#hong chau i love you

[konakoro]

Rewatching The Menu and Hong Chau really is playing my dream self (food industry person saying whatever she wants to asshole customers)

[marisatomay]

Interested to know whyd you give The Menu 1 star on letterboxd !!

i didn’t like it

[themosleyreview]

The Mosley Review: Kinds of Kindness

You know what's exciting and yet trickery to digest when it comes to cinema? The films that have a number vignettes stitched together to for an overall narrative. A triptych fable isn't uncommon in cinema and often times they're all centered around a character, event in time or location that every other character is affected by in a certain way. Films like Babel, The Hateful Eight or even Bullet Train all derive from that style and every once in awhile there comes a film that isn't as quite straight forward. This film was that and it was strange at first as each of the three different stories may feature the same cast playing different characters, but there is a central figure that’s always present. It was a fun narrative design while keeping it vague on who or what this person was or an established timeline. At face value, you could say these three stories are morality, spirituality and psychologically driven stories about the human condition. I think there is so much more to unpack with this film, but I will leave that for your interpretation. For me, I thought it was a well crafted anthology story that featured unique takes on certain subjects and each short showcases the different ranges of each cast member in some surprising ways.

There is alot to unpack in the performances across all three shorts so I will highlight my favorite performances of each cast member. Emma Stone continues to show that she can do anything and be the best at it. As all three different characters, she commands the screen with her ability to be as innocent as possible to creepy to insanely desperate. My favorite performance was her as Liz in the second short because it was the more intriguing and creepy. Behind her eyes, you could tell that there was life, but not a huge amount of it. As she navigates how to communicate with her husband, it was a fun game to find out the truth. Jesse Plemons shines brightly with a knockout opening performance and definitely the best of the three shorts. As Robert, you get to experience the all too familiar nature of wanting to please your superior and it was truly stressful and sad to watch a man destroy himself in more ways than one. The psychological warfare happening in that story alone was astounding. Willem Dafoe was awesome across all three stories and for me it was a tie between his performances in the first short as Raymond, the boss of Robert, and Omni in the third short. Both were controlling, manipulative and scary in their own way as they had power over the main characters. Willem has that gravitas to woo you in and it worked so well. Margaret Qualley had her best performance in the third short playing the twin sisters Ruth and Rebecca. You see how the twisted beliefs of Omni infected Rebecca's mind and I liked the warmth of Ruth as she was living the normal life. It's always a delicate balance to have when playing twins and Margaret did an exceptional job. Hong Chau has always delivered stellar performances and her best work comes from her as Sarah in the first short. She was truly devoted to Robert and she delivers such a heartbreaking performance toward the end of the short. Mamoudou Athie was the best in the second short as Neil. He truly shows the sad and scary toll it takes to see your best friend have a possible psychological break.

Composer Jerskin Fendrix did a fantastic job with how unique each short sounds musically. The best was in the third short where the majority was done with the piano and I loved how the same notes let you know when there was tension, intrigue or sometimes heartbreak. Like I said before, this was one of those films that I had to digest before actually writing about it and I have to say I really enjoyed it all around. I wouldn't mind watching this again to pick up on the little visual cues throughout. There is a small mid credits scene that finishes the film and its worth waiting for. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!

[rustystars]

wait why didn't you like kinds of kindness

the simple answer is i am just not a yorgos guy.

longer answer is that I think the movie has a very weird & off-putting view of women. like. okay. spoilers ahead obviously.

like okay. minor issues. aesthetically i'm not a fan of the randomness. like, I get that as an overarching theme life IS random & often meaningless, and having bizarre segues or abrupt scene changes can represent that, but very little of it landed for me? the main scene i'm talking about is the black & white dog montage. it was funny, but completely unrelated. it didn't add to the story or signify any meaning, it was just there. we go from story to videos of dogs fucking. the Emma Stone dance scene did a better job at making sense but it was also very out of place. the abrupt cut to & the dancing itself is absurd, which connects to how absurd that moment of her life is; she has just been raped & ousted from the cult, but at the same time she just found her life's goal. it's interesting conceptually but not very interesting to watch. like the movie had some incredibly atmospheric moments, but the music completely took me out of it.

i also didn't think the stories felt connected? part one features a bizarre yet realistic situation. part two & three feature magical realism. there isn't really a bridge or a reason given as to why fantasy elements are added to two of the three parts & not all three. it makes the first part feel very separated from the rest.

in terms of my serious issues, the portrayal of women was like... discomforting. I don't know how to describe it other than that. all three parts of the movie are very much meditations on forms of power, abuse, and the extremes people go to for human connection. both men & women are controlled & control each other, but there's also a clear sense that men have more social power than women, and the movie doesn't really... say anything about that? like there is no greater point or meaning to it.

in part one, Jesse Plemons (i'm gonna be real with you I don't remember any of the character names & I'm not going to google it.) is controlled by Willem Dafoe, but he also has clear power over the women in his life (he forcibly sterilizes Hong Chau, he disrespects Margaret Qualley, & he manipulates Emma Stone). act one is the most cohesive part & his abuse of women makes sense. the professional & personal abuse he receives makes him feel powerless, so he tries to regain agency by hurting & exerting power over a group with less social power than him (women). it's interesting.

