Review: "Ashkal" Keeps Its Cards Close to the Chest

by Cláudio Alves

Some viewers like their films tidily wrapped up, conclusions tied like neat bows. If there's mystery, it should come with a key to unlock it. Puzzles must be complete by the time credits roll. This is cinema as traditional storytelling, made easy to swallow whole. That kind of work can be made glorious by the right artist, but it would be erroneous to presume it the only valid form of film. Often, it's the rebellious piece that begets the biggest impact, forcing itself into the audience's imagination where it will percolate long after they've left the theater. This is cinema as haunt. This is Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation, now in limited release…

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International Oscars - Estonia, Germany, Netherlands, South Korea, and Uruguay

by Nathaniel R

After that first round of news, we have more info on the International Oscar race to share. First, we have three more official submissions for the upcoming race: Estonia will submit the documentary Smoke, Sauna, Sisterhood; South Korea has gone very mainstream choosing the earthquake drama Concrete Utopia  (that probably means no nomination given that the Academy generally only pays attention to South Korea when they lean auteur... and even then they don't pay much attention despite South Korea having a very healthy and respected film industry); Finally, Uruguay will submit the comedy Family Album about a father and his teenage son forming a band. 

Even if those three films don't sound right up Oscar's alley, you really never know, do you? It all depends on how the volunteer voters who screen enough of the films to vote respond to their selections. We also now know two more unofficial finalist lists from Germany and Netherlands, both of which have won the category multiple times...

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Best Supporting Actress ~ First Round Predictions

by Nathaniel R

Emily Blunt in "Oppenheimer"

So is it finally Emily Blunt's time? She's been thisclose to an Oscar nomination multiple times with other awards bodies like SAG, the Golden Globes, and BAFTA making room for her repeatedly! Somehow an Oscar nomination has never materialized even when she 1000% deserved it (hello comedic genius from The Devil Wears Prada). With the largest female role in the The Year's Biggest Prestige Drama, Oppenheimer, she may finally make the shortlist. But what if previously nominated Florence Pugh joins her in the event that a lot of movies intended for the fall don't arrive as scheduled? Despite the movies lengthy running time they both don't get as many scenes as we would have liked but that might not matter given the film and the response.

Other questions looming over the Best Supporting Actress Oscar race are after the jump.

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First Round Oscar Predictions Nearly Complete!

by Nathaniel R

Dear reader, I had planned a big article on each Oscar category as we completed this first round. Scratch that. It's best to finally get all the charts up and then dive further week by week, so we have somewhere to start from. Over at the Prediction Index you'll see that every category we guess well ahead of time is up now with more "tier 2" and "other possibilities" business on the individual category charts. Well all charts but International Feature (which we're working on) and both Actress charts. We can't throw the latter up without detailing it; It's not in our natures to give actresses short shrift!

So investigate the early predictions at your leisure. Well, don't wait too long. Things will change very soon. Calendar shifts are normal this time of year but it's likely to be even more volatile this season given the WGA/SAG strike and AMTMP's refusal to pay them anything like what they used to get paid for their work before streaming changed the entertainment landscape. Supporting Actress Chart tomorrow! 

Review: "Madeleine Collins" confirms this is Virginie Efira's Year

by Cláudio Alves

Belgian-born French actress Virginie Efira has been on an upward path since around 2016, when she supported Isabelle Huppert in the Oscar-nominated Elle and dazzled as the titular lawyer in Justine Triet's Victoria. The latter part earned the thespian her first César nomination, followed by citations for Sink or Swim, An Impossible Love, Bye Bye Morons, Benedetta, and, finally, a victory thanks to Revoir Paris. And yet, beyond the Francoshpere, Efira is probably best known for Verhoeven's mad nun and little else. That's going to change fast. After 2023, there's no stopping her rise to international stardom. 

This week, American cinemas welcomed Madeleine Collins, Efira's third release of the year, following career-best work in Other People's Children and Revoir Paris. Just the Two of Us and All to Play For are still awaiting distribution making for a titanic body of recent work. In a just world, this next awards season would see Virginie Efira on critics' ballots everywhere.

For all that Madeleine Collins is the Virginie Efira show, the film begins without her...

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