Special: 2017 Oscars Roundup!

Hey everyone, the Oscars are tonight so it's time for me to give you my picks for what movies I think will win the awards tonight and who I think should win them. My ranking shows the order I would vote. (LW) represents the likely winner and (NS) indicates a film I have never seen.

Best Picture:

I was on board when they increased the number of pictures that could be nominated from five to a high of ten. We have nine this year but all indications are that this is a two-horse race between the 14 time nominated La La Land and Moonlight. I'm going to say La La Land will likely win the award tonight by but in reality Oscar voters may be swayed and try to save face by giving Moonlight the top prize. Hidden Figures remained the most watched (in terms of Box Office receipts) of the nominated films though voters rarely take that into consideration. However they do enjoy a good historical piece, especially when it comes with a bit of controversy, but Moonlight was the preferred film so it's hard to not think that those two films will take votes away from each other. Manchester By The Sea, Lion and Hacksaw Ridge are all in the running as dark horses as well but they are missing nominations from major categories that'll make it difficult for them to be voted as best (Manchester - Editing, Hacksaw - Screenplay, Lion - Directing).

My ranking:
1. Lion
2. Manchester by the Sea
3. Moonlight
4. Hidden Figures
5. Hacksaw Ridge
6. La La Land (LW)
7. Fences
8. Arrival
9. Hell or High Water

Best Actor:

This is yet again a two-horse race. Casey Affleck long seemed destined to be leaving the Oscars with a statue in hand but with Denzel winning the award from the Screen Actors Guild it's hard to see him not winning here. I'm still going to go with Affleck winning however, only because Denzel is so universally liked they know he won't be hard up for an Oscar (especially already having two in his possession). Affleck deserved to be nominated and (probably win) for his roles in Gone Baby Gone and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (the later of which he was actually nominated for) so I feel like they'll give Casey an acting award before big brother Ben. Some argue that Ryan Gosling is a surprise contender but I'd wager Garfield likely gets more votes than he.

My ranking:
1. Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea (LW)
2. Denzel Washington, Fences
3. Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge
4. Ryan Gosling, La La Land
5. Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic (NS)

Best Actress:

This is an interesting category. The early reviews had Portman's name on the trophy already however she's fallen off a bit as of late giving ground to Stone and Huppert who have been campaigning hard. Huppert unfortunately missed out on a SAG nomination and wasn't eligible for a BAFTA thus hurting her chances, not to mention the strong nature of Elle, which may keep some voters from watching. Negga and Streep seem to be in the same boat as "happy to be here" nominations with Negga missing most precursor nominations and Streep's record setting 20th nomination coming after an empowered speech at the Globes.

My ranking:
1. Emma Stone, La La Land (LW)
2. Natalie Portman, Jackie
3. Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins (NS)
3. Isabelle Huppert, Elle (NS)
3. Ruth Negga, Loving (NS)

Best Director:
Oddly enough, usually the film that wins best picture usually ends up with the Directing nod and although it's hard to overlook Chazelle I feel that a lot of voters will have a hard time choosing between La La Land and Moonlight and since I'm picking La La Land for best picture I'll go with Jenkins but this would be going against the precursors as Chazelle won the Director's Guild award which basically guarantees a win tonight so much to my chagrin I'll go with Chazelle taking home the gold statue.

My ranking:
1. Barry Jenkins, Moonlight
2. Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea
3. Damien Chazelle, La La Land (LW)
4. Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge
5. Denis Villeneuve, Arrival

Best Supporting Actor:

Juan was by far the best part of Moonlight and it's about time that everyone realizes how good seasoned veteran Mahershala Ali is at his craft. The hit against him may be that he doesn't get enough screen time, the same can be said for Dev Patel who is riveting in Lion but not as good as Ali. I'm a big Michael Shannon fan but he won't factor here, nor will Jeff Bridges who plays a racist cowboy as good as anybody. If anyone unseats Ali it's likely to be newcomer Lucas Hedges who puts his stamp on Manchester by the Sea playing second fiddle to Affleck. But as always with the exception of his golden globe loss to Aaron Taylor-Johnson (who isn't nominated here) Ali has fared very well in the precursors so I'm picking him with ease.

My ranking:
1. Mahershala Ali, Moonlight (LW)
2. Lucas Hedges, Manchester by the Sea
3. Dev Patel, Lion
4. Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water
5. Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals (NS)

Best Supporting Actress:

Denzel has been campaigning hard for Viola Davis who despite impressive turns in films like Doubt and The Help remains Oscar-less. It's going to hard to keep that theme going as she's about as "runaway favourite" as we see this year. Michelle Williams was good with what she was given to work with, as was Kidman but both aren't on the level of Davis in Fences.

