SOUTH PHILLY FILM CLUB’S 2ND ANNUAL MIRROR UNIVERSE OSCARS

So, lessons learned in the last year - I'm not very good at blogging. But it's (past) Oscar time again so I finally put together my list for the 2nd Annual Mirror Universe Oscars. Which is admittedly not that different from the actual Oscars, which included many truly great films this year. So, same rules as last year - my choices for all the Oscar categories are included, along with several extra categories for all the rest of the poor, overlooked genre pics. 

The good news is, I watched a lot of movies last year. In declaring my Movie Year, I watched films nonstop to the detriment of pretty much everything else in life. So very little TV (exceptions were made for shows about dragons or British royalty), no new music (film podcasts only - eartime is valuable), and benign neglect of friends and family (sorry, folks). But I did manage to watch 365 films last year. I participated in the Women in Film 52 Films by Women Project, and am glad to have finally seen so many new and amazing films. It'll be its own post in time, but short version - you all need to watch Daughters of the Dust (in general because it's great, and to get all the Beyoncé references), and Kelly Reichardt is one of the 5 best working filmmakers today, so see everything that she's ever done. Seriously, it's a crazy year for the movies. Film Twitter is still trying to come to terms with the best film of the year (Moonlight) winning the actual Oscar for Best Film of the Year. Which hasn't happened since... The Godfather? So please let me share...

SOUTH PHILLY FILM CLUB’S 2ND ANNUAL
MIRROR UNIVERSE OSCARS

Best Film:

20th Century Women
Cameraperson
Certain Women
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight
Paterson
Silence
Swiss Army Man
Toni Erdmann (Germany)

Best Actor:

Adam Driver - Paterson
Casey Affleck - Manchester by the Sea
Denzel Washington - Fences
Joel Edgerton - Loving
Peter Simonischek - Toni Erdmann

Best Actress:

Annette Bening - 20th Century Women
Isabelle Huppert - Elle
Kate Beckinsale - Love & Friendship
Ruth Negga - Loving
Viola Davis - Fences

Best Supporting Actor:

Alden Ehrenreich - Hail, Caesar!
André Holland - Moonlight
Lucas Hedges - Manchester by the Sea
Mahershala Ali - Moonlight
Tom Bennett - Love & Friendship

Best Supporting Actress:

Golshifteh Farahani - Paterson
Greta Gerwig - 20th Century Women
Lily Gladstone - Certain Women
Michelle Williams - Manchester by the Sea
Naomie Harris - Moonlight

Best Director:

Barry Jenkins - Moonlight
Damien Chazelle - La La Land
Kirsten Johnson - Cameraperson
Maren Ade - Toni Erdmann (Germany)
Martin Scorsese - Silence

Original Screenplay:

20th Century Women - Mike Mills
American Honey - Andrea Arnold
La La Land - Damien Chazelle
The Lobster - Yorgos Lanthimos
Manchester by the Sea - Kenneth Lonergan

Adapted Screenplay:

Arrival - Eric Heisserer
Elle - David Birke (France)
Fences - August Wilson
Love & Friendship - Whit Stillman
Moonlight - Barry Jenkins & Tarell Alvin McCraney

Animated Film:

Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
The Red Turtle (France)
Tower
Zootopia

Documentary:

13th
Cameraperson
Notes on Blindness
O.J.: Made in America
Tower

Foreign Film:

Elle (France)
I, Daniel Blake (UK)
Notes on Blindess (UK)
The Handmaiden (South Korea)
Things to Come (France)

Original Score:

Jackie - Mica Levi
La La Land - Justin Hurwitz
Moonlight - Nicholas Britell
The Neon Demon - Cliff Martinez
Swiss Army Man - Andy Hull, Robert McDowell

Cinematography:

Hail, Caesar! - Roger Deakins
Jackie - Stéphane Fontaine
Moonlight - James Laxton
The Neon Demon - Natasha Braier
Silence - Rodrigo Prieto

Visual Effects:

