The Imperfect Complexity of Jackson & Ally

photographer Peter Lindbergh

When A Star Is Born was released in late 2018, it received acclaim by both critics and moviegoers. But a not-so-subtle critique about the film was how it didn’t change its messaging about the tragic love story or its characters: does a male lead have to sacrifice himself as a woman rises to the top of their industry? Is the relationship between the love birds toxic more than purely romantic? With my love of director Bradley Cooper’s latest version in mind, I wondered about Jackson Maine and Ally Campana both on the page and screen, and if anything has truly changed in eighty-four years. (This post is l-o-n-g. Thanks in advance if you take the time to read it. Hope you enjoy!)

Mount Rushmore of Hot Beards

m.brown at Two Dollar Cinema is holding a blogathon called Mt. Rushmore of Movies, where fellow bloggers pick four actors, performances, or themes that they think should replace the U.S. Presidents on Mount Rushmore.

I've never participated in the challenge before and thought it would be fun to give it a go. If you follow me on twitter, you guys will know I have a type. And that is a dude with a glorious beard. If an actor (on my radar or not) cranks out some scruff, he becomes worthy of being displayed in a museum, or in this case, on a mountain for the whole world to bow down to. My theme was fairly easy to choose after some inspiration from Rambling Film and Mettel Ray. I started questioning my life choices after seeing their magnificent selection, but these are my picks for the Mount Rushmore of Hot Beards. If you think there's a beard I missed including in this list or should check out, let me know in the comments!

5 Changes The Oscars Can Take to Improve Next Year's Ceremony

photograph by Craig Sjodin / People Magazine

The road leading up to the 2019 Academy Awards ceremony has been anything less than unexciting. In an effort to limit its air time to three hours, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences made a scroll's-worth of decisions that drew backlash and criticism from the movie-going community as well as the industry's biggest names. From difficulties landing a host to attempting to break tradition with presenting all of the categories, there are a lot of elements the show got wrong and right this year. Let's keep my unsolicited advice column going, and talk about which steps the Oscars can take to improve next year's ceremony. What did you think about this year's Oscars? Feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments!

Stars I Love: Emily Blunt

Richard Phibbs - Harpers Bazaar UK January 2019

Emily Blunt can do no wrong. While I’m sure this isn’t entirely true because we’re all human and have imperfections, every time I watch one of her films, I’m always taken aback by her pure talent and ability to mold into different characters and seamlessly move from genre to genre. We never quite know what direction she'll take her career next, and half the excitement is watching her filmography unfold year after year. For me (and her husband John Krasinski), I guess you can say, I think she can do no wrong. And it's mind-boggling to think that she almost didn’t become an actress.

The LAMB Devours The Oscars: A Star Is Born As Best Picture

Warner Bros. Pictures

After eighty-four years, it might be time to let A Star Is Born die. The story of an ingenue rising to the top of the music (or film) industry while falling in love with a veteran spiraling out of control has been told since 1937 (and again in 1954, and then 1976). Now with the massive success of the latest version by director Bradley Cooper and co-star Lady Gaga, there's no doubt that the saga can go out on a high, if also bittersweet, note.

When the production of this musical-drama started coming together in 2016, most people were left scratching their heads: the remake of A Star Is Born had been circulating for years, rumored to star everyone from Beyonce to Leonardo DiCaprio, with director Clint Eastwood, until Bradley Cooper finally signed on to helm the project and Lady Gaga to make her debut in a leading role. Many suspected in the film's earlier days that it would garner the worst the industry has to offer known as the Razzies versus reaching the pinnacle of film-making at the Oscars. As possibly the only other rendition that rivals the most popular 1954 version starring Judy Garland and James Mason, everything that didn’t sound good through the grapevine managed to pull the film through to critical acclaim, memorable chemistry between its leads, and crowd-pleasing tunes.

