The race for the five Best Actor nominations might be the Academy Awards’ toughest race. Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born) is a lock. There has been some significant buzz for movies that have run in limited release only (Ethan Hawke – First Reformed) and Willem Dafoe (At Eternity’s Gate). Ryan Gosling had a considerable push heading into First Man, but the movie was a miss with critics and audiences. His outstanding performance could be a casualty in this tight year. A new crop of contenders could swoop in for a spot or two (Rami Malek –Bohemian Rhapsody), John David Washington (BlacKkKlansman), Lucas Hedges (Boy Erased). And then there are a couple of oldtimers who turned in a couple of possible final career performances (Clint Eastwood – The Mule) and Robert Redford (The Old Man & the Gun). But I will state, for the record, that one of the men listed above, not named Bradley Cooper, will be knocked out for the career-defining role of Viggo Mortensen (Appaloosa, A History of Violence) in Green Book.
Category Archives: Peter Farrelly
Hall Pass (2011)
2011 was a great year for comedies. You had Bridesmaids and Crazy, Stupid, Love., both of which finished in my Top for the year. You also had Horrible Bosses and The Hangover Part II, each of which finished just outside my Top 10. Hall Pass is the fourth great comedy for that year and a movie that will cause me to re-evaluate my list shortly. Right now, I’m uncertain whether this finishes just outside the Top 10 of 2011 or if it finishes ahead of Bridesmaids (my current #3). Wherever it falls, nothing will change the fact that it is a hilarious movie. It’s also a movie I almost did not watch because I didn’t like the concept. I like the raunchy humor movie, but the idea of two wives giving their husbands a week-long hall pass where they could do what they wanted to whoever they wanted didn’t appeal to what I valued in a movie. With that said, I’m glad I gave the movie a chance because it was also a really good movie in addition to being an absolute comic gem.
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