Double Feature: The Informer (1935) & Ruggles of Red Gap (1935)

The Informer (1935) - ***1/2

John Ford's drama takes place during Irish rebellion and follows Gypo Nolan (Victor McLaglen), a desperate ex-IRA member with no money left. In a moment of hasty decision making, he turns in his rebel friend for a 20 pound reward. He is forced to cover his guilt, but it proves too difficult to bear. As his money dwindles, his IRA friends are close to discovering the truth, and he must answer for what he has done. McLaglen's Oscar-winning performance is equal parts hammy and emotionally resonating, and the film's nod to German Expressionism gives it an appropriately ominous look. Released during the early stages of the Golden Age of Hollywood, it's not surprising that this film struck a chord with Oscar voters at the time.

Blind Spot: The Rules of the Game (1939)

Octave, André, and Christine.

Directed by Jean Renoir
Produced by Jean Renoir
Written by Jean Renoir and Carl Koch
Starring Marcel Dalio, Nora Gregor, Roland Toutain, Mila Parely, Gaston Modot, Julien Carette, Paulette Dubost, and Jean Renoir

85th Oscar Winners Announced

Argo won 3 awards, including Best Picture.

Another Oscar season has come and gone, with the frontrunner Argo taking Best Picture. Though the ceremony had its ups and downs (and ran over), I think it went quite smoothly overall. But I don't foresee Seth MacFarlane as next year's host. At least he made Tommy Lee Jones laugh.

Ranking the 85th Oscar Nominees

Lincoln has 12 noms, but would I give it any wins?

This year I've managed to see most Oscar-nominated films, except for 2 feature documentaries, 4 foreign language films, and the documentary short nominees. Since the ceremony is just hours away, I thought I'd share my rankings of each category (the films I haven't seen notwithstanding). These are my personal preferences, but my final predictions can be found here.

Best Film Editing: 1960s

1960: Breathless (Cécile Decugis)

Oscar winner: The Apartment (Daniel Mandell)

Was this nominated?: No

Final 85th Oscar Predictions

Could my November prediction come true?

Well, the time is finally here. Back in November, I predicted Argo would win 4 Oscars, including Best Picture. It's possible the film will accomplish that after all. Here are my final predictions.

Ranking the Best Picture Oscar Winners

A few months ago, I revealed my picks for the top 10 Best Picture winners and the top 10 worst ones. But what about the films that fall in between? Check out where they land below. (If Argo manages to lose Sunday, I'll edit the list accordingly.)