Oscar Volley: “Best Supporting Actor” is one wild ride!

The Oscar Volleys continue. Today, NATHANIEL R and CLÁUDIO ALVES discuss the volatile Oscar race for Best Supporting Actor. 

Andrew Scott in BLUE MOON | © Sony Pictures Classics

NATHANIEL: So Cláudio, it falls to you and me to discuss Best Supporting Actor, and I will try reeaaaaaaaaly hard not to bring up my broken-record pet peeve about this category because I know readers have heard it a million times.  I don't want to talk about it anymore, so for the duration of this conversation, I'm going to pretend that all the actors are in roles perfectly sized for this particular category. And so we're here to discuss everything else... but not that!

Performance quality-wise, I think this is a good quintet - even if I'm still seriously angry that people wouldn't give Andrew Scott the time of day for Blue Moon since his performance is stronger than Hawke's AND he is giving you so much backstory and giving it so economically and with laser minimalist precision. Such a generous actor - he doesn't steal scenes so much as immerse you in them and what's going on between these characters. Anyway, I just love him, and I had to get that off my chest first. It's been a struggle.

So my opening question to you is struggle-themed. I'm curious who you think had the most difficult role to play here and why...

Click to read more ...

Team Experience Oscar Predictions: The Final Scores

by Cláudio Alves

Nobody predicted SINNERS to secure Delroy Lindo his first Oscar nomination. | © Warner Bros.

How did your Oscar predictions turn out? At The Film Experience, ten writers did their best, and now we have results. Baby Clyde achieved the highest accuracy, dethroning former champion Eric Blume. But there’s more, so check the full data below. When we aggregate predictions, surprises emerge: none of us saw Delroy Lindo or Avatar in Costume Design coming. Conversely, everyone expected Paul Mescal in Best Supporting Actor, so we all misjudged that race.

Without further ado, here’s the final score…

Click to read more ...

Oscar Volley: Is there space for supporting actors in the Best Supporting Actor race?

The Oscar Volleys are back! Tonight, it's time for Eric Blume and Cláudio Alves to discuss Best Supporting Actor...

Stellan Skarsgård in SENTIMENTAL VALUE | © Neon

ERIC: Hi, Cláudio. I'm very excited to tackle this year's Best Supporting Actor race with you! This is often the most boring acting category, but am I naive to think this year might be different? There are a lot of really fantastic performances that are not only nomination-worthy but win-worthy in my opinion. Are we to be disappointed that once the precursors start naming nominees, things will narrow too small too quickly? 

For the moment, it's an open book. I would love to discuss with you the two performances that do seem like locks even at this early stage: Sean Penn for One Battle After Another and Stellan Skarsgård for Sentimental Value…

Click to read more ...

The Link Stuff

• Salon remembers the 'gentlemanly gruffness' of Fred Ward (Tremors, The Right Stuff), who has passed away at 79. We will remember him best from Henry & June, Big Business, and Short Cuts. 
• IndieWire interesting report on how the streamers are all doing. It was a rough quarter given the expensive (to streamers and viewers) content wars but HBOMax is holding steady and AppleTV got an enormous boost from CODA's Best Picture Oscar win.
• Harvard Film Archives posters of queer movies over the decades from multiple countries

Character actor James Hong, Stephen King adaptations, a royal role for Christopher Walken, smoking hot silent film stars, and more after the jump...

Click to read more ...

Almost There: Delroy Lindo in "Da 5 Bloods"

by Cláudio Alves

Last week, in the aftermath of the Oscar nominations, I asked you, dear readers, to vote on which performance should get an "Almost There" treatment. Of the fifteen possibilities, your choice was clear – Delroy Lindo in Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods. He got nearly a quarter of the votes, and so, here we are, ready to dissect an achievement that, months ago, seemed like a sure bet in the Best Actor race. The role in question is that of Paul, a war veteran who, along with his brothers in arms, returns to Vietnam in search of a lost treasure and the remains of a mentor…

Click to read more ...