Arrival
Doctor Strange
The Jungle Book
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Swiss Army Man

Editing:

Arrival
Green Room
La La Land
Moonlight
O.J.: Made in America

Music (Original Song):

Andy Hull and Robert McDowell - “Montage” - Swiss Army Man
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul - “City of Stars” - La La Land
Lin Manuel-Miranda - “How Far I’ll Go” - Moana
Lin Manuel-Miranda - “You’re Welcome” - Moana
The Lonely Island - “I’m So Humble” - Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

Short Film (Animated):

Blind Vaysha
Borrowed Time
Happy End
The Head Vanishes
Piper

Short Film (Live Action):

Ennemis Intérieurs
La Femme et le TGV
Silent Nights
Sing
Timecode

Documentary (Short Subject)

4.1 Miles
Extremis
Joe's Violin
The White Helmets

Costume Design:

Allied
American Honey
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Jackie
Love & Friendship

Makeup and Hairstyling:

The Neon Demon
Star Trek Beyond
Swiss Army Man

Production Design:

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hail, Caesar!
Jackie
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Swiss Army Man

Sound Editing:

Arrival
Captain America: Civil War
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Swiss Army Man

Sound Mixing:

Arrival
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
La La Land
Moonlight
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Action Film:

Captain America: Civil War
Deepwater Horizon
Doctor Strange
Green Room
Kill Zone 2 (Hong Kong)

Best Action Scene:

Captain America: Civil War - Airport Battle
Captain America: Civil War - Stairwell Fight
Green Room - Door Standoff
Kill Zone 2 - Prison Riot
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - Final Assault

Best Action Performer

Chris Evans - Captain America: Civil War
Jing Wu - Kill Zone 2
Sebastian Stan - Captain America: Civil War
Tilda Swinton - Doctor Strange
Tony Jaa - Kill Zone 2

Best Comedy Film:

Hail, Caesar!
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (New Zealand)
Love & Friendship
The Nice Guys
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

Best Comedy Performer:

Alden Ehrenreich - Hail, Caesar!
Andy Samberg - Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Julian Dennison - Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Ryan Gosling - The Nice Guys
Tom Bennett - Love & Friendship

Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Film:

10 Cloverfield Lane
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Midnight Special
The Neon Demon
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Best Sci-Fi/Fantasty/Horror Performer:

Eddie Redmayne - Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Elle Fanning - The Neon Demon
John Goodman - 10 Cloverfield Lane
Mary Elizabeth Winstead - 10 Cloverfield Land
Michael Shannon - Midnight Special

Best Acting Ensemble:

20th Century Women
Everybody Wants Some!!
Hail, Caesar!
Hidden Figures
Moonlight

Best Young Performer:

Alex Hibbert - Moonlight
Angourie Rice - The Nice Guys
Jaeden Lieberher - Midnight Special
Julian Dennison - Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Royalty Hightower - The Fits

Best Debut Film:

Anna Rose Holmer - The Fits
Dan Trachtenberg - 10 Cloverfield Lane
DANIELs - Swiss Army Man
Robert Eggers - The Witch
Trey Edward Shults - Krisha

Best Use of 3D

Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Ghostbusters
The Jungle Book
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Best Use of a Song:

Barbara Lewis - “Hello Stranger” - Moonlight
Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris - “We Found Love” - American Honey
The Rolling Stones - “Emotional Rescue” - A Bigger Splash
Talking Heads - “The Big Country” - 20th Century Women
Whitney Houston - “The Greatest Love of All” - Toni Erdmann

Best Line(s):

“Facts are horrid things.” - Love & Friendship
“Hey, these grandma rules, man. You know the deal. Your ass eat, your ass speak.” - Moonlight
“I like worrying about you.” - Midnight Special
“Is this crying? I don't like it. It's wet and uncomfortable.” - Swiss Army Man
“Ten seconds is an eternity, Harry. It's a third of the way to Mars.” / “Conner, we've talked about this. Thirty Seconds to Mars is the name of a band. It's not a fact.” - Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