The film follows aspiring singer Ally Campana (Lady Gaga) who falls in love with Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper), a country-rock musician plagued by substance abuse. While her career takes off with the help of his belief in her talent, his begins to fall apart. Out of their attempts to love each other in the midst of fame comes a movie where almost every production element is the star.

Serenity (2019) Delivers Justice to The Hype Train

Promo tours often limit actors from not leaking intricate or even obtuse details about their upcoming highly-anticipated films. Persuading audiences to see their project based on a trailer, the director's skills, and chemistry between the leading stars is a tricky sell and not something I envy. This marketing spin, usually left up to Big Important Movies like action flicks and superhero sagas, has surprisingly worked for Serenity - an independent film with big names and an even bigger plot twist that's proving sometimes not shouting the story from the rooftops is worth its weight in tuna - I mean, gold.

Everyone on Plymouth knows everyone else’s business. There’s no hiding who is sleeping with who, the gossip between tourists and locals, and if someone’s venture immediately starts to flail. Plymouth is claustrophobic, to say the least, for Baker Dill (Matthew McConaughey) -  a washed-out fisherman obsessed with catching tuna, drowning in the memories of his son and struggling to make ends meet. When his ex-wife (Anne Hathaway) comes into town offering him $10 million dollars to kill her current abusive husband, Baker must be led away from a tempting payday that could push him further into madness.

The magic about Serenity is that, like a lot of action flicks and franchise players, it’s best to not know a lot about it. Director Steven Knight, either by pure happenstance or sheer insanity, wrote a script that has a lot of things going for it – both good and bad. Namely, the story starts off relatively simple – a hard-knocks guy trapped on a tropical island where everything should be easy breezy, and it’s not. Like the insufferable heat, Baker is suffocating in "paradise" where every day becomes more lucid than the last. It's within the film's most normal moments that the tension builds as Knight implores the cinematography and mood into a modern noir.

And, then eventually the plot grows out of control to instill the twist that has everyone talking. The plot’s swerve, in all honesty, is not that hard to miss. As Baker howls, shrieks and wallows in his sorrows and obsessions, Knight slides in clues and even straight-out tells you where the story is heading. Every shot aims towards growing intrigue (okay, maybe not the ones of McConaughey in the nude but still there's something to take away from those too) and holds the promise that if the audience just stays with it a little longer, they're in for a surprise. Thus, audiences shouldn't feel shocked by a film that is blaring what is going to happen, but all that suspense transforming into true hard facts is a real mind-boggler. It’s a storytelling switch so audacious that one is left not only trailing the breadcrumbs to assess everything the film had laid out before, but also coercing you to pull back the layers of a very surreal onion that only increases the confusion and captivation.

If the film is stripped of the plot twist, Serenity contains a level of tremendous detail by its head honcho in Knight as well as a genuine commitment by the cast. Between Baker falling apart over mysterious visions about his son to Knight's tonal shifts with Plymouth's idyllic aesthetic, the film makes for an adequate drama on its own. In particular, McConaughey and Hathaway give performances that reach varying levels of Nic Cage’s looniest cinematic moments as well as their career bests. Other supporting stars have more trouble finding their place in the story as they only make-up parts of the whole and nothing more. The film has its own set of ambitions to be "a serious film to be taken seriously", but also seems to confuse authentic mystery with being over-the-top.

To be honest, Serenity could've become a drop in the ocean of bargain bin movies – it has all the right elements of a convincing contemporary noir and then it becomes something else entirely. It's hard to think about its stylistic intentions without feeling like some parts of it was a massive prank the audience stumbled upon. Without the instant-reactions of social media, there's a true chance this might've not gained its notoriety so quickly and for its cult potential to live on. And that’s sort of the blessing and crux. Knight worked some kind of vision into his idea that might be worthy of watching once and forgetting about, or revisiting in five years with the sense that this movement of enthusiasm for the film was fun to be a part of. It breaks the rules and defies expectations in the most unexpected ways, leaving 2019 into a rocky but awesome start.

