"Brooklyn" Is Old School Hollywood Magic

Author Colin Toibin wrote in his novel, "Brooklyn" that his protagonist Ellis Lacey and her family could, "do everything except say out loud what they were thinking." In the film adaptation of that same novel, Academy Award nominee Saoirse Ronan makes this aspect of her character incredibly clear through her incredibly textured performance. Over the course of the movie's near two hour running time, we see the evolution and growth of a young woman in an unfamiliar land play out beautifully across her expressive face.

Category Fraud Runs Amok Through Oscar Season

It seems that with each passing Oscar season, incidents of category fraud grow more common, and the conversation around it growing louder.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the  term, "category fraud" is when an actor or actress is campaigned for awards in the wrong category. It's usually done to avoid "internal competition", which is campaigning two performances from the same movie, or simply a case of the studio going with the less competitive category.

"Room" Wins Big & Surprises at TIFF

The People's Choice Award (the Toronto Film Festival's Best Picture Award) has been given to films such as "Silver Lining's Playbook", "12 Years A Slave" and "The Imitation Game" to name a few. To say this award isn't an indicator of Oscar success (whether you're nominated for Best picture or actually win the whole thing) is foolish.

In a festival full of high-profile films such as "Spotlight", "Brooklyn" (the crowd pleasers), "The Danish Girl" (awards-bait) and other buzzy films such as "Our Brand Is Crisis", "Freeheld" and "Black Mass" (just to name a few), it's easy to lose track of all of the films attempting to make a splash.

Saorsie Ronan Stuns in the Gorgeous, Affecting First Trailer for "Brooklyn"

I have to admit, as intrigued as Saorsie Ronan's involvement in director John Crowley's film "Brooklyn" made me, I wasn't that excited about the film to put it on my must see list. Ronan, Oscar-nominated for her understated work in 2007's "Atonement", hasn't really had a great film since "Hanna", but as an actress, she's a knockout. Even in mixed bags like "The Lovely Bones" she finds ways to elevate dull material with her expressive eyes.

However, watching the first trailer, the ecstatic reaction the film received after its bow at Sundance makes me need to see the film. This might be the gold Ronan needed to ascend to true leading lady status, and an Oscar doesn't seem too far out of her reach.

Based on the novel by Colom Tóbín, Ronan plays Ellis, a young woman who immigrates from Ireland to New York City during the 1950s in search of work, and a better life. After finding a job and a home (run by a strict landlady, played by Julie Walters, she meets Tony, a young Italian plumber. The two are instantly smitten, but when her sister passes away, she's called back to Ireland to help her family. Her past life disrupts the beautiful dream she's made for herself in America, and suddenly, Ellis is torn between her love in America, and her love back home.

Ronan, being front and center, spells good things for the film's awards chances. It seems like a very naturalistic, yet complex, role, and after last season being so male-dominated, it's refreshing to see a woman's story at the front of the awards contenders, and handled with such sensitivity.

Distributed by Fox Searchlight, the film will be released on November 6, aka, the perfect time for Oscar contenders.

Watch the trailer below.

Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet & Seth Rogan Aim for Oscar in "Jobs" Trailer

It's almost strange to see Michael Fassbender take such a conventional biopic choice given his very eclectic early role choices ("Shame", "Fish Tank" and "12 Years A Slave"). But here's to hoping his performance as Apple creator Steve Jobs is filled with the same fire and energy he's brought to his previous performances.

He's already won raves for his work in "Macbeth", so I think having this role to measure against that one is a good way to lead him into the Oscar race for something, whichever role appeals more to voters (which I feel will be this one).

Other than an almost unrecognizable Kate Winslet (could this bring her back into Oscar's warm graces since her win in 2008 for "The Reader"?), Seth Rogan seems to be making a play for a Jonah Hill Best Supporting Actor play of sorts; voters love it when comedians take on serious roles with some humor still lingering.

The screenplay by Aaron Sorkin is reminiscent of "The Social Network"; almost at a lightning quick pace. How do actors manage to spout off that much in almost seconds?

