Pop Culture Rewind

Adele OWNS The Music Industry

The final numbers are in – 3.38 million copies sold in one week and with that, Adele has not only broken too many records to list, but cemented her place as one of the greatest of all times. In terms of records, the one on everyone’s mind was the most obvious – most albums sold in one week, previously held by N’Sync with 2.4 million. Many believed the music industry’s days of seeing those kind of numbers were long gone and no one was ever going to break that record. I guess they were wrong.

It really should have been a surprise to no one that Adele is having amazing success with her latest release, 25. However, I’m not sure anyone could have really predicted THIS level of success. In a time when everyone uses the excuse that “no one buys music anymore…” Adele not only disproved that myth but destroyed just about every other artist in her wake, while doing so. I’ve already shared my thoughts on why I think Adele and her music connects with so many people on such a profound level. So I’ll just say “keep snatching those wigs girl – we’re not worthy….”

American Music Awards (Show)

The American Music Awards were held this past Sunday and I would love to say it was an amazing display of great music, electrifying performances and star power that kept me greatly entertained from beginning to end, but that would be a lie. Early in the show, host Jennifer Lopez, who really just seemed interested in showing how many outfit changes she could have during the three hour show, talked about what the American Music Awards meant to her and her memories of watching it as a child.

She proceeded to mention all the legends she watched perform on the show and it made me realize what’s really wrong and lacking with the show recently. There is no real star power attached to it anymore. When the biggest name in the music industry at the show is Justin Bieber, that is incredibly, incredibly sad. There were a few highlights but they were far too few and in between. Some of the moments I did enjoy include:

Jennifer Lopez’s Intro

Listen, Jennifer Lopez is a gorgeous woman who has managed to parlay some really mediocre talents to a very, very successful career and more power to her. But while she is a mediocre singer and mediocre actress, she is a pretty bad ass dancer and thankfully she is self-aware enough to know that. So after a few awkward seconds of her attempting a slowed down version of her hit Waiting For Tonight, I guess in an ill-advised attempt to prove she can maybe sing, she switched to doing what she does best and delivered an awesome dance tribute to all the hit songs of the past year. Good on you J-Lo.

One Direction Perform Perfect

Okay, I’m no Directioner or whatever their fans are called (although in a battle between them and Bieber I’d take them any day because Bieber is really, really freaking annoying) but what I liked about this is that it just was and didn’t try too hard. There weren’t any gimmicks, they didn’t try too hard and just sang the song and quite well to be honest. That said, I feel like that’s also how their last AMA performance was so maybe a little shaking up might have been a good idea. Nah, this was fine…

Meghan Trainor and Charlie Puth

This was enjoyable. Both songs were awesome and vocally they both delivered. I know most people were mostly focused on the make-out at the end of the performance and frankly I’m still sort of recovering from watching Charlie grab Meghan’s ass but for me it was a really strong performance, with or without the make-out.

Walk The Moon

I feel like this song is a little old at this point and surprised it got such a focus on the show but honestly, I love it. And that dude looked so happy and into his song and performance, it just made me enjoy it even more.

Celine Dion’s Tribute To Paris

This was frankly the best performance of night, period. Ms. Celine in full on diva mode showing them all how it’s done. And yes my French is poor to nonexistent so I didn’t understand a lot of what she was saying. However, the emotion was palpable and real and that’s all that really mattered.

American Music Awards (Winners)

Yes I’m listing different aspects of the show individually. So about the winners – well they were predictable as they always are and especially once the show went to the format of letting the public vote. At that point it was pretty much a given that the One Direction, Justin Bieber, etc. of the world would win. I know Carrie Underwood though is thrilled for this format because it’s about the only award show left that she can still get a damn win against Miranda Lambert (love my girl Carrie but it’s true. Although she did win a Grammy earlier this year for her single Something In The Water). Perhaps the biggest surprise of the night was One Direction, once again defeating Taylor Swift for Artist of the Year. Guess those Directioners really know how to vote.

American Music Awards (Fashion)

In a word, the fashion was awful. It was like the battle of who could look the tackiest. Perennial fashion favorites like Gwen Stefani disappointed terribly (is this what divorce does to one’s fashion sense), others were just boring, like Selena Gomez and most just tried WAY too hard. I honestly cannot think of one look that I absolutely loved. At best, there were a few that I didn’t absolutely hate but that’s not saying much.

Dancing With the Stars Finale

The confetti rained down on the ballroom as another season of ABC’s long running hit (and one of my reality favorites) Dancing With the Stars came to a close. When it was all said and done, 17 year old Bindi Irwin, the almost unnaturally happy wonder from down under, edged out Backstreet Boy star Nick Carter, to win the mirrorball. Bindi’s win meant an unprecedented sixth mirror ball win for her Pro partner Derek Hough, thereby cementing his GOAT status on the show and angering all the ones who hate seeing him win, which of course only amuses me greatly.

I believe Bindi had it in the bag by mid-season. Not only was she clearly a fan favorite who was likely getting a vast amount of viewer votes, she was the most consistent throughout the competition. Great as Nick is, I don’t think he ever really grew as a ballroom dancer from Week 1 to the finale and he was too in his head, much like Alexa PenaVega who actually had some really good natural ability and rhythm but could never get the consistency down and nail the dances week after week. In conclusion, it was a fun season, which is usually the case for me personally.

