Tag: Gary Oldman

Film Feature: Carrie and Chris Pick the 2018 Oscars

Film critics Carrie and Chris on who will – and who should – win the 90th Academy Awards

The 90th Academy Awards air this Sunday, March 4th on ABC at 5:00 pm PST (pre-show festivities start well before, if you want to weigh in on Oscar fashions). Spinning Platters film critics Carrie Kahn and Chris Piper share their predictions – and hopes – for the major categories, and discuss their reasoning for six of the biggest categories in the podcast below. Will there be another Moonlight/La La Land fiasco? Tune in on Sunday to find out – and to see how we – and you – do on the big night! 

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Film Review: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

It’s always darkest before the ‘Dawn’.

Hail O'Mighty Caesar!
Hail O’Mighty Caesar!

In Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the follow-up to the surprising and emotionally resonant 2011 reboot, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, we are treated to another slice of the 50-year-old Planet of the Apes universe that had, until now, only been hypothesized.  Part of the consuming mystery surrounding the original 1968 Planet of the Apes ending was wondering how the humans had destroyed the Earth and fallen prisoner to ape overlords.  Dawn offers just a small, yet undoubtedly significant, step on this inevitable path.  And yet, under the confident direction of Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Let Me In), Dawn of the Planet of the Apes has an epic feel that looms large with great performances, memorable and haunting action, and deep social commentary.

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Film Review: “Lawless”

Tom Hardy and Jessica Chastain in LAWLESS

starring: Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Guy Pearce, Jessica Chastain, Mia Wasikowska, Gary Oldman, Jason Clarke

written by: Nick Cave

directed by: John Hillcoat

MPAA: Rated R for strong bloody violence, language and some sexuality/nudity

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Film Review: “The Dark Knight Rises”

Christian Bale in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

starring: Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Michael Caine, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Matthew Modine, Juno Temple

written by: Jonathan and Christopher Nolan

directed by: Christopher Nolan

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sensuality and language

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Spinning Platters Interview: Gary Oldman on “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”

Gary Oldman stars as "George Smiley" in Focus Features' release of Tomas Alfredson's TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY. Credit: Jack English

There was a time in the not-so-distant past when it seemed like maybe we’d already seen the best of Gary Oldman. After establishing himself as a fearlessly intense and committed film actor with Alex Cox’s seminal British indie, Sid and Nancy (1986), he spent the next decade delivering unforgettable performances in roles ranging from Lee Harvey Oswald to Dracula to Beethoven, pivoting nimbly from blockbusters like Air Force One and The Fifth Element to cult favorites like The Professional and Romeo is Bleeding. But after the disastrous Lost in Space (1998), he seemed to vanish into an infrequent series of TV appearances and little-seen films.

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Film Review: “Kung Fu Panda 2”

featuring the voices of: Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Gary Oldman, Seth Rogen, David Cross, Lucy Liu, Jackie Chan, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Michelle Yeoh, Dennis Haysbert, Victor Garber, Paul Mazursky, James Hong

written by: Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger

directed by: Jennifer Yuh

MPAA: Rated PG for sequences of martial arts action and mild violence.

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