The Cumulative FAC Recap (at This Point) / Oscar Matters: Podcasting Oscar / Interviews and Profiles: "Carol", "Suffragette", "Son of Saul", "Room", "Steve Jobs" and "Spotlight"

Welcome to Monday and here's hoping that everyone had a safe and joyful Thanksgiving holiday...

THE CUMULATIVE FAC RECAP (AT THIS POINT)

Over the past two weeks or so, I have posted the third update for the "Big Eight" Oscar categories (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actress and Actor and Adapted and Original Screenplays) as well as four additional categories (Film Editing, Cinematography, Documentary Feature and Foreign Language Film).  I haven't yet tackled the other dozen categories that Oscar will reward in February (Animated Feature, Original Song and Score, Production Design, Costumes, Makeup/Hair, Visual Effects, Sound Mixing and Editing, and the Shorts: Live Action, Animation and Documentary).  Those will come later as we get closer to nomination time (Jan. 14).

As we find ourselves on the cusp of end-of-the-year lists of the best in film making (The National Board of Review announces their top films tomorrow while the New York Film Critics Circle announces on Wednesday, The Los Angeles critics announce this coming weekend), I thought it'd be useful to collect all twelve of the categories that have been posted here in the last two weeks in one post.  So here they are:

For the purpose of The FAC I gather data from the publicly posted predictions of the following:

Erik Anderson/Awards Watch
Clayton Davis/Awards Circuit
Scott Feinberg/The Hollywood Reporter
Peter Knegt/Indiewire
Joey Magidson/Hollywood News
Nathaniel Rogers/Film Experience
Sasha Stone/Awards Daily
Kristopher Tapley/Variety-InContention
Anne Thompson/Thompson on Hollywood

TFF #42 films are in Bold.

The positions that these possible nominees had in our last look at these categories is indicated in parenthesis.


BEST PICTURE

"Spotlight" trailer via YouTube

1) Spotlight (1)
2) The Revenant (3)
3) The Martian (12)
4) Room (5)
5) Bridge of Spies (6)
6) Brooklyn (4)
7) Joy (7)
8) Steve Jobs (2)

9) Inside Out (11)
10) Carol (10)
11) The Hateful Eight (9)
12) The Big Short (NR)

Hot: "The Martian", "Inside Out", "The Big Short"
Cold: "Brooklyn", Steve Jobs", "The Hateful Eight" and "The Danish Girl" which dropped off the list entirely.
Comment:  "The Martian" change and the "Steve Jobs" box office debacle have really shaken this race up.  I'm not so sure that "Jobs" is completely out of this as Fassbender still has a lot of Best Actor support (see below).  At this point, I could see any of the top four films taking the big prize...and yes, I'm including "Room" in that assessment.  People really love the film and its strength is reflected in Lenny Abrahamson's climb in the director's race and Brie Larson's support in the Best Actress race.  Remember too, that it won the Toronto audience award and finished in the top spot in my collection of viewers' ratings for The People's Telluride.


BEST DIRECTION

"Room" trailer via YouTube

1) Tom McCarthy/Spotlight (1)
2) Alejandro Inarritu/The Revenant (3)
3) Ridley Scott/The Martian (7)
4) Steven Spielberg/Bridge of Spies (5)
5) Lenny Abrahamson/Room (NR)

6) David O. Russell/Joy (4)
7) George Miller/Mad Max: Fury Road (10)
8) Todd Haynes/Carol (8)
9) Danny Boyle/Steve Jobs (2)
10) Quentin Tarantino/The Hateful Eight (6)

Hot: Scott, Abrahamson and Miller.
Cold: Russell, Boyle and Tom Hooper (Danish Girl)
Comment:Danny Boyle's fall also underscores the drop in prospects for "Steve Jobs" as Abrahamson's ascendance emphasizes the popularity of "Room".  Also, "The Danish Girl" is taking a hit in both Picture and Directing categories.  Eddie Redmayne still seems to be competitive in the Best Actor category (see below).


BEST ACTRESS

"Carol" trailer via YouTube

1) Brie Larson/Room (1)
2) Jennifer Lawrence/Joy (2)
3) Saorise Ronan/Brooklyn (3)
4) Cate Blanchett/Carol (4)
5) Charlotte Rampling/45 Years (6)

6) Carey Mulligan/Suffragette (5)
7) Blythe Danner/I'll See You in My Dreams (10)
8) Lily Tomlin/Grandma (7)
9) Maggie Smith/The Lady in the Van (9)
10) Cate Blanchett/Truth (8)

Hot: Danner
Cold: Blanchett in "Truth"
Comment: A remarkably steady category.  Larson is the closest thing to a lock in any of the four major categories in a year where "locks" have been few and far between.


