Review: Cherry

by Christopher James

Tom Holland ditches the superhero cape for a much grittier turn in the Russo Brothers' new film, "Cherry."Cherry is five movies in one, and each one of them is bad in a different, unique way.

Joe and Anthony Russo’s ambitious new film for Apple TV+ has many different goals. Unfortunately, much like a juggler with too many balls in the air, every one of those goals falls to the ground, landing with a thud. Despite clear ambition and clearly talented people involved, nothing comes together in Cherry. What we’re left with is a misshapen, overlong mess where our lead Forrest Gumps his way through a variety of genres and ripped-from-the-headlines issues...

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366 films eligible for Best Picture at the 93rd Oscars

It's here. The annual "reminder list" from the Oscars about what Academy members can vote for this year for Best Picture (and other categories). Of course this list does not apply to all categories as some movies have already been eliminated in the specialized categories that use bakeoffs or finalists systems or that have extra additional eligibility requirements like...

• Animated Feature (27 finalists)
• Documentary Feature (15 finalists)
• International Feature (15 finalists)
• Makeup and Hairstyling (10 finalists)
• Original Score (15 finalists)
• Original Song (15 finalists)
• Visual Effects (10 finalists)
• ...and all three Short Film categories (but feature films aren't eligible there anyway)

But if the movie is on this overall reminder list it's still eligible in any other category. A lot more notes after the jump...

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Review: The United States vs. Billie Holiday (Hulu)

by Christopher James 

How can a remarkable life lead to an unremarkable film? On paper, The United States vs. Billie Holiday has so much going for it. Oscar nominee Lee Daniels is an inspired, live wire choice for director and Andra Day makes a fantastic acting debut. She more than rises to the inimitable challenge of playing a legend like Billie Holiday. Unfortunately, The United States vs. Billie Holiday falls into a common biopic trap. All of the information feels a mile wide and a foot deep. We breeze through so much of Billie’s life, but we never get a moment to digest what we’re seeing or piece together a central character. The movie moves quickly through all events in Holiday’s life, leaving the audience behind in the process...

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Showbiz History: With a Song in My Heart instead of 'in the Rain'. Plus a shocking Oscar moment.

5 random things that happened on this day, February 26th, in showbiz history...

Somehow both the Oscars and the Globes preferred With a Song in My Heart to masterpiece Singin' in the Rain.

1953 The 10th annual Golden Globes are held with The Greatest Show on Earth (Drama) and With a Song in My Heart (Comedy/Musical) winning Best Picture. In today's world, With a Song in My Heart would not be eligible as it was a biopic of a musician, which the HFPA almost always places in Drama now. It's a pity because it's a dull movie and it was up against... wait for it... Singin' in the Rain...

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How Olivia Colman broke my heart in "The Father"

by Cláudio Alves

We always carry part of ourselves into the films we watch. Memories, past events, half-forgotten trauma and half-remembered dreams, inform how we perceive art, how it affects us and persists in our mind long after the screen fades to black. When dealing with a work about a universal experience like aging, we can only assume each viewer will see a slightly different picture. The Father I saw isn't The Father you'll see, or even The Father its makers intended to create. Many came out of the film raving about Sir Anthony Hopkins' tour-de-force as an old man suffering from dementia, his reality warped into a nightmare of perpetual disorientation. While I appreciate him a great deal, it's the work of another thespian that most affected me.

Ever since I watched the film weeks ago, I can't stop thinking about Olivia Colman's performance, how I saw myself in her, how I saw my parents in the character she portrays, how she broke my heart…

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