in act two Jesse Plemons plays the abusive cop & husband to Emma Stone's possibly fake wife. this part was my least favorite. he is an extreme authority figure & Emma Stone mutilates herself to fit his perfect wife fantasy; she wears clothes that make her uncomfortable, restricts her diet, (possibly) forces a miscarriage, and kills herself. Jesse Plemons is ostensibly "right" in his abuse; once the false self dies, the real and better wife is saved, but there's nothing really SAID about it. a story doesn't need a moral or a clear message for the audience to understand abuse is bad, but the story still seems to stall. again, a woman is abused, and life continues. it can be realistic to life while also feeling pointless. nothing new is discussed & nothing is interesting or subversive about it.

in part three, Emma Stone is part of a cult looking for a magical healer. this one focuses on the role (often religious) belief & personal values play in control, power, and love. the cult encourages their members to remain "pure" by consuming only the leaders' bodily fluids (help.) and Emma Stone is named contaminated after being raped by her husband, despite cleaning out the semen. She is explicitly exposed by Jesse Plemons, who (implicitly) also exposes another woman in the cult. both the people put through the purification ritual are women; so while implicitly men can be contaminated by fucking, only women are shown to be contaminated. her rape is not taken seriously and is still tallied against her. she attempts to rejoin by kidnapping Margaret Qualley and accidentally kills her. this point is complicated (as one of the leaders, she has more power + privilege), but there's also the aspect that Hong Chau's motherhood is celebrated implicitly because her child is a boy, and Emma Stone's is not, because her child is a girl.

yes, there are greater themes to the movie, but in terms of women, nothing new is said. all three parts show women in suffering positions. & even though most of these women have agency (Margaret Qualley in part one, Emma Stone in part two, Hong Chau in part three) it overall seems to portray their suffering as inevitable in all power struggles. as a whole the movie just kept reminding me of other movies/shows/books where this topic (or like, any topic) was portrayed in a more interesting way.

another big part of my discomfort with how women are treated specifically surrounded nudity & sex. I am not anti-nudity in movies and I don't think nudity needs to be "necessary" in order to happen. sex & the body are HUGE components in conversations about power considering they're huge components of real life. at the same time, it wasn't really like. comforting? I'm trying to think of a better word. movies do not need to comfort or coddle the viewer in order to be good/meaningful/interesting, but at the same time, the use of women's bodies was bizarre.

the main thing is the female nudity to male nudity ratio. the context that we see breasts is either during sex (part two) or in terms of a person's overall value (part three). in part three women's breasts are a direct signifier of how they can be used, with the explanation that there is a specific perfect size/appearance. these women's value as a person depend, to the cult, on their breasts. comparatively men aren't shown nude from the waist above often at all, and while we do see Willem Dafoe's dick, it's in a much different context. we see him nude before he fucks someone; he is a leader of the cult and in a position of power, and he controls their sex. Margaret Qualley meanwhile completely devoid of agency while nude. her naked body is compared to a dog's and dragged across the floor, associating the male body with control & the female body with degradation.

i feel like I sound like Freud. anyway. the portrayal of sex is also weird. men fuck (and are in control), and women get fucked (and lose control). the most clear-cut example of this is when Emma Stone is raped by her husband in part three and shamed for it, but it's present throughout all three parts. sex is a means of control, and while men are controlled, none of them are explicitly fucked onscreen in the same way women are. Jesse Plemons and Willem Dafoe's sexual relationship is entirely implicit; Plemons gets fucked, but only off screen. Margaret Qualley and Emma Stone's consensual sex scenes are meanwhile explicit and long. Similarly, while his kisses with Dafoe relate to Dafoe's power over him, they are much less explicit and dominating as when Dafoe and Emma Stone make out in act three. When Jesse Plemons asks to watch the sex tape in part two, even though Margaret Qualley and Mamoudou Athie are reluctant, he is allowed to. When Emma Stone proposes a foursome, she is immediately shut down. he is given sexual agency and she is not. we're told that Hong Chau is sexually in power in part three as a cult leader but again, her power is not shown onscreen.

to sum it up: onscreen, men are only ever sexually in control, and women are only ever sexually submissive, or otherwise not able to express sexuality as adequately. even the car crashes show a pattern of men having more power than women. Jesse Plemons is able to kill a man on purpose, but Emma Stone's killing of Margaret Qualley happens entirely on accident.

this is more of a personal gripe, but it also bothered me how in these conversations about systemic abuses of power, race is not a factor at all. characters leverage their power over others as men, cops, and authority figures, but not necessarily as white men, cops, and authority figures, even though racism and white beauty standards are present in almost every aspect of American life & American movies.

ANYWAY. tldr I think the movie is ultimately less respectful of women than men. and also there was too much dialogue

[messinwitheddie]

If you ever watch the movie *A bugs life* I can’t help but headcanon Lich’s voice as Hopper cuz he’s a bully and a boss man.😅 especially the last scene where the ants finally are fed up with him and face him for being a tyrant that he is.

That's awesome you have a voice you can hear for Lich. I haven't watched a Bugs Life in a long time, but I liked the movie as a little kid. I can see the parallels with the characters.

Originally, when I first came up with the concept of Lich's character (Can’t even remember what I originally named him. Maybe it was the same name. Can’t remember. Wow…

Either way, Lich's original backstory/ role in a fanfic [I won't name because I wrote it in middle school and it was AWFUL], was very different from what it is now. The plot of the fuc was a ripoff of the movie ,“Heavy Metal” so Ronnie James Dio or Alice Cooper were the two voices I usually associated him with. "The Mob Rules" and "The Black Widdow" are Lich's theme songs.

BUT Kevin Spacey's voice fits Lich very well, now that you pointed it out.

