Bernardo Villela is like a mallrat except at the movies. He is a writer, director, editor and film enthusiast who seeks to continue to explore and learn about cinema, chronicle the journey and share his findings.
Not many songwriters become iconic to the musical layman. Burt Bacharach did just that. Despite the fact that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid was released 12 years before my birth Burt Bacharach’s music imprinted itself on my childhood through the song “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” via B.J. Thomas’s rendition.
Later, he made another pair of impressions on me becoming a surprise mandatory ingredient of the first two Austin Powers films. His cameo amused me and I knew of him by name already. The appearances made him even more indelible.
Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jack Champion, Britain Dalton, Bailey Bass, Duane Evns, Jr. Avatar: The Way of Water
Kylie Rodgers, Andre Robinson, Kaylee Blosenski, Aryan Simhadri, Leo Abelo Perry, Mykal-Michelle Harris, Christian Cote, Sebastian Cote, Alijah Francis Cheaper by the Dozen
Max Mackintosh, Tommy Rodger, Millie Kiss, Tom Sweet, Áine Rose Daley The Cursed
Mateo Zoryon Francis-DeFord, Keeley Karsten, Alina Bruce, Julia Butters, Birdie Borria, Sophia Kopera, Sam Rechner, Oakes Fegley, Isabelle Kusman, Chandler Lovelle The Fabelmans
Walker Scobell, Keith L. Williams, Momona Tamada, Abby Jane Witherspoon, Kezii Curtis Secret Headquarters
Mason Thames, Madeline McGraw, Miguel Cazarez Mora, Rebecca Clarke, J. Gaven Wilde, Spencer Fitzgerald, Jordan Isaiah White, Brady Ryan, Tristan Pravong, Jacob Moran, Brandy Hepner, Banks Repeta The Black Phone
Boyd Holbrook, Kelly Reilly, Alistair Petrie, Roxane Duran, Nigel Betts, Stuart Bowman, Simon Kunz, Amelia Crouch, Max Mackintosh, Tommy Rodger, Áine Rose Daly, Millie Kiss, Tom Sweet, et al. The Cursed
Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, James Hong, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tallie Medel, Jenny Slate, Biff Wiff, et al. Everything Everywhere All At Once
Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Gabriel Labelle, Mateo Zoryon Francis-DeFord, Keeley Karsten, Alina Bruce, Julia Butters, Birdie Borria, Judd Hirsch, Sophia Kopera, Jeannie Berlin, Robin Bartlett, Sam Rechner, Oakes Fegley, Isabelle Kusman, Chandler Lovelle, et al. The Fabelmans
Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr.,Kate Hudosn, Dave Bautista, Jessica Henwick, Madeline Cline, Noah Segan, Jackie Hoffman, Dallas Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Hugh Grant et al. Glass Onion
Viola Davis, Thuso Mbedu, Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, John Boyega, Jordan Bolger, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Jimmy Odukoya, Masali Baduza, Jayme Lawson, Adrienne Warren, Chioma Umeala, et al. The Woman King
When playing national word-association most will mention football (soccer) when it comes to Brazil. I would hope they would also mention music at some point if pressed for more words. Chico Buarque is among Brazilian music’s legendary names. Here you have a film that’s a dramatization of songs he wrote, but also quite a telling and compelling drama. The images I always associated with these songs in my mind here are given form and context in a great way, incorporating period and obfuscated commentary.
This is one that I know definitely qualifies for the underrated simply because of how overlooked it is. Firstly, there is the fact of the pure lack of unavailability with regards to the title. With a surge in interest in works from Brazil in the 1980s with some of its successful films like Pixote, the rise of Sonia Braga in Hollywood and Marîlia Pera in indies here, the film came here and even had a VHS release.
That’s how I saw it as a rental from Movies Unlimited. All the historical and social context about Brazil in 1941 aligning itself with the Nazi Germany against popular sentiment, is conveyed through the tale. The word malandro is a very specifically Brazilian describing a sort of wiseguy, a guy on the wrong side of the law and tracks whose not a hardened criminal and looking to have good time. It also helps that he’s often referred to that way so it becomes almost like a common noun rather than an adjective.
Not speaking Portuguese really only robs you some of the lyrics, but the music and singing are great and the meaning of the songs are well portrayed in subtitles if not poetic any longer.
It’s a wonder this film has not been restored and repacked on Blu-ray from some repertory label. If you can track it down it’s well worth it.
This will be a live blog. I will be updating all night.
