Review: "20th Century Women"

In Santa Barbara, CA, circa 1979, adolescent boy Jamie Fields (Lucas Jade Zumann) is screwing around with his pals when he passes out and is rushed to the hospital, where he later awakens to the sight of his exasperated mother Dorothea (Annette Bening). A single mom who fears she's becoming more and more disconnected from her son, Dorothea calls on two young women, Abbie (Greta Gerwig) and Julie (Elle Fanning), to become more involved in Jamie's upbringing.

Writer-director Mike Mills' 20th Century Women finds this to be an eye-opening and challenging experience for all involved. The free-spirited photographer Abbie, who also happens to be a tenant of Dorothea's, introduces Jamie to the L.A. punk scene and teaches him about love, but it's Abbie's battle with cervical cancer that most shakes the young man. Meanwhile, Jamie has long been in love with neighbor Julie, who deeply cherishes their friendship and isn't so keen on taking their relationship to that level. There's also William (Billy Crudup), the ever-present handyman also navigating his way through this crazy and complicated time.

Given the era in which it's set and careful attention to dialogue and character detail, 20th Century Women often has the feel of something Norman Lear would have produced in his prime. It's a more compelling picture overall than Mills' breakout success Beginners, which was carried heavily on the shoulders of Christopher Plummer's exquisite, Oscar-winning turn, even if 20th Century doesn't sport a performance quite on that high level. The acting is still fine all-around, however, with Gerwig and Fanning both terrific in rich, intriguing roles.

Then, of course, there is Bening, truly the heart of the film, in perhaps her most memorable turn since The American President more than two decades ago. It's a warm, funny, lived-in performance that in most years would be a shoo-in for an Oscar nomination. While it won't be this year, someday, inevitably I would hope, this marvelous actress will at last take home the golden guy.

B+

2016 Directors Guild of America Awards nominees

Congratulations to this year's Directors Guild of America Awards honorees!

DAMIEN CHAZELLE
La La Land (Lionsgate)

Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Michael Beugg
First Assistant Director: Peter Kohn
Second Assistant Director: Paula Case
Assistant Unit Production Manager: Bart Lipton
Second Second Assistant Director: Brett Robinson
Additional Second Assistant Director: Dodi Rubenstein

GARTH DAVIS
Lion (The Weinstein Company)

Directorial Team:
First Assistant Director: Chris Webb
First Assistant Director: Ananya Rane (India Unit)
Second Assistant Directors: Mark Ingram (Australia Unit), Sunny Tiku (India Unit), KP Singh (India Unit), Shaunak Kapur (India Unit)

BARRY JENKINS
Moonlight (A24)

Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Jennifer Radzikowski

KENNETH LONERGAN
Manchester by the Sea (Amazon Studios and Roadside Attractions)

Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Declan Baldwin
First Assistant Director: Michael J. Moore
Second Assistant Director: David Blazina
Second Second Assistant Directors: Tim LaDue, Scooter Perrotta

DENIS VILLENEUVE
Arrival (Paramount Pictures)

Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Stan Wlodkowski
First Assistant Director: Donald L. Sparks
Second Assistant Director: Brigitte Goulet
Second Second Assistant Director: Karine P. Labelle

2016 Producers Guild of America Awards nominations

Congratulations to this year's Producers Guild of America (PGA) Awards honorees!

Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures

Arrival
Producers: Dan Levine, Shawn Levy, Aaron Ryder, David Linde

Deadpool
Producers: Simon Kinberg, Ryan Reynolds, Lauren Shuler Donner

Fences
Producers: Scott Rudin, Denzel Washington, Todd Black

Hacksaw Ridge
Producers: Bill Mechanic, David Permut

Hell or High Water
Producers: Carla Hacken, Julie Yorn

Hidden Figures
Producers: Donna Gigliotti, Peter Chernin & Jenno Topping, Pharrell Williams, Theodore Melfi

La La Land
Producers: Fred Berger, Jordan Horowitz, Marc Platt

Lion
Producers: Emile Sherman & Iain Canning, Angie Fielder

Manchester By the Sea
Producers: Matt Damon, Kimberly Steward, Chris Moore, Lauren Beck, Kevin Walsh

Moonlight
Producers: Adele Romanski, Dede Gardner & Jeremy Kleiner

Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures

Finding Dory
Producer: Lindsey Collins

Kubo and the Two Strings
Producers: Arianne Sutner, Travis Knight

Moana
Producer: Osnat Shurer

The Secret Life of Pets
Producers: Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy

Zootopia
Producer: Clark Spencer

Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Picture

Dancer
Producer: Gabrielle Tana

The Eagle Huntress
Producers: Stacey Reiss, Otto Bell

Life, Animated
Producers: Julie Goldman, Roger Ross Williams

O.J.: Made in America
Producers: Ezra Edelman, Caroline Waterlow

Tower
Producers: Keith Maitland, Susan Thomson, Megan Gilbride

2016 BAFTA nominations

Congratulations to this year's BAFTA honorees!

