In Contention

'Our Children' and 'Pietà' among latest additions to foreign Oscar longlist

Posted by Guy Lodge · 12:07 pm · September 17th, 2012

An update of the latest submissions for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, as Belgium, South Korea and Portugal, among others, make their picks.

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Off the Carpet: Three to start the season

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 8:05 am · September 17th, 2012

Ben Affleck’s “Argo,” Paul Thomas Anderson’s “The Master”and David O.Russell’s “Silver Linings Playbook.” With Venice, Telluride and Toronto in the rear view, those are the three films with the early stranglehold on the 2012-2013 Oscar season.

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Oscar Talk: Ep. 87 — Fall fests, 'The Master,' 'Silver Linings,' 'Argo' kick off the season

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 10:46 am · September 15th, 2012

In this week’s podcast, Kris and Anne discuss the movies that have launched the season at the beginning of the fall festival circuit as a new season of Oscar Talk kicks off.

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Tell us what you thought of 'The Master'

Posted by Guy Lodge · 7:08 am · September 14th, 2012

Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest opens in limited release today.

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Steven Spielberg and Joseph Gordon-Levitt talk 'Lincoln' following trailer premiere

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 6:27 pm · September 13th, 2012

With much fanfare leading up to the reveal, Disney finally launched the trailer for Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” this evening. The event was part of a Google Play cross-promotion with Spielberg and star Joseph Gordon-Levitt on hand in a Google+ Hangout to take questions from selected fans for 30 minutes after the trailer debuted.

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Making the case for 'Argo' and the zeitgeist

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 9:14 am · September 13th, 2012

Sometimes, like with Ben Affleck’s Iran hostage crisis film “Argo,” a film’s reflections of the here and now are much more defined.

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London Film Festival beefs up its awards shortlists

Posted by Guy Lodge · 8:35 am · September 13th, 2012

More films are in the running for prizes at the October catch-up fest.

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Romania enters Cannes winner 'Beyond the Hills' in the Oscar race

Posted by Guy Lodge · 3:12 pm · September 11th, 2012

Will voters make it up to Cristian Mungiu after that significant 2007 snub?

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On Kristen Stewart and stripping away the tabloid persona

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 8:29 am · September 11th, 2012

People put their best face on in this game so you’re always going to be charmed, seduced, wooed by the “please like me” thing of it all. But Stewart is a very normal girl in the throes of very abnormal circumstances. And her “best face” is difficult to manage.

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Review: Mother doesn't know best in proudly nasty Golden Lion winner 'Pietà'

Posted by Guy Lodge · 4:39 pm · September 10th, 2012

Winding down our Venice coverage with thoughts on the fest’s top prizewinner

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Watch 44 seconds of Steven Spielberg's 'Lincoln'

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 2:07 pm · September 10th, 2012

The 44 seconds features what I imagine is a touch of John Williams’s original score and is carried through by dialogue from Union soldier to Daniel Day-Lewis’s 16th Commander-in-Chief.

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The Denzel Washington Best Actor push takes 'Flight'

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 6:49 pm · September 9th, 2012

There’s a foundation being laid. We’ve had Denzel Washington tapped for potential Best Actor consideration every since we first launched the Contenders section for the 2012-2013 Oscar season, but you can finally see the gears turning on the upcoming campaign.

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Focus Features picks up Derek Cianfrance's 'The Place Beyond the Pines'

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 6:12 pm · September 9th, 2012

The film has found a nice home for not-so-easily-defined indie dramas.

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Two major awards for 'The Master,' but Kim Ki-duk's 'Pieta' takes Golden Lion at Venice

Posted by Guy Lodge · 12:22 pm · September 8th, 2012

Paul Thomas Anderson’s film was reportedly the jury’s first choice for the top prize.

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Venice: What will win the big awards… and what should

Posted by Guy Lodge · 3:55 am · September 8th, 2012

Critics are crazy for ‘The Master,’ but will the jury throw a curveball?

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Australia enters foreign-language race with German-language WWII drama 'Lore'

Posted by Guy Lodge · 1:12 am · September 8th, 2012

Meanwhile, two-time Best Director nominee Lasse Hallstrom represents Sweden.

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Logan Lerman stands out in 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower'

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 1:18 pm · September 7th, 2012

Stephen Chbosky’s “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” is set to play the Toronto Film Festival tomorrow. Press screenings are happening today. It’s a nice, public space to debut the film, which opens on September 21, but it’s also sure to be a big coming-out for star Logan Lerman, who gives a shattering performance of tenderness, emotion and, its its own way, charisma.

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