BEST ACTOR

"Steve Jobs" trailer via YouTube

1) Leonardo DiCaprio/The Revenant (3)
2) Michael Fassbender/Steve Jobs (1)
3) Eddie Redmayne/The Danish Girl (2)
4) Johnny Depp/Black Mass (4)
5) Matt Damon/The Martian (6)

6) Michael Caine/Youth (5)
7) Will Smith/Concussion (8)
8) Tom Hanks/Bridge of Spies (7)
9) Ian McKellen/Mr. Holmes (9)
10) Steve Carell/The Big Short (10)


Hot: DiCaprio
Cold:  No one really.
Comment:  Both Fassbender and Redmayne stay in the thick of the race despite their films having suffered some serious doubts in the Picture and Directing categories.  The same could be said for Johnny Depp.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1) Alicia Vikander/The Danish Girl (1)
2) Rooney Mara/Carol (2)
3) Kate Winslet/Steve Jobs (3)
4) Jane Fonda/Youth (5)
5) Jennifer Jason Leigh/The Hateful Eight (4)

6) Elizabeth Banks/Love and Mercy (7)
7) Rachel McAdams/Spotlight (6)
8) Joan Allen/Room (8)
9) Julie Walters/Brooklyn (9)
10) Jessica Chastain/The Martian (NR)

Hot: Chastain
Not: Kristen Stewart/Clouds of Sils Maria
Comment: Chastain's jump onto the list might signal the strength of "The Martian" while the resilience of Vikander suggests that my theory that "Danish Girl" is weak may be completely off. Additionally, Winslet stays steady, so "Steve Jobs" may not be as weak as a lot of people have been thinking.  Finally, Rooney Mara's Indie Spirit nomination in the lead category might signal that she could move out of this category come Oscar nomination morning.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1) Mark Ruffalo/Spotlight (3)
2) Michael Keaton/Spotlight (1)
3) Mark Rylance/Bridge of Spies (4)
4) Tom Hardy/The Revenant (2)
5) Jacob Tremblay/Room (6)

6) Paul Dano/Love and Mercy
7) Bencio Del Toro/Sicario (8)
8) Sylvester Stallone/Creed (NR)
9) Idris Elba/Beasts of No Nation (5)
10) Harvey Keitel/Youth (10)

Hot: Ruffalo and Stallone
Not: Hardy, Elba and Joel Edgerton/Black Mass-who dropped off the top ten.
Comment:  The big story here is there serious emergence of Stallone as a player in the category.  As I write this on Thanksgiving morning, "Creed" is reportedly opened to banging box office and the reviews have been good.  Lookout for Stallone!

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

1) Steve Jobs (1)
2) Room (3)
3) Brooklyn (2)
4) The Martian (7)
5) The Revenant (4)

6) Anomalisa (6)
7) Carol (5)
8) The Big Short (9)
9) The Danish Girl (8)
10) 45 Years (NR)

Hot: "The Martian" and "45 Years"
Not: "Carol" and "Beats of No Nation"
Comment: "Beasts falls out of the top ten.  It'll be interesting to see if it gets a boost from its Indy Spirit nominations (see below)


BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

1) Spotlight (1)
2) Inside Out (2)
3) The Hateful Eight (4)
4) Bridge of Spies (5)
5) Joy (3)

6) Youth (6)
7) Sicario (7)
8) Love and Mercy (9)
9) Son of Saul (8)
10) Trainwreck (NR)

Hot: "Trainwreck"
Not: "Joy" and "Suffragette" which drops way off the top ten list.
Comment:"Spotlight" in this category is the only leader in any of the dozen categories that The FAC has looked at over these past three months since Telluride concluded to hit a perfect score.


BEST FILM EDITING

1) The Revenant
2) Spotlight
3) Mad Max: Fury Road
4) Bridge of Spies
5) Steve Jobs

6) The Martian
7) Joy
8) Sicario
9) The Hateful Eight
10) Jurassic Park

Comment: The category that has become semi-mythical in terms of its pairing with the eventual Best Picture winner seems to be among the top six films here.  Though, any of these ten could get in.


BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1) The Revenant
2) Sicario
3) Mad Max; Fury Road
4) Carol
5) Bridge of Spies

6) The Hateful Eight
7) The Martian
8) In the Heart of the Sea
9) The Danish Girl
10) Son of Saul

Comment:  The five nominees probably come from the top seven listed here.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

1) Son of Saul
2) Labyrinth of Lies
3) Mustang
4) Second Mother
5) The Assassin

6) Rams
7) Viva
8) Goodnight Mommy
9) The Club
10) A Pigeon Sat on a Branch...

Comment:  This category is largely believed to be about narrowing the field down to the four films that eventually lose to "Son of Saul".  In a year where most categories are still fairly unpredictable, "Saul" might be the surest bet for Oscar of any film in any category.


BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

1) Amy
2) The Look of Silence (TFF #41)
3) Going Clear
4) Best of Enemies
5) The Hunting Ground

6) Where Do We Invade Next?
7) He Named Me Malala
8) Listen to Me Marlon
9) Miss Simone
10) Cartel Land


Comment: Reflecting the sense that I got at Telluride this year, there's only one TFF #42 documentary that seems to have a shot this year and "Malala" is playing from behind.  TFF #41's "Look of Silence" looks solid.

If The FAC is 100% on the money, TFF #42 films would earn 22 nominations from these 12 categories with another 15 possibilities.

Since I started doing The FAC, Telluride films average 27 nominations each year.  This year looks like it should end up with about that number of nominations.


