FoxTakes : February 2017

Saturday, February 25, 2017

2017 Oscars Preview

The awards season is coming to a close as we approach the 89th Academy Awards. These awards feel a little different than prior ceremonies, given the current political climate. We'll be sure to see more than a few interesting speeches. But who will take home an Oscar? Here's my best guess.

Best Animated Short:
Blind Vaysha
Borrowed Time
Pear Cider and Cigarettes
Pearl
Piper

When it comes to Animated shorts, its usually best to bet on Disney and/or Pixar if they have an entry. In this case, that's Piper, which aired with Finding Dory.

Best Animated Feature:

Kubo and the Two Strings

Moana

My Life as a Zucchini

The Red Turtle

Zootopia

We've seen some upsets here from time to time, but I'm going with Zootopia. It felt like a different kind of animated move than we tend to get from Disney.

Best Production Design:

Arrival

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Hail, Caesar!

La La Land

Passengers

Plenty of themes to choose from here when it comes to a film's overall design. From space, to a magic filled world and new and old school Hollywood. I'm going out on a bit of a limb and picking Hail, Caesar!. This Coen Brothers flick didn't get the attention it deserves, and its old school style really pops.

Best Picture Preview -

A film dealing with a mysterious spacecraft and building on communication skills, Arrival brought a new spin to the "aliens land on Earth" type of sci-fi film. It wasn't about invasion and power, but the power of language and exploring one's past and future.

Best Documentary, Short Subject:

Extremis

4.1 Miles

Joe's Violin

Watani: My Homeland

The White Helmets

A familiar theme can be seen from the documentaries and short film live action that we'll get to later on, and that's dealing with the middle east, specifically Syria and the refugee crisis. I went back and forth here between 4.1 Miles and The White Helmets, but ended up going with 4.1 Miles. It gives you a firsthand account as a Greek coast guard ship is charged with saving thousands of refugees making a harrowing journey crossing the Aegean Sea.

Best Documentary Feature:

Fire at Sea

I Am Not Your Negro

Life, Animated

OJ: Made in America

13th

I've haven't seen such a loaded documentary field before. So loaded in fact, that even the acclaimed Anthony Weiner doc got snubbed. There were plenty of powerful subjects, but none quite like OJ: Made In America. Broken up into five parts on ABC and ESPN, each was more gripping and eye-opening than the last, as it delved into the atmosphere that surrounded OJ's past and that high profile murder case.

Best Picture Preview -

The tale of a man who dreamed of a big league baseball career, but now working as a sanitation work, Fences shows us the results of a dream passed over, as he comes into a struggle with his own family.

Best Costume Design:

Allied

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Florence Foster Jenkins

Jackie

La La Land

This could determine just how many awards La La Land reels in. I think this could be one that eludes it though, as I'm going with Jackie. Its the kind of period piece that usually dominates costume design.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Arrival

Fences

Hidden Figures

Lion

Moonlight

It can be tough to adapt a play, especially a small one at that, which is why I'm going with Moonlight. Adapted from a Tarell Alvin McCraney semi-autobiographical play that had been shelved, Barry Jenkins was able to bring it to the big screen in a unique light.

Best Original Screenplay:

Hell or High Water

La La Land

The Lobster

Manchester By The Sea

20th Century Woman

Pretty much comes down to La La Land or Manchester By The Sea. In terms of writing and dialogue, I'll give the edge to Manchester By The Sea. It really brought to life that feel of a small New England town, giving both it and its people an authentic touch.

Best Picture Preview -

The real-life story of Desmond Doss, a conscientious objector in World War II, Hacksaw Ridge is a different kind of war movie, as it focuses on Doss's quest to save lives rather than take them.

Best Sound Editing:

Arrival

Deepwater Horizon

Haclsaw Ridge

La La Land

Sully

It can be tough to tell the difference between sound editing and mixing, so this year I researched a bit to see what are the differences. Editing deals more with the added effects. This could easily go to La La Land or Arrival (watch for mixing for my pick there), but for editing I'm going Hacksaw Ridge. The added sounds from those battle scenes are intense.

