In a few days, Roma will (hopefully) win the Best Picture Oscar. So, I thought it would be fun to look at the history of the most coveted award in cinema history - even if it really doesn't mean much. Not too long ago, I realized that I'd seen all but five of the current 90 … Continue reading That lousy movie won?! A little bit of Oscar trivia…and some opinions
Category: Awards
My Thoughts on the Oscar Nominations
The Motion Picture Academy announced the Oscar nominations Tuesday morning. I'm not making any guesses, but here are my thoughts: Best Picture Roma is unquestionably the best film I saw that opened in 2018, but I doubt it will win. Alfonso Cuarón's look back at his childhood home is only the 10th foreign-language film to get … Continue reading My Thoughts on the Oscar Nominations
My 15 Best Moviegoing Experiences of 2018
I went to the movies quite a bit in 2018, and it was often a wonderful experience. I attended six (I think) Bay Area film festivals, numerous special presentations, and just plain really good movies. In May, I flew to Rochester, New York for the Nitrate Picture Show. For four days of screenings and museum … Continue reading My 15 Best Moviegoing Experiences of 2018
San Francisco Film Critics Circle 2018 Awards
The San Francisco Film Critics Circle - an organization to which I do not belong - announced Sunday its 2018 awards. Here they are, with my commentary in purple. Not all of these films have yet played in Bay Area theaters outside of festivals, but they all will play before December 31. Best Picture Roma … Continue reading San Francisco Film Critics Circle 2018 Awards
The Oscars: The Best Movies Actually Won
I don't recall an Oscar show where the Academy and I agreed in almost every category. My only disappointment was Roger Deakins' win for Best cinematography. Deakins is an excellent artist, but I was pushing for Rachel Morrison for Mudbound. A confession: I didn't watch the awards show. My wife and I had tickets to … Continue reading The Oscars: The Best Movies Actually Won
The Oscar Nominees
The Motion Picture Academy released the 2017 Oscar nominees this morning, and for the most part, they did a good job. (As I write this, oscar.com is over capacity. I'm getting the results from CNN.) Let's start with the big one: Best Picture. There are nine nominees this year, and I saw and liked eight … Continue reading The Oscar Nominees
Top 15 Moviegoing Experiences of 2017
Instead of listing my top ten movies of 2017, I'm giving you my top 15 moviegoing experiences of the year. What's the difference? I consider the theater, the quality of the print or digital source, the enthusiasm of the audience, and live onstage supplements such as musical accompaniment and filmmaker Q&As. I also consider the … Continue reading Top 15 Moviegoing Experiences of 2017
