The Runner-Ups: Channing Tatum in "Foxcatcher" (2014)

Channing Tatum in Foxcatcher

Every Oscar season, there are a handful of actors who get tagged with the "snubbed" moniker. While it is always unfortunate to see our favorites not honored with at very least a nomination, there's another trend that goes largely unnoticed: those who never even got that far. The Runner-Ups is a column meant to honor the greats in cinema who put in phenomenal work without getting the credit that they deserved from The Academy. Join me every other Saturday as I honor those who never received any love. This list will hopefully come to cover both the acting community, and the many crew members who put the production together.

Birthday Take: Steve Carell in "Foxcatcher" (2014)

Scene from Foxcatcher

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.

An Appreciation of Soderberg's 'Last' Movie "Side Effects"

Scene from Side Effects

It is likely that if you watch movie trailers, then you'll remember the Logan Lucky one. How could you not? It's the return of the great Steven Soderbergh, finally directing more movies after a brief hiatus that lead to two TV series; one he worked closely on (The Knick) and one he mostly produced (The Girlfriend Experience). Still as the credits rolled, it played through his most memorable hits: Ocean's 11, Ocean's 12, Ocean's 13, and Magic Mike. Not a bad line-up. Still, for a filmmaker who seems to never sleep, it seems odd that nobody talks about his last film: 2013's Side Effects. It may not have a moment as eye popping as Magic Mike's gyrating torsos, but it does have a lot that is underrated and overlooked. With Logan Lucky coming out on Friday, I felt the need to look back on the film he made before saying goodbye, at least for then. 

The First Trailer for "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" is Here, and it's On Fire

Scene from The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Among the greatest film of 2017 was Giorgos Lanthimos' The Lobster. It was a movie that took a perverse look at love and found its way to a surprise box office success and Oscar nomination. How does one follow up that success? The Killing of a Sacred Deer is another movie shrouded in prestige and promise, teaming up with several familiar faces from his previous film. Having been nominated for the Plame d'Or at Cannes, it is one of those films that must be watched out for. To say the least, the first trailer has arrived, and it's rather unnerving as it features one of the most haunting covers of a pop song from any trailer this year. Also, it asks a lot of questions (such as "What's going on?") while answering others (such as "Why you should go see it.") It looks incredible, and may continue Lanthimos' hot streak.