Time will tell if this is better than the ill-fated "Jobs" starring Ashton Kutcher, or if it's a critical success much like "The Social Network". Take a look at the trailer below.

"Spy" is Melissa McCarthy's Best Work To Date

When Melissa McCarthy first took Hollywood by storm in 2011, it was as the loveably raunchy Megan in "Bridesmaids". The film was a surprising critical and box office behemoth, landing two Academy Award nominations (including one for McCarthy) and more than $250 million at the box office. Since then, McCarthy has proved to be a continued box office draw; her films ("Identity Thief", "The Heat" and even "Tammy") have all grossed at least $100 million.

McCarthy the actress, however, has not had a role since Megan that has challenged her. Outside of her very nuanced and solid performance in last year's "St. Vincent", she's continued to rely on the loud mouthed, not 'conventionally' attractive woman while putting a comedic spin on her weight. And while there's nothing wrong with that, it would be nice to see McCarthy flex those acting muscles we know she has.

Her third outing with "Bridesmaids" and "The Heat" director Paul Feig, is the very vehicle McCarthy needed not only to establish herself as more than a one trick pony, but a true movie star. We knew she could carry films before, but never like this. "Spy" is McCarthy's magnum opus.

Meryl Streep Enlists Carey Mulligan and Helena Bonham-Carter in "Suffragette" Trailer

After the very short teaser we received a few months ago, team "Suffragette" is back with an undeniably powerful trailer.

The trailer does an amazing job at introducing the main players (Bonham-Carter, Mulligan, Annie Marie Duff, among others) while hinting at Streep's turn as Feminist legend Emmeline Pankhurst. There's a gorgeous reworking of Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide" towards the end, and a very affecting line by Carey's character: "War is the only language men listen to."

If you were underestimating the potential of "Suffragette" in the Oscar race, think again. Methinks this will be a very strong play for Mulligan, Bonham-Carter, Streep and the film itself.

Watch the trailer below. "Suffragette" will open the London Film Festival and will be released in the states on October 23.

Academy Award Winner Mo'Nique "Blackballed" for "Not Playing the Game"

It's been quite some time since we heard from Academy Award winner Mo'Nique, who dominated the Supporting Actress race back in 2009. It seemed like she was on top of the world with her pick of some prime projects. There was that rumor about the Hattie McDaniel's biopic directed by her "Precious" director Lee Daniels, but nothing ever really materialized. And then there was that wonderful trailer for "Blackbird" that premiered sometime last year, but since then things have been quiet.

It's clear after today why. According to the Oscar winner in an essay published by The Hollywood Reporter, ever since she won her trophy, she has been "blackballed" by the industry.

If I Had A Ballot: My Academy Award Nominees (Acting)

I will never understand how the driving topic of the past year was how weak of a year it was for actresses. There must've been a thousand think pieces published by dozens of outlets on how embarrassingly dry the respective actress categories were as opposed to the men's.

But I would argue, that this was a marvelous year for actresses, that is, if you were able to look past Oscar's own playing field, which leaves little to be desired for what they determine to be Oscar-worthy roles/performances. Once you open your surroundings, you'll find a wealthy field of contenders, each with a more interesting, complex turn than the last. I think it's fair to say that the industry failed women, not so much Hollywood.

This year, we watched Scarlett Johansson as a silent alien seductress, Jennifer Aniston as a pill popping, chronic pain victim suffering from depression, Anna Kendrick as a modern and complex princess Cinderella, and Reese Witherspoon traveling the P.C.T. finding her long-reported missing inner leading lady along the way. And that's only scratching the surface of what women did this year, I did't even mention Rosamund Pike's unforgettable Amazing Amy, or Meryl Streep's incomparable Witch.

And despite that male-centric Best Picture field, there were also deeply moving, enjoyable projects either made by a woman, or told women's stories. An honest, refreshing look into abortion ("Obvious Child"), a critique of the music industry and the selling of sex and the 'female pop star' ("Beyond the Lights"), a period piece starring a woman of color in the title role ("Belle")... the list goes on.

