The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced a record 93 entries for the International Film Oscar at the 92nd Academy Awards. This category was formerly known as Foreign Language Film until a much-needed change to the more appropriate title was made this past year. The previous record in this category was 90 films.

READ MORE: 2020 International Film Oscar Contenders and Predictions

Like a number of other categories, the International Film Oscar has a multi-stage nomination process.

Continue reading Record 93 Nations In Competition For the 2019 International Film Oscar at The Playlist.

To the shock and dismay of cinephiles across the Western world, France has chosen its International Film Oscar submission and it is not Céline Sciamma’s acclaimed “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.” Instead, as many insiders suspected, the French committee selected Ladj Ly’s “Les Miserables.” But before you get in an uproar over what you might believe is an omission of disastrious proportions, there are a number of factors at play in the decision.

Continue reading France Picks ‘Les Miserables’ Over ‘Portrait Of A Lady On Fire’ As Official Oscar Submission at The Playlist.

Pawel Pawlikowski’s celebrated drama “Cold War” may have been snubbed by the Hollywood Foreign Press, but the Polish filmmaker’s European peers crowned it European Film of the Year and honored it with three other awards. Not bad for a film many also thought should have won the Palme d’Or last May.

READ MORE: “Cold War” is admirable and beautiful [Review]

An Amazon Studios release in the United States, “Cold War” also saw Pawlikowski taking the European Director and European Screenwriter categories.

Continue reading ‘Cold War’ Dominates 2018 European Film Awards Taking Four Prizes at The Playlist.

TORONTO – Let’s state the obvious here first.  Anyone who has seen Ali Abbasi‘s Swedish drama “Border” no doubt realizes that the lead character, Tina, is an actress wearing prosthetic makeup in order to convey a human-passing troll in public.  Tina is played by Eva Melander, an actress who is pretty much unrecognizable to non-Swedish audiences.  That’s one reason why her transformation is so extraordinary.

READ MORE: Trolls get their due in strange, but touching Swedish drama “Border”

Actors have gone to extremes fluctuating their weight for decades for the right role.  

Continue reading ‘Border’s’ Eva Melander Breakdowns Her Stunning Transformation [Interview] at The Playlist.

When filmmaker Sebastián Lelio sent the script for “A Fantastic Woman” to Daniela Vega it included a huge surprise: The celebrated director of “Gloria” wanted the Chilean singer to play the title role of Marina. Vega was simply shocked.

“I called him and told him he was totally crazy,” she says laughing. “‘How has it occurred to you I would be capable of doing this?’ And he said he was 100% sure I was going to be able to do it. 

Continue reading ‘A Fantastic Woman’s’ Daniela Vega Is Having Her ‘Best Moment’ at The Playlist.

[Updated Feb. 4]

Winner Prediction:
1. “A Fantastic Woman” (Chile)
2. “The Square” (Sweden)
3. “Loveless” (Russia)
4. “The Insult” (Lebanon)
5. “On Body and Soul” (Hungary)

Current predictions:

Best Picture
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Director
Original Screenplay
Adapted Screenplay
Editing
Cinematography
Production Design
Original Score
Best Song
Costumes
Sound Mixing
Sound Editing
Documentary
Foreign Language Film
Animated Feature Film
Makeup and Hairstyling
Visual Effects

Continue reading 2018 Best Foreign Language Film Oscars Predictions at The Playlist.

Let’s start off with the easy stuff, first.  Maren Ade’s “Toni Erdmann” should have won the Palme d’Or at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. It also should have won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film over “Elle,” another film I adore. It’s a crime Ade missed out on a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination this year and certainly a Best Director nod over “Hacksaw Ridge’s” Mel Gibson.

Continue reading Dear Academy: Do The Right Thing And Vote For ‘The Salesman’ For Oscar at The Playlist.

The Trump administration signed an executive order on Friday that bars anyone from seven countries from entering the United States for 90 days.  The order, titled “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States” suspends entry for 120 days for citizens of Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia. That includes citizens with prior visas and green cards. While it has already forced some longtime residents to be stuck in other countries, it also appears that it will stop 2017 Academy Award nominee Asghar Farhadi from attending the Oscars next month.  

Continue reading Update: Trump’s Muslim Ban Will Keep Asghar Farhadi From Attending Oscars, Academy Reacts at The Playlist.

The time has come for The Academy to once again make history.  We’ve heard the nation’s critics chose their top films and performances. We’ve had the indie film community anoint their year-end honorees.  We’ve had every guild from the 213 to the 818 throw their own nominations into the ring. We’ve even had the Golden Globes reveal their winners early enough to *potentially* impact the Oscar nominations. And now we are just hours away from learning who benefited from the long slog on the global awards circuit.

Continue reading Final Locked Down 89th Academy Awards Nominations Predictions at The Playlist.

Prediction based on nominations [Feb. 5]

NOMINEES
1. Iran, “The Salesman,” Asghar Farhadi, directorAustralia,
2. Germany, “Toni Erdmann,” Maren Ade, director
3. Australia, “Tanna,” Bentley Dean, Martin Butler, directors
4. Denmark, “Land of Mine,” Martin Zandvliet, director
5. Sweden, “A Man Called Ove,” Hannes Holm, director

PREVIOUS CONTENDERS (for historical context)
Canada, “It’s Only the End of the World,” Xavier Dolan, director
Norway, “The King’s Choice,” Erik Poppe, director
Russia, “Paradise,” Andrei Konchalovsky, director
Switzerland, “My Life as a Zucchini,” Claude Barras, director

Gregory Ellwood’s Current Oscar Predictions:
Best Picture
Director
Best Actress
Best Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best Supporting Actor
Original Screenplay
Adapted Screenplay
Editing
Cinematography 
Production Design
Animated Feature Film
Foreign Language Film
Documentary Feature
Original Score
Original Song
Costume Design
Makeup and Hairstyling
Visual Effects
Sound Mixing
Sound Editing

Continue reading 2017 Best Foreign Language Film Oscars Predictions at The Playlist.

Podcast: The Playlist Chats With Ciro Guerra, Director Of Oscar-Nominated 'Embrace Of The Serpent'

Continue reading Podcast: The Playlist Chats With Ciro Guerra, Director Of Oscar-Nominated ‘Embrace Of The Serpent’ at The Playlist.