Best Original Song:

"Audition (The Fools Who Dream)" La La Land

"Can't Stop the Feeling" Trolls

"City of Stars" La La Land

"The Empty Chair" Jim, The James Foley Story

"How Far I'll Go" Moana

A potentially tricky category, with a pair of La La Land nominees. There's a chance those two could cancel each other out, giving the Oscar to Moana's "How Far I'll Go", but I'm going with "City of Stars" from La La Land. Both of the La La Land nominees get to the overall theme of the film, but "City of Stars" adds to the relationship side of things (if that makes sense).

Best Original Score:

Jackie

La La Land

Lion

Moonlight

Passengers

Seems like one of the biggest locks, with the musical La La Land taking best original score, and deservedly so. The soundtrack is incredibly catchy.

Best Picture Preview -

Following the story of two brothers as they commit bank heists to save their family ranch, Hell or High Water found a way to modernize the western film genre.

Best Visual Effects:

Deepwater Horizon

Doctor Strange

The Jungle Book

Kubo and the Two Strings

Rouge One: A Star Wars Story

A Number of ways to go here. I could see Doctor Strange winning, given its out of this world visuals, but I'm going with The Jungle Book. Watching it, you wouldn't have known that it was pretty much entirely CGI based. It looked incredibly realistic.

Best Sound Mixing:

Arrival

Hacksaw Ridge

La La Land

Rouge One: A Star Wars Story

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

Arriving to the second sound category, mixing has to do more with, well.... mixing in and getting the appropriate sounds. I'll split the difference with editing and go with La La Land. Being a musical, it takes a lot to make sure every sound is precise.

Best Picture Preview -

Telling the incredible story of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson, Hidden Figures shares of their impact in John Glenn's launch into orbit. A story that many were probably unaware of.

Best Short Film, Live Action:
Ennemis Interieurs
La Femme et le TGV
Silent Nights
Sing
Timecode

These always seem to be a toss-up. I'm going with Ennemis Interieurs. It tells the story of a French police station interrogation of a French-Algerian born man because of supposed ties to terrorists. It feels awfully prescient given the current state of affairs.

Best Film Editing:

Arrival

Hacksaw Ridge

Hell or High Water

La La Land

Moonlight

Could easily go to La La Land (or even Arrival), but I think this award throws some suspense towards Best Picture, as Moonlight takes it. Moonlight was so well crafted, essentially being broken down to 3 short stories.

Best Picture Preview -

The tale of an aspiring actress and a dedicated jazz musician, La La Land is a well-crafted modern musical exploring their relationship as they push each other to reach their goals.

Best Cinematography:

Arrival

La La Land

Lion

Moonlight

Silence

This seems like an award destined for La La Land. Shot in cinemascope, it gave the musical a classic look.

Best Makeup & Hairstyling:

A Man Called Ove

Star Trek: Beyond

Suicide Squad

Honestly, I would bet against the Academy giving an award to the critically panned Suicide Squad (though you never know). I'm going with Star Trek: Beyond.

Best Picture Preview -

The real-life story of how a young man looks to find the family he was separated from as a child, Lion shows how something as simple as Google Earth became a key tool for him.

Best Foreign Language Film:

Land of Mine

A Man Called Ove

The Salesman

Tanna

Toni Erdmann

With Elle surprisingly not included, that makes this an open field. Toni Erdmann is a top contender, but i'm going with the Iranian film The Salesman. I wouldn't be surprised if the Academy tried to make a statement, with the director Asghar Farhadi boycotting the awards due to Trump's travel ban.

Best Supporting Actress:

Viola Davis, Fences
Naomie Harris, Moonlight
Nicole Kidman, Lion
Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams, Manchester By The Sea

This is one of the safest actor categories to pick. Viola Davis is taking this one. She had great chemistry opposite Denzel Washington.

Best Supporting Actor:

Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

Lucas Hedges, Manchester By The Sea

Dev Patel, Lion

Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals

Dev Patel is gaining a bit of a late push, and might pull off an upset, but I'm going with Mahershala Ali. He has some of the best dialogue in Moonlight.

Best Picture preview -

The story of a loner who goes back home in the wake of the loss of his brother, Manchester By The Sea shows the complex emotions that can result when trying to go back home.

Best Actress:

Isabelle Huppert, Elle

Ruth Negga, Loving

Natalie Portman, Jackie

Emma Stone, La La Land

Meryl Steep, Florence Foster Jenkins

You could characterize this as a 3 woman race, with Isabelle, Natalie and Emma all winning top awards throughout this season's circuit. If the SAGs are an indicator, then I'm leaning towards Emma Stone. She really brought La La Land to life.

