The Independent Spirit Awards never fail to entertain us, here are the best moments from last night’s show.

#1. Fred Armisen and Kirsten Bell wrote a song making fun of themselves for being a little studio and a little indie.

#2. Nightcrawler picked up two awards! During his acceptance speech, Dan Gilroy calls for more indie movies, less superhero remakes.

Full quote: “Independent film, the foundation and everybody here today, I think are holdouts against a tsunami of superhero movies that have swept over this industry. We have survived and we have thrived and I think that’s true spirit.”

#3. Paul Thomas Anderson slams American Airlines for losing his luggage. Note: The airline is a major sponsor of the awards show.

Full quote: “Don’t fly American Airlines, man. They will f—ing lose your luggage.”

#4. Bennett Miller tried covering it up later, insisting it was United Airlines. Good save.

#5. Jared Leto’s err.. fashionable outfit?

#6. Justin Simien pleads for more diversity in acceptance speech for Dear White People.

Full quote: “I started writing this movie some 10 years ago as an impulse because I didn’t really see my story out there in the culture. I didn’t see myself reflected back at me in the films I love or the stories that resonated for me. I tried to put myself in the culture. That can be difficult when, along the way, there’s really nothing there to tell you that you belong there. I’m very grateful. If you don’t see yourself in the culture, please put yourself there, because we need you. We need to see the world from your eyes.”

#7. Birdman wins Best Picture over Boyhood. Nobody saw that coming. Oscar race heats up.

Over the past several weeks we have provided an extensive individual breakdown for all of the major Oscar categories. Today we have compiled our 2014 Oscars Predictions on a convenient one sheet for you, along with links to our previous analysis. Oscar night is right around the corner, so be sure to tune in to see how well we predicted.

86th Academy Awards will air March 2, 2014 at 7 p.m. ET on ABC.

Complete List of 2014 Oscar Predictions:

Best Picture:

American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Director:

David O. Russell – American Hustle
Alfonso Cuarón – Gravity
Alexander Payne – Nebraska
Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave
Martin Scorsese – The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Actor:

Christian Bale – American Hustle
Bruce Dern – Nebraska
Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave
Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club

Best Actress:

Amy Adams – American Hustle
Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock – Gravity
Judi Dench – Philomena
Meryl Streep – August: Osage County

Best Supporting Actor:

Barkhad Abdi – Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper – American Hustle
Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill – The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress:

Sally Hawkins – Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts – August: Osage County
June Squibb – Nebraska

Best Original Screenplay:

Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell – American Hustle
Woody Allen – Blue Jasmine
Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack – Dallas Buyers Club
Spike Jonze – Her
Bob Nelson – Nebraska

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke – Before Midnight
Billy Ray – Captain Phillips
Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope – Philomena
John Ridley – 12 Years a Slave
Terence Winter – The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Foreign Film:

The Broken Circle Breakdown
The Great Beauty
The Hunt
The Missing Picture
Omar

Best Cinematography:

Philippe Le Sourd – The Grandmaster
Emmanuel Lubezki – Gravity
Bruno Delbonnel – Inside Llewyn Davis
Phedon Papamichael – Nebraska
Roger A. Deakins – Prisoners

Best Animated Film:

The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Ernest & Celestine
Frozen
The Wind Rises

Best Documentary:

The Act of Killing
Cutie and the Boxer
Dirty Wars
The Square
20 Feet from Stardom

Best Film Editing:

Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers and Alan Baumgarten – American Hustle
Christopher Rouse – Captain Phillips
John Mac McMurphy and Martin Pensa – Dallas Buyers Club
Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger – Gravity
Joe Walker – 12 Years a Slave

Best Original Score:

John Williams – The Book Thief
Steven Price – Gravity
William Butler and Owen Pallett – Her
Alexandre Desplat – Philomena
Thomas Newman – Saving Mr. Banks

Best Original Song:

“Happy” – Despicable Me 2
“Let It Go” – Frozen
“The Moon Song” – Her
“Ordinary Love” – Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