Best Animal Performance:

Black Phillip the goat - The Witch
Bob the dog - The Lobster
Isabelle Huppert’s cat - Elle
Isabelle Huppert’s cat - Things to Come
Marvin the dog - Paterson

Best Dance Choreography:

American Honey
A Bigger Splash
The Fits
Hail, Caesar!
La La Land

Most Unexpectedly Emotional Use of Gilbert Gottfried:

Life, Animated

Top 25 Films

1. Toni Erdmann (Germany)
2. Moonlight
3. La La Land
4. Manchester by the Sea
5. Swiss Army Man
6. Paterson
7. 20th Century Women
8. American Honey (UK)
9. Cameraperson
10. Love & Friendship
11. Elle (France)
12. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
13. O.J.: Made in America
14. Everybody Wants Some!!
15. Hail, Caesar!
16. Certain Women
17. A Bigger Splash
18. Captain America: Civil War
19. The Handmaiden (South Korea)
20. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
21. Midnight Special
22. The Nice Guys
23. Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
24. Notes on Blindness (UK)
25. Silence
     

Top 10 Film Scenes of the Year

1. Toni Erdmann - Brunch Party
2. Moonlight - Diner Scene
3. Manchester by the Sea - Police Confession
4. La La Land - Paris Dream
5. Paterson - Mailbox Adjustment
6. The Fits - Overpass Dance
7. Swiss Army Man - Let’s Throw a Party
8. Love & Friendship - Church-Hill?
9. Hail, Caesar! - Would That It Were So Simple
10. The Nice Guys - Bathroom Stall

Best Non-2016 Films I Saw for the First Time

1. Magnificent Obsession (d: Douglas Sirk, 1954)
2. Wendy and Lucy (d: Kelly Reichardt, 2008)
3. A Taste of Honey (d: Tony Richardson, 1961)
4. The Innocents (d: Jack Clayton, 1961)
5. Elevator to the Gallows (d: Louis Malle, 1958)
6. Take Shelter (d: Jeff Nichols, 2011)
7. Comfort and Joy (d: Bill Forsyth, 1984)
8. Zodiac (d: David Fincher, 2007)
9. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (d: Ronald Neame, 1969)
10. Only Angels Have Wings (d: Howard Hawks, 1939)
11. Ikiru (d: Akira Kurosawa, 1956)
12. The Deep Blue Sea (d: Terence Davies, 2011)
13. Written on the Wind (d: Douglas Sirk, 1956)
14. Gregory’s Girl (d: Bill Forsyth, 1980)
15. Weekend (d: Andrew Haigh, 2011)
16. Phantom of the Paradise (d: Brian De Palma, 1974)
17. The Brothers Bloom (d: Rian Johnson, 2008)
18. Take This Waltz (d: Sarah Polley, 2011)
19. Old Joy (d: Kelly Reichardt. 2006)
20. Sherlock Jr. (d: Buster Keaton, 1924)
     

Most Anticipated Films of 2017:

Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi - Rian Johnson
Dunkirk - Christopher Nolan
Blade Runner 2049 - Denis Villeneuve
Baby Driver - Edgar Wright
[Untitled Paul Thomas Anderson Fashion Project]
A Quiet Passion - Terence Davies
Thor: Ragnarok - Taika Waititi
Logan Lucky - Steven Soderbergh
The Shape of Water - Guillermo del Toro
The Killing of a Sacred Deer - Yorgos Lanthimos
Roma - Alfonso Cuaron
T2: Trainspotting 2 - Danny Boyle
Get Out - Jordan Peele
The Trip to Spain - Michael Winterbottom
Call Me By Your Name - Luca Guadagnino
The Death of Stalin - Armando Iannucci
Wonderstruck - Todd Haynes
The Beguiled - Sofia Coppola
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets - Luc Besson
How to Talk to Girls at Parties - John Cameron Mitchell
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 - James Gunn
Downsizing - Alexander Payne
[Untitled Alexander McQueen Biopic] - Andrew Haigh
Last Flag Flying - Richard Linklater
Logan - James Mangold
The Lost City of Z - James Gray
A Ghost Story - David Lowery
Murder on the Orient Express - Kenneth Branagh
Wonder Woman - Patty Jenkins
Song to Song - Terrence Malick
[Untitled Kathryn Bigelow Detroit Film]
Free Fire - Ben Wheatley
Columbus - kogonada
Spider-Man: Homecoming - Jon Watts
Annihilation - Alex Garland
Frantz - François Ozon
American Made - Doug Liman
After the Storm - Hirokazu Koreeda
Newtown - Kim A. Snyder
Darkest Hour - Joe Wright

