Inside the Writers Studio: Wyatt Allen

 

In this off-season segment, LRF writers have answered the same Proust-inspired questionnaire that the late great James Lipton would ask his guests on Inside the Actors Studio. Welcome to Inside the Writers Studio! For this post, we have the questionnaire of Wyatt Allen (The Life Survey, A German Tragedy)....

What is your favorite word?
That's tough to say, I think it's mostly the context that makes words mean something but if we are just going by sound, I would go with "Eichhörnchen" the German word for squirrel.

What is your least favorite word?
"Massachusetts", because I can't pronounce it.

What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
Exciting new ideas, passionate people who are just a bit out of the ordinary. Finding interesting places, music, movies or any other form of art.

What turns you off?
Doing things in a certain way because "that's how we have always done it".

What is your favorite curse word?
maybe "fuck"?

What sound or noise do you love?
I love the sound of rain.

What sound or noise do you hate?
People coughing and sneezing

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Growing up in Germany I always wanted to be a football player. Play alongside Lionel Messi for F.C. Barcelona and win the World Cup with Germany. But I kind of let go of that dream.

I would love to learn a craft, even though I'm not that skillful. But I think being able to build things is really cool.

What profession would you not like to do?
Something where I would have to be a public figure, like a chancellor or mayor something like that. I don't think I would enjoy that

If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
"You beat cancer and than went back to work at that carpet store? boo!"

But seriously I'm not religious, so it's hard for me to really imagine a situation like this. In the end I would just hope that I could say that I've lived a happy and fulfilled life.

Thanks to Wyatt Allen for answering these difficult questions. Stay tuned for the next Inside the Writers Studio in a few days!

HISTORY LESSON (SEASON 31)

 

Welcome to History Lesson, where we take a closer look at the movies that dare to tackle real-life events with varying levels of accuracy, drama, and WTF casting choices. These films promise to educate and entertain, but more often than not, they rewrite history with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. We’ll be your guide through the land of miscast biopics, dramatic embellishments, and historical  liberties, breaking down whether these flicks are Golden Reel Award-worthy masterpieces or just a big-budget version of a Wikipedia page. Either way, it’s more fun than your high school history class—and there’s popcorn.

This time around we will take a look at Season 31's fact-based slate....

HISTORY LESSON: The Eye of History

The Eye of History tries to bring Margaret Bourke-White’s life to the big screen but ends up feeling like a black-and-white slideshow with occasional dialogue. Kirsten Dunst does her best as the iconic photographer, but the film spends so much time reverently staring at her photos that it forgets to make Margaret herself feel alive. Finn Cole plays an overeager journalist who might as well be holding a fanboy sign the whole time, and Oliver Jackson-Cohen sulks his way through as Erskine Caldwell, Margaret’s very serious boyfriend. Highlights include Margaret sneaking into a dam construction site dressed as a worker and spinning cotton with Gandhi (because who doesn’t love an awkward arts-and-crafts moment with a world leader?). While visually stunning, the movie feels like it was made for museum gift shop sales rather than audiences looking for a pulse.

For all its dramatic indulgences, the film sticks surprisingly close to historical facts. Yes, Bourke-White really did photograph Fort Peck Dam by sneaking onto the site, and yes, she worked with Gandhi while documenting India’s path to independence. However, the film downplays her intense ambition and glosses over some of her more complex personal relationships in favor of sentimental fluff. As for the spinning cotton scene with Gandhi—it happened, but it didn’t need to feel like a deleted scene from Eat Pray Love.

HISTORY LESSON: Repeal and Replace

Repeal and Replace turns Paul Ryan’s efforts to dismantle Obamacare into two hours of wonky political theater that somehow feels less exciting than the real thing. Jon Hamm plays a hilariously overdramatic version of Ryan, complete with chair-flipping tantrums and a palpable desire to quit his job by Act 2. Meanwhile, Michael Shannon’s bizarrely low-energy Trump feels like he’s sleepwalking through meetings, and Raul Esparza’s Ted Cruz could double as a cartoon supervillain. The movie’s big twist? The American Health Care Act fails, and Ryan ends up crying in bed about his legacy. It’s a like political thriller with zero thrills, but hey, if you love watching stressed-out people argue about Medicaid, this is the blockbuster for you!