My ranking:
1. Viola Davis, Fences (LW)
2. Naomie Harris, Moonlight
3. Nicole Kidman, Lion
4. Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures
5. Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

Best Animated Feature Film:

Although I will argue until I'm blue in the face that Kubo was not only the best animated feature this year but also the best feature this year. But like a few years back when How To Train Your Dragon 2 was my runaway pick only to be bested by a very strong Disney film (Big Hero 6), I fully expect Zootopia to walk away with the statue winning every precursor with the exception of the BAFTA.. So barring a last minute change of heart, Laika will be looking at their fourth feature only walking away with a nomination just like the three before it (Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls).

My ranking:
1. Kubo and the Two Strings
2. Zootopia (LW)
3. Moana
4. My Life as a Zucchini (NS)
4. The Red Turtle (NS)

Best Adapted Screenplay:

No doubt in my mind that out of these five contenders Moonlight had the best script, and I don't think the voters would dispute me on that either. The problem seems to be that many voters feel the script wasn't really adapted at all which opened the door for others to win the precursor awards. I'd love to see Lion win, I'd also like to see August Wilson win his first Oscar 11 years after his death. But these are simply aspirations. Looking at the facts Moonlight deserves to win but with the voters likely voting elsewhere out of spite I can't help but wonder if Hidden Figures will see an uptick in votes. I have to stick to my guns and hope that since Barry Jenkins is likely not taking home a Directing Oscar he'll at least get one for writing.

My ranking:
1. Moonlight, Barry Jenkins and Tarell McCraney (LW)
2. Lion, Luke Davies
3. Fences, August Wilson
4. Hidden Figures, Allison Schroeder
5. Arrival, Eric Heisserer

Best Original Screenplay:

This award may very well set the stage for the whole night. If La La Land can pull out a win over Manchester By The Sea it may very well be the juggernaut that everyone expected, that being said Manchester not only deserves to win but should win. Kudos to the Academy giving nominations to 20th Century Women and The Lobster (their only nominations) but they aren't a real threat to the 2 heavy hitters mentioned above nor is dark horse candidate Hell Or High Water which is likely looking at an 0 for 4 night at the Oscars

My ranking:
1. Manchester by the Sea, Kenneth Lonergan
2. La La Land, Damien Chazelle (LW)
3. Hell or High Water, Taylor Sheridan
4. The Lobster, Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthimis Filippou (NS)
4. 20th Century Women, Mike Mills (NS)

Before we jump into the technical categories of sound, visuals and post-production let me just say I've learned my lesson from a few years back when I avoided picking Whiplash in the sound categories... Case and point if your movie is focused on or around music and is an Oscar favourite it's likely going to take home those awards. So on that basis I'm going to say La La Land will win Sound Mixing (Sorry Hacksaw Ridge) and Original Score (Sorry Moonlight/Lion). Other sound awards La La Land is nominated for include Best Original Song (Nominated twice) and Sound Editing. These I don't think it'll take home because Lin-Manuel nominated for Moana for Original Song "How Far I'll Go" will get just enough with the 2 La La Land songs splitting the vote (Though I truly believe City of Stars deserves the win). Sound editing involves adding layers of sounds and it's hard to pick against Hacksaw Ridge in that regard even though I'm doing so in the Sound Mixing category.

Now let's look at the 2 awards La La Land is not nominated for... Makeup And Hairstyling and Visual Effects. Let's start with Makeup... Always best to look at the overall use of Makeup and although Star Trek boasts a lot of aliens, the general cast does not really wear much of note... Suicide Squad on the other hand is filled with it. Case and point after tonight we'll be saying "Academy Award Winner Suicide Squad". The fanboy in me wants Kubo to win in the Visual Effects race but it seems a stretch for an animated film. Instead I expect one of the three Disney pictures (Dr. Strange, The Jungle Book, Rogue One) to take the award. Marvel has yet to win an Oscar and although I could see Doc Strange being the first I think The Jungle Book is the more obvious choice.

Back to La La Land... I can see them losing in the Costume Design field as Jackie was more difficult in the sense that they had to recreate a beloved American's equally loved sense of style. Film Editing and Production Design I feel like are a flip of the coin between Arrival and La La Land. If La La Land is indeed as loved as Hollywood wants us to believe then it'll sweep but if the voters still want to give some awards love to other films look for Arrival to take both trophies. Finally we have Best cinematography, an award that used to go for the most beautiful film (Moonlight) however more recently we've seen films with complex shots get the award and there's nothing more complex than La La Land which is why it'll win.

