Tuesday 1 January 2019

Another Year and Another Official Lineup

As usual my annual predictions for the official Oscar lineup for Lead and Supporting Actor.
For lead I've once again gone with the SAG five all whom seem they're in a pretty good position, as four of the five are "transformative" roles, that voters typically love, and four of the five are playing real people another bit of voter cap nip as well. Mortensen and Cooper, are both well loved by the academy and with their films apparently being big players they should coast to their nominations. Mortensen after all got in his last two times for films that were otherwise wholly snubbed, so it shouldn't be too difficult when he has other nominations for his film. Malek and Bale's films are not beloved, critically, however they have hit all the right places so far, and even negative reviews of their films typically painted them in a positive light. Malek's film in particular also has over performed so far with the televised awards, and I'm starting to get an Eddie Redmayne vibe from him (especially since the academy can award Cooper other places), though I won't rush to conclusions. The question mark then is John David Washington, the son of academy mainstay Denzel Washington, who despite a random misses in a few less important precursors, has gotten the most important ones when it comes to predictions. I do think he seems pretty set for a nomination. Voters will sometimes forget the younger lead of a film, however he's already been recognized multiple places so that doesn't seem to be the case. The only other hiccup might be a BAFTA snub, his old man has never been nominated there, which can open for another contender to gain ground. It needs to be a real contender there though, for example if critical darling Ethan Hawke shows up there then Hawke has a serious chance, however if say they go for say Steve Coogan in Stan and Ollie, it probably won't translate. Washington seems well protected given the love his film has received as opposed to his seemingly main opponents for the position in Hawke and Ryan Gosling whose films have under performed so far beyond the critics. If the film is doing as well as it has been so far Washington should be an easy inclusion. The other four seem pretty well protected barring a "buyers remorse" regarding Bale given the extreme shift between the twitter hype around Vice that broke down once the film was actually reviewed. This five though seems fairly likely, so I won't second guess it. Hawke would probably be my #6 in predictions, but critical darlings have been left off before. 
No, your eyes aren't fooling you that too is the SAG lineup. Driver and Grant seem quite safe as even when their films have under-performed they've still made it in. The same goes for Ali whose category fraud seems likely to be ignored, since you know he shows up like 10 minutes into the film before he becomes co-lead. Easy second nomination for him given the historical figure, love for the film, the size of his role, and afterglow love after his win two years ago. That leaves Sam Elliott who has been has been making strives in the last few years seemingly to be taken more seriously as an actor beyond just his Sam Elliott style presence. That could helps towards some recognition for A Star is Born. His role is fairly small though, and he was snubbed at the Globes. They obviously have no overlap with the Oscars however it shows that even if a group loves the film they can ignore Elliott. His nomination would be a pivotal part in terms of seeing if the Academy loves A Star is Born or simply really likes it. Now that leaves a certain part of the Internet's favorite, Timothée Chalamet. Well his film has not taken the world by storm in any quality. He's not the critical favorite or anything like that, but he's gotten in at Globes and SAG. He seems like the type that can miss given his film's reception however. The reason I'm predicting him though is the same reason I predicted Robert Duvall for The Judge, back for 2014. There is just such a small field to select from (in academy terms of course, it would be nice if they'd get a mind of their own since in reality there are plenty of worthy candidates to choose from, however the field "selected" for them by the precursors is small). So it might not matter. The few alternatives that have found more "important" recognition are Sam Rockwell, and Michael B. Jordan. Jordan, despite his film doing well with SAG, was ignored so he seems unlikely. Rockwell got in at Globes however they went gaga for Vice in a way that may not carry over given its lack of critical success. Rockwell's role is pretty small, to the point if the Academy just does love the film I could see them randomly go for his co-star Steve Carell who has a slightly larger role in the film. That's saying they even look elsewhere. There are few critical players, like Russell Hornsby in The Hate you Give and Steven Yeun in Burning, however those would both be huge surprises if that were to happen, given that between the two films they'd probably at most get a single nomination, that being Foreign Language film for Burning. It just seems unlikely so rather than becoming creative it seems far more likely for the academy to default what's come before them. There is a chance for a dark horse contender to be introduced through BAFTA, possibly Nicholas Hoult in The Favourite, or Daniel Kaluuya in Widows, through some homegrown support, but even the likelihood of this seems ever slimmer as they've been consistently ignored even when their films have been recognized. Of course with these two lineups, as well as Actress, lining up with SAG in my mind, that seems like a little too much solidarity between the groups. After all five nominees didn't repeat last year, 3 the year before that, and a full 7 the year before that. So there should be a few shake ups, however it isn't easy to foresee them outside of supporting actress at the moment.