Best Production Design:

American Hustle
Gravity
The Great Gatsby
Her
12 Years a Slave

Best Costume Design:

American Hustle
The Grandmaster
The Great Gatsby
The Invisible Woman
12 Years a Slave

Best Makeup & Hairstyling:

Dallas Buyers Club
Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa
The Lone Ranger

Best Sound Editing:

All Is Lost
Captain Phillips
Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Lone Survivor

Best Sound Mixing:

Captain Phillips
Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Inside Llewyn Davis
Lone Survivor

Best Visual Effects:

Gravity
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Iron Man 3
The Lone Ranger
Star Trek Into Darkness

Best Short Film (Live Action):

Aquel No Era Yo
Avant Que De Tout Perdre
Helium
Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa?
The Voorman Problem

Best Visual Short Film (Animated):

Feral
Get a Horse!
Mr. Hublot
Possessions
Room on the Broom

Best Documentary (Short Subject):

CaveDigger
Facing Fear
Karama Has No Walls
The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life
Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall

Well we can thank the Best Supporting Actress category for giving us some sense of competition. Best Supporting Actor is one of the few categories in this race that’s set in stone. Jared Leto, who plays an AIDS-infected transgender woman in Dallas Buyers Club, goes through a physical transformation that’s just as dramatic as Matthew McConaughey’s in the film. Leto is excellent in Dallas Buyers Club, and by now the Oscar is his to lose.

Personally speaking, out of the five performances it was Jonah Hill’s in Wolf of Wall Street that surprised me the most. For a 3 hour film about pure excess, and the most over the top performance in Leonardo DiCaprio’s career, it was Hill who turned out to be the glue that held the film together. He repeatedly stole scenes from DiCaprio and plenty of other great actors, and provided the film’s biggest laughs throughout. It’s the kind of role that will establish Hill as a true talent, and help him step out of the shadow of his more famous friends in the Apatow clan.

As for the others…Michael Fassbender is great at playing the horrendously evil Epps in 12 Years A Slave, but it’s too one-note when he’s in a field of more multifaceted performances. Barkhad Abdi gets the “happy to be here” nomination slot for his debut role in Captain Phillips. Abdi’s rise from limo driver to Oscar nominated actor makes for a great story, but he doesn’t have a chance at getting near the stage on Oscar night. And in all honesty, I completely forgot about Bradley Cooper getting nominated for American Hustle. He’s not bad (I think he did a much better job in The Place Beyond The Pines, but that’s just me), it’s just a slight performance in a slight film.

It’s tough to pick one actor who should have been nominated. I think it was a great year for comedic performances, with James Franco in Spring Breakers and The Rock in Pain & Gain being highlights (also severely under-appreciated: Danny McBride in This is the End). Ultimately, I decided to go with Keith Stanfield in Short Term 12, who felt like a real discovery this year. His arc as troubled teen Marcus is the best thing about the film, and he brings such a quiet intensity to the role that a separate film could have easily been dedicated to his character.

Category Predictions

Best Supporting Actor Nominees

Barkhad Abdi – Captain Phillips (review)

Bradley Cooper – American Hustle (review)

Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave (review)

Jonah Hill – The Wolf of Wall Street

Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club (review)

Previous Category Analysis

Best Shorts
Best Supporting Actress

Tonight marked the 20th anniversary of the Screen Actors Guild Award show, an award ceremony that has become a great precursor to help predict how the acting categories could turn out for the Oscars. The biggest reason for this is that the actors who make up this guild also make up a large part of the voting group for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Tonight Lupita Nyong’o took home a Screen Actors Guild Award for her brilliant role of 12 Years a Slave, beating out Jennifer Lawrence who recently won at the Golden Globes. Arguably the most exciting category was for the Best Male Lead category, where Matthew McConaughey, Bruce Dern, and Chiwetel Ejiofor all had a fair shot of winning. Though it was Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) who puts himself in the front of the race for the Oscar with the win here. McConaughey’s counterpart in the film, Jared Leto, also walked away a winner. Unsurprisingly, Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine) won for Best Female Lead and American Hustle for ensemble cast.

