The 2020 Next Level Blockbuster Award Nominees

Best Picture

Avengers: Endgame
Dolemite Is My Name
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Comedy Picture

Dolemite Is My Name
Fighting with My Family
Jojo Rabbit
Knives Out
Shazam!

Best Action Picture

Angel Has Fallen
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
John Wick: Chapter 3 -Parabellum
Rambo: Last Blood
Spider-Man: Far From Home

Best Horror Picture

Annabelle Comes Home
Doctor Sleep
It Chapter Two
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
Us

Best Inspirational Picture

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Breakthrough
A Dog’s Journey
The Peanut Butter Falcon
The Upside

Best Drama Picture

Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Joker
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Best Science Fiction Picture

Ad Astra
Avengers: Endgame
Captain Marvel
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker
Terminator: Dark Fate

Best Live Action Family Picture

Aladdin
Dumbo
Jumanji: The Next Level
Pokémon Detective Pikachu
Togo

Best Animated Family Picture

Abominable
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
Klaus
The Lion King
Toy Story 4

Best Digital or Direct to Video Picture

Dolemite Is My Name
The Irishman
Marriage Story
Togo
The Two Popes

Best Sequel or Remake

Avengers: Endgame

John Wick: Chapter 3 -Parabellum

The Lion King

Spider-Man: Far From Home

Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Short Format Film
Battle at Big Rock
Hair Love
How to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming
Kitbull
Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling

Best Actor

Daniel Craig
Knives Out

Matt Damon
Ford v Ferrari

Robert De Niro
The Irishman

Leonardo DiCaprio
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Robert Downey Jr.
Avengers: Endgame

Adam Driver
Marriage Story

Taron Egerton
Rocketman

Chris Evans
Avengers: Endgame

Eddie Murphy
Dolemite Is My Name

Joaquin Phoenix
Joker

Best Actress

Awkwafina
The Farewell

Ana de Armas
Knives Out

Cynthia Erivo
Harriet

Scarlett Johansson
Marriage Story

Brie Larson
Captain Marvel

Chrissy Metz
Breakthrough

Lupita Nyong’o
Us

Florence Pugh
Fighting with My Family

Daisy Ridley
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Renee Zellweger
Judy

Best Supporting Actress

Kathy Bates
The Highwaymen

Frances Conroy
Joker

Laura Dern
Marriage Story

Carrie Fisher
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Linda Hamilton
Terminator: Dark Fate

Lena Headey
Fighting with My Family

Scarlett Johansson
Jojo Rabbit

Dakota Johnson
The Peanut Butter Falcon

Da’Vine Joy Randolph
Dolemite Is My Name

Margot Robbie
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Best Supporting Actor

Christian Bale
Ford v Ferrari

Bryan Cranston
The Upside

Willem Dafoe
The Lighthouse

Tom Hanks
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Chris Hemsworth
Avengers: Endgame

Anthony Hopkins
The Two Popes

Al Pacino
The Irishman

Joe Pesci
The Irishman

Brad Pitt
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Wesley Snipes
Dolemite Is My Name

Best Voice Actor or Actress

Donald Glover
The Lion King

Tom Hanks
Toy Story 4

Hugh Jackman
Missing Link

Idina Menzel
Frozen II

Ryan Reynolds
Pokémon Detective Pikachu

Best Ensemble

Avengers: Endgame
The Irishman
It Chapter Two
Knives Out
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Director

J.J. Abrams
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Noah Baumbach
Marriage Story

James Mangold
Ford v Ferrari

Sam Mendes
1917

Jordan Peele
Us

Todd Phillips
Joker

Anthony and Joe Russo
Avengers: Endgame

Martin Scorsese
The Irishman

Quentin Tarantino
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Taika Waititi
Jojo Rabbit

Best Adapted Screenplay

Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
Avengers: Endgame

Steven Zaillian
The Irishman

Taika Waititi
Jojo Rabbit

Todd Phillips and Scott Silver
Joker

Stephany Folsom and Andrew Stanton
Toy Story 4

Best Original Screenplay

Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth
and Jason Keller
Ford v Ferrari

Rian Johnson
Knives Out

Noah Baumbach
Marriage Story

Quentin Tarantino
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Jordan Peele
Us

