Posted on January 8, 2018 at 8:26 pm
I’m excited to be returning to Los Angeles for the Critics Choice Awards, which will be broadcast on Thursday, January 11, 2018 on the CW. Please tune in as it will be filled with stars and surprises. Host Olivia Munn will preside and the show includes awards for movies and television.
Look for me in a gorgeous red dress!
http://www.tvguide.com/news/critics-choice-tv-awards-nominations-2018/
Posted on January 8, 2018 at 3:45 pm
Many people were given awards at the 2018 Golden Globes, but there was just one winner and that was the #metoo movement and the cause of women’s equality. From the sea of black gowns that women attendees wore as a sign of the “Time’s Up” movement to the barbed comments from host Seth Meyer, presenters like Natalie Portman and Reese Witherspoon, the theme of the night was that discrimination and abuse will no longer be tolerated and women’s voices will no longer be silenced. As Meryl Streep said, ““We feel emboldened in this moment to stand together in a thick black line dividing then from now.” (The Washington Post’s Robin Givhan points out that many women declined to give credit to their designers on the red carpet. This is something of a mixed message as on one hand they want to be seen as more than mannequins representing the designers, but on the other hand, as creative artists they should respect the work of the designers and their staffs that made their finery, well, fine.)
Many of the women who attended brought non-celebrity activists with them including the founder of the #metoo initiative, Tarana Burke. Several speakers emphasized that the movement is inclusive of people outside the Hollywood celebrity community.
Unquestionably the show’s high point was Oprah Winfrey. It was fun to see some of the biggest stars a bit abashed when they took the podium to accept their awards and saw her sitting in the front row. Winfrey herself took the stand to accept the prestigious Cecil B. DeMille award, the first black woman to receive it. Her nine-minute speech was stem-winding, spell-binding, and just plain thrilling. The Baltimore Sun called it “a moving jolt of moral authority.”
Winfrey spoke about being a little girl sitting on the linoleum floor of her mother’s home, waiting for her to come in from cleaning other people’s houses, and seeing Sidney Poitier receive the Oscar for “Lilies of the Field,” realizing for the first time that even for a poor black girl, the possibilities were endless. She spoke to the girls out there now, who needed to get that message from her.
Many of the most significant awards went to stories about women, including HBO’s “Big Little Lies,” Amazon’s “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” Hulu’s “Handmaid’s Tale,” and the film “Lady Bird.” Portman noted in presenting the Best Director award that all of the nominees were male, excluding “Lady Bird’s” writer/director Greta Gerwig.
Men of color made some news as well, with Sterling K. Brown (“This is Us”) as the first black man to win Best Actor in a Television Series and Aziz Ansari became the first South Asian man to win Best Actor in a Comedy Series.
Meyers was a capable host, making some pointed jokes and some welcome points during his monologue and then getting out of the way. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association made some progress in improving its reputation with million-dollar grants to two journalist organizations, including one of my favorites, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.
Some of the other highlights: Amy Sherman-Palladino’s heartfelt “Spanx, oy” comment when she accepted her award for “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” Carol Burnett and the Thelma and Louise team up of presenters and the tribute to Kirk Douglas not just as an actor but as a fearless advocate in breaking the blacklist, underscoring the evening’s themes of integrity and justice.
Posted on January 8, 2018 at 8:00 am
“Unrest” is a very personal story of the misunderstood and underestimated disease of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Filmmaker Jennifer Brea was a Harvard PhD student soon to be engaged when she was struck down by a mysterious fever that left her bedridden. As her illness progressed she lost even the ability to sit in a wheelchair, yet doctors insisted it was “all in her head.” Unable to convey the seriousness and depth of her symptoms to her doctor, Jennifer began a video diary on her phone that eventually became the powerful and intimate documentary. Once Jennifer was diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), commonly known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), she and her new husband, Omar, were left to grapple with how to shape a future together in the face of a lifelong illness.
Follow the hashtag #UnrestPBS and add your own story.
Posted on January 5, 2018 at 8:42 pm
Thanks so much to American University’s District Wire network for inviting Hannah Buchdahl and me to talk about the movies of 2017.
Posted on January 4, 2018 at 8:58 pm
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists has announced our nominations for the Eda Awards. I’ll post the winners when the votes are in.
