Queer TIFF: "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"

by Chris Feil

Marielle Heller’s Can You Ever Forgive Me? is the rarest of comedies, as lovely as it is scabrous, and able to craft a film cohering as many dualities and tonal contradictions in its construction as its protagonist. The film stars Melissa McCarthy as the shamed Lee Israel, once noted biographer and journalist whose late career stumbles found her forging letters of noted dead writers and famous personalities.

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Burning, The Cakemaker and more join the Foreign Film Race.

by Nathaniel R

We're now up to 31 Oscar submissions so, a third of our way to the finish line. Here are the new announcements since the last post. 

• The Cakemaker- Israel 
  A gay drama about a man who becomes friends with his dead lover's wife (who didn't know they were involved). It just won the Ophir for Best Picture (along with Best Director, Actress, and more). This had a theatrical release in the US over the summer. Have y'all seen it? 
• Gutland  - Luxembourg  
  We recently mentioned that this noir starring Frederic Lau (Victoria) and Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread) is streaming on Amazon Prime. But when we mentioned it we had no idea it would be Oscar submitted.
• The Resistant Banker - The Netherlands 
  WW II drama about a Dutch banker funding the resistance under the noses of Nazis. That sounds right up the ally of how Oscar used to play the Foreign Film category but times have changed. Will it be good enough to appeal to their WW II drama-loving previous natures?
• Offenders - Serbia
  A thriller about university students out to test a theory that human nature inevitably leads to anarchy.  
• Burning -South Korea
  The Cannes hit which gets a US release in early November. Oscar is notoriously resistant to Asian cinema which is a total shame since this one has received rave reviews and its South Korea's third time choosing a  Lee Chang-dong picture and he's such a talented filmmaker but Oscar has yet to recognize that. Or South Korea in general despite their awesome cinema.
• Champions - Spain
   A film about a team of disabled athletes starring real disabled people. It's apparently a huge crowd-pleasing hit in Spain

Related:
FOREIGN FILM PREDICTIONS
FOREIGN FILM SUBMISSION CHARTS

'Roma' and 'The Favourite' win Venice

by Murtada Elfadl 

Cuaron with Lion

As expected Roma and The Favourite won the biggest prizes at this year’s Venice Film Festival main competition. The two films screened on the same day and were both raved and loved equally. Roma, a story that Alfonso Cuaron based on his memories growing up in 1970’s Mexico City, has been hailed as both personal and epic which bodes well for its awards success...

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Who will win the Emmy for Leading Actress in a Comedy?

By Spencer Coile 

After six consecutive years of Julia Louis-Dreyfus deservedly dominating this category for her performance on Veep, we finally have a race on our hands in the Lead Actress in a Comedy Series field! Or do we? As diverse as this lineup is – consisting of newcomers, veterans, and representation from six different networks – it feels as though Rachel Brosnahan’s name has been on that Emmy statue since the pilot for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel premiered last March. Is she going for the gold, or is the race more competitive than we think? 

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Queer TIFF: "Diamantino"

by Chris Feil

Plenty of the quasi mainstream queer movies are quickly labeled as not queer enough, the queer intelligencia (however rightfully) upset if gay life is reduced for the straight masses. Yeah, Diamantino has never heard of any of them, nor is it all that interested in your intellectual approval either.

And still it delivers something batty enough (and honestly flat out sweet enough) to knock potential naysayers off of their pretentious perch while delivering something foaming with queerness to fill all of its corners. Get ready for a fantasia of giddy gender confusion to glitterbomb the square conformity delusion, all set to Donna Lewis' "I Love You Always Forever". Diamantino is an absolute gas.

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