OSCAR MATTERS: PODCASTING OSCARS

Here are links to the most popular and influential podcasts that focus on the Oscar Race including Oscar Poker with Sasha Stone ans Jeffrey Wells (Awards Daily and Hollywood Elsewhere), Screen Talk with Anne Thompson and Eric Kohn (Thompson on Hollywood and Indiewire), Awards Chatter with Scott Feinberg (The Hollywood Reporter), Erik Anderson (Awards Watch) and Oscar Predictions Smackdown with Tom O'Neill (Gold Derby) and Sasha Stone as his guest:

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/2015/11/begins-with-anger-ends-with-acceptance/

http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/screen-talk-spirit-awards-surprises-whither-inarritus-the-revenant-20151125

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/awards-chatter-podcast-benicio-del-844097

http://awardswatch.com/podcasts/oscar-podcast-31-nbr-and-nyfcc-predix-plus-the-revenant-and-joy-finally-screen/

http://www.goldderby.com/news/10968/oscar-prediction-revenant-leonardo-dicaprio-leo-danish-girl-618372594.html


OSCAR MATTERS: THE PUNDITS' LATEST

Here's the latest in Oscar prognostications for the best in the business both individually and collectively:

Individuals: Sasha Stone/Awards Daily, Scott Feinberg/The Hollywood Reporter, Kristopher Tapley/Variety's InContention:


http://www.awardsdaily.com/2015/11/27/predictions-friday-creed-lands/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/awards/predictions/oscars/2015/academy-awards-112515/

http://variety.com/2015/film/in-contention/oscar-predictions-oscars-academy-awards-1201600870/

And collectively from The Gurus of Gold and Gold Derby:

http://www.awardsdaily.com/2015/11/27/gurus-goldderby-check-in-thanksgiving-edition/

http://moviecitynews.com/2015/11/gurus-o-gold-14-weeks-to-oscar/

http://moviecitynews.com/2015/11/gurus-o-gold-the-picture-the-men-the-turkey-day-reccomendation/

http://www.goldderby.com/odds/experts/300/



INTERVIEWS AND PROFILES: "CAROL", "SUFFRAGETTE", "SON OF SAUL", "ROOM", "STEVE JOBS" AND "SPOTLIGHT"


"CAROL"

http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/cate-blanchett-on-why-carol-is-not-your-average-love-story-20151119

http://www.indiewire.com/article/todd-haynes-explains-the-cinematic-influences-that-impacted-his-carol-20151123

http://www.fandango.com/carol_184244/movieoverview

http://www.indiewire.com/article/watch-rooney-mara-and-cate-blanchett-forbidden-romance-blossoms-in-these-carol-clips-20151123

https://amp.twimg.com/v/c4bb3e9d-0133-4b7f-8c84-0994f96d33a6


'SUFFRAGETTE"

http://www.hitfix.com/the-dartboard/check-out-an-exclusive-featurette-featuring-carey-mulligan-in-suffragette

http://variety.com/video/suffragette-carey-mulligan-watch/

http://www.wearemoviegeeks.com/2015/11/suffragette-star-carey-mulligan-talks-about-film-womens-rights/


'SON OF SAUL"

http://deadline.com/2015/11/son-of-saul-laszlo-nemes-geza-rohrig-the-contenders-video-1201637711/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/how-son-saul-defied-dangers-838149

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/how-son-saul-defied-dangers-838149


"ROOM"

http://www.awardscircuit.com/2015/11/16/interview-brie-larson-discusses-emotional-power-room/


"STEVE JOBS"

http://thefilmstage.com/news/criterions-february-line-up-roger-deakins-jonathan-rosenbaum-danny-boyle-talks-and-more/


"SPOTLIGHT"

http://thefilmstage.com/news/watch-extensive-talks-with-the-real-life-journalists-behind-spotlight-and-the-cast/



That'll do for this Monday.  Come back for more Telluride-centric awards coverage on Thursday...


Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

via Twitter @Gort2 OR to

Michael's Telluride Film Blog's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse/107846269309712

Oscar Matters: Updates and Podcasts / Focus on "Carol" / "Directors: "Sherpa" and "Rams" / Sorkin on "Steve Jobs"

Welcome back from the weekend on this Monday, November 16th.


OSCAR MATTERS: UPDATES AND PODCASTS

With the close of the American Film Institutes's Film Festival this last weekend, the last of the so-called fall film festivals has come to and end.  Possible contenders "By the Sea", "Concussion" and "The Big Short" made their first appearance in public.  The sense I got over the last couple of weeks was that none of them necessarily re-wrote the narrative for this year's Oscars.  "By the Sea" seems DOA while "Concussion" and Will Smith and ""Big Short" seem to have made enough of an impression to be a part of the Oscar conversation but, again, my sense isn't that they'll be a substantial part of the conversation.  We'll have a better idea about them in a couple of weeks.  "The Big Short" opens Dec. 23 and  "Concussion" on Dec. 25.

Here's the latest updates of various predictions from The Gurus of Gold as well as individual updates from Oscar pundits Sasha Stone/Awards Daily and Scott Feinberg/The Hollywood Reporter:

http://moviecitynews.com/2015/11/gurus-o-gold-who-could-get-in-with-a-bit-more-support/

http://www.awardsdaily.com/2015/11/12/best-picture-update-and-a-big-push/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/awards/predictions/oscars/2015/academy-awards-111315/


Meanwhile, I have also linked audio and video from three Oscar oriented posts:  The Awards Pundits from The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline's AwardsLine and Indiewire:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/awards-pundits-big-short-oscar-840333

http://deadline.com/2015/11/tom-oneil-gold-derby-1201620514/

http://www.indiewire.com/article/podcast-which-documentaries-stand-the-best-shot-in-oscar-season-20151113



FOCUS ON "CAROL"

"Carol" trailer via YouTube

As Todd Haynes' "Carol" edges closer to its opening this coming Friday, the web has filled up with posts and articles about the film that could be a major force in Oscar's race this year.  Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara would seem to be virtual locks for acting nominations and the film could also see nominations in a number of other categories as well.  As a matter of fact, if things break the right way for "Carol" it could possibly be this year's most nominated Telluride film.

