July. It's a Wrap

We're in the dog days of summer now. Just one month of the heat left to go. July flew by. Here are a dozen of the highlights in case you missed 'em...

 

• Debbi Morgan in Eve's Bayou Nick takes on this modern classic that has a Criterion release coming
• Fire of Love Glenn on the volcanic love documentary hit
• Till Nathaniel talks to the director of this awards hopeful drama
• 28 Years 28 Films Cláudio celebrates his birthday with a film timeline
• Laura Linney Double Vision She looks EXACTLY like her mother. Uncanny
• Ranking the Men of LA Confidential Ben looks back at the men of this '97 classic
• Stage Door: The Minutes a new play from Tracy Letts 
• Mrs Harris Goes to Paris Chris reviews the frothy Lesley Manville dramedy
• James Caan (RIP) Remembering an underappreciated great
• Through Her Lens 2013 Juan Carlos series returns to look back at the work of female directors corresponding with each Oscar year, whether or not they were nominated (usually not) 
• Almost There: Pam Grier Cláudio thinks she should've won the Oscar for Jackie Brown
• Venice and TIFF lineups with photos, descriptions, and anticipation

COMING IN AUGUST
Emmy reviews of individual categories, new movies like Bullet Train, Luck, Girl Picture, They/Them, a few reader requests from the recent fundraiser, and a weeklong celebration of Cameron Diaz for her 50th birthday.

Finally, at the end of the month, the 1951 Supporting Actress Smackdown featuring the first screen adaptations of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, and Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire. Since 3/5ths of the supporting actress nominees that month were from films on the obscure side (even for cinephiles), we'll fill in with celebrations of more celebrated movies of 1951, too. ANY REQUESTS?

ICYMI - Best of June

June didn't work out exactly as we planned but we delivered most of what we promised (sorry Eleanor Parker -- we'll try to make up for it in July) and it sure ended on a high note with Baz Luhrmann's Elvis.

Here are a dozen of the highlights in case you missed 'em...

• Halfway Mark the best performances and films of the year thus far
• Almost There Emily Blunt - she's a perennial at "almost" snagging an Oscar nod so Cláudio talked The Devil Wears Prada
• Judy Garland @ 100 we covered nine movies from ending with her final film I Could Go On Singing
• Best Shot Fire Island this one was fun to really look at... and not just for thirst reasons
• Ranking International Feature Oscar winners - Juan Carlos has seen them all
• Emma Thompson in Good Luck To You Leo Grande - what a performance!
• Jurassic World Dominion - Chris says the franchise should go extinct now
• Stage Door - we launched a weekly theater column w/ a celebration of Mare Winningham
• "TV" Movie or Just"Movie" - The Emmys are so confusing!
• The 75th Annual Tony Awards - back to basics so it was good musical fun!
• Klute Deep Dive - a tag team miniseries on the seminal thriller.  
• Tom & Dickie - Chris got in the bath with The Talented Mr Ripley

COMING IN JULY 
New films like Marvel's Thor Love and Thunder, Lesley Manville & Isabelle Huppert in Mrs Harris Goes to Paris, and Jordan Peele's Nope. Plus plenty on the Emmy nominations (which will be announced July 12th) ...for better and worse. We also hope to do a few reader's requests from the fundraiser. And a celebration of the director Blake Edwards (Breakfast at Tiffanys, Victor/Victoria) for his Centennial.

Finally, at the end of the month, the 1997 Supporting Actress Smackdown so we'll be discussing Boogie Nights, Good Will Hunting, LA Confidential, Titanic, In & Out, and maybe some other 1997 gems, scattered throughout the month. 

Halfway Mark 1: Fav Films & Miscellaneous Achievements of 2022 (thus far)

by Nathaniel R

The following list honors films released between January 1st, 2022 and June 30th, 2022. Obviously studios save the bulk of their perceived "prestige" pictures until the back half of the year but we always hope that lists like this will remind them they don't need to and to remind audiences that there's good stuff all year round. These are not official nominees for our own film bitch awards but they do function as reminder lists as we compile year-end stuff later on. If every Academy member and critic did this, awards season would be far more varied and film culture would be more robust because people would be seeing movies all year round and not cramming in only a small heap of them at year's end. 