Rating: ★☆☆
a gold star for trying

Have you seen Serenity? What did you think?

Best and Worst of 2018 Movies

2019 swooped in a lot faster than I anticipated. To be honest, I have a lot of catching up to do with movies released in 2018 (Aquaman, Hereditary...just so many movies), but I'm pretty happy with what I saw last year. Before we get too far into the new year, I thought now is as good of a time as any to finally post the best and worst picks of what I enjoyed and disliked last year. Hope you enjoy!

This post contains slight spoilers for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Avengers: Infinity War, and Annihilation.

Top Nomination Picks for The 91st Academy Awards

For the past several ceremonies, the films and talent nominated for the Academy Awards have passed by without a hitch. Leading up to this year’s prestigious award show, multiple nominees have received praise and acclaim from critics and fans as well as harsh criticism and become the face of dangerous allegations. This has been one of the closest races for nominees so far. The growing anticipation and excitement have made us wonder who will win or walk away empty-handed this year. I thought it'd be fun to share my top picks of everything from Best Music to Best Picture. Who do you hope will win at the 91st Academy Awards? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!

Monday (2018) Packs A Big Punch For The Short Film Circuit

Sometimes it's not the budget that makes a short film good, it's the production team rallying behind it that counts. Following in director Robert Rodriguez's footsteps, independent filmmaker Alejandro Montoya Marin participated on El Rey's network show Rebel Without A Crew where creators banded together to create an original film. Armed with $7,000, no crew, two days to prep and fourteen days to film his project, Marin creates a fun action movie reminiscent of today's blockbusters.

Jim (Jamie H. Jung)'s life is about to change in the worst ways when he loses his job and his girlfriend gives up on their relationship. Caught in the crossfire of two hit women aiming to take down a drug cartel, Jim is on the run for his life and standing up for himself once and for all.

As the story counts down Jim's day starting off as bad as it can be and only getting more bleak and chaotic from there, what Martin and the cast were able to put together in such a short amount of time shines. Each actor has a fitting on-screen presence for their characters and working well as an ensemble. It's difficult to single out any singular actor in particular, but Kenneth McGlothin exudes a perfect big personality as Jim's friend Paul and Anna Schatte/Sofia Embid have a commanding, intimidating bad-ass presence as the hit women at odds with each other's plans. But the entire cast has good comedic timing and offers solid reminders of similar action-comedies like Horrible Bosses, The Other Guys or 21 Jump Street . It's also worth it to stay through the end credits for bloopers and a post-story catch-up with Jim's old business acquaintance.

Monday showcases a lot of potential for Marin as a filmmaker. The story trails in the footsteps of comedies and action movies that you would see today with leading stars like The Rock or Kevin Hart. His direction is seamless, especially with the sound editing adding clever bytes for specific lines of dialogue and an energetic soundtrack. As the writer of the film too, there's a real sense of love for film-making with Marin's clever dialogue and nods to pop culture. The only slight stumbles are a few one-liners that feel random and out of place. However, it's tough to imagine how much of a rush the production must have been to work together, but the limitations doesn't show in the slightest. For a film that only runs an hour long, there's a lot to unpack and it makes for a fun Friday night short film to check out. Hopefully it's the start of bigger and better films to come for everyone.

Please Note: I was provided with a screener of this movie in exchange for an honest review. You can currently watch Monday on Apple Itunes.

Rating: ★★☆
Have you watched Monday? What did you think?

Let's Go To There: Bubba Gump Shrimp Co

Forrest Gump has always been one of my favorite movies. When I was a kid, I used to sit in front of the television and watch it religiously. While my fangirling for Tom Hanks has only grown stronger as my love for the movie quieted down a little bit, I can readily admit that one of my dreams was go to to Bubba Gump Shrimp Co - a local restaurant themed after the movie. Recently, my family tried it out for the first time, and let's just say: dreams come true ya'll. My inner eight year old would be so proud right now. It's probably one of my all-time favorite movie-related places ever.