So here's your dose of some of this week's "Carol" onslaught:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/15/movies/solving-the-many-mysteries-of-what-became-carol.html

http://thefilmstage.com/news/go-behind-the-scenes-of-carol-with-todd-haynes-masterclass-b-roll-final-poster-clips-and-more/

http://www.ew.com/article/2015/11/12/cate-blanchett-rooney-mara-carol-clip


DIRECTORS: "SHERPA" AND "RAMS"

The Hollywood Reporter talks to the director of the documentary "Sherpa", Jennifer Peedom,  and Awards Circuit talks to "Rams" director Grimur Hakanarson.  Enjoy those here:


http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/behind-screen/sherpa-director-talks-challenges-documenting-838103

http://www.awardscircuit.com/2015/11/15/interview-rams-director-grimur-hakonarson-talks-iceland-winning-cannes/


 AND FINALLY...SORKIN ON "STEVE JOBS"

"Steve Jobs" trailer via YouTube

Aaron Sorkin is on the record about his script for "Steve Jobs" including answering claims about distortions and he also talks about the last scene of the film.  That came in the form of Sorkin's appearance on Jeff Goldsmith "The Q + A" podcast.  I have included this report of that from The Playlist:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/aaron-sorkin-takes-the-credit-blame-for-final-scene-in-steve-jobs-clears-up-claims-of-distortions-inventions-20151113



That'a wrap for Monday.  Return here Thursday for more...


Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

via Twitter @Gort2 OR to

Michael's Telluride Film Blog's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse/107846269309712

The FAC and Other Oscar Categories / Oscar Matters: Pods / Focus On: "Spotlight", "Suffragette" and "Black Mass"

It's Thursday.

THE FAC LOOKS AT SOME OTHER OSCAR CATEGORIES

As we hit the mid-point of November, we're edging ever closer to the releases of a slew of year end critic's Ten Best lists.  December is rife with those and that's just around the corner.  They act as a constant reminder that the race for Oscar is about to get really serious.

Consequently, I thought I'd take the time today to run the numbers on a four Oscar categories that we haven't considered here at the FAC thus far for this season.  So today we look at Film Editing, Cinematography, Foreign Language Film and Documentary Feature.


For the purpose of The FAC I gather data from the publicly posted predictions of the following:

Erik Anderson/Awards Watch
Clayton Davis/Awards Circuit
Scott Feinberg/The Hollywood Reporter
Peter Knegt/Indiewire
Joey Magidson/Hollywood News
Nathaniel Rogers/Film Experience
Sasha Stone/Awards Daily
Kristopher Tapley/Variety-InContention
Anne Thompson/Thompson on Hollywood

TFF #42 films are in Bold.


BEST FILM EDITING

1) The Revenant
2) Spotlight
3) Mad Max: Fury Road
4) Bridge of Spies
5) Steve Jobs

6) The Martian
7) Joy
8) Sicario
9) The Hateful Eight
10) Jurassic Park

Comment: The category that has become semi-mythical in terms of its pairing with the eventual Best Picture winner seems to be among the top six films here.  Though, any of these ten could get in.


BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1) The Revenant
2) Sicario
3) Mad Max; Fury Road
4) Carol
5) Bridge of Spies

6) The Hateful Eight
7) The Martian
8) In the Heart of the Sea
9) The Danish Girl
10) Son of Saul

Comment:  The five nominees probably come from the top seven listed here.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

1) Son of Saul
2) Labyrinth of Lies
3) Mustang
4) Second Mother
5) The Assassin

6) Rams
7) Viva
8) Goodnight Mommy
9) The Club
10) A Pigeon Sat on a Branch...

Comment:  This category is largely believed to be about narrowing the field down to the four films that eventually lose to "Son of Saul".  In a year where most categories are still fairly unpredictable, "Saul" might be the surest bet for Oscar of any film in any category.


BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

1) Amy
2) The Look of Silence (TFF #41)
3) Going Clear
4) Best of Enemies
5) The Hunting Ground

6) Where Do We Invade Next?
7) He Named Me Malala
8) Listen to Me Marlon
9) Miss Simone
10) Cartel Land


Comment: Reflecting the sense that I got at Telluride this year, there's only one TFF #42 documentary that seems to have a shot this year and "Malala" is playing from behind.  TFF #41's "Look of Silence" looks solid.

If The FAC is 100% on the money, TFF #42 films earn another five nominations from these four categories with another four possibilities.


