my picks for tomorrow night’s 98th Academy Awards (the Oscars for 2025’s films) (winners indicated)
I correctly guessed 12 out of the 24 categories, which is about as well as I usually do. (Ten of my “should win”s did win!) At least I’m consistent.
Stellan Skarsgard
Dune: Part Two movie review: shifting sands
Ugly, outrageous, brutal, and cynical; a genuinely terrifying film about power and politics as religion and control. There is little escapism here; hits square in the social plexus of horrifying 2024.
Borg vs McEnroe movie review: they get served
Excruciatingly suspenseful and unexpectedly moving portrait of the on-court rivalry between the two great tennis players… and the intriguing secret layer to the public dynamic between them.
Our Kind of Traitor movie review: ordinary everyday spies
Smartly elegant; the fantastic cast makes it worth your time. But it does feel as if it belongs on the small screen spread across six or eight hours.
The Railway Man review: a derailment on the line
Almost entirely ignores the amazing aspect of this true story that makes it worth telling, and even the very good performances point us in another direction than the intended one.
Nymphomaniac Vol 1 & 2 movie review: behold the alien Woman
A salacious yet also tedious portrayal of a woman who would appear to confirm all the nastiest stereotypes about women.
see Nymphomaniac Parts 1 and 2 back-to-back in the UK, Sat Feb 22nd only
I don’t recommend the film, but this is a unique opportunity, and I thought you’d like to know about it if you’re inclined to see the film anyway.
Thor: The Dark World review: Viking with a chance of wormholes
Think heavy-metal Lord of the Rings. With wormholes. It’s completely mad and kind of awesome.
Mamma Mia! movie review: out of tune
If there’s one thing that’s clear from this revue of ABBA’s hit songs, it’s that there really aren’t all that many great ABBA songs, hits or no.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (review)
Oh, thank the gods. Thank crazy Walt Disney’s head in a cryogenic freezer. Thank the army of producers and FX geeks and writers and cast and studio execs and focus-group gurus and everyone else who made this prepackaged, ready-for-synergy-marketing, lowest-common-denominator junk cinema the most cheesalicious, escape-a-riffic it could be.
