SXSW: Probing Identity in "Bloody Hell"

by Abe Friedtanzer

From the sound of its title, you might think that Bloody Hell is a violent horror film. But in fact it’s a mostly (and significantly) blood-free exploration of what it’s like to be a teenager that doesn’t quite fit in. It’s described as a “traumedy” about a sixteen-year-old girl shaken by the news of a reproductive condition that will play heavily into both her sex life and her potential to become a future mother... 

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Ranking the 2022 Oscar Clips

By Ben Miller

It's that time of year again!  Every year since 2017 (minus 2020, when they didn't show clips), this is the piece I most look forward to writing.  The Oscars always throw a few curveballs with their clip choices.  They certainly made some choices this year.  Let's rank the clips 20 to 1.

I'm gonna not be selfish. I'm gonna be your mom.

What Are We Doing?
20. Michelle Williams, The Fabelmans
19. Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All At Once
18. Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All At Once

For all three of these performers, their roles had big showy moments that were tailor-made for Oscar clips.  Instead, they went with odd choices...

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Drag Race RuCap: "Two Queens, One Joke"

NICK TAYLOR: Welcome back, Cláudio! And welcome back, 90-minute Drag Race episodes! The return of a longer runtime definitely gives the show more room to breathe - it really is so nice to hear Ru say “Bring back my gurls!” again - and allows us to really spend more time with the queens. This is clearly a talented cast, but “Two Queens, One Joke” feels like the best chance we’ve really gotten to know this top seven. Do I agree with the judging 100%? No, but as an episode of television, this felt satisfying in a way that season 15 has too rarely achieved. 

CLÁUDIO ALVES: I love the return of 90-minute episodes (really 60 minutes), even if this week’s judging infuriated me. Moreover, the outcome of all those shenanigans was downright heartbreaking…

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Which one of this season's Oscar nominees will return soonest?

by Nathaniel R

We just recorded the Oscar post-mortem podcast and we ended by asking the participants which of the 20 acting nominees from the 95th Academy Awards would be back shortly. Everyone picked someone different. This Oscar season was record-breaking in terms of first-time nominees for acting -- 16 of 20 is insane (and wonderful)! We can't expect it will happen again at the 96th Oscars since it's so unusual. So which one of the nominees Hollywood just celebrated will be back next season... or the season after that if none of them repeat in a year's time. Who comes back first? Would love to hear your theories on this in the comments!

online polls

Were there even any upsets on Oscar night?

by Danny Cox

Part of the fun of the Oscars are when the winner of the award is not the odds on favorite that  had been predicted. Olivia Colman winning over Glenn Close, Parasite taking Picture and  Director from 1917, and Anthony Hopkins over Chadwick Boseman all added a sense of surprise  and shock to each of their ceremonies. With the uprise of precursor award shows, internet communities dedicated to predicting the awards, and even gambling sites taking odds and  providing bets the outcome of the awards tend to be more predictable. Last night’s awards were  no exception, with Everything Everywhere All at Once winning 7 of its 11 nominations as pretty much predicted from the outset even though sweeps hadn't yet happened in the Best Picture era. But was everything as predictable as it seems? Were there any  moments of surprise and shock? The answer is tricky. 

While some of the categories seemed set in stone (Supporting Actor, Animated Film, Visual  Effects) there were others with uncertain outcomes...

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