SLAM!

As a person that was all-around very impressed with the acting in 13 Reasons Why, I am excited to see if Ajiona Alexus, who played Sheri Holland in the Netflix show, is able to give a good performance on the cinematic level. I do hope this small film is able to succeed as well as it can.

I care about that content, too. It's not just a certain type of content that I'm opposed to. I read about all of that content, and I definitely chose not to watch the film because of that, and I do not see how choosing not to watch a film because of all of its content is a bad thing.

Yes, that is the mature decision that I made. I read about the content beforehand, and so decided that, no, I'm not going to sit through a film that has that content. Even in a year where I've seen more rated-r films than ever before, I want to be responsible and draw the line between personally acceptable and personally unacceptable. I don't care if others want to embarrass me for choosing not to watch films with that content. I don't care how good a film is if it uses the buzz words like 'art' and/or 'narrative' to justify things that don't really serve a purpose in a film is supposed to prioritize its psychological and atmospheric horror.

If there's anything Black Swan and Jackie displayed, it was Natalie Portman's skillful ability to tap into complex psychologies to aid her performances. I have no doubts that her peeformance will be great.

It can still mean that what the film inherently is is something that is unhealthy to viewers, whether or not they care. That's why I am careful not to watch films with overblown sexual content; I almost decided to watch The Killing of a Sacred Deer before I looked up the film on Common Sense Media. I'm glad I saw what was there in advance! But if there are other people that can handle the content, then no, I won't stop them from watching the films they want to watch. But I do want to be prepared to tell them why those scenes could be harmful to a weak mind or a weak spirit. Personally, it makes me sad when vary gratuitous sex scenes are given a free pass with excuses of artistic and narrative reasons. Don't get me wrong- Blade Runner 2049 made great, effective, and agreeable use of the content that it did have. That's another example of a film that does this kind of thing right. And yes, plenty of other films do this right. I only have a problem with the films that do things the wrong way. I only have a problem with films that glorify and glamourize potentially harmful sexual habits and philosophies. But if that's not what the filmmaker is after, then sure, I'm fine with what they film. That's my stance.

That's a fair way of looking at it. I'm just saying, it's better implicit than explicit. Some sexual scenes- you know, those scenes from, like, Fifty Shades or something- reveal the immaturity of the filmmaker, because they can't control themselves, they can't point the camera away. But that opening scene from Lolita is the good and effective way to express such a relationship that both of us would be happy with from an artistic standpoint. So here's my take: they can still be artistic, but they need to tone it down just a touch. It is a part of life, and I accept that. Some filmmakers use it to give their films meaning, and I accept that. I am against using sexual interaction in film as a lazy way out. Believe it or not, many filmmakers who want to establish relationships simply throw in sex scenes and call it a day. I'm gonna do a case by case basis thing, starting with Iron Man. When Tony Stark and a woman from that press conference in the flashback have a scene together, it serves a narrative purpose because it shows the kind of self-centered person Tony Stark was before he went to Afghanistan. Because the scene was not overtly wrong, that very quick explanatory scene was fine. Let's move on to Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues. Ron Burgundy has already entered into a relationship with his boss. Then they are given a scene that truly has no narrative purpose other than comedic effect. This is immature and wrong, because if it is believed that sex is something important, than it is believed that sex is not a joke. So what I say to filmmakers and filmgoers alike is this: if those scenes are in a film, then they better be worth it. They better serve an honest narrative purpose. They better not be overly gratuitous, and they better not treat sex as a joke. And, yes, people getting mad at the movie Gifted is ridiculous.

I think this should be very beneficial to film as a whole over the next few years. I never found and still do not find gratuitous sex scenes in film to be all that necessary. I think there's better ways to get themes of love and devotion across. Heck, there are better ways to handle sensuality in film other than throwing in a raunchy sex scene and calling it a day. I think that over 90% of filmgoers will find themselves not missing the content, whether or not they even like those scenes that much. For now... good riddance.

https://moviepilot.com/p/how-proud-mary-could-shake-up-the-action-movie-landscape/4543314 https://www.essence.com/entertainment/taraji-p-henson-proud-mary-interview I found an article and an interview about this film's deeper contexts, but that's all I could find other than a few box office articles and a speculative article asking why Sony is burying this film.