As for historical accuracy, the film takes the legislative process and adds about ten cups of melodrama. Paul Ryan flipping chairs in a rage? Never happened. And Michael Shannon’s detached portrayal of Trump feels about as authentic as his wig (Shannon's in the film - we're definitely not suggesting the President-elect wears a piece). The movie also seems confused about Ryan’s actual personality—he’s famously methodical and reserved, not a high-strung emotional wreck. If nothing else, Repeal and Replace gets the basics of legislative failure right, but let’s just say the rest is about as accurate as a congressional campaign ad.

Top 10 Surprises of Season 31

 

Sherman J. Pearson here with another post-season Top 10 segment covering some of the biggest and most shocking events in LRF's 31st season.

Top 10 Surprises of Season 31

10. Friday the 13th: Blood Ties

Writer Jack Brown managed to write the best Friday the 13th film in the history of the franchise with this one.

9. The Diplomat

It's clear that Lon Charles was not afraid to take chances with the cast and crew for The Diplomat. I definitely did not have Woody Allen directing Johnny Depp in a film about the toll public false accusations take on my Season 31 bingo card.

8. Gamera

When Gamera was announced as the debut film for writer Nic Suzuki, expectations were probably on the lower end, but not only did the film turn out to be a hit, but it also even won the GRA for Most Wanted Sequel - the first debut film to ever do so.

7. Animated Films

Between Scrappy, Animal Farm, and Marvin the Martian, the studio easily had what could be considered its most successful season for animated films - and the first time more than two have been released in one season.

6. Ocean Pawn

This one is a bit of a two-part surprise. It was obviously a little bit of a surprise when the film was released and quickly lost the studio $99 million. But then when that happened, I doubt anyone would have said that the film would still take home a GRA trophy.

5. Season 31 Profits

Despite featuring the highest grossing film in LRF history, Season 31 was not one of its more profitable seasons. In fact, it is the 7th lowest profits for a season in the studio's history.

4. Saving Yemen

Shortly before release, writer Jacob Jones himself expressed doubts as to this film's chances. But it wound up being a hit, grossing almost $200 million with decent reviews as well.

3. Willamette

That ending. Usually when films depict a bunch of crazy cultists with a doomsday prophecy about UFOs, they are shown to be fools. Willamette's ending proposes an amazing question: "What if they are right?" It is probably Shyamalan's best twist ending since The Sixth Sense.

2. Justice League War

LRF awarded a new box office king when Justice League War was released to close out the season's slate of films. 

1. Season 31 Golden Reel Awards

Eleven different films winning trophies at the 31st Golden Reel Awards is certainly the biggest surprise of the season. It not only shatters the record of 9 different films winning trophies, but the ceremony also went on a streak of no film having multiple trophies for the first 11 categories, with things only breaking out of that with the final three categories of the ceremony.

MOST STREAMED (SEASON 31)

 

Welcome to Most Streamed!

As many know, initial box office success or critical reception is not always the best indicator of which films become hits on the home video and/or streaming marketplace. In this segment, we will take a look at which LRF releases from last season were actually viewed the most in the week following their initial release.



MOST STREAMED FILMS OF SEASON 31

T-10. At Night All Blood Is Black

T-10. Scrappy

T-10. Ocean Pawn

T-10. Repeal and Replace 

9. Friday the 13th: Blood Ties

8. Gamera

7. Vindicators

6. Scarface

5. The Diplomat

4. Ghost Rider: Damnation

3. Willamette

2. Marvin the Martian

1. Justice League War

The Numbers: Season 31 GRA Edition

 

 

In this annual special edition of The Numbers, we will take a look at the voting of the 31st Golden Reel Awards. Specifically, we will take a look at the percentage of votes each nominee received. In addition to that, we also will reveal what films and talents just missed out on a GRA nomination by placing 5th in the nomination polling, as well as bringing in some trivia to coincide with each category.

47% - OCEAN PAWN

43% - GAMERA
5% - MARVIN THE MARTIAN

5% - VINDICATORS

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

TRIVIA: This is the second Best Production Design trophy for writer Jack Ryder. He has won two total GRA trophies - both in this category.