He is oozing with Hopper vibes.

If I had an obscene amount of money to spend, I would hire these voice actors/actresses/ singers (resurrect them from the grave if necessary) to play my ocs and/or Characters from Invader Zim that never officially were assigned hired voice actors.

At least most of my Irken ocs have voices picked out.

Pepperoncini: Sir Christopher Lee (?) Earle Hyman (?) Even those two would have to pitch their voices lower and more gravely. Cini's voice, especially in his later years, is very, VERY deep and ravaged by centuries of smoking pipe amber. I guess the contrast in his bright, lighthearted, bubbly personality amuses me.

I can’t think of a voice that perfectly matches the voice Cini has in my head. Any suggestions would be welcome.

I loosely based his personality on Phyllis Diller and Vincent Price, to give an idea of his mannerisms.

Spinch: Martha Kelly (so shy)

Hoola: Eric Bauza (His personality is based on Daffy Duck, though lacking in WB toon antics and the lisp.)

Mem: Bette Midler (first choice), possibly Kathy Bates or Meryl Streep

Some of Mem's swarm I have casted

Handoverfist aka Hof: Eugene Mirman

Ferocity: Betsy Sodaro

Skathe: Jenny Slate

Starboard: John Fiedler

Zee: Jillian Bell

Rook/ the Sage: Originally I imagined John Cleese playing Rook, at least in Rook's older years (because he was based on the Monty Python’s Holy Grail Tim the Enchanter) or Suzy Izzard.

But again, now that you pointed out the parallels, David Foley fits pretty well too.

Miyuki: I'm sure plenty of people would disagree with me, but I think Cher (or at least a younger Cher), Lynne Lipton (again, younger), or Cree Summer would make great choices for Miyuki.

Kii: Can't get Melissa Fahn's voice out of my head for her, but any suggestions are welcome. Maybe Doro Pesch.

Soxx: Percy Rodriguez (would have to bring him back from the dead)

Hitz: Richard Romanus

Spork: Lorenzo Music (I just do)

Commander Poki: Brooke Dillman (I love that woman's voice. Boss as shit.)

Frylady Soo-Garr: Kristin Chenoweth or Grey DeLisle. Either. Either or would pull off her vindictive personality perfectly.

Pielord Emis-Gee: Ron Funches

Brewmaster Shakkin: Christopher McCulloch

Yeet: Hong Chau (so spunky!)

Vroog: Billie Mae Richards or Maria Bamford for a living person to play her.

Irken Gir would be played by Rosearik Rikki Simons, just no synthesizers or anything.

This is not a complete list by far. If you’re curious about any of ocs that I didn’t list, you can ask about or make suggestions.

Hearing the voices helps develop the character for me

[firespirited]

I watched The Menu (2022) because it had Colin Stetson's music in the trailer and I wanted something to watch while eating.

[yeah I watched DEVS because of the sax solo in the first episode and I watched The First (TV - 2018) a rather pompous prestige show about a mission to Mars because of Stetson too. I'm easily baited by moody brass okay.]

I loved the constant tension and off kilter structure. I thought it was a film about cannibal chefs - not quite - he sure makes a meal of everyone. There's a cheeseburger that's filmed with lust and the final show-piece had me giggling with each new absurd detail.

There's enough for metaphor if you're looking for somewhat heavy-handed social commentary that felt more like Chef's excuse (Kitchens reproduce the outdoors social hierarchies on a different scale). This reads more as Chef's psychosexual obsession with control than broader sociopolitical commentary; not that I mind either interpretation.

Pro: Ralph Fiennes and Anja Taylor Joy play off each other ever so well. I'm impressed at the layering they brought to their roles.

Con: The violence felt muted, un-embodied like we're supposed to question if it's fake too but for too long for that to be the case.

Pro and Con: Judith Light gives a secondary character serious pathos even though she's given maybe three lines total.

MIA: Bad people throwing each other under the bus at moments when you know they would IRL.

MVP: Elsa by Hong Chau

I enjoyed how unusual and off balance this was while having a well wrapped start middle and ending.

If you love food on film and horror, you'll enjoy Hannibal and the food stylist posts that went with each meal. In non murder-y meals, there's PIG which, like The Menu, showcases bread in a tender and beautiful way.

[stringhq]

Mwf? This looks amazing!!!!

thank you so much! i'd love to see alexa demie, america ferrera, anne hathaway, anya taylor joy, ayo edebiri, brittany snow, carey mulligan, chase sui wonders, coco jones, courteney cox, elizabeth lail, fka twigs, halle bailey, havana rose liu, jane de leon, jenna ortega, jessie buckley, maggie q, margot robbie, melissa barrera, mia goth, rachel sennott, sophie turner, sydney sweeney, tati gabrielle, taylor russell, victoria pedretti, willa fitzgerald, and zendaya. there are a bunch of ideas under the cut too from when i was in a spooky mood!

