Category: Oscar Contenders
Oscars 2021*: Nomadland win slighted
by Matt Ward
“One day very, very soon take everyone you know into a theater, shoulder to shoulder, in that dark space and watch every film that is represented here tonight.” – Three-time Academy Award winner Frances McDormand, accepting the Best Picture Oscar for her film Nomadland Those who believe the Academy Awards don’t matter will point to Sunday evening’s ceremony as a prime example. After a … Read More Oscars 2021*: Nomadland win slighted
The Father: Waging war on aging
by Matt Ward
First time filmmakers delivering quality debut features has been a staple of this year’s award season with Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman and Regina King’s One Night in Miami… as standouts. Dramatist Florian Zeller has also become a name to watch in cinema, adapting his critically acclaimed stage play for the big screen and earning five Academy Award nominations including Best Picture, two acting … Read More The Father: Waging war on aging
Another Round: To life’s freedoms and excesses
by Matt Ward
Danish teenagers play an unusual drinking game at the beginning of director Thomas Vinterberg’s new film. Teamed in pairs, they run around a large lake carrying a case of beer and must finish the entire load before they can cross the finish line, where adults cheer them on and police idly look on. It’s a familiar tradition in Denmark, a country whose laissez-faire attitudes … Read More Another Round: To life’s freedoms and excesses
Minari: Struggling toward the American dream
by Matt Ward
There’s something simple, yet elegant about director Lee Isaac Chung’s latest feature, a semi-autobiographical tale base on his childhood growing up in America’s heartland. The story is ordinary – and the cinema understated in large part – but there’s an ethereal quality to his film that opens with a young boy running in an empty field of green and never truly stops flowing in … Read More Minari: Struggling toward the American dream
Nomadland: Perspectives from the road
by Matt Ward
Few casual moviegoers will find Chloé Zhao’s latest directorial effort to be their absolute favorite film of the year, but even fewer can reasonably argue that it may be among the very best. A haunting yet powerful portrait of a hidden life across the heartland, Nomadland finds some of the best of America wandering across the country in search of boundless freedom and of … Read More Nomadland: Perspectives from the road
The United States vs. Billie Holiday: Melody a bit off-key
by Matt Ward
Directorial control over the course of a film can make or break the quality of a feature film. A strong hand at the wheel may lead to an exact, yet artistic vision that pierces the audience’s soul or a subtle touch might shine the light on a specific actor or highlight the nuances of the screenplay. Poor direction – or worse yet, ineffective direction … Read More The United States vs. Billie Holiday: Melody a bit off-key
Judas and the Black Messiah: Revolution in the streets
by Matt Ward
Chicago in the late 1960s was a boiling pot of water bubbling over with racial and political tension on a near daily basis, making it ripe territory for dramatic cinema. Aaron Sorkin took his pen to the task with the Oscar-contending Trial of the Chicago 7 on Netflix late last year and now a better, transcendent film will hit theaters and HBO Max on … Read More Judas and the Black Messiah: Revolution in the streets
Promising Young Woman: The sweetest revenge
by Matt Ward
Once a year, a film comes along that cuts so deeply against the grain that its ingenuity and craftsmanship push movies forward for years to come. Amidst the backdrop of pandemic-led movie shortages, the stark contrast between the relatively mundane films of 2020 and writer/director Emerald Fennell’s debut feature, an instant hit when it debuted at last year’s Sundance Film Festival on its way … Read More Promising Young Woman: The sweetest revenge
One Night In Miami: Four men, one room, millions changed
by Matt Ward
This review is based on an advance screening of “One Night in Miami” through this critic’s membership as a voter for the annual Film Independent Spirit Awards. Four men gather in a hotel room to celebrate the accomplishments of one of their own. Their party turns into a deep, philosophical conversation that crystallizes a moment in time in American history and challenges each to … Read More One Night In Miami: Four men, one room, millions changed
Soul: Once more, with feeling
by Matt Ward
Everyone assumes animated films made by Disney – or their Pixar Studios brand – are intended for younger audiences. The colors are bright, the plotlines are largely wonderous in scale, the content is cheerful and easy to follow from start to finish. Soul, the third Pixar feature from Oscar-winning director Pete Docter, isn’t for kids by any stretch of the imagination although it’s not … Read More Soul: Once more, with feeling
Wonder Woman 1984: Blast from the past
by Matt Ward
Filmmakers transcend genre by making sure their voice remains at the forefront, regardless of whatever limitations might be artificially imposed. This is especially true in the superhero genre, which can often feel stagnant and cookie-cutter as directors come to heel at the whims of a studio bent on franchise making and spectacle. Wonder Woman 1984, director Patty Jenkins’ follow-up to her critically and commercially … Read More Wonder Woman 1984: Blast from the past
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom: And all that jazz
by Matt Ward
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, the latest awards contending prestige drama from Netflix, will likely forever be known for the final performance of the late actor Chadwick Boseman, whose career was cut short by cancer in August. But what hopefully won’t be left out is that the film based on an acclaimed August Wilson play is also the finest work of Boseman’s career and a … Read More Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom: And all that jazz
Cinematic Considerations 