Matt vs. the Academy

With so much going on in the world right now, this silly little movie blog seems somewhat insignificant (even more insignificant than it did before, if that's possible), but maybe it'll be a welcome distraction for somebody. And with all the big film releases getting delayed again and again, next year's Oscars may be a little light on eligible content if things don't pick up soon, so maybe reading about Oscar history will be all that's left. In any case, with the next Academy Awards ceremony shifted back a couple of months, I'll see if I can catch up a bit by getting a few more of these reviews done before then. So, here are my thoughts on the eventual Best Picture winner from 1935... Mutiny on the Bounty Director : Frank Lloyd Screenplay : Talbot Jennings, Jules Furthman, Carey Wilson (based on the novel by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall) Starring : Charles Laughton, Clark Gable, Franchot Tone, Herbert Mundin, Eddie Quillan, Dudley Digges...

I'm ba-aack! First, let me gloat about my Oscar predictions from this year. I correctly picked 21 of the 24 winners, the best result I've ever achieved in the more than two decades I've been making predictions. I only missed Sound Editing and the two big ones, Director and Picture. Perhaps the most miraculous part, though, is that I managed to ace all the short film categories! Now, after the longest period of inactivity (not counting Oscar predictions) in this blog's history, I've returned with a new review. And a lot has happened since my last post almost two years ago. The biggest of those happenings is that I said goodbye to Los Angeles late last year and moved the family back to Sydney. Though, as a dual Australian-US citizen, I'll still travel back to LA a couple of times a year for my career, so it's not a permanent goodbye. In fact, I was there a couple of weeks ago right before everything got serious in the world. Within a few days, the entert...

My nomination predictions a few weeks ago turned out to be some of my best ever, particularly in the major categories. I suspect a similar pattern will follow regarding my winner predictions since the main races are shaping up to be quite predictable. The acting categories, in particular, all seem like foregone conclusions. And while I wouldn't be too surprised if Parasite takes one or both of Picture and Director, I'm putting my (metaphorical) money on 1917 taking the top prizes. The craft and technical categories, on the other hand, are a different kettle of fish altogether. Almost all of them (save for International Feature and Makeup) have at least two nominees that could reasonably be named the winner. It's going to be an interesting Oscar night, that's for sure. To take a look at my official picks, just click here .

Despite letting this blog gather dust (not forever, I promise), I'm back briefly to share my annual predictions for the Oscar nominations, due to be announced in a little over 24 hours. It seemed a tad easier to predict certain categories this year than it has been in recent memory, though I guess that remains to be seen. I've generally played it safe, picking fairly traditional candidates, though that's resulted in a final tally that has four different films each receiving 10 nominations, which seems a bit unlikely. So, in most categories, I suspect that at least one of those traditional selections will be replaced by a less expected film that could be earning its only nomination. If you'd like to take a look at my picks, you can find them here .

Well, my Oscar nomination predictions turned out to be fairly average, especially considering how well I did with the nominations last year. Maybe I can save face with some decent winner predictions, though I'm not sure that's going to happen either. The trend of the Oscar winners becoming harder and harder to predict continues. It feels like there are even fewer sure things this year than there were last year, and last year there were hardly any. So, without further ado, here are my predictions for who's going to take home Oscars on Sunday night. Happy Oscars weekend!

Just popping back in to deliver my Oscar nomination predictions ahead of Tuesday morning's announcement. It feels like this gets more and more difficult every year. Granted, last year was my best ever, but I probably just got lucky. I'm certainly not expecting to achieve anywhere near that level of success this year. So many races seem wide open. But I've made my choices so I'll stand by them and, if necessary, remove the egg from my face on Tuesday. If you're interested, you can  take a look at my predictions here .

From the chill of Sydney's winter back to the oppressive heat of another Los Angeles summer, I've returned to my adopted home without blogging about the last film I watched before leaving L.A. in the first place. The three weeks in Australia was a nice holiday, but now it's time to get back to business. Next up, we take a look at another musical entry into 1935's Best Picture contest... Broadway Melody of 1936 Director : Roy Del Ruth Screenplay : Jack McGowan, Sid Silvers, Moss Hart, Harry W. Conn Starring : Jack Benny, Eleanor Powell, Robert Taylor, Una Merkel, Sid Silvers, Buddy Ebsen, June Knight, Vilma Ebsen Academy Awards : 3 nominations 1 win, for Best Dance Direction After his boss orders him to make his column more sensational, Broadway gossip columnist Bert Keeler (Benny) stumbles upon a potentially sleazy relationship between producer Bob Gordon (Taylor) and wealthy widow Lillian Brent (Knight). She is investing in his show on the ...