NBR Loves "A Star is Born" and "Beale Street" but names "Green Book" Best of the Year

by Nathaniel R

Mahershala and Viggo are all dolled up and ready for awards shows

The National Board of Review announced its winners today for their January 8th gala at Cipriani 42nd Street. While NBR no longer signifies the kick-off to precursor season (with the Gotham and Spirit Awards announcing so early each year) they're still a significant bellwether or rather they're a bell ringing, alerting everyone that you can't hide from awards season; it is upon us! This year Green Book, A Star is Born, and If Beale Street Could Talk were their three obvious favorites, the only films to take multiple prizes.

THIS YEAR'S PRIZES, WHAT THEY MIGHT MEAN, AND SOME STATS AFTER THE JUMP...

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Top Ten: Ezra Miller Lewks

by Nathaniel R

Tilda & Ezra 7 years ago. He learned from a master

We have been greatly remiss in celebrating Ezra Miller's rising fashion-icon insanity. I am pleased in retrospect to have been one of the five people who saw and admired his debut performance in the disturbing art film Afterschool which made $3,911* at the box office in 2009 (*actual figure, not sarcasm). I vividly remember seeing it because when I left the theater, a friend who worked at the Nashville Film Festival ran up to tell me that Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban had attended the screening directly before mine. (A tragedy truly: we saw the same movie at the same festival on the same day but weren't in the same showing. ARGH!)

More than ever in 2018, Miller has proven that his casting as Tilda Swinton's son in his breakout picture, Lynne Ramsay's We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) was more than a little prescient because he's following in Tilda's iconoclastic and androgynous footsteps in the department of causing stirs on the red carpet.

So herewith a top ten of Ezra fashion after the jump...  

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Happy Parker Posey Day! Her 10 Best...

by Nathaniel R

Happy 50th birthday today to the one and only Parker Posey. The 'Queen of Indies' of the 1990s isn't as celebrated these days and, frankly, we could use a lot more of her. So we're eager to read her hilariously titled memoir (pictured left) which was published this summer. Hollywood has always been a bit confused about her but we're relieved that she didn't just vanish after that first decade of fame (it girl status, indie or otherwise, is by its nature, transitory) but instead forged a patchwork kind of career mixing supporting roles in indies, tv movies, the occasional mainstream feature, and guest starring and recurring characters on TV. She's currently starring in Netflix's reboot of Lost in Space (where she plays the shady Dr Smith) and she's also recently completed filming a new indie called Elsewhere.

For her birthday we thought we'd share a list of her greatest performances.  Posey is such a curiousity that we're sure everyone's top ten will vary immensely, so have at it in the comments!

Disclaimer: I should note that the three most acclaimed performances I haven't seen from her filmography are the indies Fay Grim (2006) and Broken English (2007) and the TV film for which she was Globe nominated Hell on Heels: The Battle of Mary Kay (2002).

Ready for the list? Let's go!

Honorable Mentions: hell, just about everything but wanted to specifically note the following: Rhonda in Adam and Steve (2006), Miami in Kicking and Screaming (1995), Debbie in Drunks (1995), Kitty Kowalski in Superman Returns (2006), and Sissy Knox in A Mighty Wind (2003)

TEN BEST OF PARKER POSEY

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The Very Best of Toni Collette

by Nathaniel R

A very happy birthday to Toni Collette today. We discussed this once on the blog a year or two ago but let's update our list of favorite Collette performances on her birthday since she was absolutely slaying the multiplex this past summer in the demonic horror flick Hereditary. She's currently up for a Gotham award for Best Actress for that role.

She's also starring in the new Netflix series Wanderlust about a married couple trying an open marriage though I haven't yet watched it (it's on the queue). My list of Toni's best work goes like so. Yours?

12 LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (BAFTA nomination, SAG ensemble nomination)
Warm, worried, winning.

11 IN HER SHOES 
Not everything about this works but she's wonderful in it...

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Best Supporting Horror Performances?

BOO! Happy ongoing October. So last night we tossed out fav leading performance in horror movies list... and are now realizing it's just not complete without supporting performance. So herewith two more impromptu lists (mostly off the top of my head again) for discussion fun. 

10 Best Supporting Actresses in a Horror Film

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Top Ten Quickie - Best Horror Performances?

Eeek! We have planned absolutely nothing for Halloween on the blog just yet so in case we don't here is an impromptu list (mostly off the top of my head) for discussion fun. Since horror is not my preferred genre, it was actually quite hard to come up with the male actors list but the female list was easy but for the difficulty of narrowing it down. Can you believe I had to leave the Exorcist women off the list? 

10 Best Lead Actresses in a Horror Film

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