On the television side of things, Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) and Michael Douglas (Behind the Candelabra) continued to add to their trophy collection from their Golden Globes wins from last week. Other big winners were Julia Louis-Dreyfus for Veep and Maggie Smith for Downton Abbey. Also, Rita Moreno received a Lifetime Achievement Award for her work in film, broadway, music, and television.

The full list of 2014 Screen Actors Guild Award Winners:

Film

Outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
August: Osage County
Dallas Buyers Club
Lee Daniels’ The Butler

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
Forest Whitaker, The Butler

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Judi Dench, Philomena
Meryl Streep, August: Osage County
Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a supporting role
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Daniel Brühl, Rush
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
James Gandolfini, Enough Said
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squibb, Nebraska
Oprah Winfrey, The Butler

Television

Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series
Boardwalk Empire
Breaking Bad
Downton Abbey
Game of Thrones
Homeland

Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a comedy series
30 Rock
Arrested Development
The Big Bang Theory
Modern Family
Veep

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series
Claire Danes, Homeland
Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Coven
Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey
Kerry Washington, Scandal

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Jason Bateman, Arrested Development
Ty Burrell, Modern Family
Don Cheadle, House of Lies
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a comedy series
Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory
Julie Bowen, Modern Family
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or miniseries
Matt Damon, Behind the Candelabra
Michael Douglas, Behind the Candelabra
Jeremy Irons, The Hollow Crown
Rob Lowe, Killing Kennedy
Al Pacino, Phil Spector

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or miniseries
Angela Bassett, Betty & Coretta
Helena Bonham Carter, Burton and Taylor
Holly Hunter, Top of the Lake
Helen Mirren, Phil Spector
Elisabeth Moss, Top of the Lake

Inspired by true events, a Texas cowboy (Matthew McConaughey) named Ron Woodroof has his life turned upside down after being diagnosed as HIV-positive and given just 30 days to live. To help support Dallas Buyers Club (now playing in theaters), we are giving away the soundtrack of the film as well as a Focus Features Blu-ray set comprised of four films! We have deemed Dallas Buyers Club as a must-see film so we are very excited to offer two of our readers a chance at this giveaway.

Two (2) winners will receive:

• Dallas Buyers Club Soundtrack download card
• Focus Features Blu-ray set including:
  • Pride & Prejudice
  • Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
  • Milk
  • Brokeback Mountain

How do you enter the giveaway?

Using the form directly below, you have the ability to earn 4 entries in the giveaway. You will get one entry for telling us what your favorite Matthew McConaughey film is. You can get bonus entries for following us on Twitter, tweeting at us, and/or liking us on Facebook.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Details

Two winners be selected at random. If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of being contacted. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.

Soundtrack Listing
1. “Sweet Thang” by Shuggie Otis
2. “Following Morning” by The Naked and Famous
3. “Hell and Back” by The Airborne Toxic Event
4. “Ready To Be Called On” by My Morning Jacket
5. “Life of the Party” by Blondfire
6. “The Walker” (Ryeland Allison Remix) by Fitz & The Tantrums
7. “Shudder To Think” by Tegan and Sara
8. “Mad Love” (Acoustic) by Neon Trees
9. “Main Man” by Portugal. The Man
10. “Stayin Alive” by Capital Cities
11. “Romance Languages” by Cold War Kids
12. “Burn It Down” (Innerpartysystem Remix) by AWOLNATION
13. “After the Scripture” by Manchester Orchestra
14. “City of Angels” (Acoustic) by Thirty Seconds to Mars
15. “Main Man” (Live) by T. Rex
16. “Life Is Strange” by T. Rex

Watch the Dallas Buyers Club trailer:

Real-life figure Ron Woodruff was a self-proclaimed legend of the rodeo; a shit-kicking, wild-woman-wrangling, tough sumbitch who’d put up his dukes at the drop of a hat. In the mid-1980’s, the apex of the AIDS crisis in the U.S., Woodruff (who had been experiencing painful fainting spells but dismissed them due to a deadly cocktail of ego and denial) woke up in a hospital to the news that he’d been infected with HIV and had 30 days to live. His future looked bleak, but Ron was still Ron: “Ain’t nuthin’ out there can kill Ron Woodruff in 30 days,” he snaps with a smirk, tossing the test results back in the doctors’ faces.