I have watched this show since the first season and sure there are things that bug me here and there but at the end of the day it is a fun, cheesy show for a really ugly trophy and why I can never understand those who take it so seriously and become so vicious and angry about the favorites. In a world where we’re seeing so much hate and violence, I look forward to the simplicity of DWTS with its spray tan, cheesy dialogue, fun dancing and of course Tom Bergeron. And I’ll be back in March, when the show returns for Season 22. Some of my favorite performances from the season were:

Bindi/Derek – Viennese Waltz

Bindi/Derek – Foxtrot

Bindi/Derek –  Freestyle

Nick/Sharna – Viennese Waltz

Nick/Sharna – Samba (Saturday Night Fever)

Team Nightmare

Lindsay/Carlos – Quickstep

Andy/Alison – Jazz

Tamar/Val – Rumba 

Alexa/Bindi – Duet Charleston

 

 

2015 Primetime Emmy Awards

The annual Primetime Emmy Awards, which celebrates achievement in primetime television programming was held this past Sunday on FOX. This year’s ceremony was hosted by Andy Samberg and as with most award shows, there was a lot of humor, tears, fashion and some awkwardness. In my first post on this blog, I expressed my not so great love for the Emmy Awards, specifically for their consistent habit of awarding the same actors and shows year after year.

I do not advocate denying a deserving winner but the fact is it makes for VERY boring viewing when one can predict the winners every year. That was not the case for this year’s ceremony. Yes the night started off with a two-peat win for Alison Janney in the Supporting Actress in a Comedy category and Julia Louis Dreyfus had a four-peat win in the Lead Actress in a Comedy category but Sunday’s ceremony saw many first time winners which made for a very fun night. Below are my top 10 highlights.

1. Andy Samberg – He wasn’t on too much but when he was, he was funny, engaging and topical with his humor. He didn’t try to reinvent the wheel or try too hard to be funny and edgy. Instead he kept things light, entertaining and fun and moved the show along. And honestly, that’s all we can really expect from an awards show host. His opening monologue was hilarious.

2. Viola Davis Makes History – The first Primetime Emmy Awards were held in 1949. In the show’s sixty-plus year history, no African American woman had ever won in the Lead Actress in a Drama category – until this year. Two-time Academy Award nominee Viola Davis finally broke the trend by winning for her stunning portrayal of Annalise Keating in ABC’s How To Get Away With Murder. Let me just say, as someone who watches HTGAWM, yes the show is riddled with problems but Ms. Davis KILLS it every single time. She has a powerful and commanding presence and if you ever watch any scene on the show, watch the one where her character removes her wig – so powerful. Well aware of the significance of the moment, Viola gave a stunning and moving speech that made her win all the more special. You have to watch it in full.

Congratulations also to Regina King who seemed truly stunned and humbled by her win and Uzo Aduba who made her own  history, winning in two separate categories (Comedy and Drama) for playing the same character.

3. Hamm Finally Takes It Home – After seven years of playing complex and enigmatic ad-man Don Draper on AMC’s critically lauded Mad Men, Jon Hamm finally took home the award for Lead Actor in a Drama Series for the show’s final season. Hamm had consistently been nominated for every season of the show but never won. There was an obvious heavy sentiment that he was due and you could tell that most of the audience was rooting for him. I thought he gave a very humble and heartfelt speech and that he seemed truly appreciative for the award and the moment.

4. In Memoriam – The In Memoriam segment is always sad and poignant to be honest. But I found this year’s particularly well-produced and beautiful. The use of Eva Cassidy’s gorgeous cover of Somewhere Over The Rainbow was a gorgeous choice. And there was simply no better way to end than with Leonard Nimoy’s iconic Dr. Spock’s “Live Long and Prosper” line.

5. Modern Family Dethroned – Let’s face it, it was time. It’s sad but I don’t think there was ANYONE in that audience, save for the show’s cast and crew, that was rooting for them to pull off a six-peat win in the Best Comedy Series category. In fact, I’m not sure even some of the cast and crew was rooting for a win knowing how much everyone else did not want to see them win. The truth is Modern Family is still a funny and decently written show. However, it by no means has been the best comedy on television for the last two years and those five straight wins have just succeeded in souring many on the show which really isn’t their fault. It’s more the fault of the voters and their laziness. But the backlash was loud enough that they finally got a clue and this year awarded HBO’s Veep with the honors.

6. Jon Stewart Goes Out In A Big Way – The Daily Show, which contrary to what many believe is actually still on but simply no longer helmed by Jon Stewart, was shown a lot of love by the academy voters. The show won in all three categories it was nominated in, including Outstanding Variety Talk Series. Jon Stewart, sporting some “I recently retired so I’m no longer trying” facial hair, accepted for the latter win and while he made a few quips, one could tell he was very genuinely moved that he and his team were honored one last time. It was the perfect period on an iconic television run.

7. Who’s That Girl – Lady Gaga, making her first appearance at the Primetime Emmy Awards, now that she’s dipping her toes in the world of television with the upcoming season of American Horror Story, took the stage not looking ANYTHING like Lady Gaga. Everything about her look screamed subtle and understated – from the beautiful, black silhouette gown to her simple hair and makeup. Gaga looked and acted like a sophisticated woman on Sunday night and it was gorgeous.

8. Tracy Morgan’s Emotional Return – It’s been more than a year since the tragic car accident that killed Tracy Morgan’s friend and seriously injured the comedian himself. At last year’s Emmy Awards, Morgan’s good friend Jimmy Kimmel sent him an emotional shout-out, saying he’d see him at the show next year. And he was right. Walking out to a standing ovation to hand out the night’s final award for Best Drama Series, Morgan very emotionally thanked the audience, his industry peers and fans for all their prayers and support. It was one of the most genuine and heartfelt moments of the night. Despite his emotions, he wouldn’t be Tracy Morgan if he didn’t throw in a joke or two and so of course he announced to us that some women would be leaving the after-party pregnant. Welcome back Tracy.