 

2017 Films I Don’t Expect to Be Good But Really Hope Will Prove Me Wrong:

Alien: Covenant - Ridley Scott
Ghost in the Shell - Rupert Sanders
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword - Guy Ritchie
The Mummy - Alex Kurtzman
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales - Joachim Rønning, Espen Sandberg
The Wall - Zhang Yimou

Takeaway: Another year where people are proclaiming the death of cinema while I struggle to choose 25 films out of the 50-or-so great ones I saw, and regret the other 50 or more great ones I haven’t seen yet. Cinema is fine, thanks. The Oscars just awarded Best Picture to the actual best American movie of the year, with the smallest budget of any winner in history. Things are getting better. For all the hand-wringing over superhero tentpoles and international returns, it’s also never been easier or cheaper to get smaller, independent films made. You just have to know where to look for them. (Also, some of the superhero movies are really good.) 
 

South Philly Film Club #10 - Daddy Issues

 

Just in time for Father's Day, we'll take a look at some notorious dads on film. Big Dads, bad dads, REALLY big dads, causing all kinds of damage from emotional to physical to spiritual. 

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

Directed by: Richard Brooks - 1 hour, 48 minutes - 1958 - USA - Color - HDTV source - 1.85:1
Starring: Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives, Jack Carson, Judith Anderson, Madeleine Sherwood

Brick and Maggie are a married couple home to visit Brick’s family, who are gathered to await results for patriarch Big Daddy’s cancer test. Brick is a former football star who’s become a sport announcer, and who has taken to drinking since the death of his teammate and best friend Skipper. Brick has broken his ankle attempting some late-night drunken high hurdling the night before, and hobbles from couch to bar as Maggie tries to find out what’s bothering him. The rest of the family waits on the test results, with sibling Brother Man and his wife Sister Woman eager to show off their five awful children, hoping to show their worthiness to inherit the family millions over Brick and Maggie, who are childless. And everyone except Brick fawns over Big Daddy, a gruff and proud bull of a man who barely tolerates his family’s nonsense.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is based on the 1955 play by Tennessee Williams, adapted for the screen by director Brooks and James Poe. Williams was unhappy with the adaptation, which removed the play’s direct references to homosexuality in order to pass the Hays Code, the industry’s self-imposed rules governing Hollywood films at the time. The picture went on to receive Academy Award nominations in nearly every major category, including Best Picture, Actor, Actress, and Director, though it failed to win any.

Trailer
IMDB page
Bosley Crowther review (New York Times, 1958)

CHINATOWN

Directed by: Roman Polanski - 2 hours, 10 minutes - 1974 - USA - Color - Blu-ray - 2.35:1
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez, Diane Ladd, Burt Young

Jake Gittes runs a private detective agency in Los Angeles in the late 30s, mostly investigating cheating spouses and the like. When one of his jobs ends with the death of the man he’s investigating, resulting in bad press for Jake and his agency, he sets out to find out who set him up and what really happened. His search quickly leads him to bigger mysteries involving city politics, control of L.A.’s water supply, and land speculation. In the middle of all this is Evelyn Mulwray, the widow of the deceased who initially tries to steer Jake away from looking further, and whose secrets he’s trying to uncover.

