2017 Oscar Predictions: Barry Jenkins or Damien Chazelle for Best Director?

Best Director looks like a locked up category with Damien Chazelle becoming the youngest winner in history for La La Land. Best Director is probably the easier of the major categories to predict at the Oscars. Even if Best Picture is a surprise — Shakespeare in Love over Saving Private Ryan or Crash over Brokeback Mountain — Best Director always goes the way that…
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2017 Oscar Predictions: Best Animated Feature

Zootopia is the comfortable frontrunner in this category, however, Kubo and the Two Strings could pull off a surprise upset While Best Animated Feature sounds like an open and shut category, there is actually room for an upset. But let's start at the bottom first. I think the only film that has absolutely zero chance of winning The Red…
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“The Age of Miracles” Book Review: Captivating, Speculative, and Miraculous

The Age of Miracles, a speculative fiction coming-of age-story, is Karen Thompson Walker’s debut novel. It’s a look into the lives of 11-year-old Julia and her family during “the slowing”—due to unknown causes, the earth’s rotation has shifted, and the days are getting longer. Like, 40 hours of sunlight longer. Walker speculates (hence, speculative fiction)…
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Best Books We Read In 2016

Because my commute involves two hours on three trains every morning, I was able to read 41 books this year. While I am very proud of this fact, I'm also sad about it. But these ten (well, eleven) books were well worth it. Here are my favorite books I read in 2016! 10. Looking for Alaska (tie)…
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Hannibal Review: “Digestivo” (3×07)

In Italian cuisine the digestivo is had last, and its purpose is right there in the name: essentially a nightcap. It’s a small drink used to aid digestion of the meal. “Digestivo” is more a binge than a nightcap, but it does such a beautiful job of synthesizing not just the preceding season, but the…
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