Thursday Movie Picks: Blockbuster Flops

This week's theme from Wandering Through The Shelves is about those blockbuster.....flops. Yes, not every big budget movie is a hit and some of them bomb hard. However, there are a few major flops that I have a soft spot for. 

1) Poseidon 

This remake of The Poseidon Adventure ate a 77 million lose. I don't think it's good by any means, but it was entertaining enough. 

2) Blade Runner 2049

Blade Runner may have a bit of a cult following but apparently the masses were not ready for a nearly 3 hour sequel. That's a shame, because 2049 was really good and beautifully shot. 

3) Peter Pan (2003)

So Peter Pan has been done....a lot. But 2003's live action version is a lot better than it gets credit for and it lost 70 million. 

2019 Emmy Nominations

I forgot the Emmys were going to be announced yesterday, so I was pretty surprised when I refreshed my Twitter feed and saw it trending. You know I have some thoughts...

Outstanding Comedy Series
Barry
Fleabag
The Good Place
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Russian Doll
Schitt’s Creek
Veep
I didn't realize Russian Doll was a comedy. I had thrown it in my Netflix queue based on reviews but I was assuming it was a drama. I'm here for Veep and Mrs. Maisel. 

Outstanding Drama Series
Better Call Saul
Bodyguard
Game of Thrones
Killing Eve
Ozark
Pose
Succession
This Is Us
We all knew GoT was going to get this even with its lackluster finale. What confuses me is The Bodyguard. I found that show SO dull even with sexy ass Richard Madden in it. 

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Kit Harington, Game of Thrones
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Billy Porter, Pose
Milo Ventimiglia, This Is Us
I keep meaning to watch POSE but Billy Porter serves so many looks on the red carpet that I want him to win just to see him accept a statue in whatever he blesses us with wearing. 

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones
Jodie Comer, Killing Eve
Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder
Laura Linney, Ozark
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Mandy Moore, This Is Us
Robin Wright, House of Cards
I'm not on the This Is Us train but I've never been a huge fan of Mandy Moore's acting, so her nom is the surprise. Emilia actually deserves this one too.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie
Mahershala Ali, True Detective
Benicio Del Toro, Escape at Dannemora
Hugh Grant, A Very English Scandal
Jared Harris, Chernobyl
Jharrel Jerome, When They See Us
Sam Rockwell, Fosse/Verdon
I'm so happy Jared Harris is here. Chernobyl was fantastic. I wanted so badly to like Fosse/Verdon for Rockwell, but I just didn't. Happy Mahershala got in as well.


Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie
Amy Adams, Sharp Objects
Patricia Arquette, Escape at Dannemora
Joey King, The Act
Michelle Williams, Fosse/Verdon
Aunjenaue Ellis, When They See Us
Niecy Nash, When They See Us
I can't believe I'll probably have to watch Amy Adams lose AGAIN when she should be winning everything. *heavy sigh* I love it when young people get nominated so I'm thrilled for Joey King. I'm getting my HULU back to watch The Handmaid's Tale and The Act is something I plan on binging.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson, black-ish
Don Cheadle, Black Monday
Ted Danson, The Good Place
Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method
Bill Hader, Barry

Eugene Levy, Schitt’s Creek

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Christina Applegate, Dead to Me
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Natasha Lyonne, Russian Doll
Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag
Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek
Can Julia Louis-Dreyfus do it again? I hope so. Her and Brosnahan are so great. They're the only two performances I've seen. 

Outstanding Variety/Talk Series
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
The Late Late Show with James Corden
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
John Oliver for everything, please. 



Outstanding Limited Series
Chernobyl
Escape at Dannemora
Fosse/Verdon
Sharp Object
When They See Us
I'm very happy Sharp Objects and Chernobyl are here. When They See Us I still need to watch, but I'm surprised True Detective missed out. That was a very solid season.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Carrigan, Barry
Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method
Stephen Root, Barry
Tony Hale, Veep
Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Henry Winkler, Barry
I wish Tony Hale would finally take one of these home for playing Gary. He's been through so much. 

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul
Giancarlo Esposito, Better Call Saul
Alfie Allen, Game of Thrones
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Game of Thrones
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Michael Kelly, House of Cards
Chris Sullivan, This Is Us
Alfie Allen is long overdue for an Emmy nomination so I'm glad he finally got one. He should have in season 2. It's too bad D&D screwed over Isaac Hempstead-Wright by removing Bran's personality meaning he never had any chance of an Emmy nom in the last two seasons.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Sarah Goldberg, Barry
Sian Clifford, Fleabag
Olivia Colman, Fleabag
Alex Bornstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Betty Gilpin, GLOW
Marin Hinkle, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Anna Chlumsky, Veep
I'v never seen Fleabag but now I feel like I need to. I'm always here for Anna Chlumsky who gave her best work in Veep this season.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Gwendoline Christie, Game of Thrones
Julia Garner, Ozark
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Fiona Shaw, Killing Eve
Sophie Turner, Game of Thrones
Maisie Williams, Game of Thrones
I love Lena Headey for life, but she didn't do ANYTHING this season. She drank wine on a balcony, fucked Jared LethimselfGo and got killed by a ton of bricks. Gwendoline on the other hand I'm psyched for. Same with Julia Garner, while I don't care for Ozark she's such an underrated actress and was my favorite part of it. 