Best Original Music

Alan Silvestri

Avengers: Endgame

Hildur Guðnadótti

Joker

Randy Newman

Marriage Story

Daniel Pemberton

Motherless Brooklyn

John Williams

Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Original Song

“Catchy Song” performed by T-Pain
and That Girl Lay Lay

from the motion picture “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part”

“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away” performed by Randy Newman

from the motion picture “Toy Story 4”

“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” performed by Elton John and Taron Egerton

from the motion picture “Rocketman”

“Into the Unknown” performed by Panic! At The Disco
from the motion picture “Frozen II”

“Speechless” performed by Naomi Scott
from the motion picture “Aladdin”

Best Casting

Fighting with My Family

It Chapter Two

Joker

1917

Shazam!

Best Production Design

Avengers: Endgame
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Knives Out
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Cinematography

Ford v Ferrari
Joker
Knives Out
The Lighthouse
1917

Best Costume Design

Avengers: Endgame
Joker
1917
Rocketman
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best 3D Presentation

The Addams Family
Alita: Battle Angel
Avengers: Endgame
Shazam!
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Film Editing

Avengers: Endgame
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Ford v Ferrari
Joker
Knives Out

Best Sound Editing

Avengers: Endgame

Ford v Ferrari

1917

Rocketman
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Sound Mixing

Avengers: Endgame
Ford v Ferrari
Godzilla: King of the Monsters
1917
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Special Effects

Alita: Battle Angel
Avengers: Endgame
Godzilla: King of the Monsters
Pokémon Detective Pikachu
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Makeup Effects

Hellboy
Joker
Judy
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Stunt Work

Angel Has Fallen
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
John Wick: Chapter 3 -Parabellum
Rambo: Last Blood
Terminator: Dark Fate

 Best Home Video Release

Alita: Battle Angel 4K/3D Blu-ray
Aquaman 3D Blu-ray
Avengers: Endgame 4K Blu-ray
Batman Beyond: The Complete Animated Series Deluxe Limited Edition Blu-ray Set
Godzilla: The Showa Era Films 1954-1975 The Criterion Collection Blu-ray Set
The House of Hitchcock Collection Blu-ray Set
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Gauntlet-Season 12 Blu-ray Set
Scarface Limited Gold Edition 4K Blu-ray
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series Blu-ray Set
Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Set

Next Level Blockbuster Icon Award

Lucille Ball
Carrie Fisher
Cary Grant
Alfred Hitchcock
Howard Hughes
John Hughes
Stanley Kubrick
Stan Lee
Leonard Nimoy
Robin Williams

Next Level Blockbuster Legacy Award
Back to the Future
Batman
Platoon
Rocky
The Shawshank Redemption
The Shining
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Terminator 2: Judgement Day
The Wizard of Oz

“The King” Movie Review

    Like most major studios, Netflix has waited until this winter to release their own possible award contender films.  One of the films Netflix seems to feel most strongly about is “The King” which just recently hit the streaming service.  After being blown away by “Dolemite Is My Name”, I had to check this film out as well.

    The film depicts the early life of Prince/King Henry V as he goes from being the unwanted heir to the throne to the king of England.  Upon becoming king, Henry V aspires to lead his people differently than his father and usher in a more peaceful reign in England.  Things become increasingly more complicated however when it appears that France is provoking Henry V.  Before long, England and France end up clashing at Agincourt and the outnumbered English army end up managing to win the battle.

    The film is based on “Henry IV, Part 1”, “Henry IV, Part 2”, and “Henry V” by William Shakespeare.  While the basic stories of his three plays remain intact, the film removes Shakespeare’s dialogue.  While I certainly understand changing William Shakespeare’s dialogue to make his work more accessible to modern audiences, this film fails at doing so in my opinion because it removes the Bard’s dialogue for it’s own weighty and bloated dialogue.

    The cast of this film is something of a mixed bag.  Rising star Timothee Chalamet stars in this film as Henry V.  While the young actor did a respectable job as the king of England, he also didn’t wow me either.  This film certainly doesn’t give me faith in his leading man status at this point and leaves me a bit worried about the upcoming “Dune” remake for which he stars in.

