The 2018 Animation Contenders: On Happiness Road

Each weekend, Tim has been taking a look at one of the films submitted for the Best Animated Feature Oscar.

Taiwan's animation industry does not have a particularly strong reputation, to put it gently. For many years, the country's animation studios have largely served as inexpensive places to farm out work from other, more well-heeled companies, or to produce short films and clips that are largely ephemeral and quickly forgotten. So perhaps the first impressive thing about On Happiness Road is that it exists at all: a Taiwanese-produced feature-length animated film, about Taiwanese history and the cultural position of Taiwan in the wide world. That it is largely good is even more impressive.

The film is the brainchild of writer-director Sung Hsin-Yin, making her first feature after a handful of short films. It tells the life story of Chi (voiced by Kwei Lun-Mi) a thirtysomething expatriate who returns from America to Taipei, where we immediately intuit she'd rather not be... 

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National Society of Film Critics Chooses "The Rider"

by Nathaniel R

The televised awards shows are about to take over but before they do, the NSFC has had their say. They're always the last major critics group to chime in, and unlike the other two members of the critical trinity (LAFCA & NYFCC) they have not chosen Roma. Instead that honor went to Chloe Zhao's rodeo injuries drama The Rider. I recently caught up with this arthouse sleeper hit and though I found it gorgeous and moving, it struck me as a bit modest in its artistic goals, or at least a touch repetitive about achieving them. So to each their own as far as "very best" goes but it's the kind of film that deserves to find ardent fans so it's wonderful that critics have gone to bat for it here and there. It's had such a long run; the film was actually an Indie Spirit nominee in 2017 due to its festival premieres so it's been kicking around with awards for an entire year now!

The full list of NSFC winners and a few more comments after the jump...

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Kevin Hart and a Crisis of Oscar's Own Making

by Nathaniel R

If you don't have anything nice to say... don't say anything? No, no, but we must. The Film Experience has been uncharacteristically mum about the will they or won't they, would he and does he still, why'd she say that, and who next D-R-A-M-A  surrounding the 'Kevin Hart no not Kevin Hart but maybe NO not Kevin Hart again' Hosting duties of the 91st Academy Awards.

A quick heavily editorialized summary and some Oscar hand-wringing.

Chapter 1. December 4th. Kevin Hart hired to host.

Chapter 2. December 5th. LGBTQ people and their allies complained about his extremely obvious homophobia as evident in unfunny jokes about gay people or gayness including a threat of physical violence if he caught his son playing with dolls...

Homophobia and misogyny are bosom buddies, you know.

Chapter 3. December 6th. Kevin Hart is asked to apologize and refuses to...

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Vote on BAFTA's Rising Star Award

The BAFTA nominations (i.e. the UK version of the Oscars) will be announced this coming Wednesday. That's during the Oscar nomination voting period (which runs January 7th through the 14th) so it could be helpful to certain contenders (we're looking at you, especially, Mary Poppins Returns since you got stiffed at the PGA.)

But we already know the nominees in one category with BAFTA, their annual EE Rising Star Award, which is voted on by the public. This year's nominees and the 13 year history of that category after the jump...

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50 Days til Oscar, Ally!

Ladies and gentleman.... ALLY"

Not a still from the movie. They've actually put the Ally billboard up in Los Angeles in the same location it's supposed to be seen within the movie.

You have to hand it to the Warner Bros teams behind A Star is Born publicity both during its leggy run (now with a nearly $400 million global gross on a $36 million budget) and during awards season where it has consistently performed. They keep thinking of new ways to keep the film in people's minds, too, like this funny specific stunt pictured here. Will it feel like overkill by the time Academy members are voting. To some, sure, but those are likely the people who weren't going to vote for it anyway.