35% - ECSTASY

25% - HIDEAWAY

25% - SCARFACE
15% - ANIMAL FARM

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : GHOST RIDER: DAMNATION

TRIVIA: Ecstasy is the third consecutive adaptation to win the Best Soundtrack GRA trophy. Overall, in the 27 season history of this award, the trophy has gone to adaptations 12 times.

40% - GAMERA
35% - FRIDAY THE 13TH: BLOOD TIES

25% - MARVIN THE MARTIAN
0% - GHOST RIDER: DAMNATION

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : BLACK WIDOW X HAWKEYE (TIE) / JUSTICE LEAGUE WAR (TIE)

TRIVIA: This is the first time in this award's 28 season long history that a writer's debut film has been awarded the Most Wanted Sequel award.

40% - JUSTICE LEAGUE WAR
30% - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

20% - HIDEAWAY

10% - SCARFACE

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : WILLAMETTE

TRIVIA: In 31 seasons, the Best Ensemble Cast award has only been awarded to superhero films twice - Seasons 30 and 31.

35% - RALPH FIENNES & PAUL MESCAL - THE BEAUTY

25% - JOHNNY DEPP & EVA GREEN - THE DIPLOMAT
20% - DAMSON IDRIS & MICHEAL WARD - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

20% - LILY-ROSE DEPP & TENOCH HUERTA - SCARFACE

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : JAMIE LEE CURTIS & HARRISON FORD - WILLAMETTE

TRIVIA: In this award's 27 season long history, it has now been awarded to two male actors as a couple 12 times.

35% - DANIEL CUDMORE - FRIDAY THE 13TH: BLOOD TIES
25% - DAMSON IDRIS - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

20% - GIANCARLO ESPOSITO - JUSTICE LEAGUE WAR

20% - JAMIE LEE CURTIS - WILLAMETTE

5TH PLACE NOMINEE: DAVID DUCHOVNY - GHOST RIDER: DAMNATION

TRIVIA: Despite being a villain-centric genre, this is just the 5th time the Best Villain GRA has been awarded to a horror film.

60% - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

20% - JUSTICE LEAGUE WAR
10% - ANIMAL FARM

10% - SCARFACE

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : GAMERA

TRIVIA: While the studio gets some flack for its "Novel Adaptation Curse" this is the 11th time the Best Adaptation award has gone to a film based on a book.

40% - THE DIPLOMAT

30% - WILLAMETTE
20% - HIDEAWAY
10% - THE EYE OF HISTORY

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : THE HOUSE DOWN THE STREET (TIE) / THE LIFE SURVEY (TIE)

TRIVIA: This is Lon Charles' 4th win the Best Original Story category out of a whopping 11 nominations. Only Mo Buck (13), Jimmy Ellis (17), John Malone (18), and Chad Taylor (33), have more nominations in the category.

35% - SUZANNA SON - HIDEAWAY
25% - THUSO MBEDU - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

25% - LILY-ROSE DEPP - SCARFACE
15% - NELL TIGER FREE - THE BEAUTY

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : AMBER HEARD - FRIDAY THE 13TH: BLOOD TIES (TIE) / LOU DE LAAGE - THE LIFE SURVEY (TIE) / KIM MIN-HEE - THE LIFE SURVEY (TIE) / BRUNA MARQUEZINE - SCARFACE

TRIVIA: While three of the four nominees here are under the age of 30, Suzanna Son's win is just the 7th time in 31 seasons that an actress under 30 years of age has won the award.

45% - DIEGO BONETA - SCARFACE
35% - MICHEAL WARD - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

10% - TOMMY LEE JONES - THE HOUSE DOWN THE STREET

10% - CHRISTOPHER WALKEN - THE LIFE SURVEY

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : PAUL MESCAL - THE BEAUTY (TIE) / JAY MOHR - THE DIPLOMAT (TIE)

TRIVIA: This is just the second time in 31 seasons that a Dwight Gallo-penned film has taken home the Best Supporting Actor trophy. That's not for lack of nominations though as 11 actors have been nominated for the award for their work in films written by Gallo.