OSCAR MATTERS: PODS

Continuing our Thursday theme focused on the latest Oscar info, here are links to Oscar Poker with hosts Sasha Stone of Awards Daily and Jeffrey Wells of Hollywood Elsewhere and with special guest Erik Anderson of Awards Watch:

http://www.awardsdaily.com/podcasts/oscarpoker/episode115.mp3

and Awards Chatter featuring The Hollywood Reporter's Scott Feinberg:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/awards-chatter-podcast-michael-moore-838623


And here's a handy overview of over thirty films culled by the staff at Variety that they believe have the largest Oscar potential.  The list includes Telluride #42 films: "Anomalisa", "Beasts of No Nation", "Black Mass", "Carol", "45 Years", "Room", "Son of Saul", "Spotlight", "Steve Jobs" and "Suffragette".  Here's the link to the complete list:


http://variety.com/gallery/best-pictures-oscar-contenders-2015/


FOCUS ON: "SPOTLIGHT", "SUFFRAGETTE" AND "BLACK MASS"

This section includes interviews from "Suffragette" director Sarah Gavron, "Black Mass' star Johnny Depp and "Spotlight" director Tom McCarthy.  There's also a link to a dissection of "Spotlight" from Uproxx:


Sarah Gavron:

http://theyoungfolks.com/review/sarah-gavron-interview-suffragette/66460

Johnny Depp:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/afi-fest-johnny-depp-talks-black-mass-auditioning-for-the-coen-brothers-working-with-scott-cooper-more-20151109

Tom McCarthy:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/telluride-director-tom-mccarthy-puts-spotlight-on-sexually-predatory-catholic-priests-20150908

"Spotlight" feature:

http://uproxx.com/movies/2015/11/spotlight-inside-story/


That's the Thursday edition of MTFB/FAC.  Come back on Monday for more and have a great weekend...

Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

via Twitter @Gort2 OR to

Michael's Telluride Film Blog's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse/107846269309712

More Spotlight on "Spotlight" / Joan Allen and "Room" / "Rams" Trailer / Oscar Matters: InContention's Latest Predictions

Welcome back to the week after the weekend...It's Monday people!


MORE SPOTLIGHT ON "SPOTLIGHT"


Tom McCarthy's "Spotlight' continues to be one of the most talked about films that screened this year at Telluride and those conversations picked up over this past weekend owing to its opening in a limited release to generally solid numbers.  The film will expand now and try to keep its momentum building as a probable Best Picture nominee and a possible BP winner.

Because of its opening, there was a good deal of press for the film on the interwebs this weekend.  I have included interviews here from Michael Keaton, Tom McCarthy and co-writer Josh Singer from The New York Times, HitFix, Entertainment Weekly and Awards Daily.

"Spotlight" television spot via YouTube

Keaton:


http://www.nytimes.com/video/movies/100000004021657/michael-keaton-discusses-spotlight.html

http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/michael-keatons-love-of-journalism-the-paper-live-from-baghdad-spotlight


McCarthy:

http://www.ew.com/article/2015/11/06/tom-mccarthy-spotlight


Singer:

http://www.awardsdaily.com/2015/11/07/interview-spotlight-writer-josh-singer/




JOAN ALLEN AND "ROOM"

Criminally underused actress Joan Allen is making a splash in Lenny Abrahamson's "Room" to the point that she is getting some fairly serious Oscar buzz for her role as Brie Larson's mother in the small film that has been making big noise since Telluride.  Larson may well be the favorite to win Best Actress and young Jacob Tremblay is a serious player for a Best Supporting Actor nomination.

"Room" also looks good for a number of other possible Oscar bids Picture, Director and Adapted Screenplay come to mind.

Allen , who has been previously nominated for Best Actress for "The Contender" and Supporting Actress for "The Crucible" and "Nixon" is interviewed here for Thompson on Hollywood:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/watch-room-star-joan-allen-in-featurette-exclusive-video-20151104




"RAMS" U.S. TRAILER

Official U.S. trailer for "Rams" via YouTube

Iceland's entrant for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film is "Rams" which seemed to be well liked by The People in my annual survey of the films that play TFF.  It finished in the bottom half of the poll but was ahead of "Steve Jobs" and "Suffragette".

Nevertheless, I expect it to likely be one of the five Foreign Language finalists next January.  The film had its U.S. trailer drop since my last post and you can see that above.  Additionally, I have linked stories about the film and its trailer release from FirstShowing.net and The Film Stage:

http://www.firstshowing.net/2015/official-us-trailer-for-the-dark-comedy-rams-icelands-oscar-entry/

http://thefilmstage.com/trailer/u-s-trailer-for-icelands-oscar-entry-rams-showcases-acclaimed-dark-comedy/

OSCAR MATTERS; INCONTENTION'S LATEST PREDICTIONS

Oscar expert Kristopher Tapley has his latest iteration of Oscar prognostication up at Variety's InContention.  Here's what happens regarding Telluride #42 films on nomination morning if Tapley is 100% accurate:

"Spotlight": Best Picture, Supporting Actor (twice), Original Screenplay, Direction, Film Editing and Original Score.  Total noms-7.

"Black Mass": Best Picture, Actor, Makeup/Hair.  Total noms-3

"Room": Picture, Director, Actress, Adapted Screenplay.  Total noms-4

"Steve Jobs": Best Picture, Actor, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Film Editing.  Total noms-5

"Carol": Best Actress, Supporting Actress, Costume.  Total noms-3

"Anomalisa": Best Animated Feature.  Total noms-1

Best Foreign Language Film: "Son of Saul", "Rams", "Viva"  Total noms-3

Total TFF #42 nominations: 26 (which is about average).