AWFJ BEST OF AWARDS
These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.
Best Film
CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
GET OUT
LADY BIRD
THE SHAPE OF WATER
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
Best Director
Guillermo del Toro –THE SHAPE OF WATER
Greta Gerwig — LADY BIRD
Martin McDonagh — THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
Christopher Nolan — DUNKIRK
Jordan Peele – GET OUT
Best Screenplay, Original
GET OUT — Jordan Peele
LADY BIRD — Greta Gerwig
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI — Martin McDonagh
Best Screenplay, Adapted
CALL ME BY YOUR NAME — James Ivory
MOLLY’S GAME — Aaron Sorkin
MUDBOUND — Dee Rees
Best Documentary
DAWSON CITY FROZEN IN TIE
FACES, PLACES
JANE
KEDI
STEP
Best Animated Film
THE BREADWINNER
COCO
LOVING VINCENT
Best Actress
Sally Hawkins — THE SHAPE OF WATER
Frances McDormand — THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
Margot Robbie — I, TONYA
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Mary J. Blige — MUDBOUND
Allison Janney — I, TONYA
Laurie Metcalf — LADY BIRD
Best Actor
Timothee Chalamet — CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
Daniel Kaluuya — GET OUT
Gary Oldman — DARKEST HOUR
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Willem Dafoe –PROJECT FLORIDA
Sam Rockwell — THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
Michael Stuhlbarg — CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
Best Ensemble Cast – Casting Director
MUDBOUND — Billy Hopkins and Ashley Ingram
THE POST – Ellen Lewis
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI — Sara Finn
Best Cinematography
Roger Deakins – BLADE RUNNER 2049
Hoyte van Hoytema — DUNKIRK
Dan Laustsen — THE SHAPE OF WATER
Best Editing
Jonathan Amos and Paul Machliss — BABY DRIVER
Lee Smith — DUNKIRK
Sidney Wolinsky– THE SHAPE OF WATER
Best Non-English-Language Film
BPM
FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER
THE SQUARE
EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS
These awards honor WOMEN only.
Best Woman Director
Kathryn Bigelow — DETROIT
Greta Gerwig — LADY BIRD
Patty Jenkins — WONDER WOMAN
Angelina Jolie — FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER
Dee Rees — MUDBOUND
Angela Robinson — PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN
Agnes Varda — FACES, PLACES
Best Woman Screenwriter
Greta Gerwig — LADY BIRD
Liz Hannah and Josh Singer — THE POST
Dee Rees and Virgil Williams — MUDBOUND
Best Animated Female
Mama Imelda — COCO
Marguerite Gachet — LOVING VINCENT
Parvana — THE BREADWINNER
Best Breakthrough Performance
Tiffany Haddish –GIRL’S TRIP
Brooklynn Prince — THE FLORIDA PROJECT
Florence Pugh — LADY MACBETH
Outstanding Achievement by A Woman in The Film Industry
Greta Gerwig for LADY BIRD
Patty Jenkins for WONDER WOMAN
Angelina Jolie for FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER and THE BREADWINNER
Rose McGowan, Ashley Judd and all who spoke out against sexual harrassment
EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS
Actress Defying Age and Ageism
Annette Bening — FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN LIVERPOOL
Frances McDormand –THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
AGNES VARDA — FACES, PLACES
Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Lead and The Love Interest Award
I LOVE YOU, DADDY — Chloe Grace Moretz and John Malkovich
MOTHER! — Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem
THE MUMMY and AMERICAN MADE — Tom Cruise with Annabelle Wallis and Sarah Wright, respectively
Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent (name actress and film)
Dakota Johnson for 50 SHADES DARKER
Jennifer Lawrence for MOTHER!
Kate Winslet for WONDER WHEEL and THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US
Bravest Performance
Sally Hawkins — THE SHAPE OF WATER
Frances McDormand — THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
Margot Robbie — I, TONYA
Remake or Sequel That Shouldn’t Have Been Made
BAYWATCH
THE MUMMY
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS
AWFJ Hall of Shame Award
Darren Aronovsky and all associated with MOTHER!
Louis CK and all associated with I LOVE YOU,, DADDY
Showbiz Sexual Tormentors: Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Brett Ratner, et al.