Chinatown was the pet project of Robert Evans, the producer who had helped save Paramount Studios with a string of unexpected hits, including Rosemary’s Baby, Love Story, and The Godfather. The script was written by Robert Towne specifically for Jack Nicholson, and Polish director Polanski was brought in at Evans’s request to give the picture a European outsider’s perspective on an American story, and for the dark and cynical approach typical of Polanski’s films. This was especially noticeable in the bleakness of his early 70s films following the murder of his pregnant wife Sharon Tate by the Manson family in 1969. Chinatown is an appropriately brutal view of L.A., a sunlit neo-noir that somehow manages to merge a history of Southern California’s water supply with existential despair to make one of the greatest films of all time.

Trailer
IMDB page
Roger Ebert reviews (4/4 stars) - [Original Review] [Great Movies review]

THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST

Directed by: Martin Scorsese - 2 hours, 44 minutes - 1988 - USA - Color - Blu-ray - 1.85:1
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel, Barbara Hershey, Victor Argo, John Lurie, Leo Burmeister, Harry Dean Stanton, Andre Gregory, David Bowie, Juliette Caton

Jesus is a carpenter helping to build crucifixes for the occupying Roman army. He is plagued by headaches and visions of God, and resists what he sees. He is consumed with guilt about Mary Magdalene, a woman he had earlier refused to marry, who now works as a prostitute. His friend Judas urges him to fight, to become a leader of the Jewish resistance against Roman rule. But after a series of visions in the desert, Jesus has a more radical vision of what he is meant to do. He begins to preach and act out a series of miracles, often confused by what he’s doing and not entirely in control. He is still plagued with doubt and the struggles between the human and divine with him. When he is captured and condemned by the Romans, while dying on the cross he sees a vision of another life.

At the time of its release, The Last Temptation of Christ was overshadowed by the controversy surrounding it, as various right-wing and religious groups sought to not only protest, but to destroy the physical film itself. Boycotts were organized, screenings were done in secret, and misinformation was rampant, as most protesters (of course) refused to actually watch the film. This for a film directed by a Roman Catholic, based on the novel by a Greek Orthodox author adapted by a writer who was raised Calvinist, all of whom wanted to explore questions of their own faith. The end result is a film that avoids the larger-than-life old Hollywood portrayals of Jesus, in favor of a story where even the miracles are almost mundane, a more naturalistic approach that’s more focused on the human than the divine.

Trailer 
IMDB page 
Roger Ebert reviews (4/4 stars): [Original Review] [Great Movies Review]
David Ehrenstein essay - The Last Temptation of Christ: Passion Project

South Philly Film Club’s 1st Annual Mirror Universe Oscars

Every January and February, I try to catch up on all the films I missed the previous year, working off of all the awards season nomination lists, as well as the best-of lists from my favorite critics. This year things got a little out of hand. Spreadsheets were involved. And I discovered that insomnia is a power, not a curse. 2 months and 103 films later, I feel qualified to make some lists. So I humbly present the South Philly Film Club's 1st Annual Mirror Universe Oscars.

This mirror universe isn't all evil and offbeat choices - there's plenty of overlap with the Academy choices, due to the fact that this was a really good year for films. I liked or loved all the Best Picture nominees except The Big Short, which I expect will win to spite me, and also because Hollywood likes to think it makes important movies. My mirror universe tries to ignore Oscar biases towards genre films, independent films, and animation, and chooses to ignore inexplicable rules for categories like Best Original Soundtrack. Oh, and my mirror universe isn't all white people! Amazing, I know. There are still a lot of them, though, because #OscarsSoWhite is a very real problem and while the Academy's changes will hopefully do a little to address this (if they manage to hit and sustain their goals), it's very much an industry-wide problem and will take a lot to change. And the industry should be called out accordingly, this year and every year until things improve.

All categories are included except Documentary Shorts, as I didn't get to see them (next year, I swear). And I added a bunch of extra categories beyond the Oscars, stolen from other awards shows or just made up by me. And if you want to see my overall Top 25 Films list, scroll to the very end. 