9. Heat – Yes the heat was its own story and truly a highlight at this year’s ceremony. The red carpet was a parade of women sweating out their hair and makeup and the men looking like they wished they could just strip off their jackets, get rid of their ties and unbutton a few buttons of their dress shirt. Apparently the temperature was at a sweltering 106 degrees and boy did it show. I actually felt sorry for these women in those over the top gowns, face caked with makeup, walking that long walk up the red carpet. Stars they’re just like us and that means the heat gets to them too.

10. Fashion – And finally, it’s not truly an award show without the fashion. This year’s show was no different. There was the good, the bad and oh dear god, why. Some of my favorites included:

Lady Gaga in Brandon Maxwell

She got it so right.

Laverne Cox in Calvin Klein 

This was just a gorgeously fitted dress and beautiful silhouette.

Sarah Paulson in Prabal Gurung

A little safe but it works for her.

Julia Louis Dreyfus in Safiyaa London

She always gets it just right for her.

Sarah Hyland in Zac Posen

Stunning. Even her heat soaked hair could not ruin this look.

And now for the why…just why. I honestly couldn’t choose between these two and decided what the hell, I’d bestow them both with the honor.

Heidi Klum in Versace 

Hot mess doesn’t even begin to describe it. This is like five different styles and ideas thrown in one god-awful yellow Big Bird inspired mess.

Claire Danes in Prada

My very first post on this blog was a recap of the Golden Globes where I picked Danes as my worse dressed. Congratulations, you’ve earned the honor once again. There is nothing good about this – from the hair and makeup that makes her look washed out and the god-awful dress. Just why?

The 2015 Academy Awards

All roads lead to the Oscars. After months of award shows, speeches, surprises, predictions, gowns and more, it all culminated in Hollywood’s most premier event, The Academy Awards, aka, The Oscars.

Hollywood’s oldest and grandest award show event, the Oscars are known for emotional wins and speeches, funny hosts, celebrating the film industry and being very long. And while this year’s show definitely nailed the long part, as well as emotional wins and speeches – the funny host part, not so much (more on that later).

In the end, turns out Academy voters really, really loved the tale of a washed up, once beloved superhero franchise actor, trying to make a comeback on Broadway. The story of an average American family told over the span of 12 years though, not so much. These are my picks for the best, worst and just plain awkward moments from Sunday’s telecast.

Good

Lady Gaga Shines – Reminding the world that underneath all the costumes, productions and glitter is a genuinely talented woman, Lady Gaga stunned in a gorgeous tribute celebrating the 50^th Anniversary of The Sound of Music. She looked stunning and her voice was stellar…amazing job. It was especially moving seeing how touched she was by the audience’s very appreciative reaction. The moment was perfectly capped off with Julie Andrew’s surprise appearance at the end, to present the award for Best Original Score.

A “Glorious” Night – There probably aren’t enough superlatives to sum up the brilliance of John Legend and Common’s powerfully moving performance of their Oscar nominated song Glory, from the film Selma. The only proof one needed to understand the power of the moment was the audience’s reaction after. Seeing Chris Pine in tears is not something you expect to see at the Oscars. Their amazing performance was only matched by their superbly profound acceptance speech. On a lighter note, was anyone else highly amused to learn that Common’s real name is Lonnie Lynn? Just me…

Cheers Eddie, J.K., Patricia and Julianne – I thought all the acting categories were well deserved. Full disclosure, there have definitely been many years where I have disagreed with one or two of the acting categories. That was not the case this year. I’d say the closest category was Best Actor. And while I definitely understand why many hoped to see Michael Keaton win, having been gone for a few years and being in the industry so long, having seen both performances, I do think Eddie was more deserving. It was also nice how truly humbled and excited they all were.

We Didn’t See That One Coming – Perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the night was Graham Moore’s win for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Imitation Game. It probably should not have been a surprise because Moore did win the Writers’ Guild of America award for Adapted Screenplay, usually a great precursor for the Oscars. However, many experts predicted Damien Chazelle for Whiplash, and considering how the night started for Whiplash, it did seem very likely. So Moore’s win was something of a surprise and it was clear it was to him as well. He was however able to pull it together long enough to deliver one of the more moving speeches of the night, reminiscing on his suicide attempt when he was younger and encouraging all the “weird kids” to believe in themselves and embrace who they are.

A “Grand” Love Affair – The Grand Budapest Hotel may not have won the big prize of Best Picture, but the Academy definitely showed the film a lot of love, rewarding it with four awards including Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Original Score and Best Makeup and Hair. And it wasn’t the only film, while not winning the big prizes like Picture and Director, to still be rewarded multiple times. Whiplash, along with J.K. Simmons’ win for Best Supporting Actor, won Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing. It was nice, that despite the fact that it felt like Birdman cleaned up with Best Director, Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay wins, the voters found a way to spread the love around and reward almost all the Best Picture nominated films in some way.

Bad

The Host Without The Most – Oh poor Neil Patrick Harris. Bless his heart, I am sure he tried. In fact, there were many times where it was painfully obvious he was trying so very hard but it just did not work. Other than the opening song and dance number which was quite good, everything else was pretty much downhill. The jokes were painfully unfunny, the gags uninteresting and way too long. I mean seriously, who was the team who worked with him on this? A bad pun about eating Reese Witherspoon up with a spoon? I mean really…a kindergartener could have come up with something cleverer than that. You could tell that the audience was struggling to get into it but the best they could muster up was a few polite applause and laughter.

And It Keeps Going and Going and Going – This year’s telecast went over by almost an hour. That is simply inexcusable in my opinion. At the 3-hour mark of the telecast, six of the big awards had not been given out yet. They rehearse for months for this show, there is a dress rehearsal before the telecast for crying out loud. There is no excuse for the show going over this much. The producers need to do a better job of tightening things up. It also didn’t help that most of the show just felt like it was dragging, largely because of Neil Patrick Harris bombing as the host.

