Oscars 2017
 

We've seen Hidden Figures and Zootopia. I'd like to cross a few more of the nominees off my list. With limited time and resources to see other nominees between now and the ceremony, I'll need to prioritize. Any recommendations for what I should see next?

Well, I'd say La La Land. Not because I think it is a very good movie, but because of all of the buzz and nominations. If it sweeps the Oscars the way it swept the Golden Globes and other awards, you'll likely want to know what all the hype was about. It was a cute movie, with a stronger suspension of disbelief needed at times even for a regular musical. Yet through all of the fantasy, it managed to slap you in the face with reality at the end, which was actually a little refreshing when you stop to think about it.

We watched Hell or High Water last night. Adrian hated it, which means I liked it. Except for the part that I apparently cannot decipher a west Texas accent. But other than that, I was still thinking about it this morning.

Then we watched Arrival this afternoon. I cannot remember the last time I responded so emotionally to a movie. My eyes are red from the weeping - an uncontrollable response to the intensity of my reaction.

Of course, Adrian hated it.

I'm so glad nearly all TV shows & movies have closed captions. Sometimes accents are so think, I literally can't understand what they're saying. BBC America can be particularly challenging.

I think Hell or High Water is the only nominated film that did not come out in the last two months. That usually means it's better quality than most, because it was actually remembered. I haven't seen all of the noms, but I really liked Hell or High Water.

I also really enjoyed La La Land, but a sweep of the Golden Globes was entirely undeserved. Oh, and I still think they would have done better with actors who could actually sing. Or dance.

So true, that whisper-sing Ryan Gosling did was barely passable. But I did like the music enough to ignore that fact. So here's a picture of him shirtless to make up for his signing.

I thought Ryan's singing was passable. That said, I'm delighted they got the actors to sing their own parts. When I see voice-overs done by someone else, it rips me out of the moment.

Agreed. I'd rather have a real performance that's passable, than a fake one any day.