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TV Today: The Independent Spirit Awards, Twice

BuzzSugar — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 12:00:01 -0800

Can't wait till the Oscars for your awards fix this weekend? Well today, you can get a quirky take on the red carpet and awards show fun with Film Independent's Spirit Awards live at 5 p.m. Eastern/2 p.m. Pacific on IFC. If you're unable to catch it live in the afternoon, an edited version will re-air on AMC at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.

This year's host is funny man Steve Coogan, star of Hamlet 2, and I'm looking forward to seeing how he does with the show's free-flowing format. Based on some recent Twitter updates from last year's host, Rainn Wilson, I'm sure the night will offer up some memorable moments. You can check out a list of this year's nominees here and come back a little later today to see a full list of winners.

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Rachel Getting Married Leads 2009 Independent Spirit Noms

BuzzSugar — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 10:35:45 -0800

After all the acclaim heaped on Rachel Getting Married, the family drama starring Anne Hathaway, it makes sense that the movie would lead (along with two other films that also received six nominations each: Sundance favorites Ballast and Frozen River) the year's batch of nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards.

Other titles in the Best Feature category include the heartbreaking Wendy and Lucy, starring Michelle Williams, and the Mickey Rourke drama The Wrestler. Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona is getting some love, with acting nominations for Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz and a Best Screenplay nomination for Allen. Milk scored several nominations as well, including a Best Actor nod for Sean Penn and a Best Supporting Actor for James Franco.

The winners will be announced at the ceremony on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009. To check out the full list of this year's Independent Spirit Award nominees, read more.

The 2009 Spirit Award Nominees:

BEST FEATURE
Ballast
Frozen River
Rachel Getting Married
Wendy and Lucy
The Wrestler

BEST DIRECTOR
Ramin Bahrani (Chop Shop)
Jonathan Demme (Rachel Getting Married)
Lance Hammer (Ballast)
Courtney Hunt (Frozen River)
Tom McCarthy (The Visitor)

BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to the director and producer)
Afterschool
Director: Antonio Campos
Producers: Sean Durkin, Josh Mond

Medicine for Melancholy
Director: Barry Jenkins
Producer: Justin Barber

Sangre De Mi Sangre
Director: Christopher Zalla
Producers: Per Melita, Benjamin Odell

Sleep Dealer
Director: Alex Rivera
Producer: Anthony Bregman

Synecdoche, New York
Director: Charlie Kaufman
Producers: Anthony Bregman, Spike Jonze, Charlie
Kaufman, Sidney Kimmel

BEST MALE LEAD
Javier Bardem (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Richard Jenkins (The Visitor)
Sean Penn (Milk)
Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker)
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)

BEST FEMALE LEAD
Summer Bishil (Towelhead)
Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married)
Melissa Leo (Frozen River)
Tarra Riggs (Ballast)
Michelle Williams (Wendy and Lucy)

BEST SUPPORTING MALE
James Franco (Milk)
Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker)
Charlie McDermott (Frozen River)
Jim Myron Ross (Ballast)
Haaz Sleiman (The Visitor)

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Penélope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Rosemarie DeWitt (Rachel Getting Married)
Rosie Perez (The Take)
Misty Upham (Frozen River)
Debra Winger (Rachel Getting Married)

BEST SCREENPLAY
Woody Allen (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck (Sugar)
Charlie Kaufman (Synecdoche, New York)
Howard A. Rodman (Savage Grace)
Christopher Zalla (Sangre De Mi Sangre)

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Dustin Lance Black (Milk)
Lance Hammer, (Ballast)
Courtney Hunt (Frozen River)
Jonathan Levine (The Wackness)
Jenny Lumet (Rachel Getting Married)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Maryse Alberti (The Wrestler)
Lol Crawley (Ballast)
James Laxton (Medicine for Melancholy)
Harris Savides (Milk)
Michael Simmonds (Chop Shop)

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD (Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director, and producer)
In Search of a Midnight Kiss
Prince of Broadway
The Signal
Take Out
Turn the River

BEST DOCUMENTARY
The Betrayal
Encounters at the End of the World
Man on Wire
The Order of Myths
Up the Yangtze

FOREIGN FILM
The Class (France)
Gomorra (Italy)
Hunger (UK/Ireland)
Secret of the Grain (France)
Silent Light (Mexico/France/Netherlands/Germany)

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD (Given to one film’s director, casting director, and its ensemble cast)
Synecdoche, New York
Director: Charlie Kaufman
Casting Director: Jeanne McCarthy
Ensemble Cast: Hope Davis, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Catherine Keener, Samantha Morton, Tom Noonan, Emily Watson, Dianne Wiest, Michelle Williams

IFC/ACURA SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
Barry Jenkins, director of Medicine for Melancholy
Nina Paley, director of Sita Sings the Blues
Lynn Shelton, director of My Effortless Brilliance

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:30:36 -0700

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. Oh and even though it's not on Netflix, don't forget that Ally McBeal: The Complete Series is finally available on DVD today!

Year One

The comedy chops of Michael Cera and Jack Black weren't enough to make prehistoric comedy Year One a hit, but the movie still has some laughs, especially if you're fans of the two actors.

The gross-out humor definitely wore on me, but the funny supporting cast might make it worth the rental (Paul Rudd, Hank Azaria, and David Cross all make cameos) - if you can stand all the toilet humor.

16%

See two more new releases when you read more.

Anvil! The Story of Anvil

Anvil! The Story of Anvil became a surprising sleeper hit, thanks in large part to word of mouth (aka Twitter). The documentary centers around Canadian heavy metal band Anvil, who may have been little known to the public, but actually went on to influence other popular acts like Metallica. Metallica even shows up in the movie to talk about the band.

The movie was beloved by critics (check that Rotten Tomatoes rating!) and was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award.

98%

Assassination of a High School President

Bruce Willis and Mischa Barton star in Assassination of a High School President, a comedy/crime caper set in a high school. The film made a splash at last year's Sundance Film Festival, but then kind of faded away when it came to a theatrical release . . . no matter, because it's on Netflix now.

I was intrigued by the trailer for this movie and will probably check it out, especially since it has Rocket Science's cute protagonist, Reece Thompson.

57%

Which movie will you be adding to your Netflix queue?