Not to say that it wasn't a great year for the boys, because who will be able to look back and not remember Michael Keaton in "Birdman" or David Oyelowo in "Selma"? Two of the greatest performances in recent history that will most definitely be discussed and studied for years to come. But a lot of the celebrated turns by men this year, I found, to land pretty flat. I loved Eddie Redmayne in "Les Miserables" as much as everyone else, and sure, his transformation into Stephen Hawking was brilliant... but it left him little to no room to actually turn in a performance.

But I digress, I've procrastinated long enough. My choices in the acting contenders are:

Anna Kendrick is Stuck On The Steps of the Palace

Take a look at an exclusive clip of Anna Kendrick as Cinderella in Disney's "Into The Woods".

Kendrick performs Cinderella's iconic "On the Steps of the Palace" and to say she nails it is an understatement.

Watch the video, and hear the audio of the full song below.

Into the Woods: A Serious Oscar Threat

"Into the Woods" has been a question mark in the awards race throughout the season. Though I have fearlessly (and a bit prematurely, I will admit) predicted the film to appear in categories such as Best Picture and Supporting Actress, most prognosticators have steered clear of placing their chips in Woods' favor. Though there have been film musicals such as "Chicago" and "Les Miserables" have had strong awards recognition, there have been those ("Hairspray", "Nine", "Grease", etc.) that have been largely ignored by the Academy. However, it's clear that after last night's DGA screening of Rob Marshall's adaptation that Into the Woods is coming to crash the party come December 25th. 

Into the Woods' Dilemma: The Case of the 3 Women

Disney's "Into the Woods" is arguably the biggest question mark in the Oscar race right now, next to J.C. Chandor's "A Most Violent Year". The Rob Marshall directed musical has the prestige to at least be on the Oscar radar (Marshall directed "Chicago", another musical which won 8 Oscars including Best Picture), several Oscar nominated actors in its very starry cast (Meryl Streep, Anna Kendricks and Johnny Depp) and is based on an acclaimed stage play by Stephen Soundheim, who penned the likes of "Sweeney Todd" (the film adaptation was nominated for 3 Oscars, including Best Actor for Depp). But the buzz on the film has been questionable at best; there were those early reports that the source material was facing "conservative changes", later reported to be false by Soundheim himself. Then there was the report that Streep's new song made special for her and the film itself, was cut, following rumors of a month of reshoots.

All this drama has me wondering about A.) The potential quality of the film and B.) The film's role in the Oscar race.

First Official Poster For Into The Woods; Meryl Front and Center

Disney's "Into the Woods" is largely a player in the Oscar race simply because of actress Meryl Streep, who plays the largely coveted role of The Witch in Rob Marshall's adaptation. The role has been played by veteran musical theater actresses Bernedette Peters and Vanessa Williams in the past on Broadway, so obviously Disney needed a huge name to put in the marquee role.

Though Meryl was nominated for a Golden Globe for her last musical project ("Momma Mia"), her performance outside of that lone nomination wasn't warmly embraced (the Globes nominate her more often than the Oscars do; she has a record 28 nominations). It's an easy call now to predict that she'll have 29 by the end of this year when the nominations are announced, but what is going on with Woods' Oscar chances?

Oscar Race: Turning Up the Heat

The end of the summer is upon us, and with the Venice Film Festival just around the corner (starting on the 27th and ending on the 6th of September), we're really about to get in the thick of Oscar season.

Of course, the summer has been dominated (mainly) by buzz; none of the films that are being predicted to be heavyweights in the season have premiered to the masses yet, except for Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" (more on that later). Of the films predicted to do well this season, even fewer have had premieres at all ("Whiplash" had Sundance, "Foxcatcher" had Cannes, "Birdman" will open Venice in a week's time); we've mainly been restricted to pictures, hearsay and trailers.

So, where does that leave us now?

Boyhood: A Film 12 Years in the Making

Our eponymous "boy" played by Eller Coltrane as he ages through the film's 164 minute duration. 

By now, I'm sure everyone has heard of Richard Linklater's "Boyhood"; its the film that took literally 12 years to make. Over this period of 12 years, for a few days, Linklater (serving not only as the film's director, but writer as well) and his cast and crew would assemble for a few days or so every year to revisit the characters, slowly inching towards its emotional conclusion.

