At the end of each month, I’m going to take a look at the current American Top 40 and pick my favorite pop songs of the moment. Just because I really think my opinion is that important (sarcasm) and because I just want more consistent posts here.
Author Archives: Adam
‘We Are Not Ourselves’ reviewed
If you’ve read anything about We Are Not Ourselves by newcomer Matthew Thomas, you know it’s about Alzheimer’s disease. No critic tried to hide that fact; furthermore, Barnes& Noble’s own description of it enlightens readers about the affliction. Well, that’s about half right.
Using statistics to predict this year’s Oscars
There’s a lot to be said about the precursors to the Academy Awards. The Golden Globes are fun with a lot of glitz and glamour, but often don’t tip off who would get the Oscar a month later all too well. The Screen Actors Guild and, to a certain extent, the Producers Guild of America Awards tend to be a good indicator of the acting categories and even Best Picture award at the Oscars.
So, let’s take a look at what this weekend’s wins statistically tell us. First, the Oscar nominees for Best Picture and all four acting categories.
‘Wolf in White Van’ reviewed
“You either move forward or you die.”
This is a sentiment divulged to the reader by Sean, the narrator in Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle. It’s a peculiar sentence in the sense that Sean neither moves forward or dies in this novel.
21st Screen Actors Guild Predictions
Meant to post this right after the Oscar nominees were announced, but I got tied up and forgot to upload it.
The SAG Awards are a terrific predictor for the Academy Awards. Unlike the Golden Globes, this ceremony doesn’t break up the film categories into drama and musical/comedy. There are five nominees in each category (occasionally six on a rare occurrence). While there is no “best film” there is a Best Ensemble category, which can help as a predictor for the Best Picture Oscar.
The SAGs air Sunday January 25 on both TNT and TBS.
‘Redeployment’ reviewed
The war in Iraq was monumental in my life. Not in the sense that I knew anybody who shipped off and never came back. It didn’t even give me a sense of patriotism pulsing though my body. They were just there, looming over my life in a post-9/11 world. I picked up Phil Klay’s short story collection Redeployment because I read a review claiming it was the first book to shed a light on these wars with a realness than no other writer has yet to capture.
87th Academy Awards Nominations Reaction
Tomorrow I’ll be posting my predictions for the Screen Actors’ Guild Awards, which is a big indicator for the Oscars. But today I’ll look at who was nominated and give my immediate, brief reactions. There were a few surprises, and a quite a bit of obvious choices.
The Grand Budapest (somewhat surprisingly) and Birdman (not so surprisingly) came away with the most nominations with nine each. Close behind was The Imitation Game with eight. At first I was shocked that Boyhood only came away with six nods, but then I realized that it was nominated for all of the major awards it was predicted to get nods in (film, director, both supporting roles, screenplay) and then got a final one in film editing, which I don’t predict.
72nd Golden Globe Predictions
Here are my predictions for the 72nd Golden Globes. They air this Sunday (January 11) on NBC. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler host.
Holiday binge watch: British murder mysteries
One of the best perks of being a teacher is the time off. Having built in vacations is truly top notch because I don’t ever have to use Paid Time Off like 90% of this country when they want to relax. I also love it because I don’t feel guilty when I binge watch shows. If I was using my valuable PTO, I’d be out every day of my vacation doing awesome activities. Luckily, I didn’t feel like I was wasting my time over the past two weeks because I spent awhile on Netflix watching a very specific genre: British murder mysteries.
Stuart Scott remembered
There is a lot to be said about the late, great Stuart Scott. The admiration that fellow sports journalists, athletes, and even President Obama had for him have been pouring out since Scott died on January 4, 2015 after his third battle with cancer. He first appeared on ESPN in 1993, when I was only four years old, so I obviously don’t remember his entire career. I’m not equipped to talk about how, as a black man, he broke down barriers that still existed in the early-nineties. You can read about his success in so many places.
ADAM VITCAVAGE 