Best Doc Feature: "The Look if Silence" (from TFF #41)

Frankly, I think "carol" will get more attention.  Maybe "Room" will as well.   I wouldn't be surprised if "Anomalisa" gets a Screenplay nomination.  I could also see "Son of Saul" breaking into other categories in addition to Foreign Language.

That's a wrap for Monday...More to come on Thursday...


Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

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The People's Telluride / "Amazing Grace" Saga Continues / Oscar Matters

It's Thursday and time for another episode of Michael's Telluride Film Blog/The Film Awards Clearinghouse...


THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

Ten days after the conclusion of TFF #42, I have the results of the fourth annual "People's Telluride". Since the fests close, I have been gathering the data that Telluride film followers have been sending my way since then.  Over two dozen respondents sent their evaluations.  Using the same criteria as I did for The Professionals Telluride, films were collated only of they received evaluations from at least a third of those respondents.  With that, here are the results of The People with the rating average in parenthesis:

1) Room (4.47)
2) Spotlight (4.45)
3) Beasts of No Nation (4.35)
4) Ixcanul (4.31)
5) Son of Saul (4.30)
6) Marguerite (4.23)
7) Black Mass (4.13)
8) Carol (4.02)
9) Rams (3.98)
10) Steve Jobs (3.86)
11) 45 Years (3.78)
12) Suffragette (3.58)
13) He Named Me Malala (3.39)
14) Anomalisa (3.36)

The People included three films that the Pros did not: "Ixcanul", "Marguerite" and "Rams".  The Pros had "Taxi" and "Time to Choose" on their list that The People excluded.

The biggest agreement between the sets of data came toward the bottom of the list as The Pros and The People both placed "Suffragette" and "He Named Me Malala" at the #12 and #13 spots respectively.

The greatest disparity came at the top and bottom and vice versa for each set of data.  The People really loved "Room" as it reigns at the top of the People's list but The Pros had it as their #11 film (of 13).  Meanwhile, the Pros were all about Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson's "Anomalisa" rating it #2 (just behind "Son of Saul") but the People had it at the bottom of their list at #14 (of 14).

Last year The People preferred "The Imitation Game" with a stellar 4.73 rating.  "Birdman" was #2 with a rating of 4.46.

In 2013, "Tim's Vermeer" led the People's poll with a 4.67 rating and "12 Years a Slave" was second with a rating of 4.55.

In 2012, "Stories We Tell was tops with a 4.80 closely followed by "Argo" with a 4.75.

Coming on Monday...The Combo Telluride...what happens when we put the two lists together?  We shall see.

Seems to me that being #2 on The People's Telluride is a real harbinger as "Argo", "12 Years a Slave" and "Birdman" all won the Best Picture Oscar.  So if you're Tom McCarthy and the crew from "Spotlight"...maybe a sign of things to come.




"AMAZING GRACE" SAGA CONTINUES

The legal saga that began at Telluride on its opening day between the producer of "Amazing Grace" and its subject, Aretha Franklin.  Took a new twist this week.  Franklin sued in Colorado court and obtained an injunction on T-ride's opening day which torpedoed the planned screening of the documentary just hours before it was set to appear.

Subsequently, planned screenings at both the Toronto and Chicago Film Fests were also scuttled.  This week, amid reports that the film was about to be screened privately for prospective distributors brought yet another threat to sue from Franklin and her lawyers.

In light of all this, producer Alan Elliot has agreed to a 30 day moratorium on screening of the film. Speculation is that the 30 day hold will  be used for both sides to negotiate terms under which the film could be screened.

Here's the story from Variety:


http://variety.com/2015/film/news/aretha-franklin-lawsuit-amazing-grace-documentary-1201594489/




OSCAR MATTERS

MTFB continues to make its annual transition from a Telluride film prediction outlet to a Telluride film in the awards season blog by looking at the latest and best prediction professionals and what they are saying after Telluride, Venice and now that Toronto is winding down.

Gold Derby shows a sharp rise for "Spotlight" and "Steve Jobs" from the Telluride plays and reactions.  Meanwhile, Sasha Stone reports that Vulture's Kyle Buchanan has claimed that "Spotlight" is out front in the Oscar race right now.  Take a look at both stories here:


Gold Derby

http://www.goldderby.com/news/10367/oscar-predictions-best-picture-steve-jobs-the-revenant-leonardo-dicaprio-975386420.html


Buchanan

http://www.awardsdaily.com/blog/2015/09/kyle-buchanan-declares-spotlight-frontrunner-out-of-toronto/


More on Monday including The Combination Telluride...combining of the Professionals and The People's Telluride.  Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

via Twitter @Gort2 OR to

Michael's Telluride Film Blog's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse/107846269309712

Final Ten Best (Plus) Before TFF #42 / Welcome Mr. Miles / The Odd Rumors / New Views of "Malala" / On Thursday...

It's the last Wednesday before the cinematic candy store opens for business.  After a full year of being separated, it's time to rejoin my fellow adherents to all things Telluride Film Festival and head the wagons west to the beautiful San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado to bask in the filmic glory that will consume us Friday through Monday.  It's Labor Day weekend and for my wife and I, our tenth foray into TFF Territory.

It's what my hope for heaven looks, sounds and feels like...

See you in Telluride!

