Smackdown '97: Joan, Minnie, Gloria, Julianne Moore, and Kim Basinger

Welcome back to the Supporting Actress Smackdown. 

In this monthly series we pick an Oscar vintage to explore through the lens of actressing at the edges. This episode takes us back 25 years to the landmark year of 1997 when Titanic and "Matt & Ben" were all rage.

THE NOMINEES  

Aside from an encore showing for comedic genius Joan Cusack, a surprise nominee in 1988 for Working Girl, the Academy went with all first-timers for 1997's Supporting Actress roster. Not that the actresses were "new" to the scene. There were two "comeback" narratives: Kim Basinger had been a leading lady for over a decade before LA Confidential but she'd taken a three year break from the movies (amidst multiple financial and legal troubles). Meanwhile Gloria Stuart who began in the early days of sound cinema was being celebrated in a way she hadn't been since 1932. The "breakthrough" nominations, were also two-fold. One went to Minnie Driver (who had two films out, In & Out  and Grosse Point Blank). The other went to ubiqutious Julianne Moore who kicked off '97 with a Sundance hit (The Myth of Fingerprints), and continued making news with a blockbuster (Lost World Jurassic Park) before her career-elevating role arrived in the fall in the unlikely package of an epic ensemble drama about the 1970s porn industry from a filmmaker barely anyone had heard of.

THE PANELISTS 

 Here to talk about these five films and performances are (in alpha order) author and entertainment jourmalist Kyle Buchanan (The New York Times, "Blood, Sweat & Chrome: The Wild and True Story of Mad Max: Fury Road"), podcaster Chelsea Eichholz (Cinema Gals), and comedian / podcaster Louis Virtel (Keep It!, Jimmy Kimmel Live). The Smackdown is hosted by the founder and editor of The Film Experience, Nathaniel Rogers.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS SMACKDOWN + PODCAST  

LET'S BEGIN...

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2022 Emmy Category Analysis: Drama Guest Acting Categories

by Christopher James

"Succession" added an Emmy winner and an Oscar winner to its cast this year. Will it pay off with a Guest Actor Emmy win?

It’s no secret that the Guest Acting categories often reward big names and buzzy actors, rather than actual performances. The awards can often go to beloved actors, even if they only appear in one or two moments of their submission. Take for example wins for Margo Martindale (The Americans) and Ron Cephas Jones (This Is Us) for seasons and episodes that are far from their best work. While past years have trended towards the biggest names possible, this year’s crop doesn’t necessarily skew towards major celebrities. Instead, it’s more consolidated around a small number of shows. Only five shows make up all twelve slots (the same number as in the Comedy Guest Acting races).

Succession fever has swept the guest acting drama categories. The HBO drama makes up seven of the twelve possible guest acting slots, or nearly 60% of the honors. Does this mean the show is unbeatable or could this pave the way for an underdog prevailing?

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2022 Emmy Category Analysis: Comedy Guest Acting Categories

After a thirteen year stranglehold on the guest acting categories, "Saturday Night Live" only has one host nominated this year: rising stand up star Jerrod Carmichael.By: Christopher James

Though there is no shortage of television these days, we know Emmy voters only watch a handful of shows. Nowhere is this more starkly pronounced than in the guest acting categories. Name recognition (the title of the show first, the fame of the actor second) tends to determine the nods. Just five shows take up all twelve nomination slots this season.

But in a chance of pace, Saturday Night Live isn’t the main culprit. The comedy guest acting categories have long been dominated by the legendary variety show. We usually see, at minimum, two to three nominees for SNL in these categories. In 2022, though, Jerrod Carmichael is the show's sole nominee here. Will he win, or will someone from the other popular comedies edge him out? Hacks has five guest comedy nods (nearly 50% of the nominations), while Ted Lasso has three and Only Murders in the Building two. 

Who will come out ahead? Let’s take a look at the categories...

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July. It's a Wrap

We're in the dog days of summer now. Just one month of the heat left to go. July flew by. Here are a dozen of the highlights in case you missed 'em...

 

• Debbi Morgan in Eve's Bayou Nick takes on this modern classic that has a Criterion release coming
• Fire of Love Glenn on the volcanic love documentary hit
• Till Nathaniel talks to the director of this awards hopeful drama
• 28 Years 28 Films Cláudio celebrates his birthday with a film timeline
• Laura Linney Double Vision She looks EXACTLY like her mother. Uncanny
• Ranking the Men of LA Confidential Ben looks back at the men of this '97 classic
• Stage Door: The Minutes a new play from Tracy Letts 
• Mrs Harris Goes to Paris Chris reviews the frothy Lesley Manville dramedy
• James Caan (RIP) Remembering an underappreciated great
• Through Her Lens 2013 Juan Carlos series returns to look back at the work of female directors corresponding with each Oscar year, whether or not they were nominated (usually not) 
• Almost There: Pam Grier Cláudio thinks she should've won the Oscar for Jackie Brown
• Venice and TIFF lineups with photos, descriptions, and anticipation

COMING IN AUGUST
Emmy reviews of individual categories, new movies like Bullet Train, Luck, Girl Picture, They/Them, a few reader requests from the recent fundraiser, and a weeklong celebration of Cameron Diaz for her 50th birthday.

Finally, at the end of the month, the 1951 Supporting Actress Smackdown featuring the first screen adaptations of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, and Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire. Since 3/5ths of the supporting actress nominees that month were from films on the obscure side (even for cinephiles), we'll fill in with celebrations of more celebrated movies of 1951, too. ANY REQUESTS?

Review: Going viral with "Not Okay"

by Matt St Clair

While social media can be an outlet for networking and connection, it’s also a place of toxicity. Quinn Shephard’s new satire Not Okay heavily emphasizes the latter. In a digital age where anyone can achieve fame with viral tweets or TikTok videos, Not Okay taps into how some people, like anti-heroine Danni Sanders (Zoey Deutch), go on a demeaning search for internet clout.

Stuck with an unfulfilling photo editor job when she wants to be a writer, Danni Sanders aims to get ahead at the magazine she works for. Seeking fame and validation from everyone around her, including influencer Colin (Dylan O’Brien) who she crushes on, Danni decides to fake a trip to Paris. With just her photo skills and a change in location on her Instagram posts, Danni makes it appear she went away despite being held up in her apartment. But once a terrorist attack occurs in Paris, Danni then pretends to be one of the survivors. As you can guess, thinks get grimmer as they progress... 

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