Q&A: Best 'Best Actress' Decade? Gay for Play as Actorly Rite of Passage?

Four more reader questions to kick off the weekend. Wheeee. As ever, I'd love to hear your answers to these questions thrown my way.

MATT ST CLAIR: Is there an unseen awards contender this year that you are hoping doesn't fail?

NATHANIEL: My "please let this be successful" hopes reside with Blade Runner 2049 (because the original's reputation being tarnished would be such a pity), The Greatest Showman (because musicals MUST continue to thrive) and Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (because it's infinitely annoying that Annette Bening doesn't have an Oscar yet and didn't even get nominated for such gorgeous work in 20th Century Women). While we're well- wishing please let Wonderstruck, How to Talk to Girls at Parties, and The Florida Project could be bigger hits than usual for Todd Haynes, John Cameron Mitchell, and Sean Baker, since they're three of our most distinctive American auteurs. I could go on but I'll stop as no genie grants unlimited wishes.

CATBASKETS: I've been thinking a lot about straight actors getting their starts or big breaks playing gay roles--Hugh Grant in Maurice, Guy Pierce in Priscilla, DDL in Beautiful Launderette, Charlie Hunnam in Queer as Folk, Eddie Redmayne in Savage Grace, etc. etc. Do you think this was/is a major rite of passage for actors? Do you think this will slow down now that there's more awareness/active demand for gay actors to play these roles?

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See, I Listen to You.

Those times I ask you "what's on your cinematic mind?" are not just filler. I really do listen. Sometimes it inspires articles and other times I take direct requests. Thanks, for example, to Kris who pointed out that I needed to update the Review page. The funny thing is I thought I had because earlier in the year I'd been updating daily. But I was three months behind --eeep! -- and now I see the films I never got around to reviewing. Now the page is fresh again with all recent reviews notated and the list of everything screened thus far. Take a look if you think you missed something. 

Pssst I'm seeing The Beguiled this Monday and couldn't be more eager.

All Eyez on Geronimo, Psycho, and the Pink Ladies

Happy weekend... almost. I'm in the Berkshires with a girlfriend and she informs me very emphatically that it's not the weekend until 5 PM. Why rush to the end of her vacation as its back to work with her on Monday. 

5 ways to honor this day (June 16th) in showbiz history

1995 Batman Forever opens in movie theaters to a then record-breaking weekend with new Bruce Wayne Val Kilmer and rising star Nicole Kidman as his love interest. Curiously it's the second most nominated Batman movie at the Oscars (3 nominations to The Dark Knight's 8). Isn't that strange?

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Hello "Goodbye Christopher Robin"

Chris here, just imagining a Beatles / Winnie the Pooh crossover. You say goodbye, because I say hello to the first Goodbye Christopher Robin trailer. (Which Beatle matches which Pooh character? Ringo is such a Tigger.)

The film is chasing after our literary nostalgic tears in the vein of Finding Neverland, following A.A. Milne (played by the ever dashing Domnhall Gleeson) as his son inspires him to create the adventures of Winnie the Pooh during WWI...

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