Movie Mom

Just in time for the release of the sixth in the series of car chase extravaganzas that began with “The Fast and the Furious” is Esquire’s smart and funny assessment of installments 1-6 from my friend Jen Chaney.

It’s tempting to lump all of the Fast and the Furious movies into one massive clutch-popping, Paul Walker-grimacing, Vin Diesel-mumbling action-movie blob. All those drag races, stunningly acrobatic collisions and run-ins with drug lords have a tendency to blend together after a while.

But make no mistake, my riding-or-dying friends: There are differences between the six movies in this lucrative franchise. As Pauline Kael undoubtedly would have said if she’d lived to see Dominic Toretto speeding through Rio with a bank vault attached to his Dodge Charger’s bumper: Fast and Furious movies may be uniformly stupid, but some are still better-stupid than others.

 The nominees for this year’s Broadcast Film Critics Association television awards were just announced:

BEST COMEDY SERIES

·      The Big Bang Theory – CBS

·      Louie – FX

·      The Middle – ABC

·      New Girl – FOX

·      Parks and Recreation – NBC

·      Veep – HBO

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES

·      Don Cheadle (House of Lies) – Showtime

·      Louis C.K. (Louie) – FX

·      Jake Johnson (New Girl) – FOX

·      Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) – CBS

·      Adam Scott (Parks and Recreation) – NBC

·      Jeremy Sisto (Suburgatory) – ABC

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES 

·      Laura Dern (Enlightened) – HBO

·      Zooey Deschanel (New Girl) – FOX

·      Lena Dunham (Girls) – HBO

·      Sutton Foster (Bunheads) – ABC Family

·      Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep) – HBO

·      Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation) – NBC

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES

·      Max Greenfield (New Girl) – FOX

·      Simon Helberg (The Big Bang Theory) – CBS

·      Alex Karpovsky (Girls) – HBO

·      Adam Pally (Happy Endings) – ABC

·      Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation) – NBC

·      Danny Pudi (Community) – NBC

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY 

·      Carly Chaikin (Suburgatory) – ABC

·      Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory) – CBS

·      Sarah Hyland (Modern Family) – ABC

·      Melissa Rauch (The Big Bang Theory) – CBS

·      Eden Sher (The Middle) – ABC

·      Casey Wilson (Happy Endings) – ABC

BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A COMEDY SERIES  

·      Melissa Leo (Louie) – FX

·      David Lynch (Louie) – FX

·      Bob Newhart (The Big Bang Theory) – CBS

·      Patton Oswalt (Parks and Recreation) – NBC

·      Molly Shannon (Enlightened) – HBO

·      Patrick Wilson (Girls) – HBO

BEST DRAMA SERIES

·      The Americans – FX

·      Breaking Bad – AMC

·      Downton Abbey – PBS

·      Game of Thrones – HBO

·      The Good Wife – CBS

·      Homeland – Showtime

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

·      Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) – AMC

·      Damian Lewis (Homeland) – Showtime

·      Andrew Lincoln (The Walking Dead) – AMC

·      Timothy Olyphant (Justified) – FX

·      Matthew Rhys (The Americans) – FX

·      Kevin Spacey (House of Cards) – Netflix

BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

·      Claire Danes (Homeland) – Showtime

·      Vera Farmiga (Bates Motel) – A&E

·      Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife) – CBS

·      Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) – BBC America

·      Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men) – AMC

·      Keri Russell (The Americans) – FX

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

·      Jonathan Banks (Breaking Bad) – AMC

·      Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Game of Thrones) – HBO