Okay off of the soapbox and on to the favourites of 2022 (thus far) in alpha order by category. The pictures do not indicate winners as they're all winners. This is just an appreciation for these artists and movies...  

Click to read more ...

ICYMI - Best of May

The multiverse fever of May breaks very soon and in its place, whatever June brings. But what will that be... beside birthday gifts for me (haha) But let's look back quickly at May in case you missed these highlights. You've been quiet as mice in the comments but we hope you're still enjoying. We do take requests if you have any. (May was very light outside of Cannes coverage we're aware but June will be jam-packed. Gird your loins)

A Dozen May Highlights
• FYC Honorary Oscars - 20 suggestions
• Anthony Hopkins full casting circle - from CS Lewis to Sigmund Freud
• Best Shot: Happy Together - what a ravishment to revisit
• Nostalgia via The Breakfast Club - Baby Clyde revisited from a British kid-at-the-time perspective
• On Alexander Skarsgård - Matt says he's a character actor in hunk body
• Multiverse of Madness - Raves for The Scarlet Witch, otherwise... eh
• Returning Show Bottleneck - Chris wondered what will happen at the Emmys since they like to repeat themselves but ALL of their favs are returning (so they won't be able to to)
• Support Everything Everywhere All At Once - Eurocheese argued it's a cant-miss big screen event. Lots of people agreed to leggy box office results 

and of course our Cannes coverage with 1 of us (Elisa) in the South of France and 2 of us (Nathaniel and Cláudio) typing away from our homes...

• Cannes Winners - with links to all of Elisa's reviews
• Cannes at Home: The Square and 4 Month 3 Weeks and 2 Days - It's hard to pick just one of Cláudio's retros to share but both of these films are so fascinating so it was great to revisit mentally if not by actual screenings
• Cannes Fashion - Your last chance to vote on these 11 rounds of Cannes gowns. Who were the greatest actress fashionistas this edition?

COMING IN JUNE

New films: Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, Joel Kim Booster in Fire Island, David Cronenberg's Crimes of the Future, Pixar prequel Lightyear, Fabulous Emma Thompson in Good Luck to you Leo Grande, and tiny Marcel the Shell with Shoes On; Retro celebrations: Judy Garland Centennial, Eleanor Parker Centennial, and the last episodes of "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" including Titanic, Yentl, and Klute; And More: Emmy FYCs, new interviews, Tony Awards coverage, and at the end of the month the "Halfway Mark" lists for Best Cinematic Achievements Thus Far in 2022. Plus the new SUPPORTING ACTRESS SMACKDOWN schedule. 

April. It's a Wrap

You guys. It's the first monthly wrap of the film year (given that last year's awards season showed itself the door just one month ago). I'll be the first to admit that the site has been unusually quiet this month but it's the refractory period! We're (almost) ready to come roaring back. 

A Dozen April Highlights ICYMI
• April Foolish Oscar Predictions [ALL NEW CHARTS] -an annual too-early tradition
• Touring The First Lady Suites - A unique promo for the starry miniseries
• Wicked (2024/2025) in Two Parts - What a uniquely terrible idea!
• Almost There [S4] - Nicole Kidman in The Paperboy (2012)
• One for Them, One For Me [S2] - Natalie Portman's 2011
• Hit Me With Your Best Shot [S8]- The Godfather (1972)
• 50 Greatest RomComs - A list covering 1932-1989
• Heartstoppers Thought Experiment - What if Olivia Colman didn't exist?
• Crimes of the Future - Cronenberg's tease
• Barbie (2023) - first promo image
• And The Runner Up is - On the 1947 Best Actress Race
• Doris Day [MINISERIES] - a three part retrospective
• Hou Hsiao-hsien [MINISERIES] a four part retrospective
 

Coming in May
Coverage of the Cannes Film Festival, the Tony nominations, a look back at Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2 and Wong Kar Wai's Happy Together for our "Best Shot" series, and the schedule for the new season of Supporting Actress Smackdown. We'll also cover a bevy of new films including Downton Abbey 2, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Men, Top Gun Maverick, and The Bob's Burgers Movie. At month's end we kick off 12 episode Judy Garland Centennial Miniseries!