No Love For Boyhood – I will be honest, I was not as wowed as the voters clearly seemed to be by Birdman. That being said, I wasn’t overly wowed by Boyhood either. However, I am little disappointed for Richard Linklater and if I were a voting member of the Academy, would have given him the vote for Best Director. While the story of Boyhood was not the most original, I do think the film itself was. Telling the story of an American family over 12 years, using the same actors, particularly the young actor who grew from young boy, to teenager to young man, was an impressive feat and something we’d never seen before. And for an award show that celebrates achievement in film-making, I just wished that effort had been more rewarded.

Everything Is NOT So Awesome – Um, what in the hell was that hot mess? I get that it was for The Lego Movie so Tegan and Sara likely went for something kitschy, cute and fun but this was not cute and fun, it was just screechy and kind of a mess. They should have looked to Pharrell on how one writes a fun, cute song for an animated film. His performance of Happy at last year’s telecast was awesome. This performance was not on any level. Okay…the lego Oscar statues were kind of cute.

The Montage Was Enough – Okay, so full disclosure, I’m not the biggest Jennifer Hudson fan. Something about her singing always feels like she’s rushing and comes across a bit manic in my opinion.  But I swear this isn’t bias on my side when I say I just didn’t see the point of her performance. In my opinion, if they wanted a musical tribute to those the industry lost this year, the producers should have had Jennifer sing while the montage was being shown. Having her come out after the montage was over, with a song that was quite boring in my opinion, was just a time waster in a show that was already running far too long.

And for the Awkward…

Wait, Which Award Show Is This? – So on the awkward scale, I’d put this at a low, but Lupita Nyong’o’s slip when presenting Best Supporting Actor was particularly memorable because she’d stated, less than hour prior, on the red carpet, that she was completely relaxed and calm this year because she wasn’t nominated and had nothing to worry about. And yet, right out of the gate, the first award of the night, she refers to the Oscar as an Actor (the term for the SAG award), before correcting herself. Maybe she wasn’t so relaxed after all.

So Many Feelings…Too Many – I guess Terrance Howard was very, very moved by Selma? Listen, don’t get me wrong, I’m all for being moved by art and expressing that. However, Howard’s somewhat over the top reaction in introducing the film as one of the eight nominated films for Best Picture, just felt a little exaggerated and a bit self-serving. Not to mention the hysterics seemed to clearly confuse the audience, which only added to awkwardness of the moment.

Why So Creepy – That is the question I ask about John Travolta. Seriously, when did he get so uncomfortably weird? The Academy producers naturally riffed on the big Adele Dazeem flop by Travolta during last year’s telecast, when he introduced Idina Menzel to perform the Oscar nominated song Let It Go. Idina herself was there, a good laugh was had and all John Travolta had to do was come out and play along and act endearingly abashed by the whole incident. He did, in the first moments after he walked out. And then it got strangely creepy and weird, when he all of a sudden intimately grabbed Idina’s chin and spoke to her in this creepy, condescending voice one would use for a five year old. Idina to her credit played along but it was an uncomfortably weird moment by a man who seems to be getting stranger and stranger. The awful hair piece does not help either.

And Finally, The Fashion…

There is no bigger award show when it comes to the fashion and seeing what stops celebrities pull out. This year’s fashion was okay but perhaps as a sign of things to come with the show itself, nothing truly wowed in my opinion. It was a lot of safe, elegant gowns but nothing truly out of this world stunning. However, there were still a few that I loved. As for the bad, even that was fairly subdued, but there were a few who managed to stand out in all the wrong ways.

Images courtesy Google Images

Good

After many fails throughout the awards season, Rosamund Pike finally got it so right on Oscars night in this gorgeous red Givenchy number. The dress fit like it was absolutely made and tailored for her every curve.

That’s how you look stunning, elegant and sexy at 65 at the Oscars, all while being age appropriate. I loved everything about this look. The mix of masculine with the jacket and sexy with the sleek skirt was absolute perfection.

This was a fairly simple look but what made it work so well for me was the expert tailoring. The fit is just gorgeous and hugs every curve on Reese and it is slick, sophisticated and she looks gorgeous. That’s a win in my book.

Bad (Or as I like to call it…WHY)

You know what bugs me about this and other out there looks by Jared Leto, is that I’m convinced he does it deliberately because he knows how gorgeous he is. And so he figures he’ll mess with his looks as much as possible, wear the dumbest stuff because at the end of the day, he’ll still be one of the most beautiful men at the awards. And sadly…it’s true. Even a stupid prom looking blue suit can’t ruin his looks.

Well she still has to be her. While she kept it classic for her performance later that night, Gaga delivered typical Gaga on the red carpet. Now the dress itself is not so bad. A bit too boxy and geometrical for my taste but not awful. It’s the large, red rubber gloves that totally throws me off. I mean was she planning on washing some toilet bowls later…WTH?

2015 Grammy Awards

In my first blog post, I stated that the Grammy Awards is my favorite award show. I look forward to the show every year and if I’m being honest, it’s largely because it is less an award show and more like a 3.5 hours concert. Seriously, out of 83 categories, only 8 are awarded on air and the rest of the time is filled with performances. So this year was no different in terms of my excitement level. And then the show happened.

I have spent the last two days trying to write this blog post, which would sum up how I felt about this year’s show. And after much contemplation, the only word that seems fitting is boring – yes, in my opinion, this year’s show was completely and utterly boring. The biggest problem I thought, was how ballad-heavy it was. EVERYONE seemed to do a slow song, even artists typically known for fun, fast pop songs like Katy Perry, for example.

It almost felt like AC/DC zapped all the energy from everyone with their opening performance. This year’s show was so awful that I can’t even do a best and worst performances, as I typically would because honestly, I barely remember most of the performances. So instead, I’ll just do a general best and worst.

