Kajillionaire: The Latest from Miranda July

By Abe Friedtanzer

I still remember when I convinced a few high school friends that the next movie for us to watch together should be Me and You and Everyone We Know. I was fully enthralled by the feature directorial debut of writer-director Miranda July, which explored unconventional romances and perspectives, and, to me, was the definition of experimental and arthouse filmmaking at the time. My friends were not quite as amused, and are still probably angry at me for making them watch it if they haven’t fully blocked it from their memories fifteen years later. 

July’s follow-up, The Future, was intriguing but ultimately disappointing. I was nonetheless very much on board to see July’s latest, released a full nine years after her second, when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this past January. For the first time, July doesn’t appear in her film, and it builds on the transition she made between her first two films to feature a more typical narrative. The concepts continue to be totally peculiar, but the way in which the story is presented is actually quite normal...

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New Oscar Predictions: Screenplays and International Submissions

OKAY. Finally we have succumbed to the enthusiasm that there just might be a winter movie season after all. Maybe? Perhaps? Might? So it's time to update all those Oscar charts. We'll work our way quickly up to the the acting categories, don't worry, since all the charts are in heavy progress behind the scenes. The following charts are now up: 

• Supporting Actor - Which we just discussed via Trial of Chicago 7 though I've altered one key detail from fears that Judas and the Black Messiah will not arrive at all by late February
• Screenplays - Original & Adapted Contenders
• International Feature Overview - Overall Stats & Wild Guesswork
• International Submissions Pt 1: Albania through Greece
• International Submissions Pt 2: Germany through Norway
• International Submissions Pt 3: Pakistan through Vietnam

What do you think will score in the screenplay categories?

The Furniture: SciFi on a Budget in Planet of the Vampires

"The Furniture," by Daniel Walber. (Click on the images for magnified detail)

Last week’s column was about Dr. Zhivago, the obvious first choice for any 1965 celebration of production design. But where do we go for Part 2? None of the other 9 nominees really leap forward as worth a column, though I do like King Rat. Outside Oscar’s purview, meanwhile, there’s a lot. There are sweeping historical dramas, like The Saragossa Manuscript and Forest of the Hanged. There are wildly bizarre fantasies, like Juliet of the Spirits and Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors. But I think it would be fun to follow Dr. Zhivago with something entirely different, a movie with only a handful of sets and a budget of $200,000.

Mario Bava’s Planet of the Vampires was perhaps never destined to be a hit. Bava was disappointed with the casting of Barry Sullivan as Captain Mark Markary, who he considered far too old. Sullivan, for his part, took one look at the script and assumed the worst. It wasn’t until he showed up for ADR recording that he saw just how much magic Bava could get out of $200,000. The images took his breath away...

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Almost There: Nathan Lane in "The Birdcage"

by Cláudio Alves

For as long as queer narratives have attracted prestige and awards buzz, straight actors have earned praise for playing LGBTQ+ characters. They're often complimented for being brave, risky, for putting their careers on the line in pursuit of some grand artistic merit. Even in 2020, once you move away from the festival circuit and regard more mainstream productions, it's hard to find actual queer actors portraying these roles. Ammonite and Supernova are just the latest examples of this trend. This isn't to say that cishet actors can't be great at playing queer roles, but we'd like some variety, especially in the context of Oscars.

Back in 1996, AMPAS had a good opportunity to honor a gay actor playing a gay role. Nathan Lane, who admittedly wasn't out yet, was in contention for a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his work in Mike Nichols' The Birdcage…

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"Trial of the Chicago 7" and Best Supporting Actor

by Nathaniel R

Abdul-Mateen, Shenkman, Rylance, Redmayne and Sharp in "Trial of the Chicago 7"

You've waited long enough. This is our latest ever take on the acting categories in 20 years of punditry. But you know, "2020". Consider it an all purpose hellscape excuse! Though Hollywood is still in disarray there will eventually be another Oscar ceremony. Nominations are still more than five months away (March 15th, 2021) so if this were any other year these prediction charts would essentially be the early August charts. Does that make sense? In other words, much about this Oscar season has yet to be revealed. 

But let's take a stab at Best Supporting Actor since we've just screened The Trial of the Chicago 7 which is basically the kind of movie that dreams of, no fantasizes lustfully, about filling in all five spots. The most Supporting Actor nominations to have arrived from a single film is three, which happened twice in Oscar history via The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather Part Two (1974). It will probably not happen again with Chicago 7, but it theoretically could given that it's ALL supporting actors all the time.  Let's rank them shall we, in terms of Oscar possibility...

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