abbey lee, addison rae, aimee carrero, alexandra jensen, alison oliver, allison williams, alona tal, alyssa sutherland, amanda seyfried, america ferrera, andi matichak, angela bassett, antoinette robinson, anya taylor-joy, ayo edebiri, bahar pars, bethlehem million, billie lourd, brittany snow, caitlin stasey, carey mulligan, celeste o'connor, chase sui wonders, chloe bailey, cleopatra coleman, courteney cox, devyn nekoda, dominique fishback, elizabeth moss, ella balinska, emily tennant, fivel stewart, florence pugh, georgina campbell, gideon adlon, gillian anderson, gina gershon, grace byers, havana rose liu, hayden panettiere, hong chau, jane adams, janet mcteer, jasmin savoy brown, jenna coleman, jessie buckley, judy greer, julie bowen, kaia gerber, kaitlyn denver, kathryn newton, katie winter, keke palmer, kiernan shipka, kirby howell-bapitiste, kristen stewart, lady gaga, liana liberato, lily sullivan, lola zackow, lucy boynton, lucy hale, maggie q, maika monroe, maria bakalova, marin ireland, marley shelton, meghan martin, melissa barrera, mia goth, michelle yeoh, mikey madison, miranda otto, myha'la, nell verlaque, neve campbell, nichole sakura, odeya rush, olivia holt, paris jackson, portia doubleday, rachel sennott, renata vaca, rosamund pike, ruby cruz, samara weaving, sandra oh, sarah snook, shabana azeez, shannyn sossamon, shawnee smith, silvina sabater, sonia ammar, sophie thatcher, sophie wilde, sosie bacon, taissa farmigo, taylor russell, tina fey, virginia gardner, x mayo, or yvonne orjii!

[carryhatchet]

Do you guys know the actress Hong Chau. Asking because you guys know good movies she's such a good actress I love her. The whale fucking sucks though I think maybe? That was what I thought at seventeen (sixteen?)

[non-binary-laurie-strode]

In preparation for my annual Pink Bette film awards next month, I compiled a list of all previous Bette winners.

If you don't know, the Pink Bettes are my own personal awards that display much better taste than the Oscars. They're on par with the Mackolades and the Golden Elliotts! (And were inspired by the Golden Elliotts; thanks Elliott.) I sometimes have snarky categories (Worst Performance, which has only ever been used once, for Eddie Redmayne in Jupiter Ascending) or silly categories/wins (Psyduck is considered a Bette winner because he was iconic in Detective Pikachu). Basically, I try not to take them too seriously! And not every "win" is necessarily a mark of quality! I don't give only one winner per category because that's boring, and why do we have to only have one winner? Each category can have 3+ winners, with Performance categories (nongendered) having up to 9.

I've been doing them for years now—the first was January 4th, 2020, for the movies I watched from January 2019 through December 2019. (So they were new-to-me in that year, not necessarily released in that year.)

And I love my tables and statistics and trivia. So here are some pieces of trivia.

Every year except for the first year (because there were fewer categories), I have given 5 Bettes to one movie per year. For the movies of 2020, it was Parasite. For 2021, it was Witness for the Prosecution. For 2022, it was Everything Everywhere All At Once. No one movie has won more than 5 Bettes in a year, so this is basically the highest acclaimed movie of the year.

I have given five actors multiple Favourite Performance awards. These are Cate Blanchett, Rita Moreno, Hong Chau, Marlene Dietrich, and Mia Goth. Of these, only Marlene Dietrich has won Lead Performance twice; the other four are either Supporting twice (Rita Moreno) or a mix. Everyone else has only won one Favourite Performance. No one has three yet.

Additionally, I also do a special subsection each year, called the Keanu Reeves Award For Slutty, Slutty Film Men, where basically I award the men who drove me crazy in film each year. Only three men have won a Keanu twice: Keanu himself, Ryan Gosling, and Ethan Hawke. No one has three yet, but 1991 Keanu showed ass in a movie I watched this year, so... spoilers, he's going to get to three.

Anyway, I feel like I'm super enthusiastic about film and le cinéma, so I'm super excited this year to put together my Bettes!!

[byneddiedingo]

Asteroid City (Wes Anderson, 2023)

Cast: Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Jake Ryan. Grace Edwards. Screenplay: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola. Cinematography: Robert D. Yeoman. Production design: Adam Stockhausen. Film editing: Barney Pilling. Music: Alexandre Desplat.

On the Netflix series Heartstopper, a teenage boy works up the courage to ask a girl he likes (and who secretly likes him) to go on their first date. He takes her to a movie that he likes and she doesn't, and the date is a disaster. The key fact here is that the movie is Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom (2012). In my day, a comparable move would have been to take a date to see Jacques Demy's The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964). Like Demy, Anderson makes movies that display an uncompromising sense of style. The only question is whether that style works for you or not, whether you think it betrays a lack of substance or opens vistas of meaning. In Anderson's case it's certainly a consistent style: an absence of closeups, long takes with characters artfully placed, actors who deliver their lines deadpan facing front, tricks like switching the screen from standard Academy ratio to widescreen and from monochrome to color. Sometimes Anderson's style works for me and sometimes it doesn't -- I love The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), but I could barely sit through The French Dispatch (2021). In the case of Asteroid City, I still haven't made up my mind completely, but I'm leaning toward the favorable view. I think it captures something essential about the brutal innocence of 1950's America -- the film is set in 1955 -- and does it without clichés. There's an acidity of tone to the film that keeps it from becoming twee -- an adjective frequently applied to Anderson's movies. The performances of its all-star cast are often delightful: I particularly liked Bryan Cranston's performance as the TV host who serves as the narrator in the frame story. Cranston somehow manages to walk a line between Rod Serling and Walter Cronkite in his delivery. Scarlett Johansson and a bearded, pipe-smoking Jason Schwartzman manage to transcend the limitations of deadpan delivery as the film's romantic leads. Jeffrey Wright doesn't overplay the role of the pompous General Gibson, and there's a brief starry cameo by Margot Robbie. Asteroid City may be one of those films it's more rewarding to think about after you watch it, but watching it is fairly painless.

