February 22, 2015

Final 2014 Oscar Predictions

February 22, 2015/ CineMunch

Greetings, Oscar geeks! It's been a thrilling and unpredictable year with lots of films and performances worth celebrating (see our top ten lists for the year here and here, and find out who among the nominees we'd vote for if we had a ballot). There are a handful of categories that seem locked up (congrats in advance Julianne Moore, J.K. Simmons, and Patricia Arquette!), but the vast majority of these races are true nail-biters. Including Best Picture!

Hunker down, pour yourself a beverage (we'll be starting with the Lemon Thyme Gin Sparkler), and follow along with our sure-to-be-inaccurate predictions below! For more detailed analysis have a listen to our final predictions podcast or click on each category header to be taken to that page.

February 20, 2015

CineDrunk: Final 2014 Oscar Predictions

February 20, 2015/ CineMunch

Oscar weekend is here! Listen in as we drunkenly babble on about our predictions and personal favorites in all 24 Oscar categories. With little consensus and lots of unpredictability, it's going to be an exciting year!

Also listen, subscribe, and rate us via iTunes.

February 11, 2015

Matt's Top 10 Films of 2014

February 11, 2015/ Matt

For a while it looked like 2014 would go down as a very weak year in cinema. It took time for me to come down from the high of Gravity the year before, and the first half of the year didn't impress (save for a few sprinkles of quality here and there). Thankfully, the second half of 2014 offered up a feast of treats that were varied in flavor--some as nuanced as a bite of small-batch cheese, others as satisfying as chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven (this is CineMunch, we're allowed to use food imagery as often as we'd like).

As is always the case, this list is incomplete and in flux (I just finished my 2013 list after all). I average 100 or so films any given calendar year, and, as you can see from our current list of films screened, I'm sitting at a (relatively paltry) 65. Simple statistics say that I have yet to see one or two films that will weasel their way into this top tier, but for now (or as of January 26th when we recorded our end-of-the-year podcast) these were the final ten.

But first, some necessary Honorable Mentions!

February 10, 2015

Nathan's Top 10 Movies of 2014

February 10, 2015/ Nathan

It's that time. What were my top ten movies of 2014? Truthfully, I could use another few weeks to see some key titles and second-guess my opinions, but that's not going to happen. Plus, in two weeks we'll be out of the country celebrating Matt's 30th birthday. (Don't tell him I told you his age.)

So, now? Yes, now's a good time.

Overall, 2014 was full of solid movies, some that pushed the boundaries of the craft and many that stuck with me for other reasons. We saw Lupita Nyong'o and Julianne Moore fly non-stop, CGI apes give new meaning to the term emotional resonance, and a reclusive nanny gain posthumous fame.

Not surprising, then, that my second tier films for 2014 included scores of titles deserving of a shout out. For my own sanity I've whittled them down to just seven honorable mentions in addition to my top ten, but I'll never forget you, The Babadook, Edge of Tomorrow, and Obvious Child (among others).

Shall we begin?

January 15, 2015

2014 Oscar Nominations Reactions

January 15, 2015/ Matt

They've arrived! Nominations morning is to Oscar nerds what Christmas morning is to an optimistic young child. Both enthusiastically hop out of bed in a world where all things are theoretically possible and everything is awesome (or not if you're The Lego Movie, apparently). Though, as always, the Academy is like the distant relative who never looked at your Christmas wish list and ends up giving you things you don't actually want and forgetting to get you some of the things you wanted most.

In the end, a Wes Anderson movie that was released last March and a daring artistic vision from Alejandro G. Iñárritu lead the pack with nine nominations for The Grand Budapest Hotel and Birdman, respectively - and our frontrunner is still probably an intimate film by Richard Linklater that began production over a decade ago. The Academy may have made some poor choices, but those facts are still kind of incredible when you stand back from the noise and ponder that that is what this year's race has boiled down to. Though The Imitation Game might still render all that uniqueness moot and barrel right down the middle towards a consensus victory. We'll know soon enough.

The CineDrunk crew hashed out our initial thoughts in a brief podcast below, recorded right after the nominations were announced. If you'd like to see what my final predictions looked like click here. Check out the full list of 2014 Oscar nominees and commentary after the jump!

January 15, 2015

Final 2014 Oscar Nomination Predictions

January 15, 2015/ Matt

The time has come for final predictions! The 87th Annual Academy Awards nominations will be announced this morning in two batches beginning at 8:30am ET (you can view both announcements live at the Oscars website or the second announcement on most major news programs at 8:38am ET). For the first time, the nominees will be announced live in all 24 categories.

2014 started slow, but proved to be a formidable year in film. The Oscars don't always reflect that quality in their choices, but here's hoping their nominations come close! There are lots of tight races with lengthy lists of viable contenders and films whose names won't get called this morning. As usual there are some sure-things (Boyhood, Birdman, and The Imitation Game are likely to do well) and some not-so-sure-things (I'm most interested in seeing how films right on the bubble will fare: Foxcatcher, Nightcrawler, Gone Girl). If you've got a favorite, it's best for sanity's sake to assume they won't get in, so you can be pleasantly surprised when they do.

The titles of each category link to that field's specific page with further commentary. Follow along down the rabbit hole after the jump!

January 10, 2015

2015 Golden Globe Awards Predictions

January 10, 2015/ Matt

Fill your ice cube trays and get out your cheese boards; the 72nd Annual Golden Globe Awards are here! Airing Sunday on NBC at 8pm ET and handed out by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the Globes mix movie stars, TV actors, and a healthy dose of drunkenness in what usually amounts to the year's most enjoyable night of live television. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler (hooray!) return as hosts for the third (and likely final) time, and George Clooney will receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award from Julianna Margulies (ER reunion!) and Don Cheadle.

For the more studious ones in our readership (you're show-offs, but we love you), there's still time to listen to our latest podcast, featuring a detailed analysis of the film categories. Then shake up a cocktail and enjoy the main event, and follow along with us all evening on Twitter @CineMunch. Matt's final predictions in all fields are after the jump.

September 11, 2014

CineDrunk Episode 6: Summer Movies Recap 2014 Part 2

September 11, 2014/ CineMunch

In our previous summer recap we chatted about the films Hollywood offered up in May and June. In Part 2 we wrap up the summer movie season by discussing the titles we saw in July and August, and each of us crowns a favorite.

Films covered this go-round included: