Best Editing: The Art of Disorientation

by Cláudio Alves

There seem to be two big schools of thought regarding what good film editing is. On the one hand, classic Hollywood precepts indicate a preference for the invisible, cutting so organically enmeshed with the rhythms of the story one barely notices its mechanisms. On the other hand, there's a showier style, editing that calls attention to itself and demands applause, especially in the realm of action cinema. In either case, an unwritten rule posits clarity of information and storytelling as a defining tenet. Editing should facilitate the movie-watching process by allowing the audience to follow along with the narrative or thesis, its emotional beats, spatial awareness, and chronology. Nonetheless, two of this year's biggest contenders in the race for the Best Editing Oscar do the exact opposite, choosing to engage with the art of editing as a tool of disorientation rather than clarification, chaos instead of order…

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Lunchtime Poll: English Patient, Last Emperor, or Gigi?

9 DAYS TIL OSCAR NOMINATIONS! Three films in Oscar history have won exactly 9 Oscars. They are the musical Gigi (1958), the epic biopic The Last Emperor (1987), and the sweeping romantic drama The English Patient (1996).

GIGI	LAST EMPEROR	ENGLISH PATIENT
Picture	Picture	Picture
Director	Director	Director
		Supp. Actress
Screenplay	Screenplay
Production Design	Production Design	Production Design
Costume Design	Costume Design	Costume Design
Cinematography	Cinematography	Cinematography
Editing	Editing	Editing
Score	Score	Score
	Sound	Sound
Original Song
lost: nothing (clean sweep)	lost: nothing (clean sweep)	lost: Actor, Actress, Screenplay

Lunchtime Poll: They can only keep 9 Oscars between them. Which wins will you allow each film to keep?

 Sound off in the comments!

Showbiz History: La Traviata, plus Sandra Bullock "Best" and "Worst" simultaneously

On this day, March 6th, in showbiz history...

1853 La Traviata, Verdi's popular opera premieres in Venice. Have you ever seen the 1982 film version by Franco Zeffirelli? My parents took us, if I recall correctly. I wasn't sure what was going on but I remember it being quite beautiful. Oscar voters thought so too nominating in 'the Moulin Rouge! categories' (Costume Design + Art Direction) 

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What did you think of WandaVision?

by Nathaniel R

DO NOT READ OR COMMENT IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED WANDAVISION - SPOILERS

Today we were treated to the final episode of Disney+'s hit WandaVision, returning us to the Marvel Cinematic Universe by way of streaming sidebar. Watching WandaVision was a like a meta experience on steroids. The show itself was intentionally constructed that way using Wanda Maximoff's (Elisabeth Olsen) love of TV sitcoms to comment, however broadly on them, but more pointedly on nostalgia and the human need for escapism...

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1983 Flashback: The Best International feature race

by Cláudio Alves

Have you ever seen a film so good it makes you happy to be alive? For me, Ingmar Bergman's Fanny & Alexander is one of those films. 

After I guested on the 2001 episode of The One-Inch Barrier, a podcast about the Best International Film category, the amazing Juan Carlos Ojano asked me to choose another year to do and I immediately knew I wanted to talk to him about 1983. Since last summer, I'm happy to say Juan Carlos and I have become friends, and there are few things I like to do more than sharing the movies I love with the people I love and there are few things I love more than Fanny & Alexander. I'd be even more joyful if you, lovely readers, could share in this lovefest for cinema. Join us as we travel back to the early 80s and talk about Bergman's legacy, World War II movies, the magic of dance on the big screen, and much more. Take a listen:

What do you think of this Oscar lineup? Are you as in love with Fanny & Alexander as I am or do you have another favorite from '83?