Woody Allen speaks out and it appears he's had enough

Posted by · 6:59 pm · February 7th, 2014

Woody Allen responds to Dylan Farrow’s NYT OP-ED with one of his own and this twenty one-year-old controversy doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon.

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'Gravity' wins big with Denver critics

Posted by · 12:58 pm · January 22nd, 2014

We’re about a week late in wising up to the Denver Film Critics Society’s list of winners this year but, well, better late than never. “Gravity” was the big winner, taking prizes for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Score and Best Sci-Fi/Horror Film. The acting categories all went to the frontrunners save Best Supporting Actress, which went to “American Hustle’s” Jennifer Lawrence rather than “12 Years a Slave’s” Lupita Nyong’o. Steve McQueen’s slavery drama, which was nominated for seven awards, received no trophies.

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'12 Years a Slave' and 'Blue is the Warmest Color' win with Gay and Lesbian critics

Posted by · 12:44 pm · January 22nd, 2014

“12 Years a Slave” has picked up yet another Best Picture prize from a critics organization, as the Gay & Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association (GALECA) tapped it the year’s best for 2013. Oscar frontrunners Matthew McConaughey and Cate Blanchett won top acting honors, while “Blue is the Warmest Color” received a pair of prizes including LGBT Film of the Year. HBO’s “Behind the Candelabra” and Netflix’s “Orange is the New Black” picked up awards in the TV categories, including a tie for TV Drama of the Year.

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Notable facts and figures from the 2014 Oscar nominations

Posted by · 9:58 am · January 16th, 2014

From Meryl Streep’s record 18th nod to Megan Ellison’s rare double, we round up some unusual statistic and records from this year’s Oscar nominations.

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Michael Barker on 'bittersweet' nominations and watching Richard Linklater's career bloom

Posted by · 7:04 am · January 16th, 2014

It was a bittersweet morning for Sony Pictures Classics co-president Michael Barker. One one hand his company’s films “Before Midnight,” “Blue Jasmine” and “The Invisible Woman” combined for a total of five nominations, including a somewhat surprising bid for “Blue” supporting actress Sally Hawkins. On the other, it was a rare occasion where the indie distributor had no nominees in either the Best Documentary Feature or Best Foreign Language Film categories, and neither “Blue” nor “Midnight” was able to push into the Best Picture field.

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Four films stand atop the industry precursor awards circuit

Posted by · 3:40 pm · January 15th, 2014

With the announcement of the Motion Picture Sound Editors’ Golden Reel Awards nominees this afternoon, all of the various industry guilds and societies have had their say on the season. And it’s just under the wire, too, as we’re all preparing for the Oscar nominations announcement tomorrow morning. So how did the various contenders fare?

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'12 Years a Slave' dominates North Carolina critics' awards

Posted by · 5:30 am · January 13th, 2014

’12 Years a Slave’ took six awards from the North Carolina critics’ group, including Best Picture, Director and three acting wins.

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Contender Countdown: Will there be fewer than 9 best picture nominees?

Posted by · 2:54 pm · January 11th, 2014

With less than a week to go before the Oscar nominations are announced and before anyone gets “confused” by whatever the HFPA decide Sunday night, a last look at the race for best picture.

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'12 Years a Slave' sweeps Iowa critics' awards

Posted by · 12:57 pm · January 10th, 2014

“12 Years a Slave” won every category it could from the Iowa Film Critics’ Association, while “Nebraska” and “American Hustle” were repeated runners-up.

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Costume Designers Guild nominees range from 'Her' to 'The Hunger Games'

Posted by · 7:55 am · January 8th, 2014

“American Hustle,” “12 Years a Slave” and “Her” are among the films nominated today by the Costume Designers’ Guild, who present their awards on February 22.

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'12 Years a Slave,' Alfonso Cuarón win Vancouver critics prizes

Posted by · 8:00 pm · January 7th, 2014

The Vancouver Film Critics Circle has hopped on the “12 Years a Slave”/Alfonso Cuarón bandwagon, but I’m mostly interested in that Best Actor win for Oscar Isaac. After the guy couldn’t get arrested on the circuit, he’s finally landed a couple of wins, first from the National Society of Film Critics over the weekend and today with the Vancouver crowd. “Inside Llewyn Davis” also won the group’s screenplay prize.

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Roundup: Why studios need to get creative with the calendar

Posted by · 3:44 am · January 6th, 2014

In today’s roundup of notable online news and views, National Association of Theater Owners president John Fithian calls for studios to distribute tentpoles and prestige movies alike more evenly through the year. Meanwhile, a critic reminds us of why the January wasteland isn’t always that bad.

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Dear Academy members: Don't forget these contenders

Posted by · 12:00 am · January 6th, 2014

Scarlett Johansson, Spike Jonze, Sally Hawkins, Oscar Isaac, James Franco and Amy Adams are just a few of the potential nominees that Academy members should give serious consideration to before submitting their nomination ballots this Wednesday.

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'Inside Llewyn Davis' dominates National Society of Film Critics honors

Posted by · 1:25 pm · January 4th, 2014

“Inside Llewyn Davis,” Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett and James Franco each earned big wins with the announcement of the 2013 National Society of Film Critics honors.

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'Dallas Buyers Club,' 'Lone Survivor,' 'Wolf of Wall Street' land WGA nominations

Posted by · 9:09 am · January 3rd, 2014

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) has announced this year’s list of narrative and documentary feature screenplay nominees, and given the wave of ineligibilities, which included such Oscar players as “12 Years a Slave,” “Philomena” and “Fruitvale Station,” it was a much smaller crop for the guild to choose from.

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Previewing the 2014 WGA nominations

Posted by · 4:49 pm · January 2nd, 2014

Tomorrow brings the WGA nominations, with the unusual selection of ineligibilities that distinguish them from other Guild honors. So which films will benefit? We offer our predictions.

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What today's PGA announcement means for Oscar

Posted by · 12:11 pm · January 2nd, 2014

HitFix’s awards editor Kristopher Tapley examines this morning’s PGA nominations announcement and assesses how it could be a slightly different story when the Oscar nominations are announced on Jan. 16.

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'American Hustle,' 'Gravity' and '12 Years a Slave' earn PGA nods

Posted by · 9:03 am · January 2nd, 2014

The Producers Guild of America announced the 10 nominees for theatrical picture and animated picture today for the upcoming 25th PGA Awards and familiar names such as “American Hustle,” “Gravity,” “12 Years A Slave,” “The Croods” and “Frozen” made the cut.

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