Care to make any NBR Predictions?

by Nathaniel R

The National Board of Review will reveal their winners later today. They're much harder to predict than other high profile awards bodies because their organization is secretive and untelevised. That said, there are some patterns that have emerged over the years. Though there are rumors that The Mule did not screen for them, for example, it's otherwise a foregone conclusion that if there is a Clint Eastwood film available to them in any way, they WILL honor it and often in a major way. The last Clint Eastwood film they skipped from honoring in any way was Jersey Boys (2014) but that was an exception to the rule. Since Mystic River they've otherwise always given his movies something, even the ones that don't have significant awards futures like The Hereafter (top ten list) or Gran Torino (Best Actor AND Screenplay) or Flags Of Our Fathers (top ten list), or the ones that nobody is all that passionate about but have awards appeal in some way like Invictus (Best Director AND Best Actor). So I'm expecting The Mule or even The 15:17 to Paris to show up, as absurd as the latter sounds.

Another very safe NBR bet is that they'll choose as Best Picture something that has either just opened in limited release or is yet to open...

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The Circle of Tweet

STEVEN YEUN. That’s it. That’s the whole tweet.

— Amin (Happy Together) (@cinemasocietie) November 24, 2018

AND A GOOD TWEET IT IS, TOO.

curated tweets for you after the jump involving Angels in America, the cgi-animated remake of The Lion King, Widows, and a lot of obsessing over The Favourite which happens to be our new pasttime as well...

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Showbiz History: Band-Aid and "Best Original Song" Behemoths

6 random things that happened on this day (Nov 25th) in showbiz history...

1932 Claudette Colbert infamously bathes in milk in Cecil B DeMille's The Sign of the Cross, new in theaters.

1947 The Hollywood Blacklist begins, denying employment to those with perceived Communist ties or sympathies. This period has haunted ever self-reflecting Hollywood since as witness in Trumbo, The Way We Were, Guilty by Suspicion, Good Night and Good Luck, and numerous other movies.

1984 Bob Geldolf's blockbuster charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" recorded in London...

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Would you rather? (Thanksgiving Weekend Edition)

Time for our silly aspirational Instagram fantasy game. Would you rather...

• prepare a turkey with Diane Kruger?
• snuggle with Gus Kenworthy and Matt Wilkas in the morning?
• live the high life with Constance Wu & Awkwafina?
• reflect in the dressing room with Laura Benanti?
• reminisce about Goodfellas with Debi Mazar?
• bet on a football game with Sam Trammell?
• visit Stonehenge with Susan Sarandon?
• relaxing with Kate Bosworth?
• fly first class with Jeff Goldblum?
• eat leftovers with Buffy?

Pictures are after the jump to help you decide...

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Blueprints: "Little Miss Sunshine"

To celebrate the family awkwardness of Thanksgiving weekend, Jorge takes a look at one of cinema’s most memorable dysfunctional families and how they make their entrances.

Look, no family’s perfect. Far from it. And no holiday brings out the imperfections more than Thanksgiving. Every difference of opinion, tightly-held grudge, annoying personality trait, buried secret and imprinted trauma tend to resurface. And while it may be hell for those going through it, these interactions are usually fertile ground for narrative drama.

But most families tend to be dysfunctional year-round, not just during the holidays. Some don’t need a holiday weekend or a glass of wine to bring out their unpleasant side. All you need to see it is a quick first glimpse. So let’s take a look at the Hoovers in 2006’s Little Miss Sunshine, who are precisely that kind of family. Let’s see how they are each individually introduced in the script, as fully flawed human beings...

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