"The Light Between Oceans" Review (***)

Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander star in "The Light Between Oceans."

Derek Cianfrance has brought us two of the most heartbreaking films in recent memory with “Blue Valentine” and “The Place Beyond the Pines.” The writer/director’s previous works have proven him to be an auteur with an eye for realism and a nag for telling sprawling stories about complicated people in complicated situations. And while his latest, “The Light Between Oceans,” seems to be right in his wheelhouse, the film is never quite able to be much more than a gorgeous oil painting filled with award-worthy performances.

"Mad Max: Fury Road" Named Best Picture of the Year by Georgia Film Critics Association

George Miller's blockbuster wins four total; "Inside Out" wins two, while "Ant-Man" receives Oglethorpe Award for Excellence in Georgia Cinema.

The Georgia Film Critics Association have announced the winners of their 2015 Awards slate. In their 5th year, they have named "Mad Max: Fury Road" the year's best film, taking home Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography and Best Production Design. The haul of four awards is the second highest in the GAFCA's history, second only to the six awards that "The Tree of Life" won in 2011.

"Inside Out" was another big winner, taking home Best Animated Film and Best Original Screenplay for Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve and Josh Cooley. Alicia Vikander also took home two awards, Best Supporting Actress for "Ex Machina" and the Breakthrough Award. Jessica Chastain won the same two awards back in 2011. Also the Breakthrough Award winner in 2013, Brie Larson won Best Actress for "Room." Leonardo DiCaprio won Best Actor for "The Revenant" and Sylvester Stallone was named Best Supporting Actor for "Creed."

It was a tight year in several of the races, with the GAFCA releasing on twitter that the Best Supporting Actor and Best Score races resulted in near-ties and the Best Picture race saw half the nominees receiving several first-place mentions a piece. "Creed" director Ryan Coogler was second place in the Best Director race, despite his film not being a Best Picture nominee.

Best Foreign Film went to "Son of Saul," Best Documentary to "Amy" and Best Ensemble went to Tom McCarthy's "Spotlight." Georgia-lensed "Furious 7" won Best Original Song for "See You Again," performed by Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth.

"Ant-Man" was named as the winner for the 2015 Oglethorpe Award for Excellence in Georgia Cinema. Awarded to the films' directors and writers, previous winners include "John Portman: A Life of Building," "Sahkanaga," "Selma" and "The Spectacular Now."

Check out the full list of winners after the jump.

Georgia Film Critics Association Announces 2015 Nominees

"Mad Max: Fury Road" and "Sicario" lead the pack; "Ex Machina," "Room," "Spotlight" land multiple nominations.

The Georgia Film Critics Association turns 5-years-old this year and has released the nominees for the last year in film. "Mad Max: Fury Road" leads the pack with 7 nominations. "Sicario" landed 6, with "Spotlight" and "Room" each getting 5. "Carol," "Ex Machina" and "The Martian" all earned 4 nominations.

Some surprises include "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" landing a sole nomination for Best Picture, "The End of the Tour" being honored for Jason Segel and Adapted Screenplay, director Ryan Coogler landing a Best Director nod without "Creed" getting nominated for Best Picture and Rose Byrne showing up in the Best Supporting Actress race for "Spy."

Documentary nominee "The Look of Silence" was also nominated for Best Foreign Film. A voting tie results in the GAFCA's first ever list of 7 nominees for Best Actress. Steven Spielberg's "Bridge of Spies" earned 3 nominations, as did "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

Georgia-lensed "Furious 7" was nominated for Best Original Song. The Oglethorpe Award for Excellence in Georgia Cinema will be announced with the winners list on Friday. A shortlist of considered films is expected to be released as well.

Several of these films were found on the Georgia film festival circuit this year. "Frame by Frame," "I'll See You in My Dreams," and "Love & Mercy" all played at the Atlanta Film Festival. "45 Years," "Amy," "Anomalisa," "Best of Enemies," "Brooklyn," "Frame by Frame," "The Hunting Ground," "Room," "Son of Saul," "Spotlight" and "Youth" all played at the Savannah Film Festival. Additionally, "Frame by Frame" played at the Macon Film Festival.

Winners will be announced on Friday, January 8th. Check out the full list of nominees after the jump.

Review: "Ex Machina" (****)

Domhnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander and Oscar Isaac star in "Ex Machina."

Alex Garland’s provocative sci-fi/thriller “Ex Machina” hinges on three characters: Ava, Nathan and Caleb. Ava, played by the stunning Alicia Vikander (previously seen in “Anna Karenina,” “A Royal Affair” and “Seventh Son”), is our object of study, the artificially intelligent woman whose humanity—or lack-there-of—is called into question. Next we have Nathan (Oscar Isaac), a genius who at the mere age of 13 created Blue Book (think Wikipedia or Google), and has since become a loner of sorts living in a far-off land surrounded only by trees and green and the AI machines he creates. He’s authoritative and strong-willed and relentless when it comes to creating an artificially intelligent being, and Isaac plays this character to perfection. To act as Nathan’s counterbalance, we have Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson). He’s an inherently sympathetic and approachably handsome young programmer who works at Blue Book. After winning a company-wide contest, Caleb takes a long-winding helicopter ride to Nathan’s house to claim his prize of a week-long visit with the boss. And then… slow building tension and experiments and eeriness ensues.