 

South Philly Film Club’s 1st Annual
Mirror Universe Oscars

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Film:

45 Years
Carol
Ex Machina
Inside Out
The Look of Silence
Mad Max: Fury Road
Phoenix
The Revenant
Spotlight
Tangerine
 

Best Actor:

Jason Segel - The End of the Tour
Leonardo DiCaprio - The Revenant
Michael B. Jordan - Creed
Michael Fassbender - Steve Jobs
Tom Courtenay - 45 Years
 

Best Actress:

Brie Larson - Room
Cate Blanchett - Carol
Charlize Theron - Mad Max: Fury Road
Charlotte Rampling - 45 Years
Nina Hoss - Phoenix

Best Supporting Actor:

Idris Elba - Beasts of No Nation
Jacob Tremblay - Room
Mark Rylance - Bridge of Spies
Paul Dano - Love & Mercy
Sylvester Stallone - Creed

Best Supporting Actress:

Kitana Kiki Rodriguez - Tangerine
Kristen Stewart - Clouds of Sils Maria
Phyllis Smith - Inside Out
Rachel Weisz - Youth
Rooney Mara - Carol

Best Director:

Alejandro Iñárritu - The Revenant
George Miller - Mad Max: Fury Road
Hou Hsiao-Hsien - The Assassin
Joshua Oppenheimer - The Look of Silence
Todd Haynes - Carol

Original Screenplay:

45 Years - Andrew Haigh
Bridge of Spies - Matthew Charman, Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Ex Machina - Alex Garland
Inside Out - Josh Cooley, Pete Docter, Meg Lefauve
Spotlight - Josh Singer & Tom McCarthy

Adapted Screenplay:

Brooklyn - Nick Hornby
Carol - Phyllis Nagy
The Diary of a Teenage Girl - Marielle Heller
The Martian - Drew Goddard
Room - Emma Donoghue

Animated Film:

Anomalisa
Boy & the World (Brazil)
Inside Out
Shaun the Sheep Movie
When Marnie Was There

Documentary:

Amy
Approaching the Elephant
Cartel Land
Listen Up, Marlon
The Look of Silence

Foreign Film:

The Assassin (Taiwan)
Clouds of Sils Maria (France)
Mustang (France)
Phoenix (Germany)
Son of Saul (Hungary)

Original Score:

Carol - Carter Burwell
The Duke of Burgundy - Cat’s Eyes
It Follows - Disasterpeace
The Revenant - Ryūichi Sakamoto, Alva Noto & Bryce Dessner
Star Wars: The Force Awakens - John Williams

Cinematography:

The Assassin - Mark Lee Ping Bin
Carol - Ed Lachman
Mad Max: Fury Road - John Seale
The Revenant - Emmanuel Lubezki
Sicario - Roger Deakins

Visual Effects:

Ex Machina
The Forbidden Room
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Editing:

Bridge of Spies
Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Sicario

Music (Original Song):

David Lang, “Simple Song #3″ (from Youth)
J. Ralph and Anohni, “Manta Ray” (from Racing Extinction)
Nick Cannon, “Pray 4 My City” (from Chi-Raq)
Shye Ben Tzur, Jonny Greenwood and the Rajasthan Express, “Roked” (from Junun)
Sparks, “The Final Derriere” (from The Forbidden Room)

Short Film (Animated):

Bear Story
Prologue
Sanjay’s Super Team
We Can’t Live Without Cosmos
World of Tomorrow

Short Film (Live Action):

Ave Maria
Day One
Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)
Shok
Stutterer

Costume Design:

Carol
Cinderella
Crimson Peak
Mad Max: Fury Road
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Makeup and Hairstyling:

Crimson Peak
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant

Production Design:

Bridge of Spies
Crimson Peak
Hard to Be a God (Russia)
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian

Sound Editing:

Crimson Peak
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Sound Mixing:

Love & Mercy
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Action Film:

Avengers: Age of Ultron
Kingsman: The Secret Service
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Sicario
Spectre

Best Action Performer:

Colin Firth - Kingsman: The Secret Service
Daniel Craig - Spectre
Rebecca Ferguson - Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Tom Cruise - Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Tom Hardy - Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Action Scene:

Avengers: Age of Ultron - Opening HYDRA Base Attack
Bridge of Spies - Opening Chase and Search
Kingsman: The Secret Service - Church Carnage
Mad Max: Fury Road - Bendy Pole Dudes Attack!
Spectre - Mexico City Opening

Best Comedy Film:

Inherent Vice
The Lobster
Mistress America
Spy
What We Do in the Shadows

Best Comedy Performer:

Greta Gerwig - Mistress America
Jason Statham - Spy
Joaquin Phoenix - Inherent Vice
Lily Tomlin - Grandma
Melissa McCarthy - Spy

Best Sci-Fi/Horror Film:

Crimson Peak
Hard to Be a God (Russia)
It Follows
The Martian
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Sci-Fi/Horror Performer:

Alicia Vikander - Ex Machina
Daisy Ridley - Star Wars: The Force Awakens
John Boyega - Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Matt Damon - The Martian
Mia Wasikowska - Crimson Peak

Best Acting Ensemble:

The Hateful Eight
The Martian
Mustang (France)
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton

Best Young Performer:

Abraham Attah – Beasts of No Nation
Günes Sensoy - Mustang (France)
Kai Francis Lewis - Second Coming
Kaitlyn Dias - Inside Out
Elias Schwarz - Goodnight Mommy (Austria)

Best Debut Film:

Alex Garland - Ex Machina
Deniz Gamze Ergüven - Mustang (France)
John MacClean - Slow West
László Nemes - Son of Saul (Hungary)
Marielle Heller - The Diary of a Teenage Girl

Best Use of 3D:

Jurassic World
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
The Walk

Best Use of a Song:

Cyndi Lauper, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” (Anomalisa)
Kurt Weill, “Speak Low” (Phoenix)
Oliver Cheatham, “Get Down Saturday Night” (Ex Machina)
Patty and Mildred J. Hill, “Happy Birthday to You” (Amy)
Rihanna, “Diamonds” (Girlhood)

Best Character Name:

Dolomides - Chi-Raq (Samuel L. Jackson as Dolemite as Greek chorus. Perfect.)
The Doof Warrior - Mad Max: Fury Road
Rictus Erectus - Mad Max: Fury Road
The Splendid Angharad - Mad Max: Fury Road
Toast the Knowing - Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Line(s):

“I once used defibrillators on myself. I put shards of glass in my fuckin' eye. I've jumped from a high-rise building using only a raincoat as a parachute and broke both legs upon landing; I still had to pretend I was in a fucking Cirque du Soleil show! I've swallowed enough microchips and shit them back out again to make a computer. This arm has been ripped off completely and re-attached with *this* fuckin' arm.” - Spy
“I'm gonna have to science the shit out of this.” - The Martian
“That’s cool about the frozen yogurt machine. Everyone I love dies.” - Mistress America
“Time takes everybody out; time's undefeated.” - Creed
“We’re werewolves, not swearwolves.” - What We Do in the Shadows

Honorary Mention: Best Lines About Dancing:

“I’m gonna tear up the fuckin’ dance floor, dude, check it out.” - Ex Machina
“We dance alone. That's why we only play electronic music.” - The Lobster
“Just don’t dance.” - The Big Short
“How Much for the Cheetos and water?” - Magic Mike XXL

Best Motion Capture Performance:

Andy Serkis - Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Glenn Ennis - The Revenant
James Spader - Avengers: Age of Ultron
Lupita Nyong’o - Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Mark Ruffalo - Avengers: Age of Ultron

Best Stunt Work:

Avengers: Age of Ultron
Kingsman: The Secret Service
Mad Max: Fury Road
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
The Revenant

Best Choreography (Fight/Dance):

