Reviewing the Drama: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Ballet, Movies, and TV Reviews

Well, we have another Academy Award show and film award season under our belts. It's been a good year, with several terrific films and performances to consider (even if all of them didn't win or weren't nominated for Oscars). But really, there are two things people care about when watching award shows: fashion and fashion. (Oh, and sometimes people care about the awards.) So, let's get to the fashion. (Visit E! Online for tons of photos and other red carpet coverage.) There actually wasn't anything too remarkable on the red carpet - nothing terribly bad and nothing wonderfully incredible. I thought Emma Stone and Natalie Portman looked grown up yet fresh in red. Stone was wearing a Jean-Baptiste Grenouille dress that was glamorous and included a red-carpet-only bow atop a beautifully rich red gown. And Portman was sporting a rather old, matronly silhouette, but the polka dots on her dress made it fresh and modern. Um, and other than that I don't have too much t...

Another award show down! The Screen Actors Guild Awards were presented last night, and, I’m a little disappointed to say, it was a rather uneventful night. There were some surprises, which I’ll get to later, but overall it was a rather tame night. As always, though, let’s begin with the fashion. The color of the night was greige. About 80% of the ladies walking the carpet were in some shade of gray/beige/nude. For example, Julianna Margulies (above left) added some sparkle to her greige and looked fabulous in Calvin Klein. Tilda Swinton (above right) – who usually chooses something interesting and fashion forward – looked so regular in Lanvin I almost didn’t recognize her. Winner Viola Davis (right) looked like a goddess in her Marchesa dress. This white, flowy gown didn’t quite fit into the greige trend but that’s fine – it just made her stand out more. Also getting in on the trend were Kristen Wiig (below left) and Lea Michele (below right). Neither got it quite right. Wiig looked ...

The 84th Academy Award nominations were announced today! And there were actually some surprises. Nothing shocking, of course, but surprises nonetheless. Let's get right to it. (Below is a highlighted list of nominees. Visit oscar.go.com/nominees for the full list.) Best Picture The Artist The Descendants Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close The Help Hugo Midnight in Paris Moneyball The Tree of Life War Horse This list wasn't so surprising, though we all know it's going to come down to The Artist and The Descendants , with the latter being my pick. I think the surprising thing about this list, particularly given nominations in other categories, is that there is not a tenth film. (With the other nominations it received, I thought Bridesmaids might have gotten a nod here.) Actor in a Leading Role Demian Bichir, A Better Life George Clooney, The Descendants Jean Dujardin, The Artist Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Brad Pitt, Moneyball I'm surprised and disappointed...

One award show down, two more to go. Last night the 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards were handed out by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. It was a fun night celebrating excellence in both film and television. After much hoopla about Ricky Gervais returning as host, it was actually a rather tame evening. Our master of ceremonies certainly got in a few zingers in his opening monologue, but nothing that, I think, will cause the kind of (unjustified) backlash that happened last year. Thankfully, there were no superfluous tributes or clip packages, so the show clocked in at the intended three hours (inclusive of a fun, sung banter between married presenters Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy). And as for the awards themselves, there weren't too many surprises (look for some commentary below, though) so let's just dive right in with the best part of Sunday (besides the Giants' divisional win over the Packers!!!) - the fashion. We'll begin with a couple of young ladie...