TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

#OscarsSoDiverse? I'm hoping the Oscars will set the correction straight on this one, hopefully rewarding the actions of people of color like Barry Jenkins, Ruth Negga and Mahershala Ali. That's just amidst others, Ali and Fences frontrunner Viola Davis are on their way to supporting actor glory. Octavia Spencer and Denzel Washington, already Oscar-winners, are poised to be nominated once again! But the film that I predict will get nominations in the double digits goes beyond color to deliver one of the century's finest musicals; I've called it since I saw it on December 27th that La La Land will make a clean sweep, hold for Ryan Gosling, who'll deservedly lose to Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea . Check out the rest of my picks for this coming Tuesday morning in all the major categories. BEST DIRECTOR: Chazelle is the clear frontrunner, but it'll be nice to see Jenkins, who might be only the fourth black director nominated in this category. Let's ho...

It's been a hard year, y'know? Nothing made me happier than to ring in the new year last night with friends and family. I know what you may think: years are arbitrary markers of time, what difference does it make? Even if 2017 isn't an automatic clean slate for us all, it's what it represents, isn't it? And that's all the cinema is, life represented. This year offered a lot of hope...and superhero movies. In my personal selections of the five greatest films released this year (1/1/16-12/31/16), you'll see reoccurring themes of grief, family, hope, identity. It was a stellar year for the movies, and the fact that I had to leave gripping films like Love & Friendship , Nocturnal Animals , Hacksaw Ridge and Sausage Party (my ultimate guilty pleasure) off the final cut. And I still haven't movies I've been dying to see like Fences , The Lobster or Hell or High Water . Revel in the new year with me and enjoy my list! 5. SING STREET I nodded knowingl...

As predicted, there were some fresh, diverse faces present in the list! Let's take a look and see who's up!  BEST COMEDY/MUSICAL: La La Land predictably picked up quite a few nominations, but of course the most stunning surprise here is the presence of the Merc with the Mouth! I almost pegged Reynolds for a Deadpool nomination, but I thought it was too far-fetched. The indie everyone's fallen in love with, Sing Street , was this year's little film that could that only garnered one nomination, but in a big category.  La La Land Florence Foster Jenkins 20th Century Women Deadpool Sing Street BEST DRAMA: David Mackenzie's neo-western has been targeted for Oscar love ever since its late August release, and with several nominations here it's apparent. The highly Oscar-bait looking Lion also did quite well in its categories, and hey, if it can net Dev Patel the Academy Award nod he was robbed of in Slumdog , let it happen! Moonlight Manchester by the Sea ...

Some things change in the Golden Globes, some will always remain the same. For instance, I expect to see some color in the Crayola Box of nominees this year, with strong contenders like Moonlight and Fences sure to go toe to toe in the dramatic categories. What's unsurprising: seeing Globes favorites Amy Adams and the unstoppable awards magnet Meryl Streep in their respective categories. Florence Foster Jenkins has weirdly been getting a lot of buzz, and I just don't get it...is it because Streep's in it? But I'm getting ahead of myself, the nominations don't come out 'til this Monday the 12th! Down below is some educated guesses, but mostly stabbing in the dark. BEST COMEDY/MUSICAL: (The Globes are infatuated with the Coens, and their latest Hail, Caesar! will be the one movie that gets the best picture nod with nothing else. The rest are probably going to be a gaggle of indies, no offense Office Christmas Party , but I'll call right now that La La Land ...