Is Ben Lyons "the most hated film critic" alive?

A Los Angeles Times article on Sunday suggested that Ben Lyons, the current co-host of the syndicated movie-review show At the Movies, has become "the most hated film critic in America" among film bloggers, columnists, professional movie critics and even longtime fans of the show. (The article observed that viewership this season is down 21 percent from a year ago.) Scott Johnson, who started the StopBenLyons.com blog, told the Times: "I don't expect to agree with a critic all the time. But his approach is to throw out blurbs just so he can get on a poster" for the movie he's reviewing. Erik Childress, vice president of the Chicago Film Critics Assn., remarked, "His integrity's out the window. He has no taste." Variety.com deputy editor Anne Thompson said that with Lyons providing the reviews, At the Movies has become "a train wreck." But Brian Frons, an executive with Disney-ABC Television Group, defended Lyons saying, "This is a guy who, if you sit and talk with him, he really does have an enormous love and knowledge base of movies. ... Did he spend 20 years as critic for a major newspaper? No. He's very much of the TV generation who don't [sic] spend time reading newspapers."

Jon Stewart schools Mike Huckabee

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Mike Huckabee Pt. 2

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

AFI Top 10 of 2008

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• The Dark Knight
• Frost/Nixon
• Frozen River
• Gran Torino
• Iron Man
• Milk
• WALL•E
• Wendy and Lucy
• The Wrestler

No big surprises here except maybe "Wendy and Lucy".

Golden Globe nominations announced

Okay, so they never get the nominees right.

BEST PICTURE (DRAMA)

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Frost/Nixon
• The Reader
  
• Revolutionary Road
  
• Slumdog Millionaire

BEST PICTURE (COMEDY/MUSICAL)

• Burn After Reading
  
• Happy-Go-Lucky
• In Bruges
  
• Mamma Mia!
  
• Vicky Cristina Barcelona
  

BEST ACTOR (DRAMA)

• Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
• Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
• Sean Penn, Milk
• Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS (DRAMA)

• Angelina Jolie, Changeling
• Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
• Meryl Streep, Doubt
• Kristin Scott Thomas, I’ve Loved You So Long
• Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

BEST ACTOR (COMEDY/MUSICAL)

• Javier Bardem, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
• Colin Farrell, In Bruges
• James Franco, Pineapple Express
• Dustin Hoffman, Last Chance Harvey
• Brendan Gleeson, In Bruges

BEST ACTRESS (COMEDY/MUSICAL)

• Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky
• Frances McDormand, Burn After Reading
• Meryl Streep, Mamma Mia!
• Emma Thompson, Last Chance Harvey
• Rebecca Hall, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Tom Cruise, Tropic Thunder
• Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
• Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
• Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
• Ralph Fiennes, The Duchess

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Amy Adams, Doubt
• Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
• Viola Davis, Doubt
• Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
• Kate Winslet, The Reader

DIRECTOR

• David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
• Stephen Daldry, The Reader
• Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
• Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road

ANIMATED FILM

• WALL-E
• Bolt
• Kung Fu Panda

SCREENPLAY

• Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire
• David Hare, The Reader
• Peter Morgan, Frost/Nixon
• Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• John Patrick Shanley, Doubt

FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM

• Gomorrah
• I’ve Loved You So Long
• Waltz with Bashir
• The Baader Meinhof Complex
• Everlasting Moments

ORIGINAL SCORE

• James Newton Howard, Defiance
• Alexandre Desplat, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• A. R. Rahman, Slumdog Millionaire
• Hans Zimmer, Frost/Nixon
• Clint Eastwood, Changeling

ORIGINAL SONG

• “Down to Earth” from WALL-E
• “Gran Torino” from Gran Torino
• “I Thought I’d Lost You” from Bolt
• “Once in a Lifetime” from Cadillac Records
• “The Wrestler” from The Wrestler

Who's the Boss?

The National Board of Review reveal their winners

Today the National Board of Review released their winners of 2008. From their site:

Best Film: “Slumdog Millionaire”
Best Director: David Fincher, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Best Actor: Clint Eastwood, “Gran Torino”
Best Actress: Anne Hathaway, “Rachel Getting Married”
Best Supporting Actor: Josh Brolin, “Milk”
Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Best Foreign Film: “Mongol”
Best Documentary: “Man on Wire”
Best Animated Feature: “WALL-E”
Best Ensemble Cast: “Doubt”
Breakthrough Performance by an Actor: Dev Patel, “Slumdog Millionaire”
Breakthrough Performance by an Actress: Viola Davis, “Doubt”
Best Directorial Debut: Courtney Hunt, “Frozer River”
Best Original Screenplay: Nick Schenk, “Gran Torino”
Best Adapted Screenplay (tie): Simon Beaufoy, “Slumdog Millionaire” and Eric Roth, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”

The Top Ten (in alphabetical order):
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Defiance”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Gran Torino”
“Milk”
“WALL-E”
“The Wrestler”

Top Five Foreign Films (in alphabetical order):
“Edge of Heaven”
“Let the Right One In”
“Roman de Gare”
“A Secret”
“Waltz with Bashir”

Top Five Documentary Films (in alphabetical order):
“American Teen”
“The Betrayal”
“Dear Zachary”
“Encounters at the End of the World”
“Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired”

Top Ten Independent Films
“Frozen River”
“In Bruges”
“In Search of a Midnight Kiss”
“Mr. Foe”
“Rachel Getting Married”
“Snow Angels”
“Son of Rambow”
“Wendy and Lucy”
“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
“The Visitor”

William K. Everson Film History Award: Molly Haskell, Andrew Sarris
Spotlight Award: Melissa Leo, “Frozen River,” Richard Jenkins, “The Visitor”
The BVLGARI Award for NPR Freedom of Expression: “Trumbo”

I can't say I'm surprised at the unfortunate snub of Heath Ledger for Best Supporting Actor. I still believe him to be the frontrunner, as the winners in the acting categories here usually never go on to win the Oscar. Penelope Cruz and Anne Hathaway are good signs. Slumdog Millionaire and David Fincher were givens. I'll probably be eaten alive for this, but the NBR really sucked up to Clint Eastwood this year, naming him Best Actor over Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke and Frank Langella. "Changeling" was also named one of the Top 10 Films over "Revolutionary Road", "The Reader" and "Doubt". "Gran Torino" also took Best Original Screenplay over "Milk". More will become clear when the critics' circles begin to unfold this coming week along with the Golden Globe nominations.