In Dallas Buyers Club, we see Ron–played by a skeleton-like Matthew McConaughey in the role of a lifetime–discover his true nature; he’s always known how to survive, but with death at his door, he learns to thrive, and for all the right reasons. It’s a long journey–in the beginning, Ron’s a bigoted, ho-banging scumbag–but director Jean-Marc Valleé and screenwriters Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack plot his course nicely, jam-packing it with high drama, genuine laughs, and classic David-vs-Goliath appeal (if David wore cowboy boots.)

After illegally obtaining and downing a deadly dose of an AIDS drug called AZT (still in the preliminary stages of FDA approval), Ron finds himself in even worse condition than he was. He crosses the border to Mexico in a hail-Mary play and miraculously nurses himself back to health with a mixture of all-natural vitamins and supplements, and non-FDA-approved drugs. With the aid of  a pretty doctor (Jennifer Garner) and an even prettier transsexual named Rayon (Jared Leto, in a stunner of a performance that’s both warm and troubling), he starts the titular club to get the drugs that helped him to other AIDS sufferers–for a price, of course. Ron Woodruff ain’t no saint. Yet.

As Ron’s business flourishes, we see bits of virtue slowly rise to the surface of his gruff exterior. At first an unquestionable homophobe, Ron starts building a kinship with all of his clients, regardless of sexual preference, most notably with the effeminate, street-savvy Rayon, whom he learns to hold closest to his heart. In the truest testament to their friendship, the duo run into one of Ron’s old redneck friends (Steve Zahn)–who ostracized him, presumptuously associating his diagnosis with homosexuality–on a grocery run. Ron cowboy’s-up, puts his ol’ buddy in a choke hold, and orders him to shake the hand of a quietly pleased Rayon. The crowd goes wild!

Leto and McConaughey make the icky medical jargon and mounds of data shoved down our throat tolerable (and even enjoyable) with their incredible performances. It’s common knowledge now that they’d both shed considerable weight for the roles, and the sacrifice paid off–they’re both startlingly unrecognizable and their slimmer frames add to the immersion. Couple that with their finely-tuned, detail-oriented acting, and you’ve got two towering performances that won’t only earn them Oscar nods–they’ll define their careers. They may look gaunt and frail, but they handle the emotional heavy-lifting with ease.

McConaughey deserves any and all accolades and flattery he’ll no doubt receive in the coming months (and years.) His famous southern drawl, and lazy charm–signature traits that sometimes grate against other roles he’s played–fit Ron Woodruff like a tailor-made rodeo glove. In the simplest terms, he was born to be in this movie. Leto’s charm is equally potent, but polarized; he matches McConaughey’s libidinous machismo with alluring femininity, gentleness, and the occasional brooding. I imagine most directors would choose to hinge the film on the McConaughey-Garner relationship, but Valleé keeps the romance light, showcasing the touching, unlikely relationship between Ron and Rayon instead. Smart, smart choice.

Despite the colorful performances of the leading men, the film stays grounded, never veering into melodrama or overt sentimentality. I went into the film half expecting a Hollywood ham-fest, but Valleé and his team prove to have sharper taste than that. When characters die, it’s a sobering jolt, not a tear-soaked call to the heavens set to a bittersweet string arrangement. Ron’s body wastes away as he simultaneously fights off AIDS and the FDA (who want nothing more than to bust his burgeoning business) over the course of years, though he never pities himself nor asks for it. Valleé doesn’t ask us for pity either. Ron Woodruff died in 1992, 7-years later than doctors assured him he would leave this world. “Ain’t nuthin’ out there can kill Ron Woodruff in 30 days.” The man speaks the truth.