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series
Ron Cephas Jones, This Is Us
Michael McKean, Better Call Saul
Glynn Turman, How to Get Away with Murder
Michael Angarano, This Is Us
Kumail Nanjiani, The Comedian
Bradley Whitford, The Handmaid’s Tale
I assumed The Handmaid's Tale missed the Emmy cut off until I came across 
Bradley's name. Wow. 

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
Matt Damon, Saturday Night Live
Luke Kirby, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Peter MacNicol, Veep
John Mulaney, Saturday Night Live
Robert De Niro, Saturday Night Live
Adam Sandler, Saturday Night Live
Hear me out; Rober De Niro is TERRIBLE on SNL. He is fucking painful to watch. Stop nominating legends just because they're legends. 

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
Fiona Shaw, Fleabag
Kristin Scott Thomas, Fleabag 
Jane Lynch, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Sandra Oh, Saturday Night Live
Maya Rudolph, The Good Place
Emma Thompson, Saturday Night Live
Fiona Shaw is killing it with nominations this year. I loved Lynch in Mrs. Maisel. 

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie
Ben Wishaw, A Very English Scandal
Asante Blackk, When They See Us
Paul Dano, Escape at Dannemora
Stellan Skarsgard, Chernobyl
John Leguizamo, When They See Us
Michael Kenneth Williams, When They See Us
I'm happy to see Paul Dano's name anywhere. Also happy for Skarsgard in Chernobyl.

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series
Cherry Jones, The Handmaid’s Tale
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Apocalypse
Phylicia Rashad, This Is Us
Laverne Cox, Orange Is the New Black
Cicely Tyson, How to Get Away with Murder
Carice van Houten, Game of Thrones
Carice getting nominated was a huge surprise, she normally doesn't get much to do as Melisandre at all. I forgot about OITNB existing again. They under-use Cox. 

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie
Patricia Arquette, The Act
Margaret Qualley, Fosse/Verdon
Patricia Clarkson, Sharp Objects
Marsha Stephanie Blake, When They See Us
Vera Farmiga, When They See Us
Emily Watson, Chernobyl
Please don't make me see Patricia Aqruette steal TWO Sharp Objects trophies. 

Outstanding Telvision Movie
Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (Netflix)
Brexit: The Uncivil War (HBO)
Deadwood: The Movie (HBO)
King Lear (Amazon)
My Dinner With Herve (HBO)
LOL BANDERSNATCH

2019 Blind Spot Series: Judgement at Nuremberg

What I knew going in: I had seen parts of this on TV before.

Judge Dan Haywood (Spencer Tracy) goes to Germany in 1948 to oversee three former judges being tried for their crimes during the Nazi regime. 

I enjoyed the way the courtroom scenes were staged. The standout is still Maximilian Schell playing the German defense attorney. I'm glad he's the one who went home with an Oscar that year. 

This was one of the films I was most looking forward to on my Blind Spot list because I enjoyed the parts I've seen previously. I realize now that I must have been watching an edited version on TV because a lot of the non courtroom scenes were completely new to me. The run time for is over three hours and I did feel that length at times.

I'm glad I finally saw this in one sitting. It wasn't as thrilling as I had hoped it would be now that I got to take it all in at once. I'm struggling to talk about it a bit because I didn't love the one thing most people seem to about this film, and that's Spencer Tracy. He was fine, Haywood in theory is an interesting character, but I walked away far more impressed with other actors instead.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B-

Memorable Quote: "It came to that the first time you sentenced a man to death that you knew to be innocent." - Judge Haywood (Spencer Tracy)

10 Things I Love About Movie Blogging

Can you believe this little blog has been around for TEN YEARS! When I picked Blogger as my place for sharing my full length reviews, I hoped I would keep it up, but I never imagined I'd be around a decade later still typing away. To celebrate, I figured I would share 10 things I love about blogging.

1) YOU. I've been online since 1999 and have found myself in many fandoms and groups along the way, the movie blogging community, while not free of drama has been the most welcoming and consistent. I wouldn't still be at this without the lovely and interesting people I've met along the way. Especially those who take the time to read and comment. Thank you!

2) Not having to worry about catering to a specific audience. I shared movie reviews on another site at one point in time and I'm pretty sure no one there liked the same kind of movies I did. It's nice that most film fans are open to anything.

3) Another excuse to go to the theater.

4) Expanding my horizon. There are plenty of directors I never would've sought out had it not been for the movie blogging community. 

5) Visibility. There's more visibility for foreign and LGBTQIA films and more diversity in the bloggers themselves. I love that. 

