which could make for a fun evening.”

We like the idea of Hollywood titans having a sense of humor about themselves but we much prefer the kind of ribbing that say Tina Fey & Amy Poehler are willing to do than the more scorched earth vibe of Gervais. But to each their own. Perhaps some of you love Gervais in this particular gig? If so speak up and tell us why.