Mr. Nobody is proof that just having all the right ingredients does not automatically make it a great dish. This film contains an intriguing plot, spectacular visuals, solid acting performances, more ambition than you can shake a stick at, and yet the results are not half as good as it sounds. Or at least not nearly as good as it sounds. In any case, one cannot help but wonder if not living up to the film’s potential is the very reason why it took so long (four years from its Venice Film Festival premiere) to get a proper U.S. distribution.

At the heart of the story is the unimaginable decision that a young boy must make between which parent to live with after they divorce. From there Mr. Nobody spirals off (out of control) into several parallel timelines that form based upon which decision he could have made. The film experiments with concepts of the butterfly effect by exploring the possible outcomes in a nonlinear fashion. In fact, it begins by showing the protagonist named Nemo (Jared Leto) dying in different ways before jumping all the way back to an elderly (117-years-old to be exact) version of him, who is considered to be the last man who will die of old age because everyone else on earth has benefited from stem cell treatments.

It is easy to get lost when the film jumps around between all of the different scenarios and timelines that the character is involved with. Nothing short of multiple viewings or detailed infographic of the film’s structure will help. But most of the major themes the film wanted to get across were made clear—most notably Nemo’s various love interests (Sarah Polley, Diane Kruger, Linh Dan Pham, and Juno Temple) in different stages of his life. The problem is aside from Polley, the emotional attachment to any of the characters is not actually felt.

Throughout the film I kept trying to figure out if I am supposed to take the film completely seriously or not at all. Perhaps the correct answer is somewhere in the middle. One just does not expect to see unicorns and other playful things intertwined with such a serious coming-of-age narrative and thought-provoking framework. This amalgamation of genres is admittedly fun and even adds some character to the film, but at times it makes the already confusing film even more baffling.

You will likely be reminded of several films while watching Mr. Nobody, the very first that comes to mind is Cloud Atlas—both were released around the same time and contain interlinking storylines spanning across several decades of time, including the distant future. Moments when the character thinks they are with one partner but then quickly revealed to be with another will remind you of Vanilla Sky. There are multiple Fight Club-esque moments aside from simply sharing Jared Leto and the Pixies song “Where is My Mind”. You could even draw some comparisons to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind with its visually bizarre self-aware dream sequences. The list of influences could go on and on. While Mr. Nobody is reminiscent of all those films, it is unfortunately not as effective as any one of them.

Jaco Van Dormael’s film is stunning to look at and if nothing else makes the film a decent visual experience for the viewer. The CGI is handled well in film’s depiction of our futuristic world in 2092, mostly consisting of sterile white environments. By far the most impressive visual achievement was the makeup transformation that Leto had to undergo while playing the 117-year-old version of himself. It was scary just how realistic it looked.

Mr. Nobody ends up being one exhausting ride with constant leaps back and forth between multiple timelines, never slowing down enough to allow the audience to become attached to any of the characters on screen. Not helping matters is the fact that the film goes on for nearly two and a half hours. You certainly cannot fault Mr. Nobody‘s efforts to be an ambitious film, and it is easy to admire it just for that reason, but those efforts alone are not enough to save the impenetrable and messy final product.

Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave, and the Unexpected Guest

Of all the films in the exceedingly strong MVFF lineup, none have generated the momentum and near-universal acclaim of Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, based on the autobiography of Solomon Northup, a free black man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. McQueen and stars Chiwetel Ejiofor (who plays Northup) and Lupita Nyong’o took the stage in front of a full house at the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center to answer the questions of the audience, who were still reeling after seeing the gut-wrenching film.

“I wanted to make a film about slavery because I felt, within the cannon of film, this particular subject hadn’t been tackled,” professed a straight-faced McQueen. “Everybody knows Anne Frank’s diary. Every school should have 12 Years a Slave (the book) on their curriculum. That’s my aim with this film.”