Best

Hoozier & Annie Lennox – Okay yes, I know just ragged on all the boring performances, so it seems contradictory that I start the best with a performance. That said, this was one of the few bright spots in a very boring and slow night and one of the performances I completely remembered and enjoyed from beginning to end. Hoozier’s Take Me To Church is a powerful song that always delivers, and adding a true diva and legend like Annie Lennox who is incapable of not kicking ass vocally, just brought the performance to perfection.

Iggy Azalea Went Home Empty-Handed – Is this a little petty, hell yeah and I make no apologies for it. Putting aside the fact that frankly she should not have even been nominated (okay I guess I can grudgingly acknowledge that Fancy was huge and so maybe deserved the Record of the Year nomination), it was good to see mediocrity not rewarded simply because a lot of people have bad taste and a few of her singles sold a lot. Her album sucked and she can’t rap and it would have been an insult to the Rap/Hip-Hop genre for her to win any of the awards she was nominated for in these categories.

Beck “Upsets” Beyonce to Win Album of the Year – For the record, I was totally fine with the likelihood that Beyonce would win. While certainly not my favorite album, I can acknowledge that it is a solid R&B effort from beginning to end, she’s at this point an established artist who has paid her dues in the industry and I could certainly see her unconventional release strategy and the visual album playing a part in voters’ minds. That being said, I felt if anyone had the best chance to upset her, it was Beck. His album, while certainly not the commercial splash the Beyonce album was, garnered just as much, if not more, critical praise. Added to that, he’s a well-established artist himself who has also paid his dues for years. I felt that this would come down to whether or not voters would go for the commercial hit (Beyonce) or the critical/obscure darling (Beck). And well they went with the latter and as someone who remembers Beck’s awesomely awkward white boy rapping/dancing to Where It’s At, I’m thrilled for him.

Sam Smith’s Speeches – I’ll say this, I’m not the biggest Sam Smith fan. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Stay With Me, as well I’m Not The Only One and I do think he has a beautiful voice. That said, I found his album a bit sleepy. That said, while he was not my favorite, I did appreciate his genuine joy and humility at his wins and particularly his speeches. The dig at his ex was hilarious but I was particularly moved by his stating that it was only when he learned to love and accept himself, that the music flowed and people started listening. Always nice to get a message of self-acceptance.

Taylor Swift Shut Out – So I have a love/hate thing with Taylor Swift. I’ve actually been listening to her since Tim McGraw, her first single and I may have been one of the few who thought she deserved her Album of the Year win for Fearless. That said, I also find her quite petty and passive aggressive at times which is a huge turnoff. That dig at Tina Fey and Amy Poehler about there being a special place in hell for women who don’t support women simply because they ragged on her like they did just about everyone else in the Golden Globe audience, was ridiculous. Still, I do think she’s a fairly talented songwriter and I totally jam to some of her music (I’m currently obsessed with Style off the 1989 album). That said, Shake It Off is a pretty crappy song that I’m convinced was only nominated for Record and Song of the Year because it’s Taylor and it sold a shit ton. So I was very happy to see it not win a thing because really, could the voters even look themselves in the face if they’d awarded Song of the Year to a song that says “the haters gonna hate, hate and the players gonna play, play.” I mean really…

Worst

Ed Sheeran Shut Out – So okay, full confession, a few weeks ago, I had actually never heard any of Ed Sheeran’s music. I know what you’re thinking – how is that possible? Especially for a person like me who loves music. Seriously, I have everything from pop, country, classical, rap, rock, etc. in my iTunes library. And I’m always buying music. But somehow I just never felt the desire to listen to Ed. I knew he was selling a lot and was hugely popular but just didn’t have any desire to hear his stuff. Well that changed when I heard Thinking Out Loud and fell in love. I then checked out the entire X album and I can honestly say that I thought he deserved at least one award. As I noted above, I like Sam Smith well enough but I definitely think Ed had the better album and really wished he’d won Best Pop Vocal Album. As good as Smith is, he was not four awards good in my opinion.

“Tribute” to Stevie Wonder – I put tribute in quotation marks because I feel like calling that mess a tribute is a bit of an exaggeration. I just cannot wrap my head around a tribute to Stevie Wonder, a legend with such a vast discography being limited to one performer. And then that performer is Usher, who is awesome, but he somehow manages to find the one Stevie Wonder song I’ve never heard, to perform. And in keeping with the theme of the night, it was slow. I was really confused during that whole performance.

Sam Smith Wins ROTY and SOTY – Look as I noted above, I have nothing against Sam Smith and I absolutely loved Stay With Me. And by all means, his win was certainly much better than Taylor, Meghan Trainor or Iggy winning. That said, I truly believe Sia was the more deserving winner in both categories. Put aside all the theatrics of her not showing her face, the performance art number (and yes even I too was confused by Kristen Wiig’s appearance) and the fact is Chandelier is a powerful song that brilliantly captures the darkness of alcoholism. And in terms of ROTY, the production on the song was amazing. From the bass heavy verses into the loud and soaring chorus that not many popular vocalists would be able to manage. It is an absolutely stunning song in my opinion, one of the best of this decade and I wished it had received at least one accolade.

Madonna’s Performance – Okay, let me start with something positive. I liked the production with the Minotaur costumed dancers. That said, the song sucked and I feel like age is starting to catch up to Madonna. She looked slow and awkward during a lot of her movements. But honestly, ultimately this was just a very boring and not very memorable performance which are two things you never really expect to say about Madonna.

