Archives for : film
Netflix has so graciously brought back the romantic comedy genre with a slew of rom-coms to choose from their library. Just in time for the holiday season, they have treated us with another delightful romance with the new film, “Holidate”.
It’s Christmas Day and Sloane (Emma Roberts) is, once again, being hounded by her family to meet someone and settle down before she gets “too old”; and becomes like her aunt Susan (Kristin Chenoweth). Instead of listening to her mom, she is inspired by her aunt’s holidate. Susan brings a different man to each holiday event, allowing her to avoid feeling lonely while having no emotional attachment.
After a horrible Christmas, Sloane runs into, Jackson (Luke Bracey), another lonely single looking to date with out the commitment. They soon pledge to be each others’ platonic plus ones for every holiday in the year ahead. The film is as predictable as it sounds and is self-aware of that, pointing out that in every rom-com the two leads don’t have real obstacles. And in the “Holidate”, it’s pretty clear that there is no real issue besides the default “scared of commitment”.
What “Holidate” does offer is two strong romantic leads with great chemistry and hilarious banter. Emma Roberts shows off her comedic chops and Bracey might actually give Chris Hemsworth a run for his money. We all, at some point in time, have felt lonely during the holidays, and a holidate is a fun concept to see played out. It’s entertaining to see these how these two celebrate each occasion together. Who knew there were so many holidays?!
There are some messages you can take away from the film, like don’t let the of fear of getting hurt stand in the way of a potential love. But, you shouldn’t go into this film expecting anything deep. This is more of a raunchy, well-made Hallmark Christmas special. It’s a lighthearted escape that reminds us of how we use to celebrate the holidays before tragic times.
Rating: 4/5
“Holidate” is available on Netflix October 28, 2020.
| “ONCE UPON A TIME…IN HOLLYWOOD” NAMED BEST PICTURE TAKES FOUR AWARDS AT 25th ANNUAL CRITICS’ CHOICE AWARDS “1917” EARNS THREE AWARDS “FLEABAG” LEADS TELEVISION RECIPIENTS WITH THREE AWARDS Keegan-Michael Key was on hand to deliver a special tribute to Eddie Murphy, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Murphy was feted for his extraordinary career, including most recently his brilliant performance in Best Comedy winner “Dolemite Is My Name.” As previously announced, Kristen Bell received the #SeeHer Award for portraying strong female characters while promoting women on screen and off, and the award was presented by co-star from “The Good Place” Ted Danson. WINNERS OF THE 25th ANNUAL CRITICS’ CHOICE AWARDS FILM BEST PICTURE Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (Sony) BEST ACTOR Joaquin Phoenix – Joker (Warner Bros.) BEST ACTRESS Renée Zellweger – Judy (Roadside) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Brad Pitt – Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (Sony) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Laura Dern – Marriage Story (Netflix) BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS Roman Griffin Davis – Jojo Rabbit (Fox Searchlight) BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE The Irishman (Netflix) BEST DIRECTOR (TIE) Bong Joon Ho – Parasite (Neon) Sam Mendes – 1917 (Universal) BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY Quentin Tarantino – Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (Sony) BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY Greta Gerwig – Little Women (Sony) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY Roger Deakins – 1917 (Universal) BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN Barbara Ling, Nancy Haigh – Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (Sony) BEST EDITING Lee Smith – 1917 (Universal) BEST COSTUME DESIGN Ruth E. Carter – Dolemite Is My Name (Netflix) BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP Bombshell (Lionsgate) BEST VISUAL EFFECTS Avengers: Endgame (Disney) BEST ANIMATED FEATURE Toy Story 4 (Disney) BEST ACTION MOVIE Avengers: Endgame (Disney) BEST COMEDY Dolemite Is My Name (Netflix) BEST SCI-FI OR HORROR MOVIE Us (Universal) BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM Parasite (Neon) BEST SONG (TIE) Glasgow (No Place Like Home) – Wild Rose (Neon) (I’m Gonna) Love Me Again – Rocketman (Paramount) BEST SCORE Hildur Guðnadóttir – Joker (Warner Bros.) TELEVISION BEST DRAMA SERIES Succession (HBO) BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES Jeremy Strong – Succession (HBO) BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES Regina King – Watchmen (HBO) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES Billy Crudup – The Morning Show (Apple) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES Jean Smart – Watchmen (HBO) BEST COMEDY SERIES Fleabag (Amazon) BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES Bill Hader – Barry (HBO) BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES Phoebe Waller-Bridge – Fleabag (Amazon) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES Andrew Scott – Fleabag (Amazon) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES Alex Borstein – The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon) BEST LIMITED SERIES When They See Us (Netflix) BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (Netflix) BEST ACTOR A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION Jharrel Jerome – When They See Us (Netflix) BEST ACTRESS A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION Michelle Williams – Fosse/Verdon (FX) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION Stellan Skarsgård – Chernobyl (HBO) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION Toni Collette – Unbelievable (Netflix) BEST ANIMATED SERIES BoJack Horseman (Netflix) BEST TALK SHOW (TIE) The Late Late Show with James Corden (CBS) Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC) BEST COMEDY SPECIAL Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear’s All in the Family and The Jeffersons (ABC) |
Now Accepting Submissions for the 11 Day Festival
DALLAS (September 23, 2014) – The Dallas Film Society has announced that the 9th annual Dallas International Film Festival will take place April 9-19, 2015. The film society is now accepting submissions. The early deadline is Friday, October 17, 2014, the regular deadline is Friday, December 5, 2014 and the late deadline is Friday, December 12, 2014.
