Posts tagged 2015 films
EDITORIAL: Final 2016 Awards Tracker and Oscar Reactions

Last night, I correctly predicted 16 of the 24 winners, tied with last year for my lowest total.  To conclude the awards season with a final update of the Awards Tracker data, here are the finishing tallies, Oscar winners, and my reactions to the winners and losers.

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2015, 2016, Column, Editorial, SPECIALDon Shanahan2015, 2016, 2016 Awards Tracker, 2016 Oscars, 2016 Oscar Predictions, 88th Academy Awards, 88th Oscars, Oscar snubs, Oscar nominations, Oscar hopefuls, Oscars, Oscar winners, Oscar bait, Oscar contenders, Oscar surprises, Oscar Predictions, 2015 films, Awards Predictions, Award Prediction, Awards Talk, Academy Award nominations, Academy Award nominees, Academy Award, Academy Award winner, Academy Awards, Academy Award nominee, Editorial, Column, Website feature, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a Lesson, movie commentary, film commentary, Best Original Score, Best Original Song, Best Original Screenplay, Best Musical Score, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound, Best Sound Editing, Best Edit, Best Visual Effects, Best Makeup and Hair-Styling, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction, Best Production Design, Best Cinematography, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Documentary, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short Subject, Best Animated Short Film, Best Animated Short, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Animated Feature, Best Live Action Short, Best Live Action Short Film, Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Directing, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Actor, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Actress, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Motion Picture, Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Picture, The race for Best Picture, Best Movies of 2015Comment
COLUMN: Five snubs and five surprises from the 88th Academy Award nominations

As with any year, there are hot topics being debated immediately stemming from snubs and surprises.  Here are my reaction and takeaways, consisting of five snubs and five surprises, coming out of this morning's nominations announcements.

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2016, Column, Editorial, SPECIALDon Shanahan2016, 2015 films, Oscar surprises, Oscar snubs, Oscar nominations, Oscar contenders, Oscar hopefuls, Oscar bait, Oscar Predictions, Oscar winners, Oscars, 88th Oscars, 88th Academy Awards, Academy Awards, Academy Award winner, 2016 Academy Awards, Academy Award, Academy Award nominations, Academy Award nominee, Academy Award nominees, film commentary, movie commentary, Awards Tracker, Awards Talk, Awards Predictions, Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Picture, The race for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, Best Directing, Don Shanahan, Donald Shanahan, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Minority performers, Michael B. Jordan, Creed, Mark Rylance, Sylvester Stallone, Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, The Revenant, The Big Short, Jacob Tremblay, Room, Benecio del Toro, Sicario, Paul Dano, Love and Mercy, Michael Shannon, 99 Homes, Michael Keaton, Spotlight, Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation, Inside Out, Anomalisa, Boy and the World, When Marnie Was There, The Good Dinosaur, The Peanuts Movie, Minions, Wiz Khalifa, Charlie Puth, Furious 7, See You Again, Lady Gaga, Quentin Tarantino, The Hateful Eight, Best Original Song, Best Original Score, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Titanic, Mad Max: Fury Road, Lenny Abrahamson, Todd Haynes, Carol, Ridley Scott, The Martian, Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl, Ex Machina, Straight Outta Compton, Bridge of Spies, Star Wars: The Force AwakensComment
COLUMN: New Year's Resolutions for the Movie Industry in 2016

As I say every year, plenty of regular everyday people make New Year's Resolutions, but I think bigger entities, namely movie makers and movie moguls, need to make them too.  Over the life of this website, this is my absolute favorite editorial to write every year.  I have fun taking the movie industry to task for things they need to change.  I'm sarcastic, but I'm not the guy to take it to the false internet courage level of some Twitter troll.  This will be as forward as I get all year.  

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MOVIE REVIEW: Jurassic World

Spectacle defines "Jurassic World" perfectly.  Just as the dictionary definition states, the blockbuster is unusual, notable, and entertaining in an eye-catching, dramatic, and very public way.  It is loud and dumb, but, hot damn, it sure is fun.  More discerning tastes will definitely gravitate to the "object of curiosity and contempt" version of the definition and they wouldn't be wrong in doing so.  In the end, the simple definitions seal "Jurassic World" too.  It is an very impressive monster movie and it will indeed attract attention and shock.

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EDITORIAL: 16 films to watch for the 2016 Oscars

Once one awards season ends, another one begins!  The winners from last night's 87th Academy Awards can bask in the glow of immortality for a while.  Meanwhile, business in Hollywood will quickly shift and move on to the 88th Academy Awards that will happen in February 2016.  Before the year of 2015 is out, we will soon learn and adopt another crop of competitive films to equally revere and nit-pick.  Here are 16 films to watch for the 2016 Oscars. 

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