Best Supporting Actor - Strongest Lineup in Years?

by Nathaniel R

Jeremy Strong and Sebastian Stan in THE APPRENTICE © Briarcliff Entertainment

It's that time when you should start voting on the chart polls of "who SHOULD win?" We all know Kieran Culkin has the "supporting" Oscar locked up for his moody insightfulness and purposefully too-much lead performance in A Real Pain. But can we pause for a moment to appreciate that, Category Fraud aside, this is the best Best Supporting Actor lineup we've had in ages. There's not a bad or solid-but-unexciting performance in the bunch, just excellence across the board. Because I was so stunned at the quality of the shortlist, I had to look back through Oscar history to find its equivalent  - a year wherein there's not a single performance nominated that would look bad as a winner. I think you have to go back thirty years to either 1995 or 1993 to find a lineup as consistently strong. This message has been brought to you by a post-nomination viewing of The Apprentice a film I'd been avoiding for trauma reasons around the death of democracy. Strong is just excellent in the awards magnet role of Roy Cohn, a role that's already won Al Pacino an Emmy and Nathan Lane a Tony (both via Angels in America). Strong is so good that it's legitimately surprising that he's not even third best in the category...

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Sundance Review: ‘Didn’t Die’ is a Subdued Take on the Zombie Genre

by Abe Friedtanzer

There’s no shortage of zombie films and TV shows out there, and, as a result, there are almost innumerable variations on the premise of the undead. The Sundance entry Didn’t Die is best summarized by its podcast host protagonist’s declaration: “Nobody told me the apocalypse was going to be so boring.” Still, this film finds a good deal of content to mine from that premise...

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Drag Race RuCap: "Bitch, I'm a Drag Queen!"

Ladies and gentlemen and all those in between, here is the season's Golden Boot.

NICK TAYLOR: Hi y’all! I’m so happy to be back this week, for a very special episode. We have witnessed what will surely be remembered as the most iconic runway of the season, from the slaysian diva of LA and the protagonist of all four episodes she’s starred in so far. Serena Cha Cha walked so Joella could run. Behold what she has given us. 

CLÁUDIO ALVES: It feels premature to start the RuCap by mentioning the runway, but you’re so right to mention that quilted monstrosity. Joella’s rectangular slay was truly something to behold. Bound to become a meme, she stole the spotlight from Crystal Envy whose tumbleweed realness would have surely ignited social media if not for Miss J-O-E but don’t forget the ‘Ella. Girl, this was such a fun episode, the best of the season so far and it wasn’t even all due to the glory hole duvet and Miss Sommersault…

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Sundance Review: ‘Ricky’ is a Tough Watch with a Strong Message and Performances

By Abe Friedtanzer

There have been many films made about people getting out of prison and struggling to restart their lives. It’s rarely an easy journey and typically includes the threat of re-incarceration due to an inability to find work or a stable support system. Rashad Frett’s Ricky is the latest to explore this premise, and it does so in a gritty, realistic manner that speaks to the incredible challenges presented at every turn when someone only has good intentions but just isn’t able to fully control what happens to them...  

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Paul Newman @ 100: "The Verdict"

by Nick Taylor

First thing’s first: HAPPY (belated) BIRTHDAY PAUL NEWMAN!!!! Everyone say “Happy Birthday Paul!!” in the comments. As I said when giving backstory on my first Newman installment, Sidney Lumet's The Verdict was one of my first encounters with the actor’s filmography. Even admitting my many, many blind spots, I think it’s fair to say The Verdict stands apart in his retinue of troubled men.

So many of Paul Newman’s characters storm into their films as men to be reckoned with, men capable of announcing themselves as singularly indomitable without saying a word. This is not the case for Frank Galvin, a washed-up, alcoholic lawyer on his last legs. Frank is shorn of the charismatic showmanship Newman wielded so adroitly throughout his career. Instead we’re asked to see him as a failure, a man gunked onto the bottom of the barrel and finally fighting to get out after wasting years wallowing in pity and booze . . . .

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