Top 25 Older Films I Saw in 2013

The Rules of the Game is one of my new favorites.

Blind Spot: Raise the Red Lantern (1991)

Gong Li's performance is only one reason to love this film.

1995 CinSpec Awards

Top 10 Christmas Movies

Capra's It's a Wonderful Life is essential.

Mini-Reviews: American Hustle, Blue is the Warmest Color and Nebraska (2013)

December Oscar Predictions

Just how many nods can American Hustle score?

'Blue' is Certainly Hot (Guest Post)

Note: The author of this post wishes to remain anonymous.

1985 CinSpec Awards

Narrowing Down the Makeup and Music Oscar Categories

Is American Hustle bound for a Makeup and Hairstyling nod?

Review: The Selfish Giant (2013)

Chapman and Thomas in this underrated British film.

1975 CinSpec Awards

Five Films in Five Words #12

Here are some more 2013 releases. I especially love the last three, which I give 4 stars.

Making the Case for Everything

Spring Breakers deserves a few considerations.

2013 SoundSpec Awards

Janelle Monáe wins a major award - from her only nomination.

Top 10 Albums of 2013

1965 CinSpec Awards

Mini-Reviews: Dallas Buyers Club, The Book Thief & Philomena (2013)

Ranking the Best Documentary Feature Oscar Contenders

Sarah Polley's Stories makes the cut.

Films I Saw in November

Children of Paradise

2014 Blind Spot Series

L'Eclisse (dir. Michelangelo Antonioni)

1955 CinSpec Awards

10 Underrated Performances from 2013 That I'm Thankful For

Selena Gomez gives my favorite underrated performance of 2013.

Blind Spot: King of Devil's Island (2011)

Nilssen and Helstad are fantastic.

Directed by Marius Holst
Produced by Karin Julsrud

Written by Mette M. Bølstad, Lars Saabe Christensen, Eric Schmid and Dennis Magnusson

Starring Stellan Skarsgård, Benjamin Helstad, Trond Nilssen

November Oscar Predictions

The Wolf of Wall Street hangs around.

1945 CinSpec Awards

Review: About Time (2013)

More lead roles for Domhnall Gleeson, please.

Directed by Richard Curtis
Produced by Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner
Written by Richard Curtis

Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy, Lydia Wilson and Tom Hollander

Will Brad Pitt Finally Win an Oscar?

Pitt at the Academy's Governor Awards on Nov. 16.

Review: Frances Ha (2013)

Gerwig (r) and Sumner (l) are wonderful together.

Directed by Noah Baumbach
Produced by Noah Baumbach, Scott Rudin, Lila Yacoub, Rodrigo Teixeira
Written by Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig
Starring Greta Gerwig and Mickey Sumner

1935 CinSpec Awards

Top 25 Underrated Movie Songs

Tom Waits makes the list twice.

Most of these songs were eligible for the Best Original Song Oscar, but none of them were nominated. By the way, I tried to go with less popular picks.

Five Films in Five Words #11

Here are some 2013 releases, all of which I loved. Expect to see some of these on my year-end top 10 list.

2006 CinSpec Awards

The Story Behind These Birthday Beauties (Guest Post by Spencer Blohm)

Vivien Leigh

The first part of November marks two milestones for Old Hollywood icons. On November 5, Vivien Leigh would have turned 100 and on the 9th, Hedy Lamarr would have been 99. Both women were stars in their own right having excelled on screen and earned the praise of critics and fans alike. So in honor of these iconic women’s birthdays, let’s take a look back at their lives and careers.

Ranking the Best Animated Feature Film Oscar Contenders

Monsters University leads the pack.

Consider: Short Term 12 for Best Original Song

Films I Saw in October

Masculin Féminin

1996 CinSpec Awards

20 Reasons Why Halloween is My Favorite Horror Film

Happy Halloween! Here's a special list (in no particular order) on John Carpenter's 1978 classic. (SPOILERS)

Blind Spot: Come and See (1985)

Directed by Elem Klimov
Produced by Elem Klimov
Written by Ales Adamovich and Elem Klimov
Starring Aleksey Kravchenko, Olga Mironova and Liubomiras Lauciavicius

2012 SoundSpec Awards

Jessie Ware leads with 4 wins.

1986 CinSpec Awards

Review: Carrie (2013)

Directed by Kimberly Peirce
Produced by Kevin Misher

Written by Lawrence D. Cohen & Roberto Aguirre-Sacasta (screenplay); Stephen King (novel)

Starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Judy Greer, Portia Doubleday and Julianne Moore

Top 100 List Updated

My list has changed a lot since I last updated it six months ago. I've removed twenty films and added some new ones, along with a few titles that've spent some time on my list in the past. Also, I have a new film at #1, but it shouldn't be a surprising choice.

Can The Wolf of Wall Street Benefit from The Monuments Men's Move to 2014?

"Another one bites the dust!"

Mini-Reviews: Ain't Them Bodies Saints, Enough Said & The Fifth Estate (2013)

October Oscar Predictions

Gravity will be one of the finest winners or losers of the Best Picture Oscar.

1976 CinSpec Awards

10 Acting Contenders We Might Be Overlooking for Oscar

How will actors respond to The Book Thief?

Will any of the following fringe contenders be nominated? Probably not, but they could make some noise in the precursor awards.

Five Films in Five Words #10

Here are five films from 2013 (based on U.S. release dates).

Review: Captain Phillips (2013)

Hanks gives an Oscar-worthy performance.

Directed by Paul Greengrass

Produced by Dana Brunetti, Michael De Luca and Scott Rudin

Written by Billy Ray (screenplay); Richard Phillips/Stephan Talty (book)

Starring Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi and Catherine Keener