Best Actor:

Casey Affleck, Manchester By The Sea

Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge

Ryan Gosling, La La Land

Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic

Denzel Washington, Fences

Affleck was the early favorite, but Denzel Washington has really picked up steam, and he's my choice to win. It can be tough to bring a stage role to the big screen, but he did it flawlessly.

Best Picture Preview -

A look into the life of Chiron in three different chapters, Moonlight gives us a glimpse of a man finding himself in his community, and coming to terms with his own sexuality.

Best Director:

Denis Villenueve, Arrival

Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge

Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By The Sea

Much like best picture, this is between Jenkins and Chazelle. I'm going with Damien Chazelle. His work at such a young age (Whiplash, and now La La Land) is just astounding. We can expect great things from Chazelle in the future, and likely many more nominations.

Best Picture:

Arrival

Fences

Hacksaw Ridge

Hell or High Water

Hidden Figures

La La Land

Lion

Manchester By The Sea

Moonlight

In the end, this comes down to La La Land and Moonlight. In a top notch field, these two rise above the rest. Many think La La Land is a runaway favorite, but I wouldn't be so sure. Looking through the best pic wins this season in the various city oriented critics awards, and it seems pretty split between these two. I wouldn't be at all shocked if Moonlight pulls it out, but I'm sticking with La La Land. It takes a lot to pull off a musical, and an original one at that. Plus, La La Land would be the first musical to win since Chicago in 2003, and then you have to go all the way back to the early to mid 60s with West Side Story, My Fair Lady and Sound of Music.

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

SNL Season 42: Alec Baldwin

He's felt like a cast member this season, but Alec Baldwin hosted for an unprecedented 17th time. So how did it go? Onto the review

Sean Spicer Press Conference Cold Open: You knew this was coming, but they still hit this out of the park. Melissa McCarthy returned, portraying "Spicey". While trying to appear more calm, Spicer still flys off the handle. This didn't have the surprise factor like last week, but that didn't hold this back. They even upped the game here, with a motorized podium now, making for an even better visual as Spicer goes after reporters. We also got a brief cameo of Kate McKinnon as Jeff Sessions. (9.3)

Monologue: The monologue featured Alec and Pete Davidson, with Pete reflecting on how much older Alec looks compared to his first hosting gig. (7.7)

Russell Stover (ad): Russell Stovers aren't just selling chocolates for Valentine's Day any more. In this ad parody, they've started to sell chocolates commemorating Black History Month, featuring different prominent shaped figures. You know there's some executive out there that thinks this is actually a great idea. (7.5)

Pitch Meeting: This is what a lot of board rooms probably looked like in preparing for the super bowl ads. Alec and Aidy Bryant pitch deep Cheetos ads, but having nothing to do with the actual product. The best line though was from Kyle Mooney and Melissa Villasenor, who catch on and throw a beginning to a pitch of "we open on the twin towers". (8.0)

Jake Tapper (short): This short sees Jake Tapper (Beck Bennett) finishing up his interview with Kellyanne Conway (McKinnon). She then follows him home, and they have a "Fatal Attraction" - esque interaction, with Conway begging to go back on TV, threatening Tapper. There were plenty of hot-takes defending Conway, but I think this short made a good point. Just a week ago, Conway claimed she wouldn't go back on CNN....only to show up days later for this Tapper interview. Quite frankly, she is addicted to television coverage. Its almost like she feels powerless without her ability to go on camera, scolding media. (8.7)

Drill Sergeant: (6.0)

(Ed Sheeran): (7.0)

Weekend Update: Colin Jost and Michael Che were cleaner than last week.

The first guest saw Kate playing Sen. Elizabeth Warren, following McConnell's silencing of her on the senate floor. Is there anyone Kate can't play? Hopefully this means she'll be around for the 2020 race for a prospective Warren campaign.

Alex Moffat played "A Guy Who Just Bought A Boat". Nothing really that memorable, though this character would have fit in perfectly on The Californians".

