The Hollywood Read

Dolittle came and went over the weekend, and we break down what went wrong with Robert Downey, Jr.'s passion project and Universal's second straight flop after Cats. Then we get into The Goop Lab, and the false promises and dangerous assertions of Gwnyeth Paltrow's fancy wellness infomercial. Is it even worth a hate watch when the messaging is so insidious? 

Find us on Twitter: @Ceilidhann & @Cinesnark

We're discussing the latest developments as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Sussexit the royal family. And then we turn our attention to the Academy Award nominations, which are mostly good and only a little bit embarrassing. What is a lot embarrassing is the ongoing struggle within the Academy to overcome biases regarding films by women and people of color. Join us as we break down the nominations and pitch some ideas for new Oscar categories that could address some the Academy's issues with diverse filmmaking. 

Find us on Twitter: @Ceilidhann, @Cinesnark

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle dropped a bombshell on the royal family, and we are swimming in premium, grade-A gossip. We dive into the Sussex bombshell, the timeline, the rumors, and the potential ramifications. Then, we pivot to talk pop culture resolutions for 2020 and all the things we hope we have time for this year. Join us as we break down the latest royal gossip!

Ellie Hall on the horrible tabloid headlines about Meghan Markle: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ellievhall/meghan-markle-kate-middleton-double-standards-royal?utm_source=dynamic&bftwnews&utm_term=4ldqpgc#4ldqpgc

Our Twitters: @Ceilidhann, @Cinesnark

We're back! We're kicking off 2020 by breaking down the two biggest movies of the holiday season: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and Cats. One disappointed us and the other drove us completely insane, as both movies challenge the very notion of what is "good", what is "bad", and what even ARE "Jellice cats". No seriously, what ARE they? Do they look like that to EVERYONE? Or just to each other? Join us as we scrape together the remnants of our sanity and talk Star Wars and Cats!

As the year and the decade wind down, we look back at the films that defined the 2010s, sharing our favorite films of the year and the decade. It was a great year for film, and a pretty great decade for film, too, so we have plenty to revisit on our respective lists. We also break down the Golden Globes and SAG Awards nominations as the shortened award season barrels on. Join us for the last episode of the year as we celebrate 2019 and the 2010s in film.

This week we're talking Martin Scorsese's The Irishman, from the film itself to the controversies surrounding it, including Anna Paquin's lack of lines. We also get into the current state of a wide-open award season, which is full of possibility and so will probably render a bunch of boring nominations. Finally, we talk about the first trailer for Wonder Woman 1984, and what a refreshing palette cleanser it is for the previously gloomy DC cinematic universe.

This week we're discussing the Department of Justice's challenge to the Paramount Consent Decrees, something we've been theorizing for months. But we're totally bummed to be right, because this is Bad For Cinema, and we're breaking down why. We're also talking the new trailer for Cats, and everything strange and unnerving about it. 

More on the challenge to the Paramount Consent decrees: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/justice-department-moves-terminate-paramount-consent-decrees-1255858

This week we take a look at Charlie's Angels crashing and burning at the box office, and wonder what went wrong with Elizabeth Banks' attempt to revive the franchise. We also discuss Ford v Ferrari emerging as an Oscar contender, and the state of the Oscar race as we get into the heart of award season, and somehow, stay out of the pit of despair!

Jourdain Searles on Marriage Story: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/12/opinion/marriage-story-kramer-vs-kramer.html

News that a pair of directors intend to resurrect James Dean with CGI so that he can "give" a new "performance" caused a major backlash throughout Hollywood and film fandom. We discuss the possibility of digital graverobbing, what made Dean so uniquely special, and the possibility of AI art. Join us in the robopocalypse!

The Hollywood Reporter on James Dean's resurrection: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/afm-james-dean-reborn-cgi-vietnam-war-action-drama-1252703?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

This week we discuss the surprising news that David Benioff & DB Weiss of Game of Thrones fame quit their Star Wars trilogy, and we get into Disney's quiet removal of Fox titles from repertory theaters. Why should you care? Because Disney is actively limiting your options at the cinema and that makes our culture worse. Join us for a look into our dystopic Disney future!

Matt Zoller Seitz on the Disney Vault: https://www.vulture.com/2019/10/disney-is-quietly-placing-classic-fox-movies-into-its-vault.html