Kanye West Almost Interrupting Beck – So during the show he sort of played it off as a joke and many in the audience seemed to treat it as such. And that was okay, although I was still slightly annoyed because it felt like more of Kanye’s need for attention. However, this was before he later went on a rant on the E! Network post-Grammy special. According to Kanye, Beck should have given his award to Beyonce and the Grammy voters giving Beck the award over Beyonce means they don’t respect artistry. *Sigh* You know I’m not even going to go into the ridiculousness of Kanye questioning appreciation for artistry when Beck, a multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter-producer wins AOTY (you can see many awesome responses to his ridiculous comments all over the internet). At this point I’m just over his behavior. This is a grown man pushing 40 who as he notes, has a wife and child. This behavior is no longer cute, not that it ever was but it’s even more embarrassing now. It’s just predictable and annoying at this point. As Shirley Manson perfectly stated in a Facebook comment to Kanye – he is the one disrespecting artistry with these antics. It’s fine to love and support who you love and support but the fact is he disrespects and demeans other just as talented and hardworking artists when he pulls this crap. Beck is someone who loves his craft and works just as hard as Beyonce at it, though their success may not be the same. For Kanye to stomp on Beck’s moment is just rude and unacceptable.

Some Standout/Notable Performances

Ed Sheeran with John Mayer and Electric Light Orchestra – Putting aside that he sang my absolute favorite song of his, it was nice to see John Mayer killing it on the guitar. Douche though he may be, I’ve always thought he is incredibly talented and a genius on the guitar.

Rihanna with Kanye West and Paul McCartney – I still don’t love the song, (see my review above) and I couldn’t understand why Rihanna was wearing a suit two sizes too big but she sounded awesome and they all looked alive and into the performance. The audience was also really into it as well, which is always a good thing.

John Legend with Common – I didn’t add Beyonce because sorry Beyhive, I found her performance of Precious Lord rather overwrought and I wasn’t moved at all. I was however truly moved by Legend and Common. John Legend’s voice on Glory is just stunning and powerful and I’ve always loved Common’s laid back style of rapping. This was an incredibly moving number that achieved its goal without a lot of over the top theatrics.

I’m sure there were other decent performances but once again, by the second hour of the show, I was so bored with all the slow, maudlin numbers that my attention span was all but gone.

As for the Fashion, because what’s an award show without it, even that was pretty boring. The two notable mentions for me was Rihanna and Madonna. While I didn’t love either and thought Rihanna looked like a pinata or someone on her way to her Quinceanera, I give her props for certainly making an entrance and pretty much owning the red carpet. As for Madonna – again, why? I think it’s time Lourdes and Rocco stage an intervention on their mom and give her a reality check. Here judge for yourself. Images courtesy Google Images:

Rihanna 

Madonna

2015 Screen Actors Guild Awards

The 21^st Annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, the penultimate American award show before the Academy Awards (I noted American because the British Academy of Film Awards are still to come and they have also been a significant indicator of Oscar winners in recent years), were held this past weekend. Like the Critics Choice, the SAG Awards is a more low key affair than the Golden Globes but is significant in that it celebrates actors by other actors. The following are my best and worst from this year’s ceremony.

Best

Eddie Redmayne Upsets Michael Keaton – Redmayne pulled off the upset, winning the award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, which many predicted would go to Michael Keaton. This excited me for three reasons. One, if one read my reviews of both the Globes and the Critics Choice, you would note that I have been saying despite early predictors, I truly believe that Redmayne could pull off the upset and win the Oscar for Best Actor. So his winning Sunday night just added validity to my suspicion and little fact about me, I like being right 🙂 Two, I like when there is a genuine race at the Academy Awards. While it’s nice for the actors who clean up during award season, it does make it a bit boring when by Oscar night, all the wins are pretty much a foregone conclusion. Finally, I am happy for Redmayne’s win because I saw both films and while I thought Keaton was wonderful in Birdman, I felt he was somewhat overshadowed by Edward Norton for the first half of the film, while Redmayne was absolutely brilliant throughout A Theory of Everything.

Modern Family Dethroned – For the first time in years, Modern Family went home completely empty handed, losing Lead Actor and Actress in a Comedy, as well as Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series to Orange is the New Black. And it was well overdue in my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, I still like Modern Family and it is a pleasant enough way to spend 30 minutes a week. However, it is by no means the best sitcom on television and hasn’t been for at least the last two seasons.

Uzo Aduba & Viola Davis’ Brilliant Speeches – I was thrilled for both women and thought they both delivered beautiful, humble and powerful speeches about self-acceptance. I was particularly moved by Aduba’s revelation that she got the part in Orange Is the New Black just as she was ready to give up on her dream of being an actress. A nice reminder that sometimes our dreams are just around the corner.

Birdman Upsets Boyhood – This thrilled me for the same reason Eddie Redmayne’s win did. That is, suddenly we have a legitimate Oscar race for Best Picture. Until week or so ago, Boyhood’s winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards seemed all but written in stone but now this seems less of a guarantee. It should be noted that American Hustle won the Ensemble award last year but 12 Years A Slave still went on to win Best Picture at the Oscars. However, what was most significant about Birdman’s win on Sunday, is that it came right on the heels (a day later to be exact) of the movie’s win at the Producers Guild Awards for Best Theatrical Motion Picture. This is important because the last seven Producers Guild Best Picture winners went on to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

Jared Leto & Lupita Nyong’o – So I could not possibly be the only who is “shipping” those two. Okay, well not really, but you have to admit they make a very, very pretty picture together. Also, I know am not the only one sensing an odd sexual tension between them. All I’m saying is if it did happen, I would approve.

Worst

William H. Macy’s Speech – Okay, first of all, I adore Macy as an actor. I think he is absolutely brilliant and one of the best actors in Hollywood. I was also thrilled for his Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series win, because I think Shameless is long overdue for some critical and award show love. That said, I really hated his speech. I am certain he was probably just trying to be funny but it veered very quickly from funny to awkward and slightly uncomfortable. Still like him though and still happy he won.