Boyhood is a strangely simple title given the laundry list of themes the film explores. Sure, at the center is Mason (Coltrane) who we are watching literally age and grow up. But besides that, Linklater tackles abusive relationships, coming of age, falling in love, absent parents, and (briefly) sex, drugs and alcohol; with Boyhood, Linklater has taken snapshots in time and assembled them into the human experience.

First Into the Woods Trailer

Well well well, just as I mentioned last night that Disney was being curiously aloof about not yet releasing a trailer for "Into the Woods", one pops up the next day, and boy does it do the job.

The trailer does a great job at not only introducing the scope of the film (which is seriously epic), but all of the principal players, with Streep at the forefront. It seems like she's going to be the film's main selling point... smart strategy.

Take a look below.

First Official Images from Disney's "Into the Woods"

The promotion for the upcoming musical adaptation "Into the Woods" has been strangely very quiet... though it's not due out until Christmas Day, you'd think there would be at least a teaser trailer out at this point (Angelina Jolie's "Unbroken", which also is opening on Christmas Day, has released 2 trailers thus far). The musical is increasingly popular, however, so I guess Disney is relying a lot on the core, die hard audience (in the same way "Les Miseerables" did back in 2012). I'm sure they're waiting to strike, and with such a starry cast, there's no doubt in my mind that box office success will elude the film.

That being said, Disney has released some really gorgeous looking stills from the film, never seen before featuring Anna Kendrick, Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, Christine Baranski and a glimpse of Johnny Depp as The Wolf.

Take a look below at the stills.

The Rest of Our Acting Contenders: Old and New Faces

Emma Stone and Michael Keaton could receive their first Oscar nominations for "Birdman"

A few days ago, I ran through our long list of Best Actress contenders (a list that doesn't even really encompass all of the hopefuls this season has to offer, just those with the best chances at even being recognized). Though Best Actor is even more stacked than last year's massive pool, the Supporting categories are as weak as ever (at least they are right now), especially Supporting Actor.

"Birdman" has 3 contenders hoping for a nomination; leading man Michael Keaton, best known for his role in Tim Burton's "Batman" films, along with co-stars Ed Norton (a previous 2 time nominee) and Emma Stone (it would be her first Oscar nomination. She also will be seen in Woody Allen's "Magic in the Moonlight"), while the men of "Foxcatcher" all seem like safe bets in their respective categories; at this point, Leading Actor is between Steve Carrell and Channing Tatum, with Carrell having a slight edge (he has goodwill from being left out for "Little Miss Sunshine" a few years ago).

But enough yammering on, let's go through the rest of the acting categories. Take a look at my FULL list of nominations here

"I'm Here... I'm really here"

I caught up with Darren Aronofsky's "The Wrestler" the other day, a film criminally underrated during its run in the 2008 awards season. I had forgotten what a tour-de-force this film was for everyone involved. It was unlike anything Darren Aronofsky had done in his career thus far, proving he was capable of much more than the "triply drug movie director" people took him to be after Requiem For A Dream. The Wrestler is a much subtler piece of art; it's simply a character study about a past his prime wrestler played by Mickey Rourke.

Rourke's character, Randy "The Ram" Robinson isn't too far off from Rourke's own Hollywood persona. Before the film came out, many had Rourke pinned as a has-been, and a washed up actor who had his 15 minutes. In the film, just about everyone is ready to give up on The Ram. To say Rourke was simply "inspired casting" is underplaying the magic of The Wrestler, as the art truly reflected Rourke's life on the screen.

Fandor Breaks Down Major Oscar Races: Who Really Deserves to Win?

Kevin B. Lee of Fandor.com has published his video essay on the major acting races. I've got to to say, watching Lee break down the performances, right down to the screen time, had me reevaluate my own choices for who deserves to win the Oscar... especially in the case of Supporting Actor. Even if you disagree with his preferences, you can't deny he presents very persuasive reasons for his case(s).

I would even recommend watching his entries from last year's race, which you can find on his Youtube channel.

Check out the analyzations below.