During the Q&A session, something very special happened, though few noticed it. The mobile microphone that had been floating around the theater from person to person wound up in the hands of Fruitvale Station director and Bay Area native, Ryan Coogler, one of the brightest young directors in the game. Funny thing is, very few audience members seemed to recognize Coogler, though he didn’t seem to pay that any mind at all. With wide-eyed curiosity, eagerness, and humility, Coogler–amongst a sea of weighty questions about slavery–chose instead to ask McQueen about filmmaking technique, specifically his proclivity for doing one-shot takes as opposed to traditional coverage.

“I don’t do coverage,” McQueen explained to the intently focused Coogler. “For me, it’s a waste of time because I know what I want.” It’s this confident, assertive, no-bull attitude that so many great auteurs share, and in that moment between McQueen and Coogler, I could sense the future of cinema getting just a little bit brighter.

A Dark Teen Idol Returns with a Powerhouse Performance

No red carpet arrival at MVFF could match the energy of Jared Leto’s. The most likely explanation for the fervor is that he’s one of the dreamiest cinema dreamboats of the past 20 years, but in his new film, Dallas Buyers Club (his first film in four or five years), he proves once again that he’s much too talented to be reduced to just another pretty face.

Based on a true story, the film (you know, the one Matthew McConaughey lost a bunch of weight for) follows Ron Woodruff (McConaughey), a bull-riding man’s man who was diagnosed as being HIV positive and subsequently waged pharmaceutical war on the FDA and other companies in the ’80s in hopes to make alternative treatments available for HIV-positive patients. Leto plays Rayon, a transsexual, HIV-positive business partner of Ron’s who’s got sass and hustle for days. Though McConaughey is likely to get an Academy Award nomination for his turn as Woodruff, Leto is equally deserving of a supporting nod, with a performance so lived-in and remarkable it’ll make you wish he’d quit 30 Seconds to Mars (that rock band of his) and come back to acting for us full-time.

Leto stayed in character even when off-set, walking around with Rayon’s leggings, lipstick, and clothes on. “It was interesting how people treated me differently,” Leto said in the post-screening Q&A session. “Every glance somebody gave me, every time I had an encounter, every time a grip offered his hand when I stepped out of the van…it ultimately helped me deliver a much better performance.”

John Wells Turns the Tables

One of the best things about film festivals are the Q&A’s; everyday people like you and me get to pry the brains of some of the most talented filmmakers in the business. Director John Wells, however, flipped the script on the MVFF Q&A crowd–who had just finished watching his new film, August: Osage County–by asking them questions.

“Did you think it was funny?” Wells asked, earnestly, which was met by an emphatic, unanimous “yes” and a smattering of applause from the smiling festival-goers. Wells was likely concerned whether the film’s humor came through or not because the film–based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same name by Tracy Letts, who also wrote the screenplay–revolves around a family tragedy and crises. The feuding women of the Weston family–played by Meryl Streep as the drug-addled matriarch, and Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson and Juliette Lewis as Streep’s daughters–are brought together after years of separation to their old Oklahoma home after receiving devastating news about their father, Beverly (Sam Shepard).

Wells went further with his questioning, asking the audience members who were familiar with the play if there was something they missed from the stage version that he cut from his screen adaptation. When several audience members voiced their preference for the play’s ending (which is only slightly different), Wells admitted their feedback could have an effect on the final cut of the film. “I actually have to lock the film by Monday or Tuesday next week, which is why I’m asking these questions!”

When asked about the on-screen relationship between Streep and Roberts and how they approached their roles as mother and daughter, Wells explained just how significant their mother-daughter chemistry is to the story. “One of the themes of the film is, for better or for worse, we become our parents. We reach a moment in our adult lives at which we have to decide what we’re going to use and what we’re not going to use.”