52 comments:

Mitchell Murray said...

Can't say my predictions are too different, honestly. Between these two categories the one I'd probably "want" to see a shake up from is best actor, so as to warrant deserving recognition for Hawke or Gosling. Bare in mind I haven't seen every film in consideration, but at the moment I'd still be betting on both lists here.

Also for everyone here, might I recommend watching "All about Nina" at some point, as I did just today. I'm actually very curious as to how it would be received here, since it's simply not a film for everyone, and I'm wondering how polarizing it might be, or if I'm mistaken and it actually finds a consistent response. I'm not a massive supporter of the film, per say, as there are a few elements that I found really grating. Also, to be an acidic comedy like its going for you should try an push the envelope, but I'm not sure the movie ever does, or at least does it in the "right" way, if you know what I mean. And to be clear, that complaint has nothing to do with an important dramatic element part way through, but is more in line with the director's sense for comedy.

That being said......Mary Elizabeth Winstead is... well.. I might just reserve my view for the moment, actually, as she's now been put on my short list. And like I stated before, if you can, see it for an opinion at least, but also for the central performance which I'm looking forward to discuss in greater detail.

Calvin Law said...

Driver and Washington will probably either both make it in, or neither will. I feel like it'd definitely come across as odd if only Driver gets in even though he's more of a lock.

Nevertheless, I will go for a slightly more daring set of predictions:

Lead Actor -

Cooper
Bale
Mortensen
Malek
Hawke

Supporting Actor -

Grant
Ali
Driver
Elliott
Jordan

Calvin Law said...

And for actress -

Gaga
McCarthy
Colman
Blunt
Pike

Stone
Weisz
King
Yeoh
Adams

Bryan L. said...

Calvin: I've thought the exact same thing re: Blackkklansman boys, and I think Driver getting in would help Washington's chances, since I think the Academy would face some backlash if only Driver got in from the movie.

I think I'd make the same predictions, although I'm not entirely sold on Chalamet getting in just yet.

Louis: Your predictions for the Best Picture category?

Charles H said...

Mine would be similar, and Happy New Year
Cooper
Bale
Mortensen
Malek
Washington


Grant
Ali
Driver
Elliott
Rockwell

Robert MacFarlane said...

I have Hawke getting in over Washington, but otherwise the same lineups.

Calvin Law said...

Also, if Louis' predictions are correct, the contenders for the upcoming lineups:

Locks (Lead) -

Ryan Gosling, First Man
Ethan Hawke, First Reformed
Marcello Fonte, Dogman
Robert Redford, The Old Man and the Gun
John Huston, The Other Side of the Wind (still need to check this out)

Likely (Lead)

Stephan James, If Beale Street Could Talk
Willem Dafoe, At Eternity's Gate
Yoo Ah-in, Burning
Lucas Hedges, Boy Erased
Ben Foster, either Leave No Trace or Galveston
John C. Reilly, The Sisters Brothers or Stan & Ollie (and paired with either Phoenix or Coogan)
Daveed Diggs, Blindspotting
Lakeith Stanfield, Sorry to Bother You

Fringe (Lead)
Alex Wolff, Hereditary
Nicolas Cage, Mandy

Locks (Supporting)

