Almost There: Lana Turner in "The Bad and the Beautiful"

This week The Film Experience will be celebrating Lana Turner for her Centennial. Here's Cláudio Alves

According to legend, Lana Turner was discovered in 1936, when she happened to be spotted by the publisher of The Hollywood Report while drinking a Coke at Schwab's Pharmacy. As with most myths of the cinematic Olympus, the story is unlikely to be true, though that doesn't take away from the allure of the actress. Whatever her origin story, Turner appeared in her first film the following year and quickly became one of Hollywood's most beloved sirens, an icon of glamor and sensuality, a megawatt star the likes of which we haven't seen in decades. 

Despite it all, stardom doesn't necessarily equal prestige. Turner was often seen as little more than a pretty face and her acting craft was underappreciated. In 1957, a conflagration of many scandals, personal and literary, secured her a single Oscar nomination for Peyton Place. That wasn't the first time she was in the running for awards, however...

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The Cinematic Redemption of Amy March

by Cláudio Alves

Greta Gerwig's Little Women is a bold adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic in more ways than one. Structurally, it shatters the novel's chronology, making past and present, childhood and adulthood, talk to each other in a dialogue of echoes and rhymes. For instance, when Jo loses a sister in the wintery coldness of the present, Gerwig marries the moment to the memory of another kind of sisterly loss, when a wedding in warm colors was a harbinger of future loneliness for the heroine. Another element that makes this new adaptation so radically different from the previous ones is its treatment of Jo's sisters. No longer are Meg, Beth, and Amy March relegated to the periphery of the text. This 19th-century classic is called Little Women, after all, not Little Woman.

When it comes to its portrayal of Amy, the novel's most condemned character, the 2019 film is of particular innovation. We could almost say this Little Women redeems Amy March after centuries of villainizing her…

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Almost There: Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"

by Cláudio Alves

History repeats itself, especially when it comes to the Academy Awards. Throughout its 92 years, very few Asian actors have been recognized, even when their films were otherwise embraced. This year, the victim of the insidious trend was Parasite, which won the SAG for Best Ensemble but couldn't muster enough support for a single acting nomination at the Oscars. Thinking back to the last non-English speaking Asian production to score a Best Picture nomination, we see the same phenomenon.

In 2000, Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon conquered a remarkable 10 nominations, including for Picture and Director but none of the nods were for acting. In the end, the blockbuster won four of its categories. Despite the acting branch's oversight, Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi received many nominations elsewhere, including the BAFTAs. The younger actress even conquered the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actress…

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Almost There: Jennifer Lopez in "Hustlers"

"Almost There" is a new series about actors who were obviously close to an Oscar nomination but somehow missed. Here's Cláudio Alves...

Regarding this year's Oscar nominations, no snub hurt quite as much as Jennifer Lopez's absence in the Best Supporting Actress line-up. The long-time actress turned pop diva earned herself a small mountain of critic's honor for her performance in Hustlers, including the LAFCA trophy, as well as crucial precursor nominations like the Critics Choice Award, the Golden Globes, and the SAG. Still, when it was all said and done, the Academy preferred five other actresses over Lopez. If we consider Dern, Pugh, and Robbie as near locks, then her spot was either taken by Scarlett Johansson or Kathy Bates. While neither work is meritless, they've got nothing on JLo's sterling achievement.

Still, we're not here to lambast the Oscar's chosen nominees, but to celebrate one hell of an awards-worthy performance. So, join us as we explore the wonders and sing the praises of Jennifer Lopez's Ramona…

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Final Oscar Nomination Predictions

The 92nd annual Academy Awards are almost upon us. They're just 29 days away at this writing. We'll have the official Oscar charts back up for you as soon as is humanly possible once the potentially exciting event has occurred on Monday (they're coming down now to prep for Monday's unfurling). But until then, it's time to make final predictions.

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The sure things: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Parasite, The Irishman, Joker, Jojo Rabbit, 1917. That's six titles that we can't imagine missing on Monday morning given their success to date in precursor awards and with critics and the public. The extremely probable: Marriage Story. The only reason we've begun to worry is that there's been virtually no traction for Noah Baumbach in Best Director which suggests that people have reduced the movie to "an actor's showcase"... but then where was the SAG Outstanding Cast nomination? It's likely in but if there's a shock omission Monday morning...

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