BEST FILM
ARRIVAL Dan Levine, Shawn Levy, David Linde, Aaron Ryder
I, DANIEL BLAKE Rebecca O'Brien
LA LA LAND Fred Berger, Jordan Horowitz, Marc Platt
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA Lauren Beck, Matt Damon, Chris Moore, Kimberly Steward,
Kevin J. Walsh
MOONLIGHT Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Adele Romanski

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
AMERICAN HONEY Andrea Arnold, Lars Knudsen, Pouya Shahbazian, Jay Van Hoy
DENIAL Mick Jackson, Gary Foster, Russ Krasnoff, David Hare
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM David Yates, David Heyman, Steve Kloves, J.K. Rowling, Lionel Wigram
I, DANIEL BLAKE Ken Loach, Rebecca O'Brien, Paul Laverty
NOTES ON BLINDNESS Peter Middleton, James Spinney, Mike Brett, Jo-Jo Ellison, Steve Jamison
UNDER THE SHADOW Babak Anvari, Emily Leo, Oliver Roskill, Lucan Toh

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
The Girl With All the Gifts: MIKE CAREY (Writer), CAMILLE GATIN (Producer) 
The Hard Stop: GEORGE AMPONSAH (Writer/Director/Producer), DIONNE WALKER (Writer/Producer) 
Notes on Blindness: PETER MIDDLETON (Writer/Director/Producer), JAMES SPINNEY (Writer/Director), JO-JO ELLISON (Producer) 
The Pass: JOHN DONNELLY (Writer), BEN A. WILLIAMS (Director) 
Under the Shadow: BABAK ANVARI (Writer/Director), EMILY LEO, OLIVER ROSKILL, LUCAN TOH (Producers) 

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
DHEEPAN Jacques Audiard, Pascal Caucheteux
JULIETA Pedro Almodóvar
MUSTANG Deniz Gamze Ergüven, Charles Gillibert
SON OF SAUL László Nemes, Gábor Sipos
TONI ERDMANN Maren Ade, Janine Jackowski

DOCUMENTARY
13th Ava DuVernay
THE BEATLES: EIGHT DAYS A WEEK- THE TOURING YEARS Ron Howard
THE EAGLE HUNTRESS Otto Bell, Stacey Reiss
NOTES ON BLINDNESS Peter Middleton, James Spinney
WEINER Josh Kriegman, Elyse Steinberg

ANIMATED FILM
FINDING DORY Andrew Stanton
KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS Travis Knight
MOANA Ron Clements, John Musker
ZOOTROPOLIS Byron Howard, Rich Moore

DIRECTOR
ARRIVAL Denis Villeneuve
I, DANIEL BLAKE Ken Loach
LA LA LAND Damien Chazelle
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA Kenneth Lonergan
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Tom Ford

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
HELL OR HIGH WATER Taylor Sheridan
I, DANIEL BLAKE Paul Laverty
LA LA LAND Damien Chazelle
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA Kenneth Lonergan
MOONLIGHT Barry Jenkins

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
ARRIVAL Eric Heisserer
HACKSAW RIDGE Andrew Knight, Robert Schenkkan
HIDDEN FIGURES Theodore Melfi, Allison Schroeder
LION Luke Davies
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Tom Ford

LEADING ACTOR
ANDREW GARFIELD Hacksaw Ridge
CASEY AFFLECK Manchester by the Sea
JAKE GYLLENHAAL Nocturnal Animals
RYAN GOSLING La La Land
VIGGO MORTENSEN Captain Fantastic

LEADING ACTRESS
AMY ADAMS Arrival
EMILY BLUNT The Girl on the Train
EMMA STONE La La Land
MERYL STREEP Florence Foster Jenkins
NATALIE PORTMAN Jackie

SUPPORTING ACTOR
AARON TAYLOR-JOHNSON Nocturnal Animals
DEV PATEL Lion
HUGH GRANT Florence Foster Jenkins
JEFF BRIDGES Hell or High Water
MAHERSHALA ALI Moonlight