Alessandro Nivola, Disobedience
Time Blake Nelson and Tom Waits, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Steven Yeun, Burning
Peter Bogdonavich, The Other Side of the Wind
Jeff Bridges, Bad Times at the El Royale

Likely (Supporting)

Russell Crowe, Boy Erased
Russell Hornsby, The Hate U Give (still need to check this out)
Bryan Tyree Henry, If Beale Street Could Talk
Linus Roache, Mandy
Daniel Kaluuya, Widows
Nicholas Hoult, The Favourite
Lewis Pullman, Bad Times at the El Royale
Lily Franky, Shoplifters

Fringe (Supporting)

Chris Hemsworth/Josh Brolin, Avengers - Infinity War
Joel Edgerton, Boy Erased

Emi Grant said...

Personally, for the moment...

Lead Actor
Bale
Cooper
Malek
Mortensen
Washington

Supporting Actor
Ali
Driver
Elliot
Grant
Rockwell

Lead Actress
Blunt
Close
Colman
Gaga
McCarthy

Supporting Actress
Adams
Foy
King
Stone
Weisz

Bryan L. said...

Happy New Years everyone!

Luke Higham said...

My predictions are pretty much the same.

Overall win predictions
Supporting Actress - Debicki
Supporting Actor - Yeun
Actress - McCarthy
Actor - Gosling

Louis: Could you hold off from posting your Lead and Supporting Actress rankings until you've seen more of the performances that I've mentioned on the previous post.

And have you seen any other new releases.

Luke Higham said...

And are there any saves you want to get rid of.

Luke Higham said...

Lastly, Happy 9th Anniversary Louis. It's rather hard to believe you've kept at it for this long and deliver regularly enough when others tend to give it up after no more than 4 years. I'm thankful that you're still here and continue enjoying what you do. And Happy New Year to you. :)

Bryan L. said...

Luke: Oh I would love for Gosling to get his first Overall win. I think Cooper might end up winning the Actual lineup as well.

Louis: Your thoughts on J.C. Chandor and Anton Corbijn as filmmakers? And would those two be your director choices for a 2010s The Godfather and The Conversation, respectively?

Luke Higham said...

Bryan: Gosling was extremely close last year and though he's an easy 5, the amount of praise is just as much as Blade Runner 2049. Louis' love for that film would help him as well whereas Hawke who's my #1 this year and will finally get his first five is in a film that he was quite mixed on.

Cooper's the only choice in my mind. As much as I liked Malek and could potentially win in reality, I'll be shocked if he pulled an upset.

Bryan L. said...

Luke: Oldman and Redmayne both received 4.5s for McCarten-written films so it'd be reasonable to expect the same rating for Malek.

I think Cooper might be the ONLY 5 from the lineup, since I think Mortensen (whose film I saw today) and Bale are only getting 4s, and Washington a 4.5, if these are the actual nominees of course.

Luke Higham said...

Bryan: I agree with you but don't be surprised if he goes lower like most on Mortensen.

Oh and just to clarify, the race is between Cooper and Malek as the latter will win BAFTA. Cooper should be Louis' pick though.

Calvin Law said...

I’m predicting Cooper and Grant will be the only 5’s from these lineups.

Bryan L. said...

Luke: Ah yes, BAFTA. Now I'm very intrigued to see what happens if a Malek win there comes to fruition, although I wonder if Mortensen is still in play overall.

Calvin: I think Elliott might have had a chance at getting a 5 too if he had more scenes in the movie, since I feel that some context for his character was missing.

Charles H said...

For the actual win i think Cooper's got it. For Louis' i think it will either be Gosling or Hawke. (Maybe even Yoo since i predict Yeun will take supporting)

Anonymous said...

If today the Academy announced the nominees and these guys were the candidates my ranking would be like this:

SUPPORTING ACTOR
5º Timothée Chalamet
4º Mahershala Ali
3º Sam Elliott
2º Adam Driver
1º Richard E. Grant

LEDING ACTOR
5º Rami Malek
4º Christian Bale
3º John David Washington
2º Viggo Mortensen
1º Bradley Cooper

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Do you consider The Favourite to be Emma Stone's career best? Also, how would you rank the performances of the 3 leading ladies?