    As for the supporting cast, Joel Edgerton (who also co-wrote the script) shines as Flastaff, a close friend and confidant of Henry V.  Edgerton is without a doubt the highlight of the film.  Sean Harris also delivers a memorable performance in the film as well. Lastly, Robert Pattinson co-stars as the Dauphin of France and delivers the most talked about performance in the film (with some people loving it and others finding it cringe worthy).  To me, Pattinson’s accent and performance was a bit over the top and jarring compared to the other performers (which is why so many people hated it) but I think he gave that performance to make his character more accessible to a modern audience (which is why some people consider it a highlight).  Honestly, I personally thought it was the best part of the movie while also becoming a bit worried about his performance in “The Batman” at the same time.

    There are a lot of nice visual shots in the film and the costume design is excellent.  I do wish director David Michod would have made the battle of Agincourt feel larger in scale.  I am sure Michod provided a more realistic approach to the battle, but with battle scenes, sometimes more is more.  With that being said, when the battle scenes are more tightly focused on character actions, they are very well shot and provide a scene of danger to the characters.

    At the end of the day, if you are going to watch a William Shakespeare light film like “The King” on Netflix, you might as well skip this and just go full Shakespeare with Kenneth Branagh’s “Henry V”.  If you feel lost watching “Henry V”, you won’t find “The King” any more approachable.

Grade: D+

“Dolemite Is My Name” Movie Review

    I have to admit that I have not seen the film “Dolemite” nor have I had much of a desire to see it.  Still, I have always found Rudy Ray Moore to be a rather fascinating celebrity so when I heard there was going to be a movie based on his life, I knew I wanted to see that film.  Interestingly enough the film ended up becoming a Netflix original film even though I have a feeling it might have made a decent amount at the box office had it graced the silver screen.

    The film depicts Rudy Ray Moore’s life from just before he invented the Dolemite character to the opening of the first “Dolemite” movie.  The film opens with Rudy working at a record store and also working at a local nightclub as the establishment’s announcer.  Rudy is hungry to showcase all of his vast skills, but is constantly overlooked.  After listening to some stories of the local homeless community, Rudy creates the character of Dolemite which he debuts at the nightclub he works at (unknowingly to the own) to vast acclaim from the audience. From that moment on, Rudy sets his sights high and decides to bet on himself.

    Being a Netflix film, I really didn’t expect a great deal from this film, but the film ended up far exceeding my expectations.  “Dolemite Is My Name” is currently the best Netflix original movie I have seen this year (if not ever).  I would even go as far as to say the film is one of the best movies of the year.  Everything about the movie clicked in all the right ways and created an entertaining look at one of the most popular figures in African American entertainment.

    The film’s script is sharp and funny and paints Rudy Ray Moore as a very relatable person with big dreams.  I think it was interesting how Rudy Ray Moore was constantly pushed aside when he tried to do a more traditional act (his boss at the nightclub even told him he didn’t want his vaudeville act) and he didn’t achieve recognition until he created a foul mouthed character in Dolemite.  It’s ironic because Rudy even mentions disliking Redd Foxx early in the film because he cursed so much in his comedy act.

    The cast of the film was beyond stellar.  This was the best film Eddie Murphy has done in a long time.  Even though Eddie Murphy doesn’t resemble Rudy Ray Moore much, Murphy does manage to capture his energy and spirit.  The supporting cast is amazing as well.  Da’Vine Joy Randolph is a revelation as Lady Reed and holds her own among many other seasoned professionals.  Keegan-Michael Key is hilarious as screenwriter Jerry Jones.  It also enjoyed the glorified cameos Chris Rock and Snoop Dogg provided in the film.  To my amazement, the biggest treat in this film besides Eddie Murphy in this film is Wesley Snipes.  Wesley Snipes absolutely steals every scene he is in as D’Urville Martin.

    The film is helmed to perfection by Craig Brewer who will next helm Murphy and Snipes again in the sequel to “Coming to America”.  Brewer succeeds in his ability to both showcase the importance of the blaxploitation movement in Hollywood while still providing enough levity to poke fun at how ridiculous elements of it were.  You can’t make a movie about Rudy Ray Moore without loving his work and Brewer clearly appreciates the legend.

    So this is officially an end of an era for me, because I can now officially say I love a Netflix original movie.  I hope I can say the same about “The Irishman” when I get to see it later this month, but I believe this is the first Netflix movie of the year that is a real awards contender.  It’s really that good.

Grade: A