Red Carpet
So, I can’t quit the Oscars and this was breaking the Interwebs so I tuned in slightly early.
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 27: Timothée Chalamet attends the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on March 27, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Momodu Mansaray/Getty Images)
Many of the Awards the Academy deemed unfit for broacast went to Dune. My rant on that can be found here and a running list can be found here.
The Show
There are five nominated songs, and one extra musical performance. All will be introduced. This is time the produers will gladly use up and not truncate.
Yes, DJ Khaled randomly walking on stage to introduce the hosts is a great time-saver.
Samuel L. Jackson has a Lifetime Achievement from the Oscars and the BAMs (shameless plug).
No massive opener with a produced video lampooning the year in film is kind of missed.
18 minutes and we’re starting a category, so that’s a positive.
Ariana DeBose is a very deserving winner.
The Regina Hall COVID is very good.
Wow, this pre-corded shit isn’t awkward at all.
Greig Fraser winning is no surprise and well deserved. I agree with this choice as evidenced here.
So Best Documentary Short Subject doesn’t even get a presenter on stage introducing the film. Fun. This is an asinine decision.
I’m getting the feeling Dune will win everything except Best Director and Best Picture.
All these measures to cut time and you still play off the award winning VFX team.
I had completely forgotten about the stupid fan votes.
Yes, let’s have an unadverstised appearance by a K-Pop band. That’ll increase viewership and decrease running time.
Yay, more dumb ass fan moments.
One of the most unimpressive Bond songs ever for your listening pleasure.
All these cuts and its still going to aroud 11 or 11:15. Great job.
So did Will Smith actually hit Chris Rock or was that staged?
OK, P. Diddy answered that question.
So now there’s a Pulp Fiction reunion coming up. This is the 80th anniversary of Citizen Kane anyone alive from that still and up for a reunion?
The Oscar voters really know that they they’re standing in the way of Lin Manuel Miranda’s EGOT, jeez.
Will Smith apologized, as expected. I’m not here to be an arbiter of apologies. As a show it’s been frustrating, yet again, to not see any real surprises.
Also of note: all those cuts to the ceremony and here we are at 3h20 minutes with Best Actress and Best Picture to come and yet another commercial break underway.
The drama of the pre-recorded awards sucks anyway, but cutting to Jessica Chastain kind of gave it away.
Seat-fillers got mentioned. Cue Kramer GIF.
An Oscar for Jessica Chastain feels so overdue.
Whoa, there’s a surprise. Finally!
3h41m – so it wasn’t so much about shortening the show as getting “things no one cares about” less time.
Peace out and fix all this shit for next year Oscars.
It’s late to be getting this post up, but I have been getting some Oscar nominated, so here’s the rundown. I will keep it update throughout the month. One my aims annually is to see 31 films and 100 nominations I had yet to see.
Most of the viewings so far have animated shorts on The Criterion Channel, they total four nominations (naturally) and one win. The win was Neighbours and very well deserved.
Windy Day (1968)
Hunger (1974)
Neighbours (1952)
The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film(1959)
The feature viewing so far was
West Side Story(2021) and it’s absolutely spectacular from start to finish.
Well, it’s been a long-ass year, and though I’ve not seen many of tonight’s nominees…let’s do this anyway!
Gotta say I’m loving skipping the 8:00-8:30 bloc of fluff interviews.
What Regina King said is very true about film helping me through the pandemic, mostly in older things. To see what I’ve been watching follow me on Letterboxd.
Promising Young Woman I did see and this screenplay award is well deserved.
Seeing this set-up for the awards makes me think of the photos of the first ever ceremony I’ve seen.
The Father is at or near the top of my must-see list.
Weird that Best International Film had decontextualized images without dialogue for three of the five films. Vinterberg being nominated as Best Director gave away who the winner would be.
His speech was the most moving part of the show so far.
Not adhering to Oscar traditions will make this show memorable.
Kaluuya’s win is very pleasing. If you want to see where I first saw him watch The Fades.
Saw Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom liking this hair and make-up win.
Best Director went out early in the night!
Nothing diminishes cinematography more than hearing approaches described while seeing zero footage.
This will forever be the Oscars Glenn Close did “the butt.”
However, what was the deal with the audio in that segment and through most of the night.
Then, on my ABC affiliate anyway, the commercial break went on too long and cut-in to Angela Bassett’s speech midway through.
Am I missing something, why is Best Picture announced before Best Actor and Best Actress?