As for my predictions, my guesses are:

Lead Actor
Cooper
Malek
Mortensen
Bale
Washington (still holding out hope for Hawke or Gosling)

Lead Actress
Colman
Close
Gaga
McCarthy
Blunt

Supporting Actor
Grant
Driver
Ali
Elliot
Rockwell

Supporting Actress
Foy
Stone
Weisz
King
Adams

Luke Higham said...

Tahmeed:
Stone:
1. La La Land
2. The Favourite
3. Battle Of The Sexes
4. Easy A
5. Birdman

Colman:
1. The Favourite
2. Tyrannosaur
He hasn't seen Broadchurch, The Night Manager, Rev or her Bafta-winning work in Accused where she's really good as a grieving mother.

Weisz
1. The Favourite
2. Disobedience
3. The Mummy

RatedRStar said...

Got to go back to my shitty job tomorrow lol cant take much more of this.

As for the Oscar nominations, I pretty much have the same lineup, I reckon there is a huge chance that one of Washington or Chalamet miss to either Hawke, Rockwell or Jordan.

Luke Higham said...

My top twenty most anticipated films of 2019 (I'm struggling to do a top ten this year). In no particular order:
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood
Radegund
Avengers: Endgame
Spider-Man: Far From Home
The Lion King
Hobbs & Shaw
It: Chapter Two
Star Wars: Episode IX
Jojo Rabbit
The Irishman
Us
Velvet Buzzsaw (Gyllenhaal/Gilroy)
The Lighthouse (Robert Eggers)
The King (David Michod doing Henry IV/V with Timothée Chalamet as Hal and Joel Edgerton as Falstaff)
Midsommar (Pugh/Reynor/Poulter)
Joker (Joaquin Phoenix)
The Personal History Of David Copperfield (Armando Iannucci)
True History Of The Kelly Gang (Kurzel/Mackay/Crowe/Hoult)
Ford Vs. Ferrari
Toy Story 4

Gus B. said...

Why Gosling is considered more of a threat than Dafoe? The latter has Globe and BFCA, while the former only has BFCA and less critics awards recognition. And Dafoe won Venice. Gosling case reminds me of Depp in Black Mass - when the HFPA, the group that likes him the most, ignored him, even with the split categories, it was the end of the way. Plus, if BAFTA is going to replace Washington for another Oscar contender, Dafoe is more likely, since his film is european. But I'm actually thinking they're going with Rupert Everett, anyway.

In supporting, BAFTA could also go with Nivola, although I think Hoult is more likely - and if he makes the cut, I think he has a very good chance at the Oscar, at Chalamet's spot, since The Favourite is definetly doing great there.

Calvin Law said...

Here's mine:

1. Rocketman
2. Jojo Rabbit
3. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
4. Ford v.s. Ferrari
5. The Irishman
6. Honey Boy
7. Us
8. Avengers: Endgame
9. Little Women
10. Parasite
11. Motherless Brooklyn
12. Dumbo
13. True History of the Kelly Gang
14. The Personal History of David Copperfield
15. Knives Out
16. Star Wars: Episode IX
17. Ad Astra
18. The Lighthouse
19. The Goldfinch
20. Godzilla: King of the Monsters

I would be more looking forward to Toy Story 4 if it wasn't for Incredibles 2 (just have a bad feeling about these overdue/somewhat unnecessary sequels but I'm hoping to be proved wrong). And yeah, Radegund if it ever comes out...

Luke Higham said...

I know Everett got nominated for the London Critics awards but I'm really not sure about that. It could happen. I guess I'm ignoring Dafoe only because I really want Hawke to get some much needed momentum. It's a shame, the BFCA is on the same day as the voting closes since if he had won that, it may've given him more.

Luke Higham said...