·      Michael Cudlitz (Southland) – TNT

·      Noah Emmerich (The Americans) – FX

·      Walton Goggins (Justified) – FX

·      Corey Stoll (House of Cards) – Netflix

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

·      Jennifer Carpenter (Dexter) – Showtime

·      Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) – HBO

·      Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad) – AMC

·      Regina King (Southland) – TNT

·      Monica Potter (Parenthood) – NBC

·      Abigail Spencer (Rectify) – Sundance

BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A DRAMA SERIES

·      Jim Beaver (Justified) – FX

·      Jane Fonda (The Newsroom) – HBO

·      Martha Plimpton (The Good Wife) – CBS

·      Carrie Preston (The Good Wife) – CBS

·      Diana Rigg (Game of Thrones) – HBO

·      Jimmy Smits (Sons of Anarchy) – FX

BEST MOVIE OR MINI-SERIES

·      American Horror Story: Asylum – FX

·      Behind the Candelabra – HBO

·      The Crimson Petal and the White – Encore

·      The Hour – BBC America

·      Political Animals – USA

·      Top of the Lake – Sundance

BEST ACTOR IN A MOVIE OR MINI-SERIES

·      Benedict Cumberbatch (Parade’s End) – HBO

·      Matt Damon (Behind the Candelabra) – HBO

·      Michael Douglas (Behind the Candelabra) – HBO

·      Toby Jones (The Girl) – HBO

·      Al Pacino (Phil Spector) – HBO

·      Dominic West (The Hour) – BBC America

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOVIE OR MINI-SERIES

·      Angela Bassett (Betty & Coretta) – Lifetime

·      Romola Garai (The Hour) – BBC America

·      Rebecca Hall (Parade’s End) – HBO

·      Jessica Lange (American Horror Story: Asylum) – FX

·      Elisabeth Moss (Top of the Lake) – Sundance

·      Sigourney Weaver (Political Animals) – USA

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOVIE OR MINI-SERIES

·      James Cromwell (American Horror Story: Asylum) – FX

·      Peter Mullan (Top of the Lake) – Sundance

·      Zachary Quinto (American Horror Story: Asylum) – FX

·      Sebastian Stan (Political Animals) – USA

·      David Wenham (Top of the Lake) – Sundance

·      Thomas M. Wright (Top of the Lake) – Sundance

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOVIE OR MINI-SERIES

·      Ellen Burstyn (Political Animals) – USA

·      Sienna Miller (The Girl) – HBO

·      Sarah Paulson (American Horror Story: Asylum) – FX

·      Lily Rabe (American Horror Story: Asylum) – FX

·      Imelda Staunton (The Girl) – HBO

·      Alfre Woodard (Steel Magnolias) – Lifetime

Best Reality Series

·      Duck Dynasty – A&E

·      The Moment – USA

·      Pawn Stars – History Channel

·      Push Girls – Sundance

·      Small Town Security – AMC

·      Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan – BBC America

BEST REALITY SERIES – COMPETITION   

·      Chopped – Food Network

·      Face Off – Syfy

·      Shark Tank – ABC

·      So You Think You Can Dance – FOX

·      Survivor – CBS

·      The Voice – NBC

BEST REALITY HOST 

·      Tom Bergeron (Dancing With the Stars) – ABC

·      Cat Deeley (So You Think You Can Dance) – FOX

·      Gordon Ramsay (Hell’s Kitchen/Masterchef) – FOX

·      RuPaul (RuPaul’s Drag Race) – Logo

·      Ryan Seacrest (American Idol) – FOX

·      Kurt Warner (The Moment) – USA

BEST TALK SHOW

·      Conan – TBS

·      The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – Comedy Central

·      The Ellen DeGeneres Show – Warner Brothers Television Distribution

·      Jimmy Kimmel Live! – ABC

·      Late Night with Jimmy Fallon – NBC

·      Marie – Hallmark Channel

BEST ANIMATED SERIES

·      Adventure Time – Cartoon Network

·      Archer – FX

·      Phineas and Ferb – Disney Channel

·      Regular Show – Cartoon Network

·      The Simpsons – FOX

·      Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Cartoon Network

This video, featuring music by the film’s composer, Mark Mancina, is much more appealing than the trailer.  I’m beginning to look forward to it.  And do we get a hint that train and boat movies may follow?

They really do love Jerry Lewis in France, so where better to premiere his first movie in 23 years than Cannes?  The 87-year-old legendary funny man appears in a drama called “Max Rose,” about an elderly widower, co-starring with Claire Bloom.  The Hollywood Reporter has an exclusive clip.