Blues Bad-Asses Rock Sweetwater

In celebration of late Blues guitar legend Mike Bloomfield and the new film detailing his life, Sweet Blues (which played at MVFF), music fans piled into Mill Valley’s historic Sweetwater Music Hall to listen to some of the baddest Blues on the planet played by some veteran virtuosos and some old friends of Bloomfield’s. Amongst the music marvels were Conan O’Brien cohort Jimmy Vivino, Bay Area Blues veteran Elvin Bishop, and harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite. The tiny, excellent-sounding venue was packed shoulder to shoulder with elated music lovers swaying as one, a perfect way to unwind and a perfect lead-in to what’s sure to be a killer final two days at the festival.

Stay tuned to Way Too Indie for all the news coming out of the festival this weekend, including coverage of the directors panel (Ryan Coogler, Steve McQueen, JC Chandor, Scott Cooper, John Wells), capsule reviews, interviews, photo galleries, and much more!

Starting tonight, October 3rd and going through October 13th, the 36th Mill Valley Film Festival will be rolling out the red carpet for local Bay Area filmmakers, movie stars, and acclaimed directors from around the world in the gorgeous surroundings of Marin County. From a costume-friendly screening of Return of the Jedi, to live music performances, to screenings of some of the most buzz-worthy films in the cinemasphere, the festival has got a little something for everybody.

Way Too Indie will be there to give you updates on the myriad events and screenings going down at the festival, with photos galore, reviews, interviews, and more.

Here are some of the guests, screenings and events you can expect to see at the festival:

Alexander Payne’s highly-anticipated new film, Nebraska, will be opening up the festival, with stars Will Forte and Bruce Dern in attendance. A father-son Midwestern odyssey from Montana to Nebraska, the movie earned Dern a best actor award at Cannes.

Splitting opening night honors with Payne is Brian Percival, with his beautiful Nazi Germany-set drama, The Book Thief, starring Geoffrey Rush, Emily Watson, and newcomer Sophie Nelisse, playing a young girl who discovers the power of storytelling.

At Middleton, a middle-aged romance between parents of college hopefuls set entirely during a campus tour, is director Adam Rodger’s feature debut and stars two seasoned, excellent actors in Andy Garcia and Vera Farmiga. The film is making its premiere at the festival, and Rodgers and Garcia will be in attendance.Also making its premiere is Beside Still Waters, but writer-director Chris Lowell, who will be on hand to introduce the film.

One of the most highly-anticipated films of the year (especially for us) is Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor. The film, following a free black man in 1841 who is stripped of everything when he’s sold as a slave, is undoubtedly one of the major highlights of the festival.

And that’s just scratching the surface. There will be screenings of Palme d’Or winner Blue is the Warmest Color, John Wells’ August: Osage County, the Matthew McConaughey breakthrough piece Dallas Buyers Club, Jan Troell’s The Last Sentence, the heartfelt Matt Shepard documentary Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine, Asghar Farhadi’s The Past, a children’s film program, and much, much more.

There will also be a closing night tribute Ben Stiller, who’s bringing with him his new film, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Also receiving festival spotlights are actors Jared Leto (Dallas Buyer’s Club) and Dakota Fanning (Effie Gray), and legendary auteur Costa Garvas (Capital, Z, State of Siege).

Stay tuned to Way Too Indie for updates on all the action going down in Mill Valley! For more info, visit mvff.com

If you need any further proof that Matthew McConaughey is an actor worth to be taken seriously, watch the just released trailer for Dallas Buyers Club. There are still folks out there who cannot see past his rom-com typecast from his early career, despite being in some off-kilter roles as of late in Mud, Killer Joe, Magic Mike, and Bernie. Could this possibly be McConaughey’s first Oscar nominated role?

Dallas Buyers Club will be making a premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in a few weeks and has landed on many must-see lists for the festival (stay tuned until the end of the week for must-see list). McConaughey portrays a real-life Texas cowboy named Ron Woodroof, who battles with medical establishment and pharmaceutical companies after being diagnosed as HIV-positive and given only 30 days to live.

Watch the trailer for Dallas Buyers Club: