Tag Archives: Ryan Gosling

All Movie Reviews, Drama, Like It, Long Reviews (>400 Words)

First Man (2018) Movie Review

October 22, 2018 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

Damien Chazelle’s follow up to the highly successful and almost Best Picture winner La La Land is a biopic about the first man who walked on the moon, Neil Armstrong (played here by Ryan Gosling). Sounds like a conventional route to go down after directing two films that broke the contemporary Hollywood mold. But leave it to Chazelle to take a unique approach to the conventional.

Armstrong is a pensive man. On the surface, emotionally slight. Rarely speaking more than he needs to, he relies more on Continue reading First Man (2018) Movie Review →

All Movie Reviews, Like It, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Blade Runner 2049 (2017) Movie Review

October 7, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

Caution: This review makes mention of two key plot points of Blade Runner 2049 that may be construed as “spoilers,” even though both are pieces of plot information that are introduced early on in the film. Either way, Denis Villeneuve reportedly asked critics not to reveal any plot points of the film, so I guess you’ve been warned.

It has been 35 years since Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, a dystopian urban image of a world in which people are hired to hunt down and “retire” artificial beings known as Replicants. Based on, if only in its philosophical quandaries, Philip K. Dick’s novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the film questioned where the line between humanity and artificiality is.

The script of Blade Runner 2049 from Hampton Fancher and Michael Green continues this existential exploration. The film, directed by Denis Villeneuve, whose cinematic visions have only grown in terms of visuals and heady ideas, follows a new Blade Runner code-named K (Ryan Gosling) as he stumbles upon Continue reading Blade Runner 2049 (2017) Movie Review →

2017 Academy Awards, Award Ceremonies

Academy Awards Predictions 2017 – Best Actor

January 24, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

In some respects, 2017 is a very boring year for Oscar predictions. This also means that many of the categories are downright pieces of cake to narrow down. What’s good for the Oscar ballot is not as good for the press, I guess.

In Best Actor, we have a handful of great performances, but there is only one that has been the favorite from the very start.

Best Actor:

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2017 Academy Awards, 2017 Golden Globes, Award Ceremonies

What the 2017 Golden Globe Results Mean For The Oscars

January 8, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

With the 2017 Golden Globes in our immediate rearview, it is time to pick up the pieces. Let’s analyze the surprising aftermath of the Golden Globes to see how it will affect the Academy Awards in February.

Best Supporting Actor

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2017 Academy Awards, Award Ceremonies

2017 Academy Awards Nomination Predictions – Best Actor

January 1, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

As is often the case, the Academy acting awards feel like they have already been handed out. The phrase “the Oscar is X-actor’s to lose” is standard, and I will likely use the same phrase down the line this year. In 2016, Best Actor was Leo DiCaprio’s to lose, and he won. In 2015, Best Actress was Julianne Moore’s to lose, and she won. Etcetera, etcetera.

In 2017, there is a clear favorite and a few other contenders.

Best Actor

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All Movie Reviews, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Love It, Romance

La La Land (2016) Movie Review

December 18, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

The opening number of La La Land, the new musical from Whiplash director Damien Chazelle, is the appropriate first impression of Los Angeles: a gridlocked freeway of cars sitting idle. Only, instead of the frustration and cynicism that would arise from this situation, people burst into hopeful song and dance among the stalled cars. In a rush of agile choreography, a rainbow color scheme, and immense depth staging, a flurry of people dance on hoods and sing of the wonder of Hollywood sunshine.

At the culmination of this tune, we are introduced to Mia (Emma Stone), another hopeful going over audition sides in her car as she waits, and Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), who honks aggressively at her when she refuses to move once the congestion breaks up.

With the first few scenes, La La Land presents itself as a

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2017 Golden Globes, Award Ceremonies, Movie News

2017 Golden Globes Predictions – Best Actor

December 12, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

The two best actor races at this year’s Golden Globes will be, in all likelihood, unsurprising. Both categories—in Drama and Musical/Comedy—are stacked with talent. But trends show that two clear front runners have emerged.

Best Actor – Drama

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2017 Academy Awards, Award Ceremonies, Movie News

2017 Oscar Movie Season Preview

September 11, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

The first weekend of September 2016 has brought us two major disappointments (The Disappointments Room and When the Bough Breaks) and one movie with some early Oscar buzz. Clint Eastwood’s biopic Sully is earning attention, particularly for Tom Hanks’ usual strong performance. With Summer behind us and the mediocre lot of September ahead, I feel the need to look a few months down the line at some movies that promise to be some of the best of the year.

Oscar-nominated movies can come around at any time during the calendar year. We will more than likely see Continue reading 2017 Oscar Movie Season Preview →

Action/Thriller, All Movie Reviews, Comedy, Love It, Quickie Reviews (<400 Words)

The Nice Guys (2016) Movie Review

May 20, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

In The Nice Guys, two private investigators, one licensed (Ryan Gosling) and one unlicensed (Russell Crowe), go after the same lost woman who has strange ties with the adult film industry.