25th Anniversary: "Home for the Holidays"

by Mark Brinkherhoff

In high school, I managed to hoodwink my journalism advisor into letting me review movies for our semi-regular school paper. In some cases, these were movies my parents certainly did not approve of (Se7en, Showgirls, etc.); in other cases, there were movies I would have seen anyway but was able to write off as a “class expense.” Home for the Holidays, Jodie Foster’s sophomore directorial effort, fell into the latter camp.  

Arriving on a post-Oscar blitz of new films starring Holly Hunter (e.g. Copycat, Crash—no, not that one), Home for the Holidays got lost in the shuffle of both 1995’s crop of holiday fare and its stars own filmography...

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"The New Classics" - in case you missed any

We're already in withdrawal. Tuesday are when we normally get a new episode of Michael Cusamano's insightful and engaging series "The New Classics," which focuses on top-notch 21st century films by dissecting a single defining scene. But season 2 just ended last week so no new episode today. But if you missed any of his great great articles, please catch up. We're just assuming you might need cinematic healing / distraction tonight and tomorrow given all the anxiety and stress of waiting for election results.

Season 1 of The New Classics (22 episodes)

Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001) | Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) | Sexy Beast (2001) | Master and Commander (2003) | Shattered Glass (2003) | Before Sunset (2004) | Collateral (2004) | Eastern Promises (2007) | Michael Clayton (2007) | No Country For Old Men (2007) | Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)  | The Hurt Locker (2009) | Inglourious Basterds (2009) | In the Loop (2009) | I Am Love (2010) | Meek's Cutoff (2010) | A Separation (2011) | Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) | It's Such a Beautiful Day (2012) | Blue Ruin (2014) | 20th Century Women (2016) | The Florida Project (2017)

Season 2 of The New Classics (22 episodes) 

Wonder Boys (2000) | Amélie (2001) | Gosford Park (2001) | Capote (2005) | The Descent (2005) | Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) | The New World (2005) | Bridesmaids (2011) | Drive (2011) | Oslo August 31 (2011) | Lincoln (2012) | The Master (2012) | Frances Ha (2013) | Wolf of Wall Street (2013) | The Babadook (2014) | Nightcrawler (2014) | Two Days One Night (2014) | It Follows (2015) | The Handmaiden (2016) | Moonlight (2016) | The Witch (2016) | First Reformed (2018)

I will be begging Michael for a third season in 2021 since he hasnt yet written up the two towers of 2015, Carol and Mad Max Fury Road, nor has he graced us with any picks from the film years of 2002 or 2006, respectively. 

Nicole in HBO's "The Undoing"

by Eric Blume

There are few things in life more exquisite than watching Nicole Kidman unravel.  And she does so with her usual panache in the new HBO miniseries The Undoing, from director Susanne Bier.  

HBO is releasing the six episodes week by week, so we're currently only two episodes in, but what we have on our hands with The Undoing is a genuine potboiler!  The program slowly lays out its icy upper east side NYC terrain with careful deliberation, only to end the initial episode with a fun corker that sets Nicole into a fiery actressy spiral...

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What will be Portugal's choice?

by Cláudio Alves

Just this weekend, I was singing the praises of Pedro Costa's Vitalina Varela. Lo and behold, the shadowy chamber drama is one of four finalists for Portugal's Oscar submission. A jury of the Portuguese Film Academy, made up of directors Gonçalo Galvão Teles, Lauro António and Monique Rutler, actors Isabel Abreu and Welket Bungué, and cinematographer Miguel Sales Lopes, has selected their finalists from a list of 33 eligible features. The quartet of lucky films are…

 

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Almost There: It's time to vote!

by Cláudio Alves

Every week since December 30th, 2019, we've had a new Almost There episode to enjoy, Apologies, dear readers, but the series' taking a break this week. However, this mini interruption is a good opportunity to, once again, have you chose what you want to read about via these reader polls. While two Almost There slots have already been decided for November, there are still two vacant spots in need of filling. That's where you come in.

For next week, the 1987 theme shall persist in anticipation of the Supporting Actress Smackdown. With that in mind, here are ten performances which vied for nominations at the 60th Academy Awards, but ended up empty-handed.

bike trail guide

After those '87 related matters, it's time to focus on some new to streaming titles. Looking at the varied selection from the main platforms, I've come up with this list of potential contenders:

online survey

If you choose wisely (or unwisely), we might even have the first negative Almost There piece ever. As much as it's fun to write endless praise, it can also be a challenge to do a vitriolic pan. In any case, the choice is yours.

You have until next Saturday, November 7th, to make your choice. You can vote once a day, if so inclined.