I'm not going to be talking about the short awards, documentaries or foreign language pieces since I haven't seen any of them. Let's finish up by having me rank the films I've seen with more than one nomination...

1. Kubo And The Two Strings
2. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
3. Moana
4. Lion
5. Manchester By The Sea
6. Moonlight
7. Hidden Figures
8. Hacksaw Ridge
9. La La Land
10. Fences
11. Arrival
12. Deepwater Horizon
13. Hell Or High Water
14. Jackie

Top 10 Countdown: February 25, 2017

10. Bayside - Mary
Last week: NEW!


9. As It Is - Hey Rachel
Last week: 10.


8. Roam - Leaving Notice
Last week: 8.


7. Carousel Kings - Grey Goose
Last week: 9.


6. Mayday Parade - Black Cat
Last week: 7.


5. Pierce The Veil - Dive In
Last week: 5.


4. Courage My Love - Stereo
Last week: 4.


3. The Menzingers - Lookers
Last week: 3.


2. The Summer Set - The Night Is Young
Last week: 2.


1. State Champs - Losing Myself
Last week: 1.

Special: A Decade Under The Influence: Albums From 2007

Welcome to "A Decade Under The Influence" where we'll look back 1 decade to find the best of whatever category we're focusing on. Today we're looking at all the great albums released 10 years ago in the year 2007.

10. Yellowcard - Paper Walls

Release Date: July 17, 2007

Record Label: Capitol

Choice Tracks: Light Up The Sky, Five Becomes Four and Cut Me, Mick

Review: Paper Walls should be described as a mingling of the band's previous material. The band has re-grouped with just enough One for the Kids (drumming and lyrics), a pinch of the Underdog EP (melodies), a healthy filling of Ocean Avenue (style and feel), and a tiny portion from only the best parts of Lights and Sounds (instrumentation). It was redemption for their former fans however with the pop-punk scene dying this album unfortunately buried Yellowcard for a few years until they made their aspiring comeback only to call it quits this year.

9. Amber Pacific - Truth In Sincerity

Release Date: May 22, 2007

Record Label: Hopeless

Choice Tracks: You're Only Young Once, Summer (In B) and Follow Your Dreams, Forget The Scene

Review: As much as Amber Pacific have similarities with other power pop/skateboard punk bands, their music has sonic wails and tangling coordinates that are truly of their own making. Their music has charisma and strength, exuberance and contrasting textures that give their songs character. Amber Pacific may have left us too soon however their 2 Hopeless releases will keep us reminiscing about the good old days.

8. Fall Out Boy - Infinity On High

Release Date: February 6, 2007

Record Label: Island

Choice Tracks: I'm Like A Lawyer With The Way I'm Always Trying To Get You Off (Me & You), Thnks Fr Th Mmrs and The Take Over, The Breaks Over

Review: How do you follow up such a ground breaking album such as From Under The Cork Tree? You don't play it safe. You continue to thrive and improve and with Jay-Z's blessing that's exactly what FOB does with Infinity. It doesn't come across as well as Cork Tree did, but it's about the closest they've come to it in the last decade plus of albums.

7. A Day To Remember - For Those Who Have Heart

Release Date: January 22, 2007

Record Label: Victory

Choice Tracks: Monument, The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle and Here's To The Past

Review: A Day to Remember have quite the multiple personality. One second they're blasting the most melodic pop-punk this side of NFG, and the next, they're channeling the depths of hell with acerbic growling and heavy breakdowns. And this is all in the same song. Somewhere an As I Lay Dying fan is dating a Fall Out Boy devotee, and they're in desperate need of a compromise album. For Those Who Have Heart could very well fill that void.

6. All Time Low - So Wrong It's Right

Release Date: September 25, 2007

Record Label: Hopeless

Choice Tracks: Six Feet Under The Stars, Holly (Would You Turn Me On)? and Dear Maria, Count Me In.

Review: All Time Low don’t rewrite pop-punk rules by filling their records with dramatic musical innovations or profound personal revelations. But the thing All Time Low does well is write pitch-perfect pop-punk anthems designed for sunny days at the beach/mall and evenings under the stars/influence they do really freaking well.

