Target Audience: Victor / Victoria (1982)

by Nathaniel R

VICTOR / VICTORIA

Last month I had the pleasure of rewatching Blake Edwards 7-time Oscar-nominated musical comedy Victor/Victoria (1982). The occasion was to prep for a conversation with our friend Ben Miller for his podcast "Target Audience" in which Ben invites a guest to discuss a movie that they feel was made for them for all kinds of differing reasons, beauty being in the eye of the beholder...

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Best Actress in the 80s: An Alternative Oscar History

by Cláudio Alves

With one win and five additional nods, Meryl Streep was the Best Actress queen of the 1980s. Will she be similarly dominant in my ideal Oscars ballots? Come find out.

Nathaniel has shared some of his annual top ten lists from the 1980s in honor of the site's special theme for November. Now, it's time for me to present some lists of my own. Rather than my favorites from each year, let's consider one of the readership's favorite Oscar races, instead – Best Actress. Only, instead of the Academy's choices, you get to appreciate or disparage my picks. From 1980 to 1989, I compiled what my ballots would look like, selecting these dream nominees from the pool of eligible films for each year. This is another glimpse into my personal Academy Awards, that gigantic spreadsheet, with bonus honorable mentions, ineligible performance shout-outs, and some titles still on my watchlist, waiting to be seen…

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Grammy Nominations: "brat" summer to continue through February 2nd

by Nathaniel R

 

While we never do much coverage of the Grammys (they aren't the Oscars!) we do like to share a few details whenever nominations arrive. A few categories always overlap with things we love (film, tv, stage). And truth be told I've experienced a strange reinassance in terms of listening to new music this past year so I'm more interested than usual. Here are the  nominees for the top prizes at the 67th Grammys which will take place on February 2nd 2025. Beyonce leads the pack (as per usual) and extends her own record of Most Nominated Artist Ever...

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Randomness... 1980-1982

by Nathaniel R

NINE TO FIVE

In addition to sojourns into the current Oscar race, we've been feeling some 1980s nostalgia of late. So let's indulge in the "Totally Awesome 80s" this month. We'll pepper in some 80s themed posts in between the current Oscar race coverage. Let's begin with the early 80s because...why not? Since The Film Experience began in 2000, any list shared here about years before that was a strange combination of modern viewings mixed with childhood or teenage or college memories. I always wonder how accurate 'old' top ten lists would be if I actually sat down and watched as many movies from those years as I do now. I recently watched Gremlins (1984), for example, which I loooooved as a kid and was mostly bored. 'When does this get clever? funny? exciting?' Not that you should ever judge a movie from an airplane viewing; it's about the worst possible way to view a motion picture given those tiny screens, cramped quarters, muffled sound, and in-flight interruptions.

Herewith 'top ten lists' (HIGHLY SUBJECT TO CHANGE UPON REWATCHES) about the early 1980s with a note as to when I first or last saw the film...

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Category Confusion '24: COMEDY or DRAMA – Part One

by Cláudio Alves

Is THE SUBSTANCE a comedy or a drama? What gives?

This year, I am part of the voting body for the Golden Globes, which gives me access to a cornucopia of screeners and FYC material that was erstwhile inaccessible to me. This also means I get a front row seat for the absolute circus that is category fraud from studios and distributors alike. Not just in terms of finagling distinctions between lead and supporting performances. Because this is the Globes, there's also the matter of which films compete in Drama, and which others battle it out in the presumably less competitive realm of Musical or Comedy. Because we all need distractions right now, let's ponder these inconsequential genre divides and enjoy some benign polls whose results don't really matter beyond these awards obsessive circles of ours…

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