FINAL TEN BETS (PLUS) BEFORE TFF #42

From the most to least likely are:

1) Son of Saul
2) Suffragette
3) Carol
4) 45 Years
5) Black Mass
6) Steve Jobs
7) Beasts of No Nation
8) He Named Me Malala
9) Spotlight
10) Room


And then the "Plus"

11) Amazing Grace
12) Taxi
13) Marguerite
14) Anomalisa
15) Hitchcock/Truffaut

And now some "Plus-Plus"

16) Rams
17) Heart of a Dog
18) Tyrus
19) Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
20) Queen of the Desert


WELCOME MR. MILES

I posted Monday that MTFB has its largest (and I think most distinguished) panel of industry professionals to offer their ratings for films that play this weekend at Telluride.  Here's that list again:

Nick Allen/Chicago Film Critics Assn. member/RogerEbert.com
Alex Billington/FirstShowing.net..
David Ehrlich/Time Out New York
Greg Ellwood/HitFix
Scott Feinberg/The Hollywood Reporter
Eric Kohn/Indiewire
Tomris Laffly/Movie Mezzanine/Film Journal
Christopher Schiller/ScriptMag.com
Sasha Stone/Awards Daily
Kristopher Tapley/Variety/InContention
Anne Thompson/Thompson on Hollywood

Now add that august group of individuals Mr. Kenny Miles of the Denver Society of Film Critics and a contributor to TheMovieBlog.com and FilmFad.com.  Welcome to the crew Mr. Miles!

And this serves as a good spot to remind you, dear reader to add your voice to the chorus for "The People's Telluride".  Rate the films you see during the fest 1-5 (1=BAD, 5=GREAT) and send them to me through one of the contact methods (email, Twitter, Facebook, Blog Comment) .  I'll compile both sets of ratings and report back to you.


THE ODD RUMORS

The persistent but unlikely speculation that persists seems to be that Venice opener "Everest" will follow the pattern of the past two Venice openers "Gravity" and "Birdman" and make its way to Telluride.  Why is it unlikely?  The film is slated to play the Deauville Fest in France on Sept. 4. Though the cast is huge, I don't see how they pull off three major fest screenings in seven days max.

The other rumor is that Sundance sensation "Brooklyn" will show at The SHOW.  Now, that's just not very probable either.  A "Brooklyn" play would violate Telluride's fairly stringent policy of playing new features that have not yet appeared in North America as it played very well at Sundance.

I think some folks are seeing its "Canadian Premiere" designation at Toronto and assuming that automatically means Telluride.  Ummmm...nope,

And just last night The Wrap was reporting in its Oscar/Fall Fest Season post that "The Danish Girl" was likely to play Telluride.  Again, not likely.  For whatever reason, The Wrap was calling it a "Canadian Premiere" whereas the TIFF website very clearly has it as a North American Premiere.  So don't hold your breath.

Here's the link to The Wrap story:

http://www.thewrap.com/watch-out-oscar-awards-season-gets-jump-start-with-fall-film-festivals/


NEW VIEWS OF "MALALA"

One of the films I am looking toward with high anticipation is the Davis Guggenheim documentary "He Named Me Malala".  The story of Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai and her strength as a voice for equal education in a part of the world where that's a dangerous belief to hold enraptures me as a teacher.

I really am hoping that Malala might well be in Telluride this week and that I have the chance to thank her and tell her in person that I teach. My wife teaches.  My children teach.  My mother was school secretary and my father taught. It's the Patterson Family business so to meet this incredible human being who faced death for the belief that education was a value worth perusing and defending...yea, I'd like to tell her thank you.

Oh, and IMDb put up some new, exclusive pictures from the film yesterday, one of which graces this portion of the post.


ON THURSDAY...

We should, if all goes the way it has the past couple of years, have a lineup fairly early tomorrow morning.  Check here for that announcement.


Headed to Telluride...see you there.  Travel safely friends!

Please feel free to leave a comment or question here at the blog.

Email me at michael_speech@hotmail.com or mpgort@gmail.com

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Contemplating Toronto (And All the Rest) / Many More Pics from "Black Mass" / Wells Compares and Contrasts / Remember to Rate the Films

Welcome to Wednesday...


CONTEMPLATING TORONTO (AND ALL THE REST)

Well...

TIFF 2015 announced a ton a films yesterday and there were some surprises in as far as what that information probably revealed about TFF #42.

We learned that, in all likelihood, "Truth" "I Saw the Light" and "Our Brand is Crisis" will not make the trek to southwest Colorado.  Also missing screenings at Telluride: "About Ray", "Mia Madre" and "Miss You Already".

We also think that "45 Years" and "Rams" WILL PLAY in Telluride.  "45 Years" wasn't particularly a surprise on MTFB.  "Rams" really shouldn't be either as it was very well received at Cannes in UN Certain Regard and also won the top prize in that program.

We could still pick up an occasional morsel of useful info from this or that film fest announcement but the biggest morsels are now out there.

All indications at this point are that Venice and Telluride will share "Black Mass", "Anomalisa", "Spotlight", "Beasts of No Nation" and "Heart of a Dog".