Tribute to Hollywood – As is often the case, the show does a tribute to some special part of the history of films. This year’s tribute focused on Hollywood’s depiction of social issues throughout the decades. While I appreciated the intent and there were a few poignant moments throughout, I felt like this missed the mark a bit. The entire video felt a bit rushed and badly pieced together with the clips not flowing as well as they should have.

Frances McDormand – Like William H. Macy, I love Frances McDormand’s talent and think she’s a brilliant actress. That said, her bored, seemingly annoyed face and disinterested body language is really a turn off. I don’t know if this is some schtick she’s working this year, much like Emma Thompson’s “everyone’s favorite drunk Aunt” act last award season but it’s really very unappealing. I noticed it at the Globes and it was just as bad at the SAG and it makes her seem slightly ungrateful and a little pretentious. I almost want to say “no one’s holding a gun to your head forcing you to attend these shows Frances…”

Debbie Reynold’s Tribute – This wasn’t all bad. I loved the video montage of her career and there were parts of her speech that were funny and adorable. However I found many moments of Carrie Fisher’s a little awkward particularly the snarky comments about her and Debbie’s not so great relationship throughout the years. I guess it’s great that they’re at a place where they can joke about it but it’s still a little uncomfortable and a bit too close to home, in my opinion.

The Fashion – There was no unmitigated disaster but there was no “wow” moment either. In fact, the best way I could sum up the fashion of the night was one big “meh.” It was in all rather boring. There were some beautiful moments, such as Felicity Jones’ gorgeous blush Balenciaga and Camilla Alves’ purple Donna Karen Atelier bombshell gown but all in all, a rather boring night for fashion.

Critics Choice Awards 2015

The 20^th annual Critics Choice Awards, presented by the Broadcast Film Critics Association, was held last night and aired on A&E. While certainly a lot more subdued than the Golden Globes, the awards are significant because like the Globes, Screen Actors’ Guild Award (SAG), British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award (BAFTA) and numerous unaired awards (LA Film Critics, New York Film Critics, National Board of Review, etc.), they act as an precursor for what is likely to happen, come Oscar night. So while not the huge party the Globes were, I still had a few observations about last night’s show:

The Host – So who thought it was a good idea to have Michael Strahan host the awards this year? That just seemed a very odd choice and that became even more obvious right from the start of the show. He tried (boy did he try…) but it just did not work – the costumes rather than funny, felt more desperate for laughs and a lot of the interactions with the celebrities felt incredibly awkward. Honestly, the best part of his hosting performance was that he was not on for a lot of the show.

The Broadcast Critics Clearly Don’t Always See Eye-to-Eye With The Academy – One of the most interesting parts of the show, especially coming on the same day the Academy Award nominations were revealed, was seeing how many movies and/or actors, writers, directors, etc. the Critics loved that the Academy clearly didn’t. The most striking example of this was the Best Director category which included both Angelina Jolie for Unbroken and Ava DuVernay for Selma, as well as David Fincher for Gone Girl. The Academy ignored all three, instead, nominating Bennett Miller for Foxcatcher and Morten Tyldum for The Imitation Game, along with the perennial favorites, Richard Linklater for Boyhood, Wes Anderson for The Grand Budapest Hotel and Alejandro G. Inarritu for Birdman.

The significant difference between the Critics voting and the Academy’s, was the win last night for The Lego Movie for Best Animated Feature Film. This was particularly bittersweet for the movie’s producers because after losing, in what many considered a huge surprise and upset, to How To Train Your Dragon 2 at the Globes, they were completely snubbed by the Academy. Clearly Academy voters just didn’t see what the Broadcast Critics and many others saw in this film.

The Winners May Be Set – If, as noted above, the Critics Choice is an excellent indicator, like the Globes and other awards, of what’s to come Oscar night, it’s looking pretty likely that the Acting (Michael Keaton for Best Actor, Julianne Moore for Best Actress, J.K. Simmons for Best Supporting Actor and Patricia Arquette for Best Supporting Actress), Director (Richard Linklater for Boyhood) and Best Picture (Boyhood) categories are a done deal. However, call me crazy, but I still think there is a very strong possibility for an “upset” in the Best Actor category on Oscar night and Eddie Redmayne will win. Because the only thing Academy voters love more than a comeback tale is a dramatic transformation like the one Eddie had to undergo to play famed physicist Stephen Hawkings. I am very interested to see what happens at the Screen Actors Guild as I feel fairly certain Eddie will win the BAFTA for Best Actor.

There was really no amazing fashion to speak of but I would like to give an honorary mention to Jennifer Aniston for proving she can do something interesting and step out of her predictable fashion box. This was by no means my favorite look (I think the jacket is a bit too low and make her boobs look a bit saggy) but I’m just happy to see the woman is capable of something beyond basic black. And I say this as someone who loves black but it’s always nice to shake it up once in awhile.

N.B. Image courtesy Google Images

2015 Golden Globe Awards

The 72^nd Annual Golden Globe Awards were held last night and it delivered many of the elements that make it “Hollywood’s Biggest Party of the Year” – funny hosts, celebrities enjoying a little too much champagne, awkward acceptance speeches, heartwarming and tear-filled speeches and exciting  surprise wins.

I love the Golden Globes. Next to the Grammy Awards, it is my favorite award show and a lot of the love has to do with the aforementioned drunk celebrities, awkward, funny and sometimes beautiful speeches. But more importantly, I really enjoy the Globes because the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) loves rewarding new shows.

