My favorites in Television for the 2015-2016 TV season

I watch a lot of TV! Here are my favorites from June 1, 2015 to May 31, 2016

Best Reality Television show
Making A Murderer
Project Greenlight
Rupaul's Drag Race Logo
Shark Tank
Survivor
Top Chef

Best Guest Actor in a Series
Mahershala Ali House of Cards
Richard Armitage Hannibal
Reg E. Cathey House of Cards
Jeffrey Dean Morgan The Walking Dead
Paul Sparks House of Cards
Jon Tenney Scandal



Best Guest Actress in a Series
Gillian Anderson Hannibal
Ellen  Burstyn House of Cards
Kate Burton Scandal
Molly Parker House of Cards
Cicely Tyson How to get away with murder
Mare Winningham The Affair


Best Supporting Actress Mini Series or TV Movie
Kathy Bates American Horror Story: Hotel
Regina King American Crime
Melissa Leo All the Way
Charlotte Rampling London Spy
Jean Smart Fargo
Mare Winningham American Horror Story Hotel

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Laura Carmichael Downton Abbey
Melissa Leo Wayward Pines Season 1
Maggie Smith Downton Abbey
Maura Tierney The Affair
Bellamy Young Scandal
Constance Zimmer Unreal

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Anna Chlumsky Veep
Kether Donohue You're the Worst
Jenifer Lewis blackish
Judith Light Transparent
Niecy Nash Getting On
Allison Williams Girls

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Jim Carter Downton Abbey
Joshua Jackson The Affair
Lenny James The Walking Dead
Rob James-Collier Downton Abbey
Michael Kelly House of Cards
Jussie Smollett Empire

Best supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Titus Burgess Unreakable Kimmie Schmidt
Jaime Camil Jane the Virgin
TJ Miller Silicon Valley
Timothy Simons Veep
Zach Woods Silicon Valley
Steve Zissis Togetherness

Best Supporting Actor in a TV movie or Mini Series
Connor Jessup American Crime
Ne-Yo The Wiz
Denis O'Hare American Horror Story Hotel
Jessie Plemons Fargo
Joey Pollari American Crime
Bokeem Woodbine Fargo


Best Guest Actress Comedy
Tina Fey Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt
Beth Grant Mindy Project
Linda Lavin Mom
Niecy Nash Scream Queens
Jenny Slate Girls
June Squibb Mom

Best Guest Actor Comedy
Christopher Abbott Girls
Mike Carlsen Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt
Peter Macnichol Veep
Anthony Mendez Jane the Virgin
Chris Messina Mindy Project
Corey Stoll Girls


Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson blackish
Aziz Ansari Master of None
Noah Calvin The Real O'Neals
Chris Geere You're the Worst
Jeffrey Tambor Transparent
Josh Thomas Please Like Me

Best Lead Actor in a Mini series of Tv Movie
Bryan Cranston All the Way
Idris Elba Luther
Timothy Hutton American Crime
Andy Samberg 7 Days of Hell
Ben Whishaw  London Spy
Patrick Wilson Fargo

Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Kyle Chandler Bloodline
Hugh Dancy Hannibal
Freddie Highmore Bates Motel
Mads Mikklesen Hannibal
Kevin Spacey House of Cards
Dominic West The Affair

Best Lead Actress in a Mini Series or Tv Movie
Kirsten Dunst Fargo
Felicity Huffman American Crime
Audra McDonald Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill
Lili Taylor American Crime
Kerry Washington Confirmation
Shanice Williams The Wiz Live

Best Lead Actress in a Drama Series
 Shiri Appleby Unreal
Viola Davis How to Get Away with Murder
Michelle Dockery Downton Abbey
Taraji P. Henson Empire
Ruth Wilson The Affair
Robin Wright House of Cards

Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Rachel Bloom Crazy Ex girlfriend
Tracy Ellis Ross blackish
Ellie Kemper Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt
Julia Louis Dreyfus Veep
Gina Rodriguez Jane The Virgin
Constance Wu Fresh Off The Boat

Best Mini Series or Tv Movie
All The Way
American Crime
Confirmation
Fargo
Lady Day at Emerson Bar and Grill
London Spy
The Wiz Live

Best Comedy Series
blackish
Crazy Ex Girlfiend
Getting On
Jane the Virgin
Please Like Me
Transparent
Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt

Best Drama Series
The Affair
Downton Abbey
Empire
Hannibal
House of Cards
Scandal
Unreal

2016 Oscar Nominated Best Foreign Language Films: This is the best the world has to offer?

Every year usually after the Oscars are over, I do my best to watch all 5 of the film's nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. I'm announcing here that this is the last year I will do this and here is why:

I've loved watching foreign films for a very long time.  I used to go the Seattle International Film Festival year after year and see many of the best and worst that other countries on this Earth have to offer.  So those experiences  should pair well with watching the five Oscar nominated foreign films right? Wrong. Because each country is only allowed to advance one film to represent them and then a panel of seemingly pretty out of touch panel chooses the "best" 5, sometimes they get it correct as is the case of All About My Mother and A Separation.  But mostly they get it wrong.   They often exclude many critically acclaimed nominees  for questionable and uninspiring choices. 

This year's 5 films were no exception for being generally unexceptional.  

The nominees were:

Embrace of the Serpent- Colombia

This is two different parallel stories of two white men trying to find this cure all drug in the jungles of South America. Sometimes it had something interesting to say about wealthy nations exploiting tribal people for their industries,but mostly it just plodded. The film is well shot in black and white, but who's great idea was it to make the subtitles white as well.  Fortunately the plot was not so complicated for the times I couldn't read the subtitles.   Unfortunately, overall it's just mildly interesting.  6 out of 10

Mustang- France

The best and definitely only near great film of the bunch was this one about a group of teenagers growing up in a country who will not allow them be themselves due to tradition.  The film is a sad watch, but I particularly admired the realness of all the teenage characters.  While it was a fictional film, it felt like a documentary of these young women's sometimes tragic lives.  8 out of 10

Son of Saul- Hungary

This film was the eventual Oscar  winner.  It's a harrowing story about a man's experience trying to navigate his way through the Holocaust. The one thing that really works for the film is the way the camera follows the character in order to create the feeling that you are following this man's experience. Otherwise this doesn't add a lot to the many many films that the Oscars have recognized about the Holocaust.  Certainly tragedies like this should have films made to educate filmgoers, but the Holocaust is definitely the Academy's favorite tragedy of choice. 7 out of 10

Theeb- Jordan

This film about a child's experiencing dodging a war torn country was interesting and well done,but I have to admit that it's also the one I forgot first.  I had to go back and remind myself what it was about.  While the film had some powerful moments in the moment I viewed it, its  power for me was short lived. 7 out of 10

A War- Denmark

Of the five films I was most interested in this one's story.  A celebrated military officer is charged with a war crime that he probably unintentionally committed to protect his squadron.  If seeing every minute detail played out intrigues you, then you'll like this.  I was mostly bored by the lack of action in what could have been a very interesting and provocative film.  The military scenes are the best, but they only last not even the first half of the film before it turns over to the officer's somewhat tedious
home life and trial. 

6 out of 10

So I find it hard to believe that these are the best the world has to offer.  The only film that would've been even close to being in my top 10 of the year is Mustang and even it would've fallen short.  

I'm looking forward to some good films this fall.  I'm sure that there will be great ones that the Oscars will ignore.