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
HAYLEY SQUIRES I, Daniel Blake
MICHELLE WILLIAMS Manchester by the Sea
NAOMIE HARRIS Moonlight
NICOLE KIDMAN Lion
VIOLA DAVIS Fences

ORIGINAL MUSIC
ARRIVAL Jóhann Jóhannsson
JACKIE Mica Levi
LA LA LAND Justin Hurwitz
LION Dustin O'Halloran, Hauschka
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Abel Korzeniowski

CINEMATOGRAPHY
ARRIVAL Bradford Young
HELL OR HIGH WATER Giles Nuttgens
LA LA LAND Linus Sandgren
LION Greig Fraser
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Seamus McGarvey

EDITING
ARRIVAL Joe Walker
HACKSAW RIDGE John Gilbert
LA LA LAND Tom Cross
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA Jennifer Lame
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Joan Sobel

PRODUCTION DESIGN
DOCTOR STRANGE Charles Wood, John Bush
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM Stuart Craig, Anna Pinnock
HAIL, CAESAR! Jess Gonchor, Nancy Haigh
LA LA LAND David Wasco, Sandy Reynolds-Wasco
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Shane Valentino, Meg Everist

COSTUME DESIGN
ALLIED Joanna Johnston
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM Colleen Atwood
FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS Consolata Boyle
JACKIE Madeline Fontaine
LA LA LAND Mary Zophres

MAKE UP & HAIR
DOCTOR STRANGE Jeremy Woodhead
FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS J. Roy Helland, Daniel Phillips
HACKSAW RIDGE Shane Thomas
NOCTURNAL ANIMALS Donald Mowat, Yolanda Toussieng
ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY Nominees tbc

SOUND
ARRIVAL Sylvain Bellemare, Claude La Haye, Bernard Gariépy Strobl
DEEPWATER HORIZON Dror Moha, Mike Prestwood Smith, Wylie Stateman, David Wyman
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM Niv Adiri, Glenn Freemantle, Simon Hayes, Andy Nelson, Ian Tapp
HACKSAW RIDGE Peter Grace, Robert Mackenzie, Kevin O’Connell, Andy Wright
LA LA LAND Mildred Iatrou Morgan, Ai-Ling Lee, Steve A. Morrow, Andy Nelson

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
ARRIVAL Louis Morin
DOCTOR STRANGE Richard Bluff, Stephane Ceretti, Paul Corbould, Jonathan Fawkner
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM Tim Burke, Pablo Grillo, Christian Manz, David Watkins
THE JUNGLE BOOK Robert Legato, Dan Lemmon, Andrew R. Jones, Adam Valdez
ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY Neil Corbould, Hal Hickel, Mohen Leo, John Knoll, Nigel Sumner

BRITISH SHORT ANIMATION
THE ALAN DIMENSION Jac Clinch, Jonathan Harbottle, Millie Marsh
A LOVE STORY Khaled Gad, Anushka Kishani Naanayakkara, Elena Ruscombe-King
TOUGH Jennifer Zheng

BRITISH SHORT FILM
CONSUMED Richard John Seymour
HOME Shpat Deda, Afolabi Kuti, Daniel Mulloy, Scott O’Donnell
MOUTH OF HELL Bart Gavigan, Samir Mehanovic, Ailie Smith, Michael Wilson
THE PARTY Farah Abushwesha, Emmet Fleming, Andrea Harkin, Conor MacNeill
STANDBY Jack Hannon, Charlotte Regan

EE RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public) 
ANYA TAYLOR-JOY
LAIA COSTA
LUCAS HEDGES
RUTH NEGGA
TOM HOLLAND

2016 Golden Globe Awards winners

Congratulations to this year's Golden Globe Awards winners!

Best Motion Picture - Drama
Moonlight

Best Motion Picture - Musical/Comedy
La La Land

Best Lead Actor - Drama
Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea

Best Lead Actress - Drama
Isabelle Huppert, Elle

Best Lead Actor - Musical/Comedy
Ryan Gosling, La La Land

Best Lead Actress - Musical/Comedy
Emma Stone, La La Land

Best Supporting Actor
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nocturnal Animals

Best Supporting Actress
Viola Davis, Fences

Best Director
Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Best Screenplay
Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Best Original Score
Justin Hurwitz, La La Land

Best Original Song
"City of Stars." La La Land

Best Animated Feature
Zootopia

Best Foreign Language Film
Elle