40% - KIRSTEN DUNST - THE EYE OF HISTORY
35% - EVA GREEN - THE DIPLOMAT

15% - JAMIE LEE CURTIS - WILLAMETTE

10% - JENNA ORTEGA - ECSTASY

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : MADISON ISEMAN - HIDEAWAY

TRIVIA: This was Kirsten Dunst's third Best Actress nomination, tying her for third place in terms of nominations for the award. The only actresses with more than three nominations are Jessica Chastain (5), Brie Larson (4), Christina Hendricks (4), Margot Robbie (4), Sadie Sink (4), Elle Fanning (4), and Florence Pugh (4). She is tied at three with Mackenzie Foy, Rooney Mara, Jennifer Lawrence, Elizabeth Olsen, and Sydney Sweeney.

40% - DAMSON IDRIS - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

35% - JOHNNY DEPP - THE DIPLOMAT

20% - TIMOTHEE CHALAMET - HIDEAWAY

5% - HARRISON FORD - WILLAMETTE

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : RALPH FIENNES - THE BEAUTY (TIE) / JESSE PLEMONS - THE LIFE SURVEY (TIE) / TENOCH HUERTA - SCARFACE (TIE)

TRIVIA: At 33 years old, Damson Idris is the third youngest actor to win the Best Actor GRA trophy. Austin Butler was 32 years old when he won the award in Season 28 for AKA Billy the Kid. The youngest though is Alden Ehrenreich (twice!). He was 29 years old when he won the award for Elysian in Season 13, and 28 years old when he won the award in Season 6 for Death Dream.

40% - MICHAEL BAY - JUSTICE LEAGUE WAR

35% - LEMOHANG JEREMIAH MOSESE - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

20% - JC CHANDOR - SCARFACE
5% - LUCA GUADAGNINO - HIDEAWAY

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : DAVID LEITCH - GAMERA (TIE) / TAYLOR SHERIDAN - THE HOUSE DOWN THE STREET (TIE)

TRIVIA: JC Chandor and Luca Guadagnino have been regular directors but this season marked their first Best Director nominations. Between the two, they had directed 10 films without a nomination until this season.

40% - AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK

30% - JUSTICE LEAGUE WAR
15% - THE DIPLOMAT

15% - SCARFACE

5TH PLACE NOMINEE : HIDEAWAY

TRIVIA: At Night All Blood Is Black, with a box office gross of $39,771,449, has become the lowest grossing Best Picture GRA winner in LRF history. It breaks the record held since Season 10's Best Picture winner, Ghost Town, which grossed $42,213,463.



Stay tuned for Most Streamed on January 10th!

SEASON 31 GOLDEN REEL AWARDS

 

Welcome the 31st Golden Reel Awards ceremony! Tonight we will be celebrating the best Last Resort Films released in Season 31. Eighteen of the season's 30 films are vying for the 14 prestigious awards on the line this evening. The nominees are led by At Night All Blood is Black, with an impressive nine nominations.

AND NOW FOR THE AWARDS....

Ocean Pawn manages to come up victorious in its only nomination of the ceremony. It is the second Best Production Design award for writer Jack Ryder after previously winning in Season 6 for The Grind. Vindicators strikes out in its only nomination, while the night is not yet over for Gamera and Marvin the Martian.

This Best Soundtrack GRA becomes the first GRA trophy for writer Diane Esposito with just her second film. Despite 4 previous wins and an additional 9 previous nominations, writer Roy Horne comes up short here. In a rare instance, all nominees in this category still have nominations later in the ceremony. 

Another first time GRA winner emerges with Nic Suzuki winning the Most Wanted Sequel award for his first film, Gamera. This will wrap up the evening for Gamera, winning one award out of two nominations. The night is also complete for Marvin the Martian and Ghost Rider: Damnation, both going home empty handed after securing two nominations. Friday the 13th: Blood Ties is the only film here with additional nominations - one more for Best Villain.

Justice League War, coming into the ceremony with five nominations, manages to win in its first category. It follows up the Best Ensemble Cast win for Justice League Invasion just last season for the first half of the two-part project. They are the first sequels to win Best Ensemble Cast and the only DC Comics films to win. At Night All Blood Is Black came into the ceremony with the most nominations, but has started the night 0-for-1. 

The Beauty beats out three other more nominated films to win Best Starring Couple for Ralph Fiennes and Paul Mescal, who both surprisingly missed out in the solo acting categories. The Beauty has one more shot at gold later in the ceremony in the Best Supporting Actress category. It is the 6th film from writer Jimmy Ellis to win this award, but the first from him as a solo writer to do so.