5. Four Year Strong - Rise Or Die Trying

Release Date: September 18, 2007

Record Label: I Surrender

Choice Tracks: Bada Bing! Wit A Pipe!, Beatdown In The Key Of Happy and Heroes Get Remembered, Legends Never Die

Review: The main theme of this album is that it's all supposed to be a lot of fun, and they have certainly achieved that goal. Some say it's a shame they went away from their uniqueness and went more cookie-cutter on ''Enemy Of The World'' but I disagree. This album had it's share of bangers but I feel FYS has evolved quite well and I would prefer EOTW as well as their EP to this springboard album even though this will always be how many people first heard and fell in love with Four Year Strong.

4. Paramore - Riot!

Release Date: June 12, 2007

Record Label: Fueled By Ramen

Choice Tracks: Misery Business, When It Rains and CrushCrushCrush

Review: I come to the question whose answer I have been mentally debating for the last few days. Is Riot! better than All We Know is Falling? The answer is probably a no. All We Know is Falling just seems much more innocent, emotional and probably better written. Like maybe popularity and money have taken away something Paramore used to have. But Riot is still mega catchy and sugary sweet.

3. Farewell - Isn't This Supposed To Be Fun!?

Release Date: September 25, 2007

Record Label: Epitaph

Choice Tracks: War, First One On The Blog and Eighty-Eights

Review: Some bands want to rock your socks off, while others, like Farewell for example, want to take the place of the rocket pops you used to get from the ice cream man when you were a kid. ISN'T THIS SUPPOSED TO BE FUN, an appropriate title for this candy colored treat of an album, is synth-greased power pop for people who liked the Rentals better than Weezer. Singer Marshall Davis and the tight pop harmonies of the group combine to create bright, breezy tunes that remind the listener of all the fun they've had (and should still be having) while listening to music.

2. Mayday Parade - A Lesson In Romantics

Release Date: July 10, 2007

Record Label: Fearless

Choice Tracks: Champagne's For Celebrating (I'll Have A Martini), Walk On Water Or Drown and If You Wanted A Song Written About You, All You Had To Do Is Ask.

Review: Every song is spectacular on this album and is a potential hit. In fact it was hard to narrow it down to three for the Choice Tracks. And even when I did I was shocked at all the great tracks I left off! The perfect hooks and lyrics just keep coming in this album.

Honourable Mentions:

Chiodos - Bone Pallace Ballet
New Found Glory - From Your Screen To Your Stereo Part 2
Anberlin - Cities
Jimmy Eat World - Chase This Light
Say Anything - In Defense Of The Genre
Relient K - Four Score And Seven Years
Silverstein - Arrivals And Departures
The Starting Line - Direction
Sum 41 - Underclass Hero
Saves The Day - Under The Boards
Good Charlotte - Good Morning Revival
MxPx - Secret Weapon

1. illScarlett - All Day With It

Release Date: July 9, 2007

Record Label: Sony BMG Canada

Choice Tracks: Nothing Special, The Fashion (Do Or Die) and N.T.F.

Review: All Day With It, the full-length debut by Toronto quartet illScarlett, is as gleamingly overwrought and damnably catchy as most of the angsty hard rock for suburbanites with which shoved illScarlett into the spotlight ten years ago.

Top 10 Countdown: February 18, 2017

10. As It Is - Hey Rachel
Last week: NEW!


9. Carousel Kings - Grey Goose
Last week: 10.


8. Roam - Leaving Notice
Last week: 9.


7. Mayday Parade - Black Cat
Last week: 8.


6. Real Friends - Mess
Last week: 2.


5. Pierce The Veil - Dive In
Last week: 6.


4. Courage My Love - Stereo
Last week: 5.


3. The Menzingers - Lookers
Last week: 4.


2. The Summer Set - The Night Is Young
Last week: 3.


1. State Champs - Losing Myself
Last week: 1.

Special: Underwold: Blood Wars/Monster Trucks/John Wick: Chapter 2 Mini-Reviews

Underworld: Blood Wars:

Synopsis: The next installment in the blockbuster franchise, UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS follows Vampire death dealer, Selene (Kate Beckinsale) as she fends off brutal attacks from both the Lycan clan and the Vampire faction that betrayed her. With her only allies, David (Theo James) and his father Thomas (Charles Dance), she must stop the eternal war between Lycans and Vampires, even if it means she has to make the ultimate sacrifice.

My thoughts: It's painfully apparent that the budget dropped (more than half of the last installment's was cut) but god damn it's still Underworld and even at 50 Kate Beckinsale still kicks all kinds of ass. It's pretty much only the fanboy in me that enjoyed this offering but sometimes that's all you need.

