Let's Talk About the Best Actor Race (Spoiler alert: it's not that interesting)

Ryan Gosling, La La Land

Does anyone even care about men these days?! When it comes to the Academy Awards this season, it looks like the answer is "oh, right, they give awards to men too..." While Viola Davis and Amy Adams and Emma Stone and Ruth Negga and Natalie Portman and many, many more are duking it out, it looks like the Best Actor category is without a frontrunner. A few frontrunners could pop up at any time; the Oscar season is long and fickle enough that things can change at any moment.

And I don't want to imply that this year's Oscar race is completely devoid of possible nominees and winners. Despite Bryce Dallas Howard not being forced to wear high heels in Jurassic World 2, Hollywood sexism isn't over so the majority of the films being talked about are heavily male-driven. It's just that no one has really stood out with an "it's his year" film like Emma Stone or Viola Davis.

Could Amy Adams Win an Oscar This Year? Can She?! Please?!?!

Five time Academy Award nominee Amy Adams is once again in the Oscar conversation this year. She has two well-received films working their way around the various festivals: Arrival, directed by Denis Villenueve (Sicario), and Nocturnal Animals, by Tom Ford (A Single Man). Though each film has their set of detractors--and Nocturnal Animals is turning out to be quite polarizing--I think Adams has obviously been praised to high heaven. Of the two films, most Oscar pundits are putting their Amy Adams eggs in the Arrival basket. Adams is on many lists of probably Oscar nominees for Best Actress, especially regarding her Arrival performance. I could see a nomination for either film (or perhaps some category fraud if they put her in Supporting Actress for Nocturnal Animals). But for now, let's pretend that Arrival will be the big Oscar movie for her.

But can she win? That's the question. For one thing, Amy Adams is well-liked enough in the industry that murmurs of "it's her year" are probably being heard around Hollywood. I'm not sure the murmurs will morph into the banshee call that preceded Leonardo DiCaprio's Oscar win earlier this year. Amy Adams is talented obviously, and she's on the border of "oh yeah that girl" and true blue household name. However, Amy Adams has had the bad luck of being nominated alongside surefire winners, at least most of the time. Please read Amy Adams: Always the Oscar Bridesmaid, which further explores that idea.

My Top 10 Greatest Bollywood Films from the 21st Century

While writing my Top 10 Greatest Films from the 21st Century list, I realized I hadn't put any Indian films on it. Rather than try to restructure that list, I decided to give Bollywood its own top 10 list. I tried to include films of different genres, styles, and directors. Like the last list, I looked at both artistic merit and historical impact. So please enjoy! 

10. Band Baaja Baaraat (Maneesh Sharma; 2010)
On paper, this wedding rom-com might seem like a forgettably pleasant diversion. Thanks to Habib Faisal's script, Namrata Rao's editing, stars Anushka Sharma and Ranveer Singh, and Aseem Mishra's camerawork, the execution is an incisive and glamorous look at young Delhi residents following their goals. Band Baaja Baaraat is an excellent expression of how the typical Bollywood formula can come to life through innovative filmmaking.

My Top 10 Greatest Films from the 21st Century

For some unknown reason, I wasn't asked to join the BBC that compiled the 100 greatest films of the 21st century. So I decided to write my own list. This list is pretty Hollywood centric, and maybe that's a bad thing. But I really wanted it to reflect films that are important to me. Thee films maybe aren't my most favorite movies (though some of them are), but they are what I consider to be important in showcasing the best in terms of visual storytelling, themes, and historical relevance.

10. Her (Spike Jonze, 2013)
This melancholy, understated romance explores themes of isolation, human connection, and the effects of technology on human life. Boosted by expert performances, the script is warm and affectionate and the cinematography is striking. Spike Jonze is an incredibly heartfelt director, milking outlandish scenarios for what they say about modern human life.

Rose Byrne is Hollywood's Secret MVP

Rose Byrne may not be a household name, but she's certainly a household face. The Australian actress has been in a lot of mainstream movies, ranging from horror to comedies to superhero movies to musicals. Byrne made herself into a reliable character actor, often being cast in versatile projects and being comfortable in all of them. Did you see X-Men: First Class? Or Insidious? Or Bridesmaids? Yup, she was in them. Or maybe you know her from five seasons of Damages with Glenn Close. Rose Byrne seems to be bursting under the surface, ready for A-list. And considering she's of major value to all her projects, Byrne has become Hollywood's secret MVP.

Rose Byrne made her name in Australia, in several well-regarded Australian movies. FYI I have not seen any of her movies from down under but according to Wikipedia she was good in them. Byrne's first major Hollywood role was in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. She played Dorme, handmaiden to Senator Amidala (Natalie Portman). She did more Hollywood movies, such as Troy, Wicker Park, Sunshine directed by Danny Boyle, Adam, and her pre-breakout movies Insidious and Get Him to the Greek. All Rose Byrne needed was a major breakout movie.

The Calm Defiance in VEER ZAARA

Legendary Bollywood director Yash Chopra's penultimate film is the romantic epic drama Veer Zaara. Released in 2004, the film starred major Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta, and Rani Mukherji, with supporting turns from Kirron Kher, Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Boman Irani, Manoj Bajpai, Divya Dutta, and Anupam Kher. At the time, Veer-Zaara was one of the most anticipated films for a few reasons. First of all, that stacked cast. Second, it was Chopra's return to directing after seven years. Finally, its soundtrack consisted of unused tunes from the esteemed late composer Madan Mohan. Yash Chopra, who passed away in 2012, is one of my favorite directors. His filmmaking is lush and romantic in Veer-Zaara, often using the camera to bridge the gap between the traditional and the modern.

Veer-Zaara is a story of romantic rebellion curtailed by honor and duty. Zaara Haayat Khan (Zinta) is a Pakistani young woman who defies her parents to travel to India to spread the ashes of the woman who raised her. In India, she meets Squadron Leader Veer Pratap Singh (Khan) and over the next few days Veer and Zaara fall in love, as he helps complete her task. However, Zaara is facing an arranged marriage back in Pakistan, so the two separate. Back in Pakistan, however, Zaara's mind keeps going back to Veer. I wanted to deconstruct my favorite scene in the film where Zaara tells her mother Miriam (Kirron Kher) about Veer. This scene uses tracking shots, different angles, and editing to complement the dialogue and thematic elements.

Why I'm Glad the New GHOSTBUSTERS Isn't a "Passing the Torch" Sequel

People who follow entertainment news are probably familiar with all the nonsense going on with the Ghostbusters reboot coming out in July. Basically, the Paul Feig directed comedy stars Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, and Kate McKinnon. Some people, mostly men who aren't used to the world not catering and pandering to their tastes, are upset that their beloved franchise is being turned into a gimmick. Articles upon articles are being written about this Internet controversy. Just a simple google search will deliver some great essays on why the vitriol against the new film is inherently sexist, with one guy even posting a six minute video on YouTube about why he won't even see the new movie. Click here for the best one from Birth.Movies.Death.'s Devin Faraci.

Granted, the trailers for Ghostbusters 2016 have not been that great. But I have to mention that trailers for Feig's previous films--especially Spy and Bridesmaids--were pretty uninspiring. The films themselves have been total treasures. Paul Feig uses his privilege as a white male director to tell stories about women friendships and struggles women face in becoming the best versions of themselves. His previous three films, including the action comedy The Heat, gave women (especially in their late 30s and early 40s) the space to be funny and slapsticky. It's awesome that the new Ghostbusters has an all-women cast. The movie is guaranteed to pass the Bechdel Test several times over, and considering the talent involved, it's sure to be funny all heck.