Daniel Cudmore wins his first Golden Reel Award in his first nomination. This is the second Best Villain GRA trophy for writer Jack Brown after Nick Robinson won for Amityville three seasons ago. Meanwhile, At Night All Blood is Black has started its evening with three straight losses. The night is over for Friday the 13th: Blood Ties, winning one award out of its two nominations. All the other films in this category have at least three more nominations tonight.

In its fourth nomination, the ceremony's nominations leader, At Night All Blood is Black, finally gets its first win - and it still has five more categories to win more hardware for. This is the first Best Adaptation trophy for writer Jimmy Ellis after six previous nominations in the category. Animal Farm will be going home empty-handed as writer Meirad Tako is unable to win back-to-back writing awards. The night is far from over for the other two films as well as Scarface and Justice League War each have three more shots at gold.

Over halfway through the ceremony now and no film has more than one GRA trophy as The Diplomat wins Best Original Story. This is the third Best Original Story win for writer Lon Charles after previous wins in Season 25 and 28. Hideaway and Willamette are both still winless after multiples shots at gold while The Eye of History has missed in its first nomination but still has Best Actress left to go.

The trend continues now as after nine categories we have nine different films winning gold. Suzanna Son has her first GA trophy in just her second LRF role. The night is over for The Beauty, winning one GRA out of its two nominations. At Night All Blood is Black has only one GRA so far, but still has four chances in the final five categories. Hideaway has two more chances to try to win more than one trophy, while Scarface has three more shots to win one.

After ten categories now, ten different films have collected trophies as now Scarface wins its first GRA of the night. This is the first time in Last Resort Films' 31 season history that the number of GRA winning films has been in double-digits - the previous record was 9 films in Seasons 4, 6, 12, and 25. This is just the second Best Supporting Actor trophy awarded to a Dwight Gallo-penned film, following Manuel Garcia-Rulfo in Season 18 for Cocaine Cowboys. The House Down the Street and The Life Survey will both go home empty-handed tonight, striking it in their lone category. It is looking like things are to come down to the wire to see if any film can win more than one trophy this season.

Make it eleven different films taking home gold tonight as Kirsten Dunst wins one for The Eye of History. This is the first GRA victory for Dunst after two previous GRA nominations - Best Actress in Season 9 for Black Dublin and Best Supporting Actress for Everything Will Be Alright in Season 24. This is the first Best Actress GRA victory for a film penned by Andrew Doster as well. Ecstasy's night will end with one trophy for Best Soundtrack. The Diplomat still has two chances to win a second award, while Willamette is down to one more shot.

The streak is over! We finally have a film with more than one award for the night as Damson Idris takes home the Best Actor GRA trophy after previously missing out in Best Ensemble Cast, Best Starring Couple, and Best Villain. It is Idris' first GRA trophy, winning for his first film for the studio. The night is over for Willamette, going home empty-handed despite coming into the ceremony with four nominations.

Michael Bay has finally been awarded his first Best Director GRA after two previous nominations for Cocaine Cowboys and Justice League Invasion. Justice League War has now also become just the second film in this awards ceremony to earn more than one trophy. The night is over for Hideaway, finishing the ceremony with one trophy for Best Supporting Actress. It will come down to the final category of the night - Best Picture - to see if either Justice League War or At Night All Blood Is Black can win the night with a third GRA trophy, or if The Diplomat or Scarface can tie them with a second trophy.

At Night All Blood Is Black will wind up being the big winner of a strangely even and record breaking ceremony as 11 different films managed to take home awards tonight. It is the fifth Best Picture award for writer Jimmy Ellis, but just his second as a solo writer. By beating out Justice League War, it keeps the streak alive of no superhero film ever winning the Best Picture GRA.

Congratulations to all the winners! That's a wrap on the 31st season in the world of Last Resort Films. Stay tuned to the special GRA Edition of The Numbers on January 8th. That will be followed by Most Streamed on January 10th, Top 10 Surprises of Season 31 on January 12th, and finally a new segment, History Lesson on January 14th. After that will be the next batch of Inside the Writers Studio segments, leading up to the Season 32 LRF Comic-Con on January 23rd.