Final verdict: 5 dead lycans out of 5.

Monster Trucks:

Synopsis: Looking for any way to get away from the life and town he was born into, Tripp (Lucas Till), a high school senior, builds a Monster Truck from bits and pieces of scrapped cars. After an accident at a nearby oil-drilling site displaces a strange and subterranean creature with a taste and a talent for speed, Tripp may have just found the key to getting out of town and a most unlikely friend. Melding cutting edge visual effects and state-of-the-art CGI, Monster Trucks is an action filled adventure for the whole family that will keep you on the edge of your seat and ultimately touch your heart.

My thoughts: Not nearly as bad as I thought it'd be but the bar was set low. It was your usually family fare. Lots of slapstick comedy and endearing moments. Could've been better, but could've been a lot worse.

Final verdict: 3 junkers out of 5.

John Wick: Chapter 2:

Synopsis: In this next chapter following the 2014 hit, legendary hitman John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is forced back out of retirement by a former associate plotting to seize control of a shadowy international assassins' guild. Bound by a blood oath to help him, John travels to Rome where he squares off against some of the world's deadliest killers.

My thoughts: Perhaps slightly lagging behind it's predecessor though it's not all that noticeable. The heart lacks but the action sequences are bigger and better as John Wick has firmly entered the Bourne/Mission: Impossible territory in terms of high quality action flicks. I'm looking forward to Chapter 3, and you should be too.

Final verdict: 4 dead hitmen out of 5.

Top 10 Countdown: February 11, 2017

10. Carousel Kings - Grey Goose
Last week: NEW!


9. Roam - Leaving Notice
Last week: 10.


8. Mayday Parade - Black Cat
Last week: 9.


7. Seaway - Slam
Last week: 3.


6. Pierce The Veil - Dive In
Last week: 7.


5. Courage My Love - Stereo
Last week: 6.


4. The Menzingers - Lookers
Last week: 5.


3. The Summer Set - The Night Is Young
Last week: 4.


2. Real Friends - Mess
Last week: 1.


1. State Champs - Losing Myself
Last week: 2.

Special: Best of January 2017

New segment here. We're going to look at some of the best media from January 2017 so let's do it!!

Best Theatrical Film:

Underworld: Blood Wars

Now as of this writing I've only seen 2, this and Monster Trucks. Underworld was definitely the better of the 2 but everyone and their mother seems to enjoy Split while The Founder and Patriots Day seem to be the most loved by critics despite the lack of Box Office receipts for both. And of course if you like Underworld odds are you're going to enjoy the 6th and final chapter in the Resident Evil saga.

Best Rental Film:

Jack Reacher 2: Never Go Back

Tough call between this and The Accountant but you really can't go wrong with either action/thriller however being a fan of the original Jack Reacher I went with the sequel given that you can binge watch the far superior original before diving into the sequel. Prefer a drama? How about Queen of Katwe from Disney. If you want something a little more kid friendly there's Middle School: The Worst Years Of My Life or the wrestling/penguin mash-up Surf's Up: Wavemania.

Best Album:

As It Is - Okay

No contest here. Sure there is The Early November Acoustic album Fifteen Years which is a great flashback of nostalgia but As It Is ruled January.

Best Graphic Novel:

Injustice: Year Two The Complete Collection, by Tom Taylor

It may sound like faint praise to say that Injustice is probably the best video game spin-off comic ever, but the book is still going strong almost four years after the release of the game that spawned it. In this collection, from the second year of the series, Batman and Superman are still at odds in a dystopian version of the DCU in which Superman’s loved ones were killed by the Joker, setting him off on an authoritarian rampage. The Green Lantern Corps is coming to put an end to Superman’s wrongdoing, but they won’t have an easy time of it.

Best Video Game:

Digimon World: Next Order (PS4)

Top 10 Countdown: February 4, 2017

10. Roam - Leaving Notice
Last week: NEW!


9. Mayday Parade - Black Cat
Last week: NEW!


8. Knuckle Puck - Evergreen
Last week: 4.


7. Pierce The Veil - Dive In
Last week: 8.


6. Courage My Love - Stereo
Last week: 7.


5. The Menzingers - Lookers
Last week: 6.


4. The Summer Set - The Night Is Young
Last week: 5.


3. Seaway - Slam
Last week: 2.


2. State Champs - Losing Myself
Last week: 3.


1. Real Friends - Mess
Last week: 1.