[weclassybouquetfun]

One more awards show down. We next have the SAG Awards (Feb. 26th), the Independent Spirit Awards (Mar. 4th) and the Oscars (Mar. 12th).

I must say if we get these exact same winners for the major category at the Oscars I would be very happy.

Except for score. If Justin Hurwitz doesn't win an Oscar for the BABYLON score I tear the Dolby down.

The Winners and host Richard E. Grant

Leading Actress Viola Davis, The Woman King Danielle Deadwyler, Till Ana De Armas, Blonde Emma Thompson, Good Luck To You, Leo Grande Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All At Once Cate Blanchett, Tár – WINNER

Leading Actor Colin Farrell, The Banshees Of Inisherin Brendan Fraser, The Whale Daryl Mccormack, Good Luck To You, Leo Grande Paul Mescal, Aftersun Bill Nighy, Living Austin Butler, Elvis – WINNER

Supporting Actor Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees Of Inisherin Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All At Once Eddie Redmayne, The Good Nurse Albrecht Schuch, All Quiet On The Western Front Micheal Ward, Empire Of Light Barry Keoghan, The Banshees Of Inisherin – WINNER *He thanked his baby Brando.

Supporting Actress Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Hong Chau, The Whale Dolly De Leon, Triangle Of Sadness Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All At Once Carey Mulligan, She Said Kerry Condon, The Banshees Of Inisherin – WINNER

Best Film

The Banshees Of Inisherin

Elvis

Everything Everywhere All At Once

Tár

All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER

Outstanding British Film

The Banshees Of Inisherin – WINNER

Aftersun

Brian And Charles

Empire Of Light

Good Luck To You, Leo Grande

Living

Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical

See How They Run

The Swimmers

The Wonder

MORE WINNERS AND FASHION

Director Edward Berger, All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER Martin McDonagh, The Banshees Of Inisherin Park Chan-Wook, Decision To Leave Daniel Sheinert, Everything Everywhere All At Once Todd Field, Tár Gina Prince-Bythewood, The Woman King

EE Rising Star Award (Voted For By The Public)  Emma Mackey – WINNER Aimee Lou Wood Daryl Mccormack Naomi Ackie Sheila Atim

Make Up & Hair Elvis – WINNER All Quiet On The Western Front The Batman Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical The Whale

Production Design Babylon– WINNER All Quiet On The Western Front The Batman Elvis Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio

British Short Animation  The Boy, The Mole, The Fox And The Horse– WINNER Middle Watch Your Mountain Is Waiting

British Short Film  An Irish Goodbye – WINNER The Ballad Of Olive Morris Bazigaga Bus Girl A Drifting Up

Costume Design Elvis – WINNER All Quiet On The Western Front Amsterdam Babylon Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris

Sound All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER Avatar: The Way Of Water Elvis Tár  Top Gun: Maverick

Original Score  All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER Babylon The Banshees Of Inisherin Everything Everywhere All At Once Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio

Documentary Navalny – WINNER All That Breathes All The Beauty And The Bloodshed Fire Of Love Moonage Daydream

Special Visual Effects Avatar: The Way Of Water – WINNER All Quiet On The Western Front The Batman Everything Everywhere All At Once Top Gun: Maverick

Original Screenplay The Banshees Of Inisherin – WINNER Everything Everywhere All At Once The Fabelmans Tár Triangle Of Sadness

Animated Film Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio – WINNER Marcel The Shell With Shoes On Puss In Boots: The Last Wish Turning Red

Outstanding Debut By A British Writer, Director Or Producer  Aftersun – WINNER Blue Jean Electric Malady Good Luck To You, Leo Grande Rebellion

Cinematography  All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER The Batman Elvis Empire Of Ligh Top Gun: Maverick

Editing Everything Everywhere All At Once– WINNER All Quiet On The Western Front The Banshees Of Inisherin Elvis Top Gun: Maverick

Casting Elvis – WINNER Aftersun All Quiet On The Western Front Everything Everywhere All At Once Triangle Of Sadness

Film Not In The English Language All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER Argentina, 1985 Corsage Decision To Leave The Quiet Girl

Adapted Screenplay All Quiet On The Western Front – WINNER Living The Quiet Girl She Said The Whale

Some of the fashionable people at the BAFTAs.

Is Martin Freeman's partner going for the Sigourney Weaver in GHOSTBUSTERS look?

*See Emma, if Sir Kenneth Branagh hadn't cheated on you with Helena Bonham Carter you would have never married Greg Wise and in him you found a partner who is game with wearing trainers on the red carpet.

A ROCKETMAN and KINGSMAN mini-reunion for Taron Egerton

*Taron and Kit Connor - Then and Now.

Taron and friend Jack.

Everyone should look at Angela Bassett like this.

Another mini-reunion: Florence Pugh and her LADY MACBETH costar Naomi Ackie. I highly recommend that movie. It's a whole trip.

Her after-party fit.

I really thought Sophie Turner was Karen Gillen for a moment.

Best Dressed Man.

Best Dressed Woman.

Her after-party fit.

Runner Up

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🦇 Good Fortune Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

❝ But meeting him now felt like meeting him for the first time, glimpsing a new side of the person she want once imagined she knew. It unsettled her, how little she could trust that her impression of him would stay true to the versions she met later. ❞

❓ QOTD What's your favorite Austen adaptation?

