The Film Crusade

The decision to dignify ten films instead of the usual five was an all-around good one, but it was rendered moot by the Academy’s steadfast refusal to acknowledge films that have traditionally been ignored because they weren’t tonally or aesthetically in line with the usual bait. Zach offers his personal picks for the ten films that should have been nominated for Best Picture.

Some Hollywood trends are ending, some are changing, and new successes are threatening to become trends. If there’s anything the 2009 year in film has taught us thus far, it’s that sequels keep making money, 3-D is here to stay, and the African-American market is crucial for big box office numbers.

What is it with the bad-guy biopics? And why do audiences keep eating them up? Michael Mann’s Public Enemies is a clear-cut example of the direction Hollywood has been going for the last couple decades in terms of framing traditional antagonists as protagonists.