No disrespect to the Primetime Emmy Awards and the deserving actors/actresses who are awarded, but let’s be honest, it’s boring watching the same show and/or same actors win year after year (looking at you, Modern Family). It eventually starts to feel like there’s no point even watching when we already know who’s going to win. Not the case with the Globes, and this year was no different. The following are some of my highlights from this year’s show:

One for the Road (Amy & Tina) – Amy Poehler and Tina Fey will not return next year as the show’s hosts (no word yet on who’s replacing them) which sucks, but they certainly went out on a high. While the Bill Cosby jokes felt a little “too much too soon” and clearly had many of the celebrities uncomfortably squirming in their seats, I applaud their having the cojones to go for it. Only complaint, they weren’t on nearly enough. At one point, it almost felt like they’d all but vanished.

Congratulations Freshman Class of 2015 – Sticking with their tradition, the Globes awarded many fresh new faces and shows this year. The television categories were dominated by newcomers, most notably Gina Rodriguez, whose win for Best Lead Actress in a Comedy for her role on Jane The Virgin, gave the CW its first Golden Globe win ever in the network’s history. Other newcomers to the party was Jeffrey Tambor for Best Lead Actor in a Comedy, while his show Transparent won for Best Comedy Series and Matt Bomer, who won Best Supporting Actor for a Mini-series/TV Movie for his revelatory performance in HBO’s A Normal Heart. Showtime’s sexy newcomer The Affair won Best Drama, while its star Ruth Wilson, won Best Lead Actress in a Drama. All were well deserved in my opinion.

Speeches (The Good, the Bad & the Plain Awkward) – To be fair, none of the speeches this year were particularly awful which while great for the winners, was a little boring for me. However there were still a few gems during the night – both good and bad.

• The Good – I was particularly moved by Gina Rodriguez and Matt Bomer, both clearly very appreciative and humbled by their wins, as well as Michael Keaton and Julianne Moore, two stars with long careers but still not too cynical or jaded to truly appreciate the moment.
• The Bad – These speeches weren’t so much as they weren’t so great, starting with George Clooney. I like George Clooney and am happy for him for his Cecille B. Demille honor but his speech, while perfectly fine, was almost too perfect and therefore seemed a little too rehearsed. I felt like some real heart and emotion was missing. It was a a bit too polished for my taste. The other bad on my list was Wes Anderson’s speech after his film The Grand Budapest Hotel won Best Picture – Comedy/Musical. I get it, Wes Anderson is a snarky, satirical writer (just watch any one of his many films) and I really enjoyed the first part of his speech and didn’t mind so much the “let me shout out the HFPA members” schtick. It’s just after a second or two, the “let me list as crazy a name as possible” started feeling a bit culturally insensitive. Sort of a “they’re foreign so they must have weird sounding names.” Humor like that is always a very fine line. Finally, Bonnie Arnold, who won for How to Train a Dragon 2 makes my bad list for talking and rambling until he was all but played out, without ever giving his co-producer who was standing right next to him, clearly wanting to say something, a chance to give her thanks. Not gentlemanly at all.
• The Awkward – One word, Amy Adams. Bless her heart and I quite like Amy Adams but I guess she really was honest about not believing she would win and not just being self-deprecating. That is, if her acceptance speech is anything to go by. It was a rambly, sometimes incoherent, very repetitive mess. And let’s not even mention her very awkward shout out to her publicist who is pregnant with twins, that many thought was really her revealing that she was expecting twins. Again…weird. I still like you though Amy but maybe lay off the booze at the SAG.

We Didn’t See That Coming (Best Surprise Wins) – For an award show that loves rewarding freshman shows and stars, it’s little wonder that it also often has its share of “surprise” wins and this year was no different. The night’s first big “upset” was HBO’s very acclaimed mystery crime drama True Detective and its lead star Matthew McConaughey, losing Best Mini-series/TV Movie and Best Actor in a Mini-Series/TV Movie to Showtime’s Fargo and Billy Bob Thornton, respectively. On one hand this was actually not that shocking, as Fargo swept these same categories at this year’s Primetime Emmy Awards. However, they didn’t have to compete against True Detective, as HBO took the calculated gamble of submitting the show and its stars in the Drama category (spoiler alert – it didn’t work. They lost). Many believed appropriately submitting it in the Mini-Series category for the Globes would make the show fare better, especially with newly minted Academy Award winner McConaughey in the mix but clearly, voters weren’t as enamored with the show as the critics and audience were. The other big surprises were The Grand Budapest Hotel besting Birdman for Best Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical and The Lego Movie losing Best Animated Movie to How to Train Your Dragon 2. I have to say I was thrilled about the former result. As brilliant as Birdman is, I don’t believe it is really a Comedy and it is certainly not a Musical. So for the category that it was in, The Grand Budapest Hotel truly was the better film.

Finally…The Fashion of Course – What is an award show without amazing fashions and this year’s Golden Globes was no different. There was no outstanding Lupita N’Yongo moment for me (though she definitely worked it but certainly not as star turning as last year) but still some beautiful gowns. And as always, there was definitely the “what were they thinking” moments (Oh Kiera…why?). The following are my 5 best dressed and the one that made me go “really…really?”

N.B. All images courtesy Google Images

Love this. It’s true to who she is while being sleek, sophisticated and even a little sexy

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Yes pants again…but hey, I can’t help it if they both rocked it and rocked it Emma did. Like Lorde’s outfit, this is sleek and sophisticated with a little bad ass element to it.

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Wasn’t really in love with the gloves at first but knowing that she wore them in solidarity for the French due to their recent terror attacks, I can live with it. The dress is gorgeous though.

Nothing too out of the ordinary for  Amy but hey, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. This is well tailored, well fitted piece and I think the color looks gorgeous on her. She also gets points for being one of the few whose hair was not a mess last night.

Hollywood bombshell…that’s all. This dress is all Hollywood sexy glamour and says “I’m a star that you’re going to pay attention to.” Love it.

And for the worst:

Just…why? I have nothing else but why…