🦇 Elizabeth "LB" Chen's mother is all too excited when she sells the neighborhood's beloved yet derelict community center to two Chinese men from Hong Kong, but LB isn't convinced these investors have the community's best interests at heart. With stubborn albeit good intentions, she fights for the community, too often butting heads with uptight, arrogant Darcy Wong in the process. The two are forced to spend time together, each venturing into the other's world longer than they're comfortable with. Can they see from one another's perspective, or will pride and prejudice get in the way?

💜 It's a truth universally acknowledged that many book lovers adore a good retelling—emphasis on "good." There are many that fail to hit the mark, neglecting the qualities that led readers to fall in love with the original story in the first place.

🧧Good Fortune hits every mark...and then some.

💜 The first 25 pages feature language so unique and enthralling that, for a moment, you'll forget this was a retelling in the first place. The writing is full of sass and quick wit without compromising the charm or formality of Austen's original works. Modernized, the language is moving, thought-provoking, and refreshing. Once it ensnares you, you'll find the sun has long set—or perhaps, just beginning to rise—as the story makes you forget all sense of time. Despite the familiar characters and plot, Chau does stunning work of making the story her own. The smallest of details—like LB's photography, the issue of gentrification, and Darcy's community outreach—to foundational changes—like setting the story in New York's Chinatown and making the sisters children of Chinese immigrants—all play a part in the story's progression. Chau never abandons the themes that make Pride and Prejudice such a monumental story, instead using them to bring attention to the same problems that still exist today: cultural identity, class divides, the burdens and responsibilities of family. Culture is infused in every page, granting this story a unique authenticity that other retellings lack. Infusing this story with the Chinese-American children-of-immigrants perspective only makes the classical class divide AND family values all the more poignant.

🦇 I think most readers will feel conflicted about the minor adjustments made to some of the supporting characters (namely, Jade and Lydia, who are a little more frustrating than usual). However, the frustrations both cause give LB the push she needs to adjust her perspective. Lydia's scandal and brattish behavior made me set my Kindle aside more than once, but I've never been a fan of Lydia Bennet.

🦇 Though I don't think the book needs to be longer, I do wish we got a little more of LB and Darcy together at the end. However, the original Pride and Prejudice story, along with most retellings, stop at the point they're together, so I understand it. The playful, rather than abrasive version of their banter is so entertaining that it only left me starved for more.

🦇 Recommended for fans of the original Pride and Prejudice, readers eager for diverse stories, and lovers of Sonali Dev's The Rajes series (another great retelling you NEED to read if you haven't already). Book bats, you've gotta grab this one!

✨ The Vibes ✨ ㊗️ Debut Novel 🎩 Contemporary Pride and Prejudice 🏮 Enemies to Lovers 🥠 Class Consciousness 🥟 Family is Everything 👠 Stubborn Integrity

🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

[burned-lariat]

I love my trend of watching two movies on select home flights. The last time I did it, I watched Lady Bird and Love, Simon. I enjoyed both.

This time, I watched The Whale and Bodies Bodies Bodies and...hmm.

The Whale

I'll get this out of the way: Brendan Fraser EARNED that damn award. EARNED IT. His performance was fantastic. Close second to Hong Chau (Liz the nurse). Otherwise, there wasn't much to engage with. The plot was fairly non-existent (I think we were watching this man just kill himself, and thus, it was the "plot"). I was constantly gaslit to think Ellie was worth investment, especially by Charlie, though it's debatable on whether or not he's meant to be listened to (considering how he was never shown to be a liar, seems like his take was meant to be correct). You could've done without Thomas - he was unneeded. I get it's based on a play, but you mean to tell me that the script writer and Aronofsky couldn't toy with certain elements more?

I also think the movie was too short to do what the staff wanted it to do. I saw I was about 80 minutes in, and almost nothing had happened. Nothing progressed the "plot" beyond Charlie's eating disorder as he marched further and further, and this "reconnection" with Ellie was on an infinite loop that was very unearned at the end of the film. I think there could've been something there with having characters like Ellie and Thomas craft deeper empathy upon seeing Charlie's plight, where Ellie understands that her father's decisions are not on a black-and-white binary and Thomas steps out of the fanaticism circle (plus it gives the character more relevance). Liz worked just fine in her role, and she was a high point story-wise. Same with the ex-wife, though her only being in one sequence and having their past all dumped in a lone monologue really is a bummer. Fraser and Chau were great, but the rest couldn't get there.

6/10.

Bodies Bodies Bodies

About 20 mins in, when someone described the BBB game, I realized I'm just basically watching an IRL game of Among Us go wrong and had to hunker down. I actually did find myself quite bored down the stretch, mostly between deaths, because there was just a bunch of walking around and dead air during the hurricane. Each of the characters had the depth of a puddle, even for the characters that were meant to have more than that (like Bee and Sophie). The acting was hit or miss - I think Stenberg was the best of the bunch, Davidson was fine for his limited time, Sennott swung between great and flat, and everyone else was just kind of dull. I didn't care about them. There was nothing to engage with. I don't need to like you, I need to engage with you, and if I can't get that, then it's a wash because I stop caring.

I also think this film suffered from being too short, and I'd actually argue that Bee isn't needed. You could still have the plot work without the end twist (it was dumb!!) and having Sophie as the sole lead, where her return after rehab and the subsequent playing of the game outs all the drama. Speaking of drama, much of these characters' histories were told to me. I want to see it, not be told it. Why not have people mention a memory or flinch on a trigger over behavior instead of dialogue dumps of content (which I'll get to) and constantly saying "oh we're longtime besties!!" every other sentence?

