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"AFTERNOONS OF SOLITUDE" - Review

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Jul 12

One of 2025's best docs, Albert Serra's AFTERNOONS OF SOLITUDE is an unflinching portrait of the world of bullfighting, focusing on the enormous skills & showmanship of star matador Andrés Roca Rey as well as the dignity of his bovine opponent. A tough sit but worth it. @filmlinc.bsky.social

THE STORY – Explores the spiritual pain of bullfighting, the tormented torero in a ring, one of the most excessive and graphic examples of the origin of Southern European civilization. THE CAST – Andr...

"TO A LAND UNKNOWN" - Review

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Jul 12

Director Mahdi Fleifel's TO A LAND UNKNOWN, an empathetic look at the plight of a pair of Palestinian emigres in Athens seeking black market passports to realize their dream of a better life, hits with a powerful impact, led by two potent lead performances. #ToALandUnknown
Check out my #NBP review:

THE STORY – A Palestinian refugee living on the fringes of society in Athens gets ripped off by a smuggler and sets out to seek revenge. THE CAST – Mahmood Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Angeliki Papoulia, Moham...

Top 10 Reality Competition Series To Keep An Eye On For The 2025 Emmy Awards Season

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · May 15

Last year, "RuPaul's Drag Race" had its Emmy tiara snatched by Alan Cumming's pesky "Traitors." Can the series lip-sync its way back to the crown? Or can any freshman competition show break into the Top 5? I've got the odds & state of the race for the Reality Competition Series Emmy right here!

In an Emmy season where series come and go with alarming speed, the race for Outstanding Reality Competition Series is a comparative sea of tranquility. Indeed, among the 22 Emmy winners since the cat...

The Next Best Picture Podcast - "Thunderbolts*"

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · May 6

Just when you're ready to give up on the MCU, we get a curveball like THUNDERBOLTS*, a romp that masks a serious depiction of mental illness. Listen in to this spoiler-filled episode as I join @nextbestpicture.bsky.social, @laurenlamango.bsky.social & @codymonster91.bsky.social to discuss it all!

For this week’s main podcast review, Lauren LaMagna, Cody Dericks, Tom O’Brien, and I are reviewing and discussing the latest film from Marvel Studios, “Thunderbolts*,” starring Florence Pugh, Sebasti...

THE STORY – Based on a true story, “Words of War” follows world-renowned journalist and human rights activist Anna Politkovskaya on her brave crusade, fighting to be an independent voice of truth for ...

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · May 6

The events of the drama WORDS OF WAR may have occurred 25 years ago, but the actions of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya to expose the tyranny of Vladimir Putin pack an extra punch today. The film may overly rely on familiar biopic tropes, but Maxine Peake's work as Anna shines. #WordsOfWar

"WORDS OF WAR" - Review

Top 10 TV Movies To Keep An Eye On For The 2025 Emmy Awards Season

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Apr 26

From sequels for beloved theatricals (#BridgetJones, #AnotherSimpleFavor) to provocative original films (#Mountainhead, #RebelRidge), the Emmy race for Outstanding Television Movie is heating up. What to watch? I've got ten top contenders for you to consider. Check 'em out right here!

Every year’s Emmy ceremony has categories, such as Limited Series, where the award often goes to worthy winners with projects exploring Significant Social Themes. That’s all well and good. But after a...

Top 10 New Drama Series To Keep An Eye On For The 2025 Emmy Awards Season

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Apr 18

The 2025 Emmy race for Outstanding Drama Series may be the most chaotic in years with as many as 4 possible slots available for a new drama series. Which of 2025's freshman class will make the cut? I've got 10 likely hopefuls here, some of which may surprise you, along with their current Emmy odds.

Compared with its sister Emmy category, Outstanding Comedy Series, which offers relatively few nomination slots for a new show this year, the race for Outstanding Drama Series truly lives up to its na...

Top 10 New Comedy Series To Keep An Eye On For The 2025 Emmy Awards Season

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Apr 9

In the Emmy race for Best Comedy Series, there are so many great shows that have returned this season - "Hacks," "The Bear" & "Only Murders" to name just a few - what chance does a freshman comedy have of breaking through for an Emmy nod? Plenty, if they're of the caliber of these 10 new comedies.

There are certain years when the Emmy race for Outstanding Comedy Series is wide open, with longtime nominees ending their runs or top contenders pausing between seasons. Those races are among the liv...

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Apr 5

THE PENGUIN LESSONS is based on the true story of teacher Tom Michell (Steve Coogan) who works at an Argentinian private school in 1976. The vibe is very Dead Poets Society, but when a character is abducted by secret police in an otherwise fluffy teacher film, it's an uneasy narrative fit. GRADE: C+

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Apr 3

Disney's SNOW WHITE boasts fine work by Rachel Zegler & solid new songs. But Gal Gadot is lousy as the Queen & the CGI dwarfs are downright creepy. It simply seems to exist as yet another cash grab for the studio, one that seems to be increasingly less lucrative for the Mouse House. Good. GRADE: C+

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 26

Michael Fassbender & Cate Blanchett play a pair of married spies trying to sniff out a traitor in their midst in Steven Soderbergh's crackerjack thriller BLACK BAG. At a taut 94 minutes, he doesn't waste a frame or one word of David Koepp's marvelously twisty script. 2025's best so far. GRADE: A-

Top 10 Limited Series To Keep An Eye On For The 2025 Emmy Awards Season

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 25

Will it be "Adolescence?" "The Penguin?" Or maybe any one of the eight more series that are my Top 10 contenders for the Outstanding Limited Series Emmy. The race is heating up already, and I'll be offering the top candidates (and their odds) for all the big Emmy races here at Next Best Picture.