Telluride and New York are likely sharing: "Carol", "Steve Jobs", "The Treasure" (See NOTE below)

Telluride and Toronto seem to be sharing: "45 Years", "Anomalisa", "Beasts of No Nation", "Black Mass", "Room", "Son of Saul", "Spotlight", "Amazing Grace", "Heart of a Dog", "He Named Me Malala", "Hitchcock/Truffaut", "Rams", "The Treasure". (NOTE: Comment from Anonymous points out that "The Treasure" is now listed by TIFF as a North American Premiere.  NYFF stills lists it as not having any premiere status which indicates that its U.S. Premiere happens somewhere else before NYFF...soooo...maybe it doesn't play T-ride)

It seems that Telluride and London Fests will share "Steve Jobs", "Suffragette" and "Carol" at least.


What's still out there that is a possible choice for Telluride?

You still have to think that either Herzog piece is possible: "Queen of the Desert" and "Salt and Fire".
Also, the Mark Cousins films "Atomic" and "I Am Belfast".
Sony Pictures Classics "13 Minutes"... maybe.
The Weinstein's "Burnt", "Tulip Fever" and "Macbeth"... maybe.
"A Hologram for the King" and/or "Genius" from Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions/Saban
Maybe "Tale of Tales" and/or "A Perfect Day" from IFC Films
Warners "The 33"...maybe.
Then there are films that seem to be in limbo: Derek Cianfrance's "The Light Between Oceans" and Sean Penn's "The Last Face".
Television programming from Steve McQueen ("Codes of Conduct") and Martin Scorsese ("Vinyl") could still be in play.
Maybe some footage from "Hateful Eight".  Maybe some footage from "The Revenant"???
And there's that Wim Wenders retrospective that I think could show up with some presence.
Additionally, don't forget the tease from one source a few weeks back that even Warren Beatty could show up somewhere with a surprise screening of his Howard Hughes film.

Then there are the other non-festivaled "Big" films: Russell's "Joy", Howard's "In the Heart of the Sea",  Jolie-Pitt's "By the Sea" and Stone's "Snowden" come to mind.  They all seem likely to dodge playing a fest or maybe playing AFI in November.

I have a lot to chew over in the next 48 hours before I put up this week's new and improved "Ten Bets" list.  I'll probably have more than ten bets this week.

I have linked Toronto's added lineup report from Variety:

http://variety.com/2015/film/news/sandra-bullocks-our-brand-tom-hiddlestons-i-saw-the-light-to-premiere-at-toronto-1201572271/



MANY MORE PICS AND A SPOT FROM "BLACK MASS"

The Playlist posted yesterday an immense number of new still from Scott Cooper's "Black Mass" as well as revealing a new television spot for the film that hits theaters on Sept. 18.

I'm pretty certain it's playing at Telluride in a couple of weeks.

Here's the new T.V. spot via YouTube:

And the link to The Playlist story:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/watch-a-new-tv-spot-trunk-full-of-images-from-johnny-depps-gangster-drama-black-mass-20150818

WELLS COMPARES AND CONTRASTS

Jeffrey Wells/Hollywood Elsewhere posted a rumination yesterday comparing/contrasting his view of Telluride and Toronto.  It's here and kind of interesting.


http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/2015/08/slight-toronto-droopers/


REMEMBER TO JOIN THE PARTY AND RATE WHAT YOU SEE

For the fourth straight year Michael's Telluride Film Blog is asking you to join in rating the films you see at the fest.  I want your input as I gather your ratings on a 1-5 scale.  You can email them or tweet them or put them in a comment on this blog.  I'll compile and a week or so after the fest, I'll report to you what you, The People, thought about the films that play TFF #42.

I'll also be compiling ratings from some of the industry professionals that'll be in town for the festivities as well.  Included in this year's pros will be writers from Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, IndieWire, Awards Daily and more.


More to come on Thursday...come back ya'll...


Please feel free to leave a comment or question here at the blog.

Email me at michael_speech@hotmail.com or mpgort@gmail.com

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Toronto's Fourth Wave Announcement: Some Surprises

TORONTO'S FOURTH WAVE ANNOUNCEMENT

This morning's TIFF announcement of additional film Galas and Special Presentations as well at their Contemporary World Cinema program was most noticeable for what films it tells us WILL NOT BE AT TELLURIDE;

James Vanderbilt's "Truth"
Marc Abraham's "I Saw the Light"
David Gordon Green's "Our Brand is Crisis"
As well as: "About Ray", "Mia Madre" and "Miss You Already"

From what I can glean, we can deduce that Berlin and Cannes successes "45 Years" and "Rams" will both play Telluride.  "45 Years" from Andrew Haigh which won acting awards at Berlin for both leads, Tom Courtenay and Charlotte Rampling.  "Rams" won the top prize in Cannes' Un Certain Regard section.

Still floating in the "No Toronto/NYFF/Venice Void" are:

"Suffragette"
"In the Heart of the Sea"
"By the Sea"
"Manchester-by-the-Sea"
"Secret in Their Eyes"
"Queen of the Desert"
"Salt and Fire"
"13 Minutes"
"Macbeth"
"Adam Jones/Burnt"
"Snowden"
"Joy"
"Light Between Oceans"
"The 33"
"Crimson Peak"
"The Last Face"


More tomorrow....


Please feel free to leave a comment or question here at the blog.

Email me at michael_speech@hotmail.com or mpgort@gmail.com

Tweet/Follow at me @Gort2 on Twitter

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