The Blu Spot

The Film: Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson is certainly no stranger to massive critical acclaim, with each of his features having garnered a fair share of positive reviews. Have they always been deserved? Well, it's more than fair to say that some of his films are a little overrated, including "Inherent Vice," "Punch-Drunk Love," and "Licorice Pizza," but this hasn't stopped him from amassing a rather impressive 11 Oscar nominations over the course of his incredible caree

The Film: After the 2013 "Evil Dead" reboot failed to impress both critics & audiences alike with its pointless, gratuitous bloodbath, it was decided that it was time to put the idea of another film on the back burner for a little while, and instead attempt the series' first television iteration (with original star Bruce Campbell in the lead, no less). "Ash vs. Evil Dead" was well-received, but after three all-too-brief seasons, it was cancelled due to low viewership (basical

The 83rd Annual Golden Globe Awards have just concluded, and as comes to no surprise, it was Paul Thomas Anderson's "One Battle After Another" that ended up being the biggest winner, taking four awards that included Best Motion Picture (Musical/Comedy), Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress (Teyana Taylor). This was followed by multiple films winning two awards, including Chloe Zhao's "Hamnet" (Best Motion Picture (Drama) and Best Actress (Drama)) and Kl

The Producers Guild of America has just announced the remainder of its film categories, and while most of the nominees for the top prize were entirely expected, there were a couple of surprises with both "F1" and "Weapons" joining the rest. As with the DGA, it would appear that Paul Thomas Anderson's "One Battle After Another" remains the one to beat. Winners are announced on February 28th. Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures Bugonia

The Directors Guild of America has just announced their nominees for Theatrical Feature Film, and it really comes as no surprise to find these exact five in the top category as they were the most likely candidates. Anderson seems to have the edge, as he has had all awards season so far, but we won't find out officially until the ceremony on February 7th. Please see below for a list of the DGA's film nominees, including the previously-announced nominations for Documentary: Out

The nominations for the 32nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards have just been announced, and as usual, we have a few surprises in the mix. What was no surprise was finding Paul Thomas Anderson's "One Battle After Another" on top with seven nominations, followed closely behind by Ryan Coogler's "Sinners" with five. Guillermo del toro's "Frankenstein" made a surprise appearance in Cast, with additional nominations in Supporting Actor and Stunt Ensemble, replacing assumed nomine

The Show: When one thinks of the everlasting torments of hell and demons being presented the opportunity to redeem themselves, an animated musical comedy is probably not the first grouping of genres that come to mind when attempting to relay such a tale, but that's exactly the route that Vivienne Medrano has taken to do so with her curiously bizarre adult cartoon "Hazbin Hotel." Can this extremely unlikely combination of premise & genres possibly function in tandem, or is thi

With 2025 about to wrap up, it's time once again to delve into the best films I had the pleasure of seeing this year, so let's get right to it... 10. Dead Man's Wire - Gus Van Sant's "Dead Man's Wire" is a tense & compelling look at a real-life hostage situation in 1977 in which a disgruntled client of a mortgage firm wired a shotgun to the head of the president of the company and made demands. Austin Kolodney's screenplay unfurls the events quite skillfully and at a pretty

The Film: When it comes to naming the greatest directors in the history of cinema, I don't think you're going to find many that disagree with Steven Spielberg being somewhere on that list, having given us a multitude of classics that includes "Jaws," "Schindler's List," "Jurassic Park," and most of the "Indiana Jones" films. The unfortunate part is that, in such an extensive filmography that contains so many masterpieces, there are other entries that tend to get overshadowed

The Film: There are no doubt people who know the great Steven Spielberg primarily as a director of powerful dramas like "Schindler's List," "Saving Private Ryan, "Lincoln," and many more, but then there are those who know him mostly for his more adventurous/fun/action-oriented side with films like the "Indiana Jones" series, "Hook," "Jurassic Park," and "Catch Me If You Can." One of those films that falls into the latter category, another that often falls between the cracks w