Oscar Volleys: “Wicked” is the one to beat in Best Costume Design

The Oscar Volleys are back for some post-nomination talks. Tonight, Cláudio Alves and Nick Taylor discuss Best Costume Design...

WICKED | © Universal Pictures

CLÁUDIO: Let me repeat an exercise of Oscar volleys past and dream up an outfit that combines the year's Best Costume Design nominees - Melissa McCarthy and Brian Tyree Henry style. You can picture me in ecclesiastical garb like the blasphemous queen I am, adorned with Denzel Washington's bling from Gladiator II. Over my shoulders, there's Count Orlok's furry robe - after a thorough dry cleaning - and Bob Dylan's stylish 60s shades hide my eyes from mere mortals. And then, I'll pull up those Catholic skirts and reveal the Fiyero boots because Jonathan Bailey can't have all the fun. He's free to try to come and get them back. Please do, Johnny!

What about you, dear Nick? What's your outfit like?

NICK: That’s a ravishing question. We start with Elphaba’s iconic black hat. Sewn into Tazewell’s architectural embellishments would be various prizes from my victories in the gladiator ring like arrowheads and human bones, or maybe the gold-leaf crown would be the rim of the hat. We gotta wear one of Joan Baez’s floral-patterned dresses - the deep blue number might be fun, and I bet she was wearing some really comfy shoes. For Conclave, keep it simple and classy with Sister Agnes’ cross, maybe have some robes in the back in case it’s cold.  I’m struggling what to do for Nosferatu, because I also want Orlok’s coat, and because so many of Ellen’s outfits don’t really make sense on top of what I’ve already selected. Maybe I’ll weave her sad lilies into my hair? The vibe is very “Pagan Sarah Carpenter”, but I’m for it…

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Split Decision: "A Real Pain"

Split Decision returns to TFE. In this series two of our writers face off on a movie one loves and the other doesn't. Today, Eric Blume and Cláudio Alves discuss the season's Supporting Actor frontrunner and Original Screenplay nominee, A Real Pain...

ERIC BLUME: I'm thrilled to discuss one of my very favorite movies of the year, A Real Pain, with you.  I think Jesse Eisenberg made a major film with huge ideas, packed in a tight, 90-minute breezy package:  something we almost *never* see nowadays.  I think it's thematically rich, briskly paced, surprising, and most interesting, light and deep at the same time.  Where do you stand on the picture? 

CLÁUDIO ALVES: While I like A Real Pain, I wouldn't call it a major film by any metric, shape, or form…

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Oscar Volleys: Best Makeup & Hairstyling is a tale of many Horrors

The Oscar Volleys are back for some post-nomination talks. First up, Cláudio Alves and Eurocheese tackle Best Makeup & Hairstyling...

EMILIA PÉREZ | © Netflix

CLÁUDIO ALVES: Neurofibromatosis melting off someone's face, rapid aging into chimeric flesh, immortal rot, green women, and brownface - this year's Best Makeup & Hairstyling race has it all. Looking at the state of the race, we seem to have a runaway winner but one can never be sure of these things. Especially when that likely winner belongs to the Academy's most hated genre - horror. Indeed, we have two horror films competing this year, a rarity in itself, plus a dark comedy that sometimes flirts with the cinematic idioms of horror and a movie musical that's a horror to witness. And then there's Wicked, which I can see pull an upset if it overperforms on Oscar night. What do you make of this year's race?

EUROCHEESE: I'm amused that you included Emilia Pérez in the mix as one of our "horrors," and given Karla Sofía Gáscon's title character would be a focal point of the nomination, Netflix can't avoid her here. We're in unprecedented territory when it comes to the ripple effects of the scandal, but even on nomination morning, this nomination felt like a mild surprise.

I'd safely rank it least likely to win…

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Kim Stanley @ 100: "Séance on a Wet Afternoon"

by Cláudio Alves

From the late 1940s to the mid-60s, Kim Stanley was one of the most important actresses in American theater. Her career is the stuff of legend, going through Tony nominations and the Actors Studio at the height of its influence, culminating in a disastrous performance of Chekhov's Three Sisters on the other side of the pond. Forever volatile and insecure, perchance suffering from mental illness or the fragilities of a great diva, Stanley swore never to act on stage again, depriving theatergoers of a goddess whose glory was as bright as it was short-lived. One would think Stanley's departure from theater could have meant more big screen gigs, but she kept herself away from such fare. TV appearances were more to her liking, and she got two Emmy wins for her trouble, including for the ultimate Big Momma in the 1984 TV movie version of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. 

She'd only count five credits in the movies, one of them voice-only. And still, two of those turns resulted in Oscar nominations, reflecting her talent and reputation among thespians. She was an actors' actor, alright. Today, on her centennial, I invite you to join me on a trip to the past, to Kim Stanley's second and last lead role in a film for which AMPAS nominated her. It's time to remember, mayhap summon, the hauntings of Séance on a Wet Afternoon…

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Drag Race RuCap: “Let’s Get Sea Sickening Ball”

This week, the role of Dakota Schiffer will be played by Hunter Schafer.

NICK TAYLOR: We’ve arrived at one of Drag Race’s mainstay challenges: The Ball. Do you think production expected there to be fewer girls by the time we reached this episode? Arrietty’s certainly lucky to be here, after being saved from going home by the second lever of the Badonkadunk Tank, but I think the show (and the audience) are even luckier for her to be here and give us such a complete package. Other queens delivered on drama and entertainment, and the judge’s panel delivered some of their most astute critiques of the season, even if I wasn’t expecting them to pick the tops and bottoms they did. But as a culmination of a six-episode arc for one queen, and the first challenge without a safety net, it’s a damn good episode of television. Were you as taken with this as I was?

CLÁUDIO ALVES: I loved this episode, from challenge performances to werk room drama, from guest judges to mini-challenge tomfoolery. Mama Ru is coming off that Emmy loss full of piss and vinegar, ready to prove Drag Race naysayers wrong. I know we’ve been saying this a lot, but season 17 feels like the old days of the show returned, with all the marvelous messiness that entails…

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