Speaking of, good God did this movie just spill the details of the group's qualms practically unprovoked. We didn't get to see it in nuanced performances or context clues via presence and scenery and dialogue: we got EXPOSITION DUMPS. Jordan's beef about Sophie? Teased for a scene or two in the very beginning, left out to dry for a while, and then dumped en masse when she squared off with Bee and Sophie. Max and David beefing over Emma? Two mini conversations about it with no clues teasing such (like if the idea is that they wanna dangle Max as the red herring, they could leave inside jokes or teases that point in his direction like making David's injuries around the black eye). Max doesn't show up at all until the very last scene, so what was the point of him even being brought up or included? What is the point of everyone dying if the plot unravels to not be a campy murder mystery after all? That's not fun!

If this was meant to lampoon Gen Z/Tik Tok culture and how people like the group bastardize mental health language & AAVE, it did not come across that way to me. It came off as those stereotypes playing Among Us But You Actually Die (and even then it's a stretch considering the ending).

4/10.

[kristenswig]

Picture

The Fabelmans

EEAAO

The Banshees of Inisherin

Top Gun

Elvis 

Tar

All Quiet on the Western Front ------bar of certainty------

Avatar (I want to drop this so baddddddd)

Nightmare Alley Babylon

The Whale SandraBullockWell.jpg - Women Talking Neon is busy trying fill up as much of Best Documentary as possible - Triangle of Sadness Fell off - Glass Onion The Year is 2080 and We Have Spent Half a Century Honoring Chadwick Boseman’s Monumental Contributions to Film, Television, and Humanity - Black Panther Luckily the internet can’t make everything happen - RRR

Director

Steven Spielberg - The Fabelmans

The Daniels - EEAAO

Todd Field - Tar

Martin McDonagh - The Banshees of Inisherin

Edward Berger - All Quiet on the Western Front Don’t encourage him - Baz Luhrmann - Elvis The bright side of this would be that it would humiliate the CCA - Joseph Kosinski - Top Gun I’m starting to doubt - James Cameron - Avatar Was he top 3 at BAFTA? I have questions - Park Chan-wook - Decision to Leave Todd Field is an Honorary Woman - Sarah Polley - Women Talking, Gina Prince Bythewood - The Woman King, Charlotte Wells - Aftersun

Actress

Cate Blanchett - Tar

Michelle Yeoh - EEAAO

Viola Davis - The Woman King

Ana de Armas - Blonde

Michelle Williams - The Fabelmans Just feels like it’ll slip through the cracks - Danielle Deadwyler - Till They just love nominating them! not enough though - Margot Robbie - Babylon, Olivia Colman - Empire of Light Knows what happened to Shelly Miscavige - Andrea Riseborough - To Leslie

Actor

Colin Farrell - The Banshees of Inisherin

Brendan Fraser - The Whale

Austin Butler - Elvis

Bill Nighy - Living

Hugh Jackman - The Son (don’t @ me if this happens I’m not manifesting) Good luck diva - Paul Mescal - Aftersun Movie doesn’t exist - Adam Sandler - “Hustle” Your boots sir - Tom Cruise - Top Gun

Supporting Actress

Kerry Condon - The Banshees of Inisherin --------bar of certainty---------

Angela Bassett - Black Panther (imagine having her career and finally getting nomination #2 for this)

Jamie Lee Curtis - EEAAO 

Hong Chau - The Whale

Nina Hoss - Tar (you CAN @ me if this happens I AM manifesting) This movie will probably end up leading the nominations but the cult needs this snub so they still feel like they’re rooting for an underdog - Stephanie Hsu - EEAAO Girlboss - Dolly de Leon - Triangle of Sadness Gatekeep - Jessie Buckley - Women Talking We specifically decided to not do this so she wouldn’t win - Michelle Williams - The Fabelmans Gaslight - Janelle Monae - Glass Onion Girlboss - Carey Mulligan - She Said Gaslight - Claire Foy - Women Talking

Supporting Actor

Ke Huy Quan - EEAAO

Brendan Gleeson - The Banshees of Inisherin

Barry Keoghan - The Banshees of Inisherin

Paul Dano - The Fabelmans

Eddie Redmayne - The Good Nurse (I don’t buy this) Or this - Judd Hirsch - The Fabelmans Or this - Bryan Tyree Henry - Causeway Or this - Ben Whishaw - Women Talking Who is this - “Albrecht Shuch” - All Quiet on the Western Front

Adapted Screenplay

Women Talking

Glass Onion

Living

The Whale

All Quiet on the Western Front Not exactly what they’re looking at here - She Said Presumably “Written” - White Noise Sequels! Remakes! Reboots! - Pinocchio, Top Gun, The Son

Original Screenplay

The Banshees of Inisherin

EEAAO

The Fabelmans

Tar

Triangle of Sadness You had a good go at it...thanks for your input - Aftersun WGA bait - Elvis I’ve been sensing this lurking - Nope Mubi will not shut up about it - Decision to Leave

Cinematography

Anyone ever seen a plane? (Top Gun)

Roger Deakins (movie irrelevant)

Not Emmanuel Lubezki (Bardo)

Shiny Objects! (Elvis)