Calvin: No offence but I can't believe Rocketman's your #1.

Louis: Your 10 or 20 most anticipated films of 2019 and your reasons why. You could save that for the results if you want, I don't want to keep you from getting the next 2 posts out as soon as you can.

Calvin Law said...

All I can say is that teaser really suckered me in.

Calvin Law said...

Luke: I'm actually really excited to see Capaldi and Whishaw as Uriah Heep and Mr Micawber. It'll be interesting to see essentially a role reversal of Paddington.

Luke Higham said...

Calvin: Probably looking forward to Whishaw abit more since he hasn't been this against type since Perfume. I'm sure Capaldi can deliver, I haven't watched his stint on Doctor Who but I recall him being very good in The Devil's Whore as Charles I and quite great in the moment where he says goodbye to his children before the execution. And he was also good again as a parent of a dead son along with Juliet Stevenson in Accused.

Calvin Law said...

Also, with Best Director I think Cooper and Cuaron are the only locks. I'm predicting that only one of McKay, Farrelly, and Lee will get in, and that Lanthimos and Jenkins will get in. I only wish Marielle Heller was in contention, but oh well.

Luke Higham said...

Calvin: Hope for everyone's sake, Lee gets in instead of the other 2.

Calvin Law said...

I'm planning on watching Green Book tonight so we'll see how I feel about that. But yeah - and if I'm honest if Vice ends up flopping at the Oscars, I'm not even sure if I'll bother checking it out.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Luke: What I meant to ask was how he would rank their performances in The Favourite, given that he gave them all 5's.

Luke Higham said...

Tahmeed: I would say:
1. Stone
2. Weisz
3. Colman

BRAZINTERMA said...

SUPPORTING ACTOR
5º Timothée Chalamet
4º Adam Driver
3º Mahershala Ali
2º Richard E. Grant
1º Sam Elliott

LEDING ACTOR
5º Viggo Mortensen
4º John David Washington
3º Christian Bale
2º Rami Malek
1º Bradley Cooper

Calvin Law said...

So I’d actually like to do some more reading on the finer points of Green Book and the social and racial elements related to it, but I’ll admit I actually did not mind it as a buddy comedy. It definitely runs into some bad places in terms of trying to make a bigger statement, and some of these moments felt excessively rushed, but I do feel there were parts where it worked for me, though again I don’t feel like I’m in the right position to judge it thoroughly before looking deeper into the issues.

I think I’d give Viggo a 4 (I think he does a lot in making some of the problematic tone shifts work) and need to think about Ali, I thought some of his lighter moments and the drunk scene weren’t particularly well performed, and he’s at the centre of some of the worst scenes of the film. But he does knock his big dramatic scenes out of the ballpark I felt. I dunno, I’ll have to give it all a think.

Bryan L. said...

Luke: Looking forward to most of the same as yours, but I'll do my Ten Most Anticipated so the comments section doesn't get too cluttered

Avengers: Endgame
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Hobbs & Shaw
JoJo Rabbit
The Irishman
David Copperfield
Joker
Ford Vs. Ferrari
Velvet Buzzsaw
IT: Chapter Two

Calvin: That's exactly how I feel regarding the film. As a buddy comedy, it was enjoyable. As for what the movie in general is trying to say...yikes... And I'd probably wait and see if a screener for Vice makes it way to the Internet if I were you

Anonymous said...

Louis: What about Actress and Supporting Actress, your final predictions for them?

Michael McCarthy said...

I was thinking the exact same thing about Malek being this year's Redmayne. I think he has a shot at being a major player.

Charles H said...

My ranking of these guys would be easy, the bottom 3 of both categories i don't love one bit.

1. Bradley Cooper
2. Rami Malek
3. John David Washington
4. Viggo Mortensen
5. Christian Bale

1. Richard E. Grant
2. Sam Elliot
3. Adam Driver
4. Mahershala Ali
5. Timothée Chalamet

Calvin Law said...

