Category: General Thoughts
A whole new multiverse: Academy celebrates creativity, unique artistry with Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All At Once
by Matt Ward
It was practically unfathomable a year ago that a quirky blend of science fiction, drama and martial arts would be remember by more than a few ardent fans elevating it to cult status. But 366 days after its debut at the 2022 South by Southwest Film Festival, Everything Everywhere All At Once moved beyond critical and cinephile acclaim by winning seven of its 11 … Read More A whole new multiverse: Academy celebrates creativity, unique artistry with Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All At Once
The universal language of cinema: ‘Parasite’ breaks barriers as 92nd Academy Award winner for Best Picture
by Matt Ward
Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films. – Bong Joon-ho, Oscar-winning writer and director of “Parasite” Before Sunday night, a lot of things were different in the world of cinema. A foreign language film had never won Best Picture at the Academy Awards; no South Korean film had ever earned a nomination; … Read More The universal language of cinema: ‘Parasite’ breaks barriers as 92nd Academy Award winner for Best Picture
92nd Academy Awards preview: Parasite v 1917
by Matt Ward
For the sake of posterity, here are my predictions and thoughts on tonight’s Academy Awards: Best Picture: Going to win – 1917, the runaway winner at BAFTA and odds on favorite tonight, the Academy will likely favor an old standard in Best Picture winners: the technically proficient, period war epic Should win – Parasite, probably sitting in the runner-up chair, Bong Joon-Ho’s masterpiece has … Read More 92nd Academy Awards preview: Parasite v 1917
2017: A cinematic year in review
by Matt Ward
There’s little doubt that 2017 will go down in history books for far different reasons than its cinema. Films that changed the landscape of moviemaking as we know it were few and far between this year, but several – three to be exact – made game-changing impact on the possibilities big screen theatrical releases could become moving forward. Despite emerging sexual harassment and abuse … Read More 2017: A cinematic year in review
Going In Style: Heist movie equal parts hits and misses
by Matt Ward
There’s nothing terribly wrong with “Going In Style,” the comedy crime caper about aging steel workers who plan a bank heist after being robbed of their pensions. But for a film starring three Academy Award winners, director Zach Braff’s adaptation of the 1979 movie of the same name just feels flat. “Going In Style” is a leisurely stroll through the park rather than the … Read More Going In Style: Heist movie equal parts hits and misses
Revisiting the Oscars: In defense of La La Land
by Matt Ward
Heading into last night’s Academy Awards ceremony, I was fully prepared to write another glowing column about “La La Land,” raving about the film’s actual merits on a night that felt like Damien Chazelle’s masterpiece was going to be picked apart by fans of other nominated films and later derided as “not a good Best Picture winner” by those who actively dislike the movie. … Read More Revisiting the Oscars: In defense of La La Land
How I’d write #DeflateGateTheMovie
by Matt Ward
Everything about tonight’s incredible, dramatic Super Bowl that saw the New England Patriots rally back from 19 points down to win 34-28 in the first overtime championship game in NFL history begs to be turned into cinema. I started tweeting about #DeflateGateTheMovie during the Pats’ ridiculous comeback in the fourth quarter and basically started trying to will this concept into existence because, let’s face … Read More How I’d write #DeflateGateTheMovie
Oscar Nominations Reaction: La La Land and then everything else
by Matt Ward
So did “La La Land” get nominated for anything? I’m sure I didn’t hear their name called more than 14 times early this morning, tying a record for most nominations in Academy Awards history. It’s a City of Stars and we’re all just living in it. If you haven’t already seen “La La Land,” you’re going to want to go and watch Damien Chazelle’s … Read More Oscar Nominations Reaction: La La Land and then everything else
2016: A Cinematic Year In Review
by Matt Ward
It’s been a tough year. Just saying the word “2016” induces cringes from a vast majority of people, offering up painful thoughts of a highly divisive political campaign that may or may not have gone your way to general malaise about the state of the world to the seemingly endless rash of celebrity deaths that robbed us of talent far too soon. In the … Read More 2016: A Cinematic Year In Review
The Power of Cinema
by Matt Ward
Good movies can give you just what you need, bad movies can put you on the wrong track and great movies can inspire beyond anything you might have dreamed possible.
What we talk about when we talk about Birdman
by Matt Ward
It shouldn’t come as a total shock that “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” — a very inside acting film — would continue the trend of movies like “The Artist” and “Argo,” winning the Best Picture prize at Sunday’s Academy Awards. Now three of the last five films to win the most prestigious award in Hollywood are about Hollywood, actors or some combination … Read More What we talk about when we talk about Birdman
Cinematic Considerations 