Traditionally, the Outstanding Limited Series category has been one of the premier Emmy races each year, often attracting top filmmakers and major movie stars to bring to life stories that can best be...

The Next Best Picture Podcast: Episode 434 - Oscars 2026 Date Is Set With Conan O'Brien Returning To Host, "Materialists" & "Together" Trailers

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 24

Please listen in to this week's #NBPpodcast as I join @nextbestpicture.bsky.social, @dancindan.bsky.social, @codymonster91.bsky.social & @mavericksmovies.bsky.social to discuss the return of Conan as Oscar host (yippee), a ceremony date even later than this year (ugh), the polls and YOUR questions!

For Episode 434, I am joined by Dan Bayer, Cody Dericks, Tom O’Brien, and Will Mavity to discuss the announcement of the date for the 98th Academy Awards with Conan O’Brien returning to host, the rece...

AwardsWatch - Director Watch Podcast Ep. 90 – ‘Charlie Wilson’s War’ (Mike Nichols, 2007) with Special Guest Tom O’Brien

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Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 22

Longtime listener, first-time guest! @ryanmcquade77.bsky.social and @MrJayLedbetter invite me into their lair to discuss Mike Nichols' final film, and we talk all about Hanks, Roberts, Hoffman and a whole lot more! We had a blast making this episode, and we hope you have as much fun listening.

Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteu…

awardswatch.com

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Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 19

A shy Nathan Caine (Jack Quaid) is nicknamed NOVOCAINE due to a condition that keeps him from feeling physical pain. When new girlfriend Sherry is taken hostage in a bank heist, Nathan gives chase. The film's first act is a lovely romance, but soon the film turns very violent. It's a mix that works.

"THE DAY THE EARTH BLEW UP: A LOONEY TUNES MOVIE" - Review

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 14

Left for dead by David Zaslav, #LooneyTunes lives! #TheDayTheEarthBlewUp is a beauty of a comedy that works both as an origin story about how Daffy Duck & Porky Pig became lifelong buds as well as a wicked satire of 1950s sci-fi epics, with more laughs per minute than any comedy in recent memory.

THE STORY – Porky and Daffy, the classic animated odd couple, turn into unlikely heroes when their antics at the local bubble gum factory uncover a secret alien mind control plot. Against all odds, th...

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 13

In EEPHUS, Carson Lund’s beauty of a comedy, two teams of guys of various ages and waistlines meet for 1 final game at their soon-to-be-demolished stadium. The writing is sharp, the ensemble is superb & the cinematography is appropriately autumnal. A great American indie. #Eephus @musicboxfilms.com

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Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 13

ON BECOMING A GUINEA FOWL expertly walks a fine line between dark comedy & tense drama as a brave Zambian woman exposes the history of molestation of the women in her family at the hands of her own newly-deceased uncle. A superb & brutal takedown of the complicity of silence. #OnBecomingAGuineaFowl

THE STORY – After the catastrophe, although the souls of Nezha and Aobing were saved, their bodies would soon be shattered. Taiyi Zhenren planned to use the seven-colored lotus to rebuild their bodies...

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 13

While we were sleeping, the Chinese animated adventure NE ZHA 2, a unique blend of classic Chinese mythology, dazzling high-flying visuals and fart jokes, became (unadjusted for inflation) the worldwide biggest-grossing animated film of all time. Are you curious? Then check out my review! #NeZha2

"NE ZHA 2" - Review

The Next Best Picture Podcast - "Mickey 17"

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 13

Bong is back baby, and #NBP's got him! Please listen in as I join @nextbestpicture.bsky.social, @jrparham.bsky.social, @TheGiovanniLago & @mavericksmovies.bsky.social for a SPOILER-FILLED deep dive into MICKEY 17. It's filled with creepers, megalomaniacs and lots of yummy sauces! It's a fun one!

For this week’s main podcast review, Josh Parham, Giovanni Lago, Brendan Hodges, Tom O’Brien, and I are here to discuss and review the latest film from Academy Award-winning South Korean filmmaking Bo...

The Next Best Picture Podcast - "Last Breath"

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Mar 13

Director Alex Parkinson has adapted his 2019 doc into fiction form with the true story of a diver (Finn Cole) trapped under water without potentially enough oxygen to survive. Is the new version worth holding your breath to see? @nextbestpicture.bsky.social, @saraclements.bsky.social & I tell all!

For this week’s main podcast review, Sara Clements, Tom O’Brien, and I are here to discuss and review the latest film from Alex Parkinson, “Last Breath,” starring Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, Finn Cole,...

Our Final 2025 Oscar Winner Predictions

Tom O’Brien @thomaseobrien.bsky.social · Feb 28

There's no turning back now. It's the NBP team's final Oscar predictions! On many of the big categories, we strongly agree, but there are a few where we're all over the place, which makes things fun. We're here to help you win your Oscar pool! (And we won't even take a cut!) Enjoy Sunday's Oscars!!

It all comes down to this. This Sunday, March 2nd, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) will announce the winners of the 97th Academy Awards. The presentation will air on ABC and, f...