The creative arts Emmys were last night, and some really interesting choices were made. Did your show win any of the below the line awards? Was your favorite guest actor or actress awarded a trophy? Also, the National Society of Film Critics (an aspirational group for me) named Past Lives as the film of the year, but my favorite pick of theirs was giving an honorable Mention to Rachel macadams for Are You There God, It’s me Margaret? I did think it was weird that Zone of Interest was the Best Picture honorable mention, won director, and was recognized as one of the two things Sandra Hueller won Best Actress for, but it somehow still lost the International race to Falling leaves. Listen, if Falling Leaves was that good, why is it not the runner up for Best Picture? Make it make sense.
On the audio description front, i have to say, Media Access Group and Andrew Thatcher get high marks continuously for the excellent narration on Lawman (Paramount Plus). It sounds great, the choice of narrator is perfect, and the description has never left me hanging. Not the only amazing show I watched. I also knocked out another episode of Reacher (Amazon), which is one of my favorites as well, which pains me to say considering my recent experience with another Amazon title, but I am always fair. Reacher is excellent, and I’m loving the mystery this season. Even getting Russo more involved is interesting, as he has a different dynamic. I also checked out another What If? (Disney Plus), where Happy Hogan saves Christmas. That was definitely Kat Dennings, and it really felt like Jon Faverau and Sam Rockwell reprised their roles. I’m fully aware they just have someone doing a really solid Robert Downey Jr. impersonation. Not every actor repeats their on screen performances.
Then there’s Dr. Death (Peacock), which is really not grabbing me like the first season was. this one has a different approach. I’m not saying they should abandon this concept entirely, as it may end up like Fargo. Every season is totally different, and some of them i didn’t like. True Detective is the same way. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I might try and stick this out and see if it gets better, but two episodes in, and it’s a clear dip in quality from last season.
That’s it for me. I did watch some movies, so if you didn’t get a chance to check out my review of Foe, please do. It’s 2023, and there’s no reason to continue to marginalize blind and visually impaired consumers by limiting their accessibility and/or providing low quality accessibility for films and television shows. A company whose founding CEO bought a newspaper and a space program can afford to have accessibility that highlights the quality of the artistry of the hundreds of people who work on a particular movie or series, and really be inclusive by bringing us in on that experience. In a world where sighted people have endless options of video quality, and how they can view their titles, the fact that often times we don’t even have an option, let alone a choice, is only because these companies believe no one cares, no one listens, and no one pays attention. Everyone gets by with the bare minimum they can scrape by with so someone can buy an island or a rocket ship.