Leslie Jones and Mikey Day then played a couple dabbling in BDSM, with Day showing a few injuries. (7.3)

Trump People's Court: I was wondering if they would do something like this. Following his "SEE YOU IN COURT" tweet after the 9th circuit ruling against Trump on his travel ban, we see him taking them to the People's Court here (Cecily Strong). Maybe not the best Trump sketch, but there were still a lot of good moments, from seeing Grim Reaper Bannon sitting in the audience, to Beck's Putin as a witness. Though Cecily had the best line on being exhausted to this point in the Trump administration. (8.0)

Beyonce's Babies: (6.9)

Leslie Wants To Play Trump (short): In a behind the scenes style of short, Leslie Jones prepares to audition to play Trump. She then goes on to freak out at Lorne when denied the opportunity, but Melania (Cecily) picks her up outside. If Trump saw this, I imagine it certainly got under his skin. (8.3)

(Ed Sheeran): (7.4)

Gym Class: (6.5)

SNL has embraced this new political era we're currently in. They've shown that they won't hold back, and are willing to take risks. (7.58)

Dave Chappelle: 8.83
Kristen Stewart: 8.13

Tom Hanks: 8.03

Aziz Ansari: 7.82

Lin Manuel Miranda: 7.74

Felicity Jones: 7.62

Alec Baldwin: 7.58

Emma Stone: 7.56

Casey Affleck: 7.40

Margot Robbie: 7.38

John Cena: 7.19

Kristen Wiig: 7.09

Emily Blunt: 7.07

Benedict Cumberbatch: 6.60

Friday, February 10, 2017

2017 Grammy's Preview

It's been a great year in music, as we near the 2017 Grammy Awards. The race everyone will be looking at is a prospective showdown between Adele and Beyonce for 'album of the year', but there are a number of interesting categories out there. (sidenote: my Grammy predictions aren't always the best, so just enjoy the snippets representing some of the best music of this past calendar year).

Best Country Album:

Brandy Clark - Big Day In A Small Town

Loretta Lynn - Full Circle

Maren Morris - Hero

Sturgill Simpson - A Sailor's Guide To Earth

Keith Urban - Ripcord

This will probably come down to Sturgill Simpson and Maren Morris. Both had breakout years on the country scene, but I'm going to lean towards Sturgill Simpson.

Best R&B Performance:

BJ The Chicago Kid - "Turnin' Me Up"

Ro James - "Permission"

Musiq Soulchild - "I Do"

Rihanna - "Needed Me"

Solange - "Cranes In The Sky"

Solange takes this Grammy Award.

Best Rock Album:

Blink-182 - California

Cage The Elephant - Tell Me I'm Pretty

Gojira - Magma

Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor

Weezer - Weezer

Going out on a limb here and going with Gojira. You may not know them, but with crisp and clean vocals they really shine. Definitely a group to check out.

Best Pop Vocal Album:

Adele - 25

Justin Bieber - Purpose

Ariana Grande - Dangerous Woman

Demi Lovato - Confident

Sia - This Is Acting

What a loaded field. A pretty perfect collection of pop artists. While I wouldn't be shocked if Sia pulled this one off, its hard to bet against Adele.

Best Pop Solo Performance:

Adele - "Hello"

Beyonce - "Hold Up"

Justin Bieber - "Love Yourself"

Kelly Clarkson - "Piece By Piece" (Idol Version)

Ariana Grande - "Dangerous Woman"

Another loaded pop field, including Beyonce. I think it comes down to Adele, Beyonce and Kelly Clarkson. And you know what? I'm going with Kelly Clarkson for the upset here. That Idol version of "Piece By Piece" was just incredibly touching and moving.

Best New Artist:

Kelsea Ballerini

The Chainsmokers

Chance The Rapper

Maren Morris

Anderson Paak

I still think its a crime that Alessia Cara wasn't nominated. But in this field, I'm going with Chance The Rapper.

Song Of The Year:

Beyonce - "Formation"

Adele - "Hello"

Mike Posner - "I Took A Pill In Ibiza"

Justin Bieber - "Love Yourself"

Lukas Graham - "7 Years"

This likely comes down to Beyonce and Adele. Watch this space for "Record Of The Year", but for Song OTY, I'm going with Adele.

Record Of The Year:

Adele - "Hello"

Beyonce - "Formation"

Lukas Graham - "7 Years"

Rihanna ft/Drake - "Work"

Twenty One Pilots - "Stressed Out"

A few different entrees than in Song Of The Year, but again it comes to down to Adele and Beyonce in my book. And in this case, its a split, with Beyonce taking Record Of The Year.

