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Movie Quote of the Day – Precious, 2009 (dir. Lee Daniels)

Clareece ‘Precious’ Jones: The other day, I cried. I felt stupid. But you know what? Fuck that day. That’s why God, or whoever, makes new days.

Posted in Movie Quote of the Day

2 Comments

Tags: 2009, Gabby Sidibe, Gabourey Sidibe, Geoffrey Fletcher, Lee Daniels, Precious, Sapphire

My Oscar Nominations Predictions

Feb 1

Posted by Marya E. Gates

The Academy Award nominations will be announced at 5:30AM PST tomorrow, February 2nd. I’ve got predictions for 10 of the 24 categories. I’m also going to supply some alternates. I love being able to predict what the nominations will be, but at the same time, it would be nice for some surprises to sneak in there too!

Best Picture:

(500) Days of Summer
An Education
Avatar
District 9
The Hangover
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
Star Trek
Up In The Air

(Alternates: Up, Invictus, A Serious Man)

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Posted in Nominations, the Academy Awards

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Tags: (500) Days of Summer, A Serious Man, A Single Man, An Education, Anna Kendrick, Avatar, Carey Mulligan, Christoph Waltz, Christopher Plummer, Clint Eastwood, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, Colin Firth, Coraline, Crazy Heart, Diane Kruger, District 9, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Gabby Sidibe, George Clooney, Helen Mirren, Inglourious Basterds, Invictus, James Cameron, Jason Reitman, Jeff Bridges, Jeremy Renner, Julianne Moore, Julie & Julia, Kathryn Bigelow, Lee Daniels, Matt Damon, Meryl Streep, Micahel Haneke, Mo'Nique, Morgan Freeman, Nine, Precious, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Downey Jr., Sandra Bullock, Sherlock Holmes, Stanley Tucci, Star Trek, the Academy Awards, The Blind Side, The Hangover, the hurt locker, The Last Station, The Lovely Bones, The Messenger, The Oscars, The Princess and the Frog, The Road, The White Ribbon, Up, Up In The Air, Vera Farmiga, Viggo Mortensen, Where The Wild Things Are, Woody Harrelson

15 Breakthrough Performers of 2009

Jan 31

Posted by Marya E. Gates

2009 was a good year for cinema. So good I had to have a Top 15 instead of a Top Ten (and now, after I’ve seen a lot of the End of the Year fare, I feel like I’d need a Top Twenty). There were some newcomers who blew us away and some actors/actresses who have been kicking around Hollywood for years waiting for That Movie that makes them a household name, and for them 2009 was that year. I’m going to do this list in alphabetical order by last name.

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Posted in BAFTAs, Golden Globes, SAGs, the Academy Awards, Top List

9 Comments

Tags: 2009, A Single Man, Adventureland, An Education, Anna Kendrick, Avatar, Ben Affleck, Bored to Death, Brideshead Revisited, Carey Mulligan, Center Stage, Chasing Liberty, Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz, Clash of the Titans, Colin Firth, Dahmer, David Fincher, Emile Hirsch, G-Force, Gabby Sidibe, George Clooney, Gigantic, HBO, Heroes, Inglourious Basterds, J J. Abrams, James Cameron, Jeff Daniels, Jeremy Renner, Jesse Eisenberg, Kathryn Bigelow, Kevin Kline, Kristen Stewart, Mandy Moore, Mark Zuckerberg, Match Point, Matthew Goode, Max Records, Michael Douglas, NBC, Oliver Stone, Peter Travers, Precious, Pride & Prejudice, Quentin Tarantino, Shakespeare in Love, Shia LeBeouf, SNL, Spike Jonze, Star Trek, Taylor Lautner, Terminator Salvation, The Brothers Bloom, The Emperor's Club, The English Patient, The Hangover, the hurt locker, The Social Network, The Squid and the Whale, The Town, Tom Ford, Twilight, Twilight Saga: New Moon, Up In The Air, Wall Street, Watchmen, Where The Wild Things Are, Woody Allen, Zach Galifianakis, Zach Synder, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Zombieland

Precious – A Powerful, Harrowing and Ultimately Uplifting Film

Jan 22

Posted by Marya E. Gates

When I first heard the plot of this film – a 16 year-old girl deals with her abusive mother while pregnant with her second child by her own father – I was a little squeamish. When I heard that Mo’Nique gives the performance of a lifetime I was baffled and when I heard that regardless of its harrowing premise you’ll leave the film feeling uplifted, I was skeptical. Ladies and gentlemen, I was wrong.

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Posted in Review, the Academy Awards

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Tags: Gabby Sidibe, Mariah Carey, Mo'Nique, Precious

What the Critics Choice Awards Mean to Oscar

Jan 16

Posted by Marya E. Gates

In many ways the Critics Choice Awards are just as good, if not a better gauge of how the Oscars are going to go than the Golden Globes. Granted, there are no Academy members who vote for either of those award shows (unlike the guilds, where there are some crossover members with the Academy.)

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Posted in Critics Choice, Precursors