Category: Oscar Contenders
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 Whale: Fraser’s emotional odyssey
by Matt Ward
Film is often about redemption, the seeking of absolution or, at times, both. There’s tales about comeback kids, underdogs, the forgotten, the unforgiven, the unforgivable, the isolated. In a way, director Darren Aronofsky’s latest feature is a bit of all of this, most notably being a return to stardom for Brendan Fraser with the year’s most committed, devastating performance. Structurally, The Whale tells the … Read More The Whale: Fraser’s emotional odyssey
Babylon: All the glitz and glamour
by Matt Ward
When auteur directors get to the point in their careers where they have established the pedigree to have carte blanche with a studio’s checkbook, it opens all sorts of possibilities. Damien Chazelle – who burst on the scene with Whiplash and is best known for his Oscar winning musical La La Land – dips his toe back in the waters of making movies about … Read More Babylon: All the glitz and glamour
Glass Onion: Whodunnit in the modern era
by Matt Ward
Three years ago, writer/director Rian Johnson wowed audiences with an unexpected, compelling and hilarious take on the classic Agatha Christie-esque murder mystery genre. His Knives Out brought viewers into the world of a rural New England town filled with intrigue, suspicion and family tension while debuting an eccentric Southern detective on par with Hercule Poirot and Sherlock Holmes in Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc. The … Read More Glass Onion: Whodunnit in the modern era
Avatar 2: Big waves, shallow depth
by Matt Ward
James Cameron hasn’t made a new film in over a decade. The blockbuster spectacle-creator behind epic movies like Aliens, The Terminator and Titanic last showed his craft on the big screen in 2009 with a technologically revolutionary feature about human colonizers on a space world in Avatar, an Oscar nominee for Best Picture that won several technical awards. Since then, Cameron has long sought … Read More Avatar 2: Big waves, shallow depth
Empire of Light: Cinema in all capital letters
by Matt Ward
One of an auteur’s favorite things to center their films around is the art of cinema itself. Filmmakers started off their careers as moviegoers and these experiences color and impact everything about how they write, direct and produce their own work. Sam Mendes’ extensive theater and filmmaking background come to fruition with his latest film, Empire of Light, a languishing, self-indulgent look at the … Read More Empire of Light: Cinema in all capital letters
The Fabelmans: Making movies about making movies
by Matt Ward
Steven Spielberg has always been a director who cares deeply about the artistry behind his films. Influenced by some of the great filmmakers of the past – most notably John Ford – Spielberg is an exceptional, introspective master of cinema with a clear voice and vision who truly wants to bring magic to the screen at every opportunity. His latest film, The Fabelmans, is … Read More The Fabelmans: Making movies about making movies
Armageddon Time: Uneven American angst
by Matt Ward
For whatever reason, 2022 seems to be the year in which celebrated auteurs have decided to collectively look back at their childhoods to mine their youth for dramatic themes and commentary on modern society. Whether it be the isolation of the COVID pandemic or these veteran filmmakers actualizing their own autobiographical works, it seems moviegoers will have no shortage of self-indulgent drama this holiday … Read More Armageddon Time: Uneven American angst
Black Panther Wakanda Forever: Masterfully uneven
by Matt Ward
As the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) continues to expand now 30 films deep into its plethora of movie and television franchises, it’s become exceptionally hard for the comic book studio to produce quality entertainment that doesn’t feel repetitive and increasingly mundane. Studio head Kevin Feige has done a more than adequate job attempting to fill this gap by finding directors with unique visions to … Read More Black Panther Wakanda Forever: Masterfully uneven
Causeway: Return to form
by Matt Ward
It’s unclear if Apple, a major player in the technology world but relatively new in film production, has any idea what to do with the movies it releases. After making a big splash last year with their surprise Best Picture Oscar winner CODA, the up-and-coming movie studio had several anticipated titles on their slate over the next 18 months but has struggled to choose … Read More Causeway: Return to form
The Banshees of Inisherin: The charm of simple storytelling
by Matt Ward
So often movies must have big, grandiose stakes in order to appease a wide audience. They have global, if not universal consequences to the world filmmakers create, require massive budgets, large casts, intricate sets and visual effects to become cinematic blockbusters worthy of the big screen. The scale to which the average movie has expanded has drastically altered the landscape of modern filmmaking and … Read More The Banshees of Inisherin: The charm of simple storytelling
Tár: Measures of time
by Matt Ward
Time is a very precious and valuable thing. What we do with our time, how quickly or slowly life seems to go all feels set at a tempo that we conduct ourselves. It’s also at the core of acclaimed writer/director Todd Field’s first film in 16 years, a cerebral, cold, elongated portrait of a woman convinced that she has mastered time itself. Featuring one … Read More Tár: Measures of time
Cinematic Considerations 