Borat's return in "Subsequent Moviefilm"

by Eric Blume

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, the sequel to Sacha Baron Cohen's 2006 smash hit, has arrived on Amazon, and just within the first days of its arrival, the film has the country buzzing on whether or not Rudy Guiliani thought he was going to get laid by a teenager, plus registered a hateful tweet from Trump (and a hilarious comeback from Cohen to Trump).  When is the last time a movie provoked that kind of high-level anxiety?

The original Borat movie was revelatory at the time, an extension of the mockumentary style we'd seen since the Spinal Tap days, but roping in the clueless general populace to create a brutal takedown on American stupidity, racism, and sexism.  But the approach from the Borat creative team felt fresh...

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"Trial of the Chicago 7" and Best Supporting Actor

by Nathaniel R

Abdul-Mateen, Shenkman, Rylance, Redmayne and Sharp in "Trial of the Chicago 7"

You've waited long enough. This is our latest ever take on the acting categories in 20 years of punditry. But you know, "2020". Consider it an all purpose hellscape excuse! Though Hollywood is still in disarray there will eventually be another Oscar ceremony. Nominations are still more than five months away (March 15th, 2021) so if this were any other year these prediction charts would essentially be the early August charts. Does that make sense? In other words, much about this Oscar season has yet to be revealed. 

But let's take a stab at Best Supporting Actor since we've just screened The Trial of the Chicago 7 which is basically the kind of movie that dreams of, no fantasizes lustfully, about filling in all five spots. The most Supporting Actor nominations to have arrived from a single film is three, which happened twice in Oscar history via The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather Part Two (1974). It will probably not happen again with Chicago 7, but it theoretically could given that it's ALL supporting actors all the time.  Let's rank them shall we, in terms of Oscar possibility...

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Thoughts I Had While Staring at Posters for Penelope Cruz’s Upcoming Films

Manuel here. Every once in a while I like to check in on actresses I’ve been missing and see what they’re up to and what’s next. Last week, for example, I singled out Michelle Williams and was glad to see she has two promising films landing at Sundance. This week, I wanted to see when I’d get my next Penelope Cruz fix. Sadly, it looks like she’ll be spending 2016 doing press junkets for two comedies I have no real interest in. 

Disjointed thoughts on these films, Cruz, and the actress’s post-Oscar career follow after the jump...

 

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HBO’s LGBT History: Da Ali G Show, Entourage & The Comeback

Manuel is working his way through all the LGBT-themed HBO productions.

Last week we looked at The Sopranos, The Wire and Carnivàle. I commended each of those series for putting LGBT characters front and center and, more importantly, for not treating their sexuality as their only character dimension. But what of HBO’s comedies? If these dramas were doing the heavy lifting, what can we glean from looking at their comedic contemporaries?

Well, let’s just say that, in 2015 journalistic parlance, HBO had some “problematic” characters on display.

A limp wrist. A lilting high-pitched voice. A jutting hip. A flair for style. We all know these characteristics of the stereotypical gay male of the late twentieth century; it’s as reviled as it is ubiquitous. But it also demands close scrutiny; why should we refuse to give voice to these flamboyant members of the LGBT community? And yet, why should all mainstream America be solely exposed to them as if they were the entire community? This week we’ll try and address these questions while talking about “gay minstrelsy” as we discuss Da Ali G Show, TFE fave, The Comeback and Entourage after the jump...

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