The Dallas International Film Festival is one of the fastest growing festivals in the world and has brought over 190,000 film lovers together to view over 1,520 films from more than 50 countries. Named one of MovieMaker magazine’s “25 Festivals Worth the Entry Fee,” the festival has consistently featured the finest cinema has to offer, including 84 world premieres and 27 U.S. premieres.
This past April, the festival successfully completed a marathon of more than 165 screenings with attendance surpassing 33,000. The 2015 festival will once again span 11 days and feature International Premiere screenings with red carpet entrances at theaters throughout the city, award presentations, filmmaker panels and other special events.
“We are proud to be known as the filmmaker’s festival and consider it an honor to host such incredible and diverse talent from around the world,” said Sarah Harris, Dallas International Film Festival Senior Programmer. “We look forward to sharing our love of film with the community and introducing Dallasites to some of finest work filmmaking has to offer.”
The festival welcomes submissions for all categories. Grand Jury Prizes will be presented for Narrative Feature, Documentary Feature, Short Film, Animated Short Film, Student Short Film and Texas Film Competition presented by Panavision. Audience Awards will be given for Best Narrative Feature, Best Documentary Feature, and Best Short Film. Additional programming categories include World Cinema, Latino Cinema Showcase, International Spotlight: Germany, Deep Ellum Sounds (music documentaries), Family Films and Midnight Specials.
Over the past eight years, the Dallas International Film Festival has presented filmmakers with over $690,000 in awards. This year, the winner of the Texas Film Competition presented by Panavision will receive a camera rental package valued at $30,000. Also, the Embrey Family Foundation will present The Silver Heart Award and a $10,000 cash prize to one inspirational filmmaker or film to honor their dedication for fighting injustices and/or creating social change for the improvement of humanity. Additionally, each recipient of a 2015 Dallas International Film Festival award will receive MOVIE MAGIC Budgeting and Scheduling software bundles from Entertainment Partners, which allows filmmakers to create and view production scheduling.
For more information and a link to submit films via WithoutABox.com, visit http://www.dallasfilm.org/submit-your-film-for-diff-2015/. Questions can be emailed to submissions@dallasfilm.org.
School starts back up this Monday, and I’m sure a lot teachers and students are dreading the early mornings and the long hours of class. So in hopes of making people a little less upset that summer break is over, I thought I’d pick my top 5 favorite teachers from film, and remind ourselves how much EVERY teacher can impact our lives.
5. Dewey Finn- School of Rock
“I have been touched by your kids… and I’m pretty sure that I’ve touched them.”
Low on cash; Dewey Finn poses as his brother so that he may substitute teach at a very posh school. He ends up teaching his students about classic rock and roll, and turning them into his own miniature rock band. If there is one thing I love, it’s someone who’s excited about what they do. Dewey isn’t the best academic teacher. But when it comes to teaching these students about music, he instills a passion in them that they never knew they had.
4. Sharon Norbury- Mean Girls
“You all have got to stop calling each other sluts and whores. It just makes it ok for guys to call you sluts and whores.”
Tina Fey played the sympathetic math teacher in the popular teen comedy, Mean Girls. Not only is Ms. Norbury unintentionally hilarious, but she also tries to help pull Cady (Lindsay Lohan) away from the vicious Plastics and gear her into the Mathletes. And of course, who could forget how she led all the female students in a giant confession and apology to one another, pleading with them to quit hating on each other.
3. Jaime Escalante- Stand and Deliver
“It’s not that they’re stupid, it’s just they don’t know anything.”
Based on a true story, Stand and Deliver portrays a rebellious math teacher who transforms his seemingly hopeless, uninterested students into the top-scorers in the state. Their achievement is so astonishing that the school board accused the Latino students of cheating. Proof, that if you have enough faith in your students and don’t give up on them, they can accomplish anything.
2. Miss Honey- Matilda
“I can’t abandon my children. And if I couldn’t teach, I’d have nothing at all.”
She’s the unbelievably sweet teacher we wish we had as a kid. Miss Honey bonds with Matilda (Mara Wilson) over their troubled childhoods and eventually adopts Matilda as her own. As if Matilda wasn’t lucky enough already with her magical powers and finally escaping from her grotesque family, she gets to split a piece of what I can only imagine taste like heaven, chocolates with Miss Honey every night.
1. John Keating- Dead Poets Society
“No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world.”
In a school of young men who have their lives laid out for them, one teacher dares to define the system with his unorthodox methods of teaching. The late, great Robin Williams gave an incredibly touching performance as a teacher who inspires the lives of his prep school students. His lessons are active, they’re lively, and he motivates his students to explore their true callings. He taught his kids that there is more out there than just the jobs their parents have on hold for them. They can become writers, actors, or whatever their creativity guides them to do. If there were ever a film that made me want to teach, it was and still is Dead Poets Society.