I think what I would do is approach the situation as a friend. I know that your friend sent you the picture because he really does have trust in you. So I believe that your friend will trust you. I believe that he will trust that you truly care for him. I've had thoughts of suicide myself, but I discourage myself from ever seriously considering the action because I know that I am loved, and I know that I am not alone, and I know that, if I died, my loved ones would be devastated. And while your friend may not believe it right now, as long as you are caring for him and helping him through, he is loved, he is not alone, and he has loved ones that would truly be devastated if he were gone. I've read the comments pertaining to the situation; you've been doing well, and you've stayed engaged in the situation, though I ask you to keep on going, to keep fighting this fight. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your friend in this moment. I earnestly pray that everything turns out alright.

Well, phew. I feel a lot better about the situation now! I'll dive and say that The Breadwinner and Loving Vincent are both locked for nominations if that is the case- and I am very happy with that.

I think this'll be at least a little beneficial to Darkest Hour. It's Best Picture change probably increased slightly, and it may have secured an extra tech him outside of the gimme Makeup nom. We'll see. I, Tonya is peaking at the right time, so I agree that it could very well be a Best Picture nominee.

Polygon has an article saying that this film, Red Sparrow, is the Black Widow film that Marvel fans wanted. I don't blame them.

I feel like this could be something that will need to be addressed. (Oscar voting is going to close on Friday.)

That's a question voters- who better be taking their position seriously, as awards can affect people's futures- should be asking themselves when they fill out their preferential ballots. "Will this film age well?" 'Tis a question that should be asked, but a question not asked enough in the past twenty years of the awards (Shakespeare in Love over Saving Private Ryan, A Beautiful Mind over Moulin Rouge, Crash over Brokeback Mountain, The King's Speech over The Social Network). Of course, they've gotten better at choosing films that will have a long-lasting impact on film as a whole (12 Years a Slave, Birdman, Spotlight). I think the Academy has learned quite a few lessons in their past. Of course, a film already has to meet certain threshold of competence for campaigns to work, though these days, in the savvy social media and internet age, voters have the ability to know better. They have the ability to know *much* better. And in my opinion, they'd showed that they do, in fact, know better.

Yeah, if they're wanting this to break out, now is definitely the time to increase buzz for it. They're doing the right things. Jennifer Lawrence is front and center as a potential draw. The trailer will likely play in front of action films like The Commuter, Proud Mary, Den of Thieves, 12 Strong, 15:17 to Paris, and maybe even Annihilation. And it'll also be in front of Fifty Shades Blegh for sure. (Don't worry- I'm addressing the newest Fifty Shades film as Fifty Shades Blegh). So yeah, I think this'll surprise people and do north of $100M.

Let's see how I did prediction-wise. Here's my predicts for all of the categories. Best Picture Drama: The Shape of Water (they've voted for Avatar before, we'll see if they go for Fantasy again) Best Picture Comedy: I, Tonya (it was Lady Bird on the initial post but I think they'll go for the baity comedy) Best Actor Drama: Gary Oldman Best Actress Drama: Frances McDormand Best Actor Comedy: James Franco Best Actress Comedy: Margot Robbie Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer Best Supporting Actress: Alison Janney Best Director: Christopher Nolan Best Screenplay: Molly's Game Best Animated Film: Coco (this is such a gimme) Best Foreign Language Film: Loveless Best Original Score: The Shape of Water Best Original Song: "Remember Me" Best TV Drama: The Handmaid's Tale Best TV Comedy: Masters of None Best TV Limited Series / Movie: Big Little Lies Best TV Drama Actor: Sterling K. Brown Best TV Drama Actress: Elizabeth Moss Best TV Comedy Actor: Aziz Ansari Best TV Comedy Actress: Rachel Brosnahan Best TV Limited / Movie Actor: Geoffrey Rush Best TV Limited / Movie Actress: Jessica Biel Best TV Supporting Actor: Alfred Molina Best TV Supporting Actress: Laura Dern 13 out of 25 correct. Yeesh.

The Shape of Water could've used Best Picture for its Box Office, too. Now the boost is going to a film that was kind-sorta on its way out. Well, I'm going to sleep. Peace be with you guys!

And with that, Three Billboards becomes a powerhouse in the awards season. I am sad that The Shape of Water didn't win this. But sometimes different films truly strike a chord with different groups.

Yeah, Frances McDormand really was quite a powerhouse in Three Billboards. A very deserved victory.

Honestly, he was much more expressive than a plank of wood.

They'll choose Shape of Water like they chose Avatar.

Susan Surandon didn't even pause before announcing Gary Oldman's win, because that's how little of a surprise this is.

Lady Bird's win actually proves that it is, in fact, getting quite a passion vote from a myriad of people.

I thought it was a marmalade...

Yeah, Lady Bird is a good choice for sure. I still need to see it. And I'm happy it won. Especially over Get Out- which, a great film in its own right, was not a comedy in my opinion.