Chi-Raq
Kingsman: The Secret Service
Magic Mike XXL
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Top 10 Film Scenes of the Year

1. Phoenix - Speak Low
2. Magic Mike XXL - Convenience Store Performance
3. Star Wars: The Force Awakens - No, MY Lightsaber
4. Carol - Bookends
5. The Revenant - First Battle
6. Wild Tales - Strangers on a Plane Opening
7. Tangerine - Car Wash Servicing
8. Anomalisa - Sex Scene
9. The Walk - The Walk (specifically, The Walk in 3D)
10. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation - Vienna Opera House

Most physically painful filmgoing experience: My legs and feet hurting for the last half of The Walk in 3D and for an HOUR after, thanks to my fear of heights.

Most Anticipated Films of 2016:

Hail, Caesar! - Joel & Ethan Coen
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - Gareth Edwards
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - David Yates
Love & Friendship - Whit Stillman
Certain Women - Kelly Reichardt
High-Rise - Ben Wheatley
Midnight Special - Jeff Nichols
La La Land - Damien Chazelle
Captain America: Civil War - Joe & Anthony Russo
Manchester by the Sea - Kenneth Lonergan
How to Talk to Girls at Parties - John Cameron Mitchell
Knight of Cups - Terrence Malick
The BFG - Steven Spielberg
Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World - Werner Herzog
Everybody Wants Some - Richard Linklater
Our Kind of Traitor - Susanna White
X-Men: Apocalypse - Bryan Singer
The Birth of a Nation - Nate Parker
A Quiet Passion - Terence Davies
Finding Dory - Andrew Stanton
American Honey - Andrea Arnold
My Golden Days - Arnaud Desplechin
Jason Bourne - Paul Greengrass
Ghostbusters - Paul Feig
Newtown - Kim A. Snyder
Russ & Roger Go Beyond - TBD
Things to Come - Mia Hansen-Løve
Doctor Strange - Scott Derrickson
Cameraperson - Kirsten Johnson
Kubo and the Two Strings - Travis Knight
Gambit - Doug Liman

2016 Films I Don’t Expect to Be Good But Really Hope Will Prove Me Wrong:

Assassin’s Creed - Justin Kurzel
Star Trek Beyond - Justin Lin
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Zack Snyder
Triple 9 - Michael Winterbottom
Genius - Michael Grandage

(streaming - A: Amazon, F: Fandor, H: Hulu Plus, N: Netflix)

Best Films I Saw for the First Time (Any Year)

1. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (d: Powell/Pressburger, 1943)
2. Laura (d: Otto Preminger, 1946) (N)
3. A Matter of Life and Death (d: Powell/Pressburger, 1946)
4. The Holly and the Ivy (d: George More O'Ferrall, 1952)
5. Kes (d: Ken Loach, 1969)
6. Solaris (d: Steven Soderbergh, 2002)
7. The River (d: Jean Renoir, 1951) (H)
8. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (d: Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1947)
9. Swing Time (d: George Stevens, 1936)
10. The Young Girls of Rochefort (d: Jacques Demy, 1967) (N,H)

Top 25 Films

1. Mad Max: Fury Road
2. Tangerine (N)
3. Carol
4. The Lobster
5. Inside Out
6. 45 Years
7. Clouds of Sils Maria (France)
8. Phoenix (Germany) (N)
9. Inherent Vice
10. Spotlight
11. Star Wars: The Force Awakens
12. The Look of Silence (N)
13. The Forbidden Room (F)
14. Crimson Peak
15. Ex Machina (A)
16. The Diary of a Teenage Girl
17. Amy (A)
18. Magic Mike XXL
19. The Martian
20. Son of Saul (Hungary)
21. The Revenant
22. Brooklyn
23. Mustang (France)
24. Youth (Italy)
25. Wild Tales (Argentina)

 

Takeaway:

If you’re complaining about the state of movies today, you’re either not watching enough or you’re not paying attention.

Dawn of Film Club

Rise, my South Phillians!