From what I’ve seen:

1. Cooper
2. Malek
3. Washington
4. Mortensen

Loved Cooper, really liked Malek and Washington, quite liked Mortensen.

1. Grant
2. Driver/Elliot
4. Ali

Really loved Grant, really liked Driver and Elliot, and I liked but had major reservations with Ali.

Louis Morgan said...

Calvin:

I'd typically agree with you in regards to Washington/Driver being a package deal, however the Gothams and the Indie Spirits, both went Driver without Washington (for Blackkklansman). I think it helps probably that Driver's been building some good will with his output in the past few years, Washington on the other hand is pretty new on the scene.

Bryan:

Here's my probably way off predictions, but there's gotta be a least some shake ups here.

A Star is Born
Roma
The Favourite
Green Book
Blackkklansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man (It could pull a Darkest Hour, probably won't but a man can dream)
If Beale Street Could Talk

This is way too much wishful thinking I know, though hey I kept Bohemian Rhapsody in so I don't think I went too far. Any who there are usually at least one or two late surge contenders so its not unprecedented. I avoided Mary Poppins, as it seems far more Globes than Oscars, though we'll talk actress down below. Vice being snubbed is also wishful thinking but maybe they'll go with the flow of the backlash. Hopefully. The major snub in these predictions obviously is Black Panther. My reason being the 5% number 1 votes rule. It can't just be part of a ballot it has to be on the top, and there may just be enough snobbery or second thoughts to keep it from the top spot. Obviously I'm sure campaigners are pushing voters to place it there, but I don't think it is a guarantee (and this is with the film definitely making into PGA). Obviously hoping First Man gets boosted by tech support, which is possible since it does have a few guaranteed nominations.

Let me get you those a bit later.

Tahmeed:

Stone and Weisz are on a very even keel and I'm honestly not sure who I prefer.

Colman is definitely third for me, though not by much.

Louis Morgan said...

Luke:

1. Jojo Rabbit - (More Waititi yes please. Tricky material no doubt, but if he pulls it off it could be brilliant.)
2. The Personal History of David Copperfield - (All in for an Iannucci film after Death of Stalin, modern Dickens sounds curious but potentially fascinating.)
3. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - (Love the period, the name, part of the idea. Manson stuff gives a touch of trepidation though I'm hoping Tarantino shows a real specific maturation with that.)
4. The Irishman - (I'm in with Scorsese obviously, as well as hopefully dialed in Pacino, and De Niro. Along with Keitel and Pesci are icing on the cake. The de-aging technology element though gives me definite pause.)
5. Ed Astra - (Gray is fascinating in sort of his classic ambition as filmmaker, so I'm quite excited to see what he does with sci-fi)
6. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood - (Hopefully Hanks will make the most out of this casting, plus really loved Hellar's last film so I'm very much interested to see what she does here.)
7. The Lighthouse - (Obviously curious to see The VVitch followup, and Dafoe/Pattison could be a fascinating combination.)
8. Avengers: Endgame - (Yeah I'm not too cool for school, I hope it all works out.)
9. Us - (Curious to see this followup, hopefully he knocks it out of the park.)
10. Motherless Brooklyn - (This better be worth it Norton, but really always hope a passion project works out.)

I'm still looking forward to Radegund, hopefully it will finally "exist" this year. I gotta give the marketing for The Joker credit, I considered it for this list, however Phillips in the director's chair will leave me only cautiously curious.

Anonymous:

Actress:

Gaga
Close
McCarthy
Blunt
Colman

The SAG five, the main reason being the lack of an easy alternate. Like Actor it is fairly hard to find where the rest of the support for their film would be in the cases of Kidman, Collette and Pike. That leaves Aparicio, however I don't think Roma will necessarily be beloved by the Academy, beyond what is "expected" of them. In my predictions I'm predicting a Beale Street comeback however, Layne couldn't even make into the Globes which supported the film otherwise so I don't think she'll be part of it.

