Month: January 2025

Once again, A24 finds itself in contention for the Best Picture award with “The Brutalist” and receives several nominations for “Sing Sing”. However, three of the studio’s most powerful films (“Babygirl”, “I Saw the TV Glow”, and “Janet Planet”) were not nominated. It seemed only Nicole Kidman had a real chance among those titles to receive an Oscar nomination following her win at Venice and recognition from the National Board of Review, but she fell short. Similarly, Daniel Craig, who won the NBR’s best actor prize, was also overlooked as Luca Guadagnino’s “Queer” received no nominations at all. It was a disappointing morning for Guadagnino, as his film “Challengers” also failed to secure any nominations.

Emilia Pérez garnered a total of thirteen nominations, among them Best Picture, Best Actress for Karla Sofía Gascón, Best Supporting Actress for Zoe Saldaña, and Best Director for Jacques Audiard. The streaming platform was also recognized with nominations for “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl” in the category of Best Animated Feature and for Pablo Larraín’s “Maria” in the category of Cinematography.

In essence: Nicole Kidman, portraying a woman discovering her sensual self after an affair with her intern, put forth more effort than ever before in her acting career; similarly, Daniel Craig as a gay man yearning for love, conveying his emotions through actions rather than words, also worked tirelessly. Regrettably, neither of them received a nomination. The critically acclaimed “Challengers,” featuring Zendaya and its captivating score and daring script, failed to secure a place in the competition. Surprisingly, “Nosferatu,” a visually stunning exploration of desire nearing death, didn’t receive the Best Picture nomination that some anticipated.

Mark Harris, a renowned film journalist and historian, first pointed out on Bluesky that the last performer to receive back-to-back nominations for leading roles before their 30th birthday was James Dean. Tragically, he passed away in a car accident at just 24 years old, having been nominated posthumously for his work in the 1955 period family drama “East of Eden” and the 1956 Western drama “Giant”. Interestingly, before James Dean, only Mickey Rooney managed to earn two leading category nominations by the age of 30. He was nominated for best actor at 19 for the musical “Babes in Arms”, directed by Busby Berkeley, and then again at 23 for “The Human Comedy”, which, in fact, was a blend of drama and comedy.

The leading tech company, famous for its social media sites, plans to showcase its Ray-Ban Meta Glasses during Super Bowl LIX. These glasses enable users to capture photos and videos, play music, and make calls. According to Meta, these glasses are powered by artificial intelligence (AI), respond to voice commands, have a built-in camera, and feature open-ear audio technology.

Comcast, the major cable provider, unveiled Sports & News TV, a fresh video plan tailored for Xfinity Internet broadband subscribers. This package offers over 50 live news, sports, and broadcast channels, in addition to Peacock access. The Sports & News TV is priced at $70 per month when bundled with Xfinity Internet, without any binding contract.