This branch likes him more than the guild (The Fabelmans) I think I might be predicting this movie in all the wrong tech categories - All Quiet on the Western Front If this gets nominated it’s probably gonna win - Avatar Obsessed with people predicting a 2/5 ASC overlap - The Batman

Costumes

Elvis

Black Panther

Babylon

Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris

Corsage ???? - The Woman King That’s all I got but here are some more movie titles - EEAAO, Living, The Fabelmans, Amsterdam, All Quiet on the Western Front

Film Editing (bombing this category as usual)

Top Gun

EEAAO

Elvis

All Quiet on the Western Front

Tar (sticking with the overperformance narrative) They’ve snubbed Michael Kahn for flashier work - The Fabelmans Certainly a Best Picture frontrunner! - The Banshees of Inisherin Sound! Light! Movement! - Avatar

Makeup and Hairstyling

The Batman

Elvis

The Whale

the first name I randomly pulled out of my hat...Babylon

the second...Blonde The third - Amsterdam The fourth - All Quiet on the Western Front I didn’t put them in the hat - Les crimes du futur, Emancipation

Production Design

Babylon

Black Panther

Elvis

Avatar

All Quiet on the Western Front in descending order of likelihood - The Fabelmans, EEAAO, Pinocchio, Bardo

Score

The Fabelmans

Babylon

Women Talking

The Banshees of Inisherin

Pinocchio  I’m making this up - All Quiet on the Western Front, Black Panther, The Woman King

Songrbfhddsishgdbk

RRR

Black Panther

Top Gun

Pinocchio

Till I don’t know which one is the title of the movie and which one is the title of the song - Applause/Tell It Like a Woman Hague - Crawdads White noise - White Noise

Sound

Top Gun

Elvis

Avatar

All Quiet on the Western Front

coin toss EEAAO coin toss - The Batman They prefer Elvis - Babylon

Visual Effects

Avatar

Top Gun

The Batman

All Quiet on the Western Front

Thirteen Lives annual bullshit nominee alert - Jurassic World annual bullshit nominee alert part 2 - Fantastic Beasts and your guild nominations? - Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Nope

Animated Feature

Pinocchio

Turning Red

My Father’s Dragon

M*rc*l th* Sh*ll w*th Sh**s *n

Inu-Oh Continuing to pretend that they don’t like sequels - Puss in Boots Maybe if it were better? - Wendell and Wild Disney payola - Strange World

Documentary Feature

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

All That Breathes

Fire of Love

Navalny

Moonage Daydream Literally started typing my international predictions which should tell you how much thought went into this - Descendant See also - The Territory, Bad Axe, Retrograde, Last Flight Home

International Feature

All Quiet on the Western Front

Argentina 1985 

Decision to Leave

Bardo

Joyland A24 forgot they had this - Close GROUP A Alternates (potential replacements for #2-4 above) - The Quiet Girl, EO, Holy Spider, Saint Omer, Corsage GROUP B Alternates (potential replacements for #5 above) - Return to Seoul, Last Film Show, The Blue Caftan, The Artist Formerly Known as Boy From Heaven

[samwinchcster]

when ariana debose baftas 2023 said All the ladies in the room 👯‍♀️ supporting and leading all here, i presume 🤔 hong chau, dolly de. kerry and carey with a C. dame emma, i'm so fond 😘 ana, girl, you were great in blonde 👱🏻‍♀️ danielle d, you broke my heart 💔 michelle, i've loved you 💕 from the start 🏁 AN 👏 JAH 👏 LAH  👏 BAH 👏 sit did the thing 💅 viola davis, my woman king 👑 blanchett cate, you're a genius 🔮 and jamie lee, you are all of us 🌎

[potatoleeksoup]

ZEA hello. i feel like youve seen every movie that came out last year do you have opinions on best picture/actor/actress/etc???

tee hee thank you for asking 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩 i love to talk about this stuff. and BOY do i have opinions!!! the movies this year were imo not... great... usually i have a real dog in the fight and a true favorite from my heart to root for but this time not really! anyway in this essay i will

best picture is kind of gnarly because at least 50% of these are hack jobs. my favorite of the bunch is banshees but i do not think that should win.. it probably will be everything everywhere and i think that's pretty much the right move. but this is an ugly category!!!! elvis is abominable all quiet is a bad adaptation that misses the point i hatedddd tar the fabelmans is self-indulgent top gun is propaganda women talking is stupid and ugly etc etc...

cate is kind of undeniable for best actress even though tar was really not for me i think she's doing good work.. but again michelle yeoh should and hopefully will win for an equally great performance plus an incredible body of unrecognized work. boring category despite the controversy!

if austin butler wins best actor im burning hollywood to the ground. it's colin farrell for me !!!!!!

i want brian tyree henry in supporting actor but that will neverrrr happen... supporting actress is such a stacked category. i think i want it to be hong chau but i will also clap and cheer for angela bassett

my pet category is international feature but this year i just go blind with rage when i think about it because of the unthinkable and incomprehensible decision to leave SNUB!!!!!!! i haven't seen eo yet but of the rest... i would be happiest with an cailin ciuin although i thought argentina 1985 was good! id like to kill lukas dhont with my bare hands so if anyone has intel on his current location please contact me thank you

i could talk about this stuff forever and i probably will be insufferable on oscar night because i firmly believe despite having no credentials that i should be invited to vote in the academy. i could turn that sinking ship AROUND!!!!! i would have nominated decision to leave for best picture AND made sure it won. then we could all be happy

ANYWAY UMMM..... yeah 👼 but you've been seeing stuff too what do you think???