Bill Nighy – This Had Oscar Buzz

322 – Love Actually

Just in time for Christmas, we’re covering a seasonal favorite… or one you love to hate, depending on the corner of the internet you occupy. In 2003, Richard Curtis decked the halls of the ensemble romantic comedy mold with Love Actually. Telling several stories of love and heartache among Londoners during the holidays, Love Actually has since achieved a cult status of fans along with a myriad of thinkpieces about several of its subplot. But at the time, it was a surprisingly devastating supporting turn from Emma Thompson and a star-making turn from Bill Nighy that earned the film its buzz.

This episode, we unpack each of the romantic subplots of the film and Richard Curtis’ recent honorary Oscar. We also talk about other Christmas classics, how the film time capsules post-9/11 culture between America and the UK, and 2003 supporting contender musical chairs.

Topics also include ugly jewelry, the film’s needle drops, and Oscar nominations for Christmas movies.

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242 – Pride

This week’s episode is one we have promised for some time: 2014′s Pride. The film tells the true story of Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, a queer activist group that partnered with a Welsh town in the 1980s during the mining strike under Thatcher’s rule. Following the lives of both the straight townsfolk and the queer Londoners, the film paints a portrait of queerness, allyship, and activism that rings true today while also satisfying on a crowd-pleasing level. After launching at Cannes’ Directors Fortnight and winning the Queer Palm, the film launched in the fall of 2014 to some ardent critical fans, but didn’t cross the Oscar finish line.

This episode, we talk about the theatre career of director Matthew Warchus and the film’s comforts in this current tumultuous moment for queer people. We also talk about the film’s tremendous ensemble headlined by Imelda Staunton and Bill Nighy, gay infighting, and unofficial THOB mascot Men Trussler.

Topics also include the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, Monica Bellucci bluntly listing director names, and the concept of Festival Regret.

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233 – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

From Shakespeare in Love director John Madden and with a bursting prestige-y ensemble, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is one we have been saving. Led by Dames Judi Dench and Maggie Smith, who both had other films in the race in this season, the film follows several seniors who seek fulfillment and romance in India, including Tom Wilkenson as a man seeking reconciliation with a former gay lover. With Dev Patel as a young hotelier, the film was a global box office success that showed up throughout the precursor season, but Oscar did not come calling.

This episode, we take a look at the 2012′s wide-spread acting races, with all previous winners in Supporting Actor and Jennifer Lawrence winning Best Actress. We also talk about Smith’s two Oscar wins, Dench’s near nomination this year for Skyfall, and the Ol Parker franchise ethos.

Topics also include our winner predictions for this year, “The Quartet,” and Dev Patel going from twink to hunk.

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BONUS – Sundance, I Say

We’re bringing you a special bonus episode to recap our time with year’s edition of the Sundance Film Festival! We discuss some of the biggest prize winners from the US Dramatic Competition winner Nanny and the US Dramatic Audience Award winner Cha Cha Real Smooth, and other award recipients like Descendant, Dos Estaciones, and Fire of Love. We also discuss the films that might be pushed for Oscar in the year ahead (Good Luck to You Leo Grande and Living) and other personal festival highs (After Yang and Resurrection), lows (Sharp Stick and Call Jane), and everything in between!

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121 – About Time (with Katey Rich)

Richard Curtis arrived in the early 90s with his Oscar-nominated screenplay for Four Weddings and A Funeral and immediately cemented a heartwarming brand of romantic British fare. In the 2000s, he leaped to the director’s chair as well, with a streak that ended in this week’s surprise box office bomb: 2013′s About Time. Once again, deputy editor of VanityFair.com and Little Gold Men co-host Katey Rich returns as a guest to discuss the film that stars Domhnall Gleeson as lovelorn time traveler and Rachel McAdams as the object of his affection.

While we are divided on the film’s sometimes uncomfortable mechanics as a love story, About Time reveals itself as a sentimental smell-the-roses family story. But audience and critical disinterest took this one out of its season pretty quickly. This week, we discuss the Richard Curtis ethos, Gleeson’s quite charming screen persona, and the stacked lineup at the 2013 New York Film Festival.

Topics also include McAdams’ career pre and post-Oscar nomination, slight softboy British actor crushes, and the foremost question of our time: “is all lost?”

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