The Favourite (2018) Is Capable of Much Pleasantness

With some directors, you never know what you’re going to get. As familiar as you may be with their past projects, they always manage to create something within their own style but also off the beaten track. Director Yorgos Lanthimos is easily one of those types of directors today. Every film he produces from The Lobster to The Killing of A Sacred Deer, Lanthimos stands out even from his own work. This is easily the biggest, perhaps the best way, to describe his latest film The Favourite.

Set in the early 18th century, Sarah Churchill (Rachel Weisz) relishes having Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) all to herself. And then, her cousin Abigail Masham (Emma Stone) arrives on their castle's doorstep striving to make a name for herself by any means necessary. The two begin vying for the attention of the Queen as Britain braces itself for war against France.

2019 New Years Goals + State of the Blog

Last year, I thought we survived the Upside Down. LOL Oh, how everything and absolutely nothing has changed.  The only way I can describe 2018 is: What. The. ****. Was That?!

The fandom side of my life was awesome: I met Jeff Goldlbum and saw a mini X-Files reunion, attended MegaCon as press again, participated in Chicks with Accents podcast, met HerUniverse creator Ashley Eckstein, went to an advanced screening of First Man, saved Will in the Upside Down a million times, cosplayed as Harry Potter at Disney World, survived Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy, covered a local library event for my Harry Potter blog, reunited with the boyfriend of my teenage dreams, saw Die Hard in theaters for its 30th anniversary, and some of my favorite characters didn't die.

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) Might Just Be The Best Spin-Off in the Galaxy So Far

Some movies just have really bad luck. One wouldn't think that this would be the case for Star Wars, but since its Disneyfied resurgence in 2015 the beloved phenomenon has had its ups and downs. The highs have been relatively good enough to give the movies a new life, while the lows of critically-panned sequels and spin-offs are enough to put a kink in the franchise's hype. Overshadowed by high expectations and franchise-overexposure, Solo: A Star Wars Story has the unfortunate disadvantage of landing right in the middle.

Set before the original Star Wars films, young Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) joins forces with a group of smugglers in order to make good on a deal that went sour. Along the way, he reconciles with a partner-in-crime he thought he'd lost for good, gains enemies, and makes new friends as he aims to become the best pilot in the galaxy.

Watch on Netflix: Bird Box (2018)

2018 has given us quite a few reasons to believe that women can do more in Hollywood than what they’ve been regulated to. Similar to films released earlier this year such as science-fiction flick Annihilation or romantic-comedy Crazy Rich Asians, the latest apocalyptic adaptation Bird Box is another example of an unexpected film telling a different story than the ones we’re always used to: female roles can be complex, actresses don’t have to stick a certain genre, and men can be more than  the only strong character.

Based on the book by Josh Mallerman, a mysterious virus triggers people into killing themselves sparking an international apocalypse. Mallory, an artistic hermit who's not prepared to give birth to her child let alone the end of the world, must fight to step outside of her shell in order to survive. Forced to live alongside fellow survivors – an Army vet Tom (Trevant Rhodes), a MAGA conspiratorial Douglas (John Malkovich), a young and naive pregnant woman Olympia (Danielle Macdonald) - she has to remain guarded enough to stay alive but also not lose hope in humanity.

Mary Poppins Returns (2019) Is Full of New and Familiar Tricks

Mary Poppins, the British superhero equipped with a talking umbrella and bewitched carpetbag, first debuted onto the big-screen nearly fifty-four years ago. Having become a childhood classic starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke in the hotly contested adaptation between author P.L. Traver and Walt Disney, the beloved nanny makes a comeback in a familiar and fresh "remake-quel" of the original.