Album Of The Year:

Adele - 25

Beyonce - Lemonade

Justin Bieber - Purpose

Drake - Views

Sturgill Simpson - A Sailor's Guide To Earth

Sturgill Simpson could sneak in here, but I have to go with none other than Beyonce. Lemonade just burst onto the scene, with Beyonce taking us down a path with a variety of different sounds and genres. It may sound cliche, but its what makes an artist.

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

SNL Season 42: Kristen Stewart

SNL picked back up with Kristen Stewart. A lot going on politically, so how did they handle it? Onto the review

Oval Office Cold Open: The Grim Reaper returned as Steve Bannon. In this cold open, we see Trump (Alec Baldwin) calling a bunch of countries, and declaring war. Beck Bennett plays yet another foreign leader, portraying the Australian prime minister. Trump also tries to trick the Mexican president into paying for the wall, but Kenan Thompson stole the show. Bannon urges Trump to dominate a smaller country, so he calls Zimbabwe, where Kenan as the leader chastises Trump. This cold open continues the belief that Bannon is the real one in charge, as we see the image of Trump sitting on the side while Bannon presides over the desk. (9.0)

Monologue: In her monologue, Kristen ran down several tweets of Trump referring to her former relationship with Robert Pattinson. That's an actual thing that happened. If that had been some random guy, he'd probably be considered a stalker.....yet here we are. (7.7)

Welcome Video (short): This welcome to the country video from the Border Control gets a few dubs and edits related to Trump's main executive order. (8.2)

Dry Fridays: (5.9)

Totinos with Kristen Stewart (ad): I love how these Totinos ads now have a storyline and continuity attached to them. This time around, as Vanessa Bayer is making totinos for her "favorite guy", she meets Kristen Stewart, whose meeting leads to an awakening for Vanessa. The best part though, as we see their romance play out like a movie, is the shot from the living room, with the guys watching the game as they kiss in the background, oblivious to everything. (10)

Sean Spicer Press Conference (Melissa McCarthy): Man, oh man. This was pure perfection. Melissa McCarthy just became Spicer, there's no other way to put it. The physical comedy here was out of this world, from the props "moose lambs", and attacking reporters with the podium. The kind of sad thing is, this wasn't exaggerated all that much (at least when it came to Spicer's very first briefing the weekend after the inauguration). This just needs to be seen to be believed. (10)

(Alessia Cara): (8.7)

Weekend Update: Maybe there was too much energy for this show leading up to Update, because Colin Jost and Michael Che seemed kind of rattled. They saved it from going totally off the rails, but it was a pretty bumpy road.

The only guest saw Kenan return as David Ortiz on some sponsorships he's doing for the Super Bowl. Not one of the best Papi update appearances. (6.5)

Celebrity Family Feud: Super Bowl Edition: It was nice seeing Kate McKinnon come back as Bieber. Besides that, this was pretty run of the mill. (6.8)

Meet Cute (short): A better love story than Twilight (7.5)

(Alessia Cara): (9.5)

Golden Ticket: A pretty good 10 to 1 sketch. This actually brought up a plot hole I hadn't thought of before in Willy Wonka....how did Charlie's bedridden grandfather suddenly get up? (7.7)

Kristen Stewart was laid back, edgy and just a fun host. Though on one hand, Melissa McCarthy did steal the show with her guest spot as Sean Spicer (which I hope we'll be seeing more of). This week's show contained the most "must watch" moments of the season thus far. (8.13)

Dave Chappelle: 8.83
Kristen Stewart: 8.13

Tom Hanks: 8.03

Aziz Ansari: 7.82

Lin Manuel Miranda: 7.74

Felicity Jones: 7.62

Emma Stone: 7.56

Casey Affleck: 7.40

Margot Robbie: 7.38

John Cena: 7.19

Kristen Wiig: 7.09

Emily Blunt: 7.07

Benedict Cumberbatch: 6.60

Friday, February 3, 2017

Lady Gaga: Top 15

With the Super Bowl comes the much anticipated halftime show. You never quite know what you'll see or what you'll get, and that's especially true this year with Lady Gaga. So I decided to countdown the top 15 singles of Lady Gaga (all subjective of course).

(all rights to Lady Gagam Def Jam/Cherrytree/KonLive/Streamline/Interscope Records)