Supporting Actress:

Adams
Weisz
Stone
King
Foy

Robbie's nomination very much feels potentially like Carell in Battle of the Sexes, where it was almost a dying gasp of an expected contender. Of course Robbie could go a bit further with some BAFTA support, it's certainly up their alley, but I'm hoping that won't be the case. Then one has to figure the BAFTA support somewhere, which could go to Blunt for A Quiet Place, and I'm hoping Claire Foy for First Man. That could bring her back into the conversation and perhaps a resurgence could happen, probably won't but again "dream". King obviously has that SAG snub, which definitely means something, and she is no guarantee at BAFTA. Such a strong critical favorite losing would seem odd, but it has happened (e.g. Sally Hawkins - Happy Go Lucky). The backlash to the snub could push though. Anyway at the very least we don't need Amy Adams winning for that performance, though maybe one of the frauding ladies could get another win (At least I can hope).

Augusto:

Well I would say Dafoe is definitely a fifth spot possibility as well, however he has trouble as he'd be the sole nomination for his film most likely. It won't be hard for First Man to get three nominations (sounds, score). Editing also is very possible, so it will show up several categories already, whereas it's very easy for At Eternity's Gate to be shutout. First Reformed could get into Original Screenplay. So there's way to envision a general "push" for their films, but that's not the case for Dafoe. I wouldn't say he's out though, as any of three have the odds against them at this point.

Anonymous said...

Louis: How would have you improved Casino?

Calvin Law said...

Louis: thoughts on this 2010s Odd Man Out cast, and choice for director?

Johnny McQueen: Domhnall Gleeson
Kathleen Sullivan: Elizabeth Debicki
Lukey: Paddy Considine
Dennis: Toby Kebbell
Shell: Jerome Flynn
Fencie: Paul Anderson
Inspector: Colin Morgan
Father Tom: Brendan Gleeson

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Your 11-20 Glenn Howerton acting moments

Calvin Law said...

Watched Bird Box. I thought it was solid enough on the whole as a suspense/horror with some surprisingly strong performances.

Bullock: 4
Rhodes: 4
Malkovich: 3.5
Weaver: 2.5
Salazar: 2.5
Kelly: 2
Macdonald: 3
Howery: 3
Paulson: 2.5
Pidgeon: 2.5
Song: 2.5

Bryan L. said...

Calvin: I believe Louis picked Johnny McQueen as one of Fassbenders past film roles, and he's around the same age Mason was when that movie came out.

Bryan L. said...

I also hope Pitt gives good performances in OUATIH and Ad Astra, since he's been quite lackluster recently, although I haven't seen his "European" film with Jolie.

I'm actually worried about how he'll do in Ad Astra, since there's always a risk for bland Pitt in his leading roles. James Gray got a solid lead performance out of Hunnam, so there's hope.

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

Casino I found mostly lacked essentially thematic reason. This partially stemming from the lead character of Ace who is oddly vanilla. This is not even in regards to De Niro's work, but rather as written the character is not particularly compelling, lacking the dramatic thrust that was granted by Henry Hill and his story of "wanting to be a gangster". In Goodfellas we see what comes from that. In Casino we see what comes from wanting to own Vegas, I guess? Everyone is essentially already who they are from their first scene, except Ginger, though her story is just of a pretty thin and boring degradation. Sadly the characters all come off as excessively vapid, which is partially intentional, but doesn't create a compelling narrative. The film needed a completely different angle, something different, instead the film just feels like Scorsese turning his wheels within the genre, a genre he had already offered a masterful statement on 5 years before.

Tahmeed:

11. Destroying the "rival's" house
12. Rocket Launcher
13. Me too speech
14. "Starter car?"
15. Because I hate you
16. finding his range rover again
17. Day man is born
18. Little Idiots! Idiots!
19. Reading Charlie's Speech
20. What are the Rules?

Calvin:

Like the choices, though I would opt to Fassbender for McQueen as I think the character needs a bit more of an overt charisma. Gleeson just doens't have that type of presence.