Set twenty-five years after the 1964's story, Mary Poppins (Emily Blunt) returns to the Banks’s home where Michael (Ben Whishaw) and Jane (Emily Mortimer) are all grown-up and have fallen on hard times at the height of the Great Depression. Michael, in particular, is struggling to overcome his wife's passing when he learns that the Fidelity Fiduciary Bank is about to repossess his family's home. While Michael and Jane race against an impossible deadline, Mary and an exuberant lamplighter Jack (Lin-Manuel Miranda) take Michael's children with a series of bombastic and inspiring adventures.

5 Favorite Movie Theater Moments in 2018

It's hard to believe another year of going to the movies have come and gone. There's plenty of movies that I missed out on seeing in the theaters as I hoped, but there's quite a few that will always by in my mind as some of the best experiences I've had. Here are five of my favorite moments to happen at the cinema this year. What was your favorite movie theater experience in 2018? Feel free to let me know in the comments.

This post contains spoilers for Avengers: Infinity War.

Stars I Love: Taylor Swift

If you had told me a year ago, let alone five years ago, that I'd be doing a whole post on Taylor Swift I wouldn't believe you. It's not that I was a certified hater. Her music was the inadvertent soundtrack of my adolescence, but bopping along in the car to her latest hits wasn't nearly enough to make me a bonafide Swiftie.

Other than being aware of her music growing up, one of the first memories I have was attending a sold-out showing to Valentine's Day. The theater was filled with lots of couples on dates, but it was also filled with teenagers my age. While I was convinced at the time it was the star-studded cast that might've attracted young adults to the movie, or the fact that it was a holiday, I look back and think now that it was all about Taylor. For a few reasons: that theater has never been that packed since (excluding superhero movies), and every time Taylor showed up on-screen, those different groups of girls were in full-fangirl mode - not just when her characters' boyfriend (Taylor Lautner) was on-screen but also when she had a few small individual moments of her own.  I was in the middle of Taylor's influence and didn't even quite realize it.

And, that's how the next several years of my life went: Taylor could be heard in every retail store, on the drives to and from school, seen on award shows and in movies or tv shows, but I didn't become hardcore about it.

Stars I Love: Sarah Paulson

Usually when I begin my Stars I Love posts, I have all kinds of things to gab about and how much I love them. I have the same butterfly feelings for Sarah Paulson as I do for a lot of my past favorite stars, but I don't have any way to put my feels into words. It's strange because I could've summed up my love for Ryan Gosling as a human unicorn or Chris Evans as an adorable meatball, but instead, those posts went on for about 5,000 words total. And I just want to sum it up with: I love Sarah. So here we are.

Being speechless about Sarah is probably the reason why I'm in love with her. Having spent most of her life acting as much as possible, she's visibly one of the most talented actresses right now, but she didn't come into her fame or success until her forties. From television shows to indies, to now major Hollywood films, the Tampa native (the only good thing to come out of Florida, TBH) worked her way up the ladder just wanting to be a good actress. For years, she was existing on theater roles and pilots until someone came along to give her bigger opportunities (Thank you Ryan Murphy). All the while she kept questioning if she could really become a good actress. Her talent is one you have to see in action to get it.

Some Reasons Why 2018 Wasn't A Complete Waste

In and out of Hollywood, 2018 had a lot going on, sometimes a little too many unbelievable and deplorable headlines to fully comprehend. But that's what some saving graces are for: to keep your head above water when you think you could lose your sanity. There's a few moments that stand out at the top of my list for making this hectic year worth it and made me feel #BLESSED.

This post contains spoilers for The Walking Dead. 

Avengers: Endgame (2019) Trailer Reaction

The Avengers taught us love. The Avengers: Age of Ultron taught us patience. Avengers: Infinity War taught us pain. What are we going to learn from Avengers: Endgame? Probably, how to file a class-action lawsuit against Kevin Feige for our collective therapy bills.

Marvel dropped us the gift that everybody and nobody wanted: the new trailer for the next Avengers film. So let's check it out! This post definitely contains spoilers.