Emmy Review: Lead Actress in a Comedy

By Abe Friedtanzer

I’m still sad that Elle Fanning isn’t here for The Great and I can’t understand how Better Things gets nothing but rave reviews and somehow Pamela Adlon isn’t nominated? That said, the list of actresses here is strong, And you'd think that previous winner Rachel Brosnahan would be the frontrunner with last year’s tough competition, victor Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag) and six-time consecutive champ Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep) out of the way. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel may be the comedy nominations leader, but Brosnahan isn’t likely to eclipse Moira Rose. 

I’ll try to avoid major plot details in my analysis – but if you’d like more spoiler-filled descriptions, click on the episode titles. Let’s consider each nominee…

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Yes No Maybe So: Ammonite

by Nathaniel R

Okay. NOW it feels like prestige film season is about to begin... even though it isn't, not really, at least not in its traditional way. Behold the lovely poster for Ammonite, pairing two star profiles in ethereal fashion, The trailer is even more thrilling. Let's break down the Yes No and Maybe So of it all after the jump...

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Emmy Review: Lead Actress in a Drama

By Abe Friedtanzer

Last year’s winner in this highly competitive category – Jodie Comer – is back after her show, Killing Eve, performed much better than most thought it would. This race will surely be close, with a defending champion, three potential new victors, and one dark horse surprise (who I think may just win). 

I’ll try to avoid major plot details in my analysis – but if you'd like more spoiler-filled descriptions, click on the episode titles. Let’s consider each nominee…

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Almost There: Joan Allen in "The Upside of Anger"

by Cláudio Alves

Just as we did last week, today's Almost There was chosen by you, the reader. From a group of 2005 Oscar hopefuls, Joan Allen came out victorious for her work in The Upside of Anger. She got 25% of your votes, beating performances like Zhang Ziyi's watery Sayuri in Memoirs of a Geisha, Maria Bello's steamy turn in A History of Violence, and Scarlett Johansson's arresting Oscar bid in Match Point. All those actresses got closer to the gold than Allen realistically did, but she was still part of the conversation. After all, it's difficult to believe someone could watch The Upside of Anger and not want to shower its leading lady with accolades…

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Shelley Winters @ 100: Bloody Mama (1970)

We're celebrating the centennial of Shelley Winters. Here's Cláudio Alves…

In October 1966, less than six months after her second Best Supporting Actress Oscar win, Shelley Winters appeared in two episodes of the Batman TV show. Winters once again played a villainous mother. Unlike most Batman villains though, Winters' Ma Parker wasn't based on a comic book character but a historical figure. Kate Barker, commonly known as Ma Barker, was the matriarch of a criminal family who terrorized Arizona during the first decades of the 20th century. Boisterous, vicious, merciless, and bad to the bone, this monster mother was, in many ways, a perfect role for Shelley Winters in this period of her career.

It's no wonder then, that four years after the Batman episodes had aired, Winters returned to the iconic part. This time, however, there were no euphemisms or layers of superhero camp between the actress and the character. Roger Corman's Bloody Mama is a biopic of Ma Barker that, more or less, follows the historical narrative. That being said, if you think this is any sort of stuffy Oscar baity prestige picture, you are terribly mistaken...

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