6) Lists. I love making them and they're a fun, quick way to share tastes.

7) Oscar season. I have no one in my real life that cares about the Oscars as much as I do so having so many people to tweet and blog with about them is a Godsend.

8) Blogathons. Those are so fun to participate in and a great way to find a new blog to read. I enjoy the clever themes everyone comes up with.

9) Twitter. #FilmTwitter and blogging go hand and hand for me. I couldn't have one without the other. 

10) And finally, I just love having my own space in general. I was never one to keep a diary or a journal so having a place to share my movie thoughts that's saw me through my entire 20's and now into my 30's is magical. I need this mentally.

Thanks again for reading my ramblings, even when they're not very interesting. You're the best! 

Thursday Movie Picks: Muses

This week's theme from Wandering Through The Shelves is searching for some inspiration. We're talking about muses today. Is it just me or is there a shortage on movies with male muses? Every one I thought of was female. Here's what I came up with. 

1) Factory Girl

Sienna Miller gives a career best performance as Edie Sedgwick, who goes on to become Andy Warhol's muse with tragic results. 

2) Girl With A Pearl Earring

Greit becomes somewhat of a muse for painter Johannes Vermeer. While this film is a tad slow, there are great performances all around. Even Cillian Murphy in that awful wig. 

3) Phantom Thread 

Alma becomes a muse, and wife, and eventually something much stranger to Reynolds Woodcock. I didn't love this movie as much as Film Twitter did but I certainly laughed my ass off at a part that probably wasn't meant to be laughed at. 

Review: Midsommar

Join the festivities. 

Dani (Florence Pugh) has been going through a lot emotionally. Her boyfriend, Christian (Jack Raynor) wants to break up with her, but keeps putting it off. His friends are mostly assholes about it too. When they plan on going to Sweden for a festival, Christian reluctantly invites Dani along. Saying things get weird is an understatement.

Ari Aster has really made a name for himself in the past few years. His brand of horror is weird and very psychological. He's not just interested in gore, he's interested in emotions and this film is very in line with what he's done in the past.

Midsommar is the prettiest nightmare you'll ever see. Its full of flowers and sunlight. It never once gets dark and gloomy, even though the subject matter certainly calls for it. Florence Pugh gives an amazing performance. Dani suffers from panic attacks and the way they're portrayed here was so realistic. This is easily one of the best performances of the year so far. Pugh and Lupita Nyong'o for Us are currently the Best Actress queens. The rest of the cast is great. Jack Raynor and Will Poulter are always reliable as well.

The thing about this film - I loved it - but this isn't going to be something I'd recommend to everyone. I learned that after watching Hereditary. Nearly everyone in my blogging life loved that, but everyone I recommended it to in real life hated it. Midsommar is a lot like Hereditary. It's a bit like The Babbadok as well. If you didn't like either of those, I don't think you'll care for this. A lot happens off screen and there's a fair amount of ambiguity that I know doesn't work for everyone.

The things that happen off screen at times weaken it a bit. This film has a hefty run time, which you really don't feel when watching it but for how many minutes they have, I think had they wanted to delve more into horror, they could've shown a few more terrifying things. 

Recommended: Yes

Grade: A-

Memorable Quote: "Does he make you feel like home?" - Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren)

Review: Spider-man: Far From Home

Back from the blip.

Peter Parker (Tom Holland) has had quite the year. He fought Thanos, died, came back, and fought Thanos again. Now he wants to have a relaxing summer on a science trip to Europe so he can hang out with Ned (Jacob Batalon) and tell MJ (Zendaya) how he really feels. Only Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Colbie Smoulders) show up and hijack his vacation when strange things start happening.

Far From Home has the tough spot in following Avengers: Endgame and having to show the aftermath of Thanos' snap. They don't dwell on it, but they manage to show both the hilarious side, and the sad one with people being displaced. 

Holland continues to be my favorite live action Spider-man and he does a great job with all of Peter's emotions. He feels the tremendous pressure of no longer having a mentor in Tony Stark yet still just wants to do regular things like give the girl he likes a necklace. There's never too much Fury in a Marvel movie either, and I'm glad he plays a supporting role here.

Mild spoilers about the villain - I don't consider this a major spoiler because I think it's quite obvious what they're going to do, but the trailers show otherwise,  - I liked Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio. Gyllenhaal was really good and even though I can see some fans not being crazy about his reasoning, I like how they inserted it all.

One of the best things about this movie is the special effects. At first they seem strange because we see a lot of Peter flying around without his suit, but they do some really cool things later in the film that reminded me a bit of Into The Spider-verse and it looked amazing.

Far From Home has two very interesting credits scenes that are certainly going to shape the way the MCU moves forward and not just for Peter, so definitely don't miss those. I'm happy to say our Friendly Neighborhood Spider-man has yet to disappoint.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "Yeah, it's math." - Betty (Angourie Rice)