Wow, so the acting winners are clearly always-deserving actors but not who you would have believed would win based on the run-up.
This was the most satisfying film of the year for me. To be able to end a review with the words I do in the one I paste below, the choice was clear.
Being Brazilian-American myself this was a movie I would have to see. While the overarching premise and conflict is clear, well done, and wonderfully performed; how a third culture played into this story would matter quite a bit to me. It adds a bright counterpoint in musical terms as well as some added humor; aside from the necessary and useful analogy of fusion from the culinary world that any bicultural can relate to.
There are some editorial touches that are creative and deft also.
One of myriad things I loved about The OA was it was the first time I’d seen Alice Krige in anything in a while. Seeing here back in a horror film, and excelling so as she does here, was even more satisfying.
Supporting roles come in many shapes and sizes. When a character has a smaller role and still has an impact it’s due to an incredible performance such as we have here.
Begoña Vargas, Iván Marcos, Bea Segura, Sergio Castellanos, José Luis de Madariaga, Iván Renedo, Concha Velasco, and Javier Botet 32 Malasaña Street
Noah Schnapp, Seu Jorge, Dagmara Dominzyck, Arian Moayed, Mark Margolis, Tom Madirosian, Salem Murphy, Daniel Oreskes, and Gero Camilo in Abe
Lewis Cancelmi, Greg Rikaart, Thomas Kopache, Anastasia Ganias, Antoinette LaVecchia, Anthony Patellis, Bobby Guarino, Joseph Callari, Owen Vaccaro, Jacob Laval, Jake Katzman, Ethan Coskay, and Skylar Lipkin Team Marco
Robert De Niro, Uma Thurman, Rob Riggle, Oakes Fegley, Laura Marano, Cheech Marin, Jayne Seymour, Christopher Walken, Juliocesar Chavez, Isaac Kragten, T.J. McGibbon, Poppy Gagnon and Colin Ford in The War with Grandpa
Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Pedro Pascal, Adriana Berrazza, Boyd Holbrook, Christian Slater, Taylor Dooley, Sung Kang, Hailey Reinhart, Christopher McDonald, Jill Blackwood, John Valley, YaYa Gosselin, Lyon Daniels, Andy Walken, Hala Finley, Lotus Blosson, Dylan Henry Lau, Andrew Diaz, Isaiah Russell-Bailey, Akira Akbar, Nathan Blair, and Vivien Lyra Blair in We Can Be Heroes
It’s not easy to play a quirky, oddball and still make them a real person as opposed to a caricature. For McKenna Grace to do that at a young age with such ease is impressive.
All these performances need to be seen, Robertson’s work without dialogue is spectacular and deserves mention despite the indication of sparsity above. However, the most soaring of these performances is the nuanced, multicultural, turn by Noah Schnapp.
In an ensemble piece, when all your scenes are of import, and make an impact that’s saying something and Freedson-Jackson delivers memorably in every single one.
Alivia Clark, Ashling Doyle, Tanner Flood, James Freedson-Jackson, Oliver Gifford, Nolan Lyons, Sam McCathy, Ivy Mille, Taylor Richardson, and Eric Schuett 18 to Party
YaYa Gosselin, Lyon Daniels, Andy Walken, Hala Finley, Lotus Blosson, Dylan Henry Lau, Andrew Diaz, Isaiah Russell-Bailey, Akira Akbar, Nathan Blair, and Vivien Lyra Blair We Can Be Heroes
Sadie Stanley, Maxwell Simkins, Cree Cicchino, Lucas Jaye and Calidore Robinson The Sleepover
Owen Vaccaro, Jacob Laval, Jake Katzman, Ethan Coskay, and Skylar Lipkin Team Marco
Jaden Michael, Gerald Jones III, Gregory Diaz IV, Coco Jones Vampires vs. The Bronx
Just impeccable work here from top to bottom of a deep cast.
This was a year I went for more ambient selections than thundering booming score, but Color Out of Space takes that ambience from grating to melodic, from subconscious to immersive and is an aural accompaniment to the visual madness of the film.
The cast of It continues to go places. Aside from all the movies I saw Jaeden in this year, one of which was a delayed viewing of Knives Out, he was also in Defending Jacob on AppleTV+. His films also ran the gamut of genre and were seen throughout the year.
For whatever reason I saw exactly two of her films while she was alive. Even though I loved it I never managed to see others. This box has helped with that.
The Movie Rat 