Winner - Booksmart
Runners Up - Apollo 11, The Souvenir, Toy Story 4, Us
Commentary - Apollo 11 is an amazing documentary, Us scared the crap of out me, Toy Story was a great entry, and The Souvenir was emotional and beautifully wrought. But, I have always believed in the old adage that dying is easy, comedy is hard. Comedy is hard, and when it is done right it is magnificent. Booksmart was done right, and Booksmart is magnificent. Yes, it is wildly funny, inventive, raunchy, and a stunning directorial debut for Olivia Wilde. But at its core, it is about two best friends learning how to grow up. There is a beating heart at its center that is so endearing, you can't help but smile.
Best Director
Winner - Joanna Hogg "The Souvenir"
Runners Up - Olivia Wilde "Booksmart", Claire Denis "High Life", Anthony and Joe Russo "Avengers: Endgame"
Commentary - I didn't want to walk away from this halfway recognition without rewarding The Souvenir. I credit its success to Joanna Hogg's incredibly personal, experimental, and visionary direction which shows us what an talent she is. The success was so great, that a part two is in the works. I can't wait to see it.
Best Actor
Winner - Taron Egerton "Rocketman"
Runners Up - Robert Downey Jr. "Avengers: Endgame", Jimmie Falls "The Last Black Man in San Francisco
Commentary - A lot of comparisons are being made between Taron Egerton and last year's Oscar winner Rami Malek. I respected Malek's performance, while not really respecting the film. This time around, you have a performer who actually sings his own songs, and is in a film that is heads and above Bohemian Rhapsody. If they are going to reward Malek with an Oscar, the Egerton should at least be in the mix for his confident, yet vulnerable, and star-making performance in Rocketman. He lit up the screen, and sold the film's boldness with gusto.
Best Actress
Winner - (TIE) Kaitlyn Dever "Booksmart" and Beanie Feldstein "Booksmart"
Runners Up - Lupita Nyong'o "Us" and Julianne Moore "Gloria Bell"
Commentary - At the center of Booksmart is an incredible friendship between two smart, vulnerable teens. Dever and Feldstein brilliantly captured the angst of growing up, breaking free, and fitting in with the crowd. They were both hilarious, heartfelt, and are two young talents with incredible futures ahead of them.
Best Supporting Actor
Winner - Richard Madden "Rocketman"
Runners Up - Jamie Bell "Rocketman" an Rob Morgan "The Last Black Man in San Francisco"
Commentary - This was a weak race going into it, which means most of the names won't be in contention come year's end. So I picked my favorite of the bunch, which was Richard Madden as the skeezy John Reid. He played the part perfectly, and was magnetic on-screen.
Best Supporting Actress
Winner - Emma Thompson "Late Night"
Runners Up - Tilda Swinton "The Souvenir"
Commentary - Probably a co-lead performance, but there is talk of campaigning her in supporting. Either way, Emma Thompson, playing a bad boss character, which is being compared to Miranda Priestly, is stunning. A lot of credit goes to the great script and perfect chemistry created by Mindy Kaling, but Thompson takes on this role with gusto. And may I say, she may do a better job of showing her vulnerabilities then similar roles in the past. After its box office bomb, I don't know if Late Night can stay in the awards game for long (although maybe Golden Globes for Comedy?), but I hope that the film, and in turn Emma Thompson's performance, are not forgotten anytime soon.
Best Screenplay
Winner - Jordan Peele “Us”
Runners Up - Susanna Fogel, Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Katie Silberman “Booksmart”
Runners Up - Susanna Fogel, Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Katie Silberman “Booksmart”
Commentary - I am never going to be a huge fan of horror films, but Jordan Peele is working really hard to try to make me one. Us is a brilliant film that scared the crap out of me. I can't say I enjoyed the experience, but I can recognize how he is trying to bring emotionally wrought horror and make it pertinent to the world around us. With Us, Peele proved that he was not a one-hit wonder, and that there is a very good reason why he is Academy Award winning screenwriter Jordan Peele.
Best Animated Film
Winner - Toy Story 4
Runner Up - How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
Commentary - I was like a lot of folks when I wondered how Pixar was going to make the Toy Story world continue into a fourth film. Luckily, my fears were erased. Toy Story 4 is a wonderful film. It continues to showcase what makes Pixar, and this franchise in particular, so great, and why it has such longevity. It was a joy to visit our old friends, who clearly still have a lot to teach us about life, love, and family. Another triumph for the animation giant.
Runner Up - How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
Commentary - I was like a lot of folks when I wondered how Pixar was going to make the Toy Story world continue into a fourth film. Luckily, my fears were erased. Toy Story 4 is a wonderful film. It continues to showcase what makes Pixar, and this franchise in particular, so great, and why it has such longevity. It was a joy to visit our old friends, who clearly still have a lot to teach us about life, love, and family. Another triumph for the animation giant.
Best Ensemble
Winner - Avengers: Endgame
Runner Up - Booksmart, Late Night, Us
Commentary - So I, up until this point, have not mentioned the elephant in the room from this first half of 2019. Endgame was a great film. It was fun, emotional, and a great conclusion (well, sort of conclusion), to an era of blockbuster film making unlike any other. For me, it was not the best film so far, but I wanted to make sure I rewarded it. What better way to do so than rewarding its amazing cast? Some of the best actors in the world have suited up to save it so many times. Their work as an ensemble, with certain standouts of course, has elevated a genre once relegated to the trash heap, has given its characters complexity, and has built one of the world's most endearing fan bases. Congrats to all of them on their remarkable achievement over the last 11 years.
Runner Up - Booksmart, Late Night, Us
Commentary - So I, up until this point, have not mentioned the elephant in the room from this first half of 2019. Endgame was a great film. It was fun, emotional, and a great conclusion (well, sort of conclusion), to an era of blockbuster film making unlike any other. For me, it was not the best film so far, but I wanted to make sure I rewarded it. What better way to do so than rewarding its amazing cast? Some of the best actors in the world have suited up to save it so many times. Their work as an ensemble, with certain standouts of course, has elevated a genre once relegated to the trash heap, has given its characters complexity, and has built one of the world's most endearing fan bases. Congrats to all of them on their remarkable achievement over the last 11 years.
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