What to watch: Is Amy Adams leader of the Oscar pack?
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It's the year of the dog for Amy Adams.
The six-time Oscar nominee embraces her primal side as a mom who thinks she's turning into a canine in the dark comedy "Nightbitch," a nice bit of counterprogramming in theaters to "Wicked," "Gladiator II" and "Moana 2." This holiday season at the cinema is looking great so far, and it's getting a thrilling lift from "The Order," a true-life crime drama starring Jude Law. The Englishman is currently pulling double duty as a big-screen FBI agent in that film and a mysterious rogue in the new "Star Wars" series "Skeleton Crew." And it's a big week for TV, with our 2024 best shows ranking out, in case you're making a list and checking it twice. (It's not just a Santa thing!)
Now on to the good stuff:
See Amy Adams unleashed as a primal mom in 'Nightbitch'
With Golden Globe nominations coming Monday morning, Adams has a good shot at landing her 10th career nod in the lead musical/comedy actress category. She's the best thing about "Nightbitch," an adaptation of the Rachel Yoder book: Adams plays a creatively unfulfilled stay-at-home mother ― exhausted by her young son and the daily grind ― who begins to notice fur, fangs and what looks like a tail developing on her body. But these weird physical aspects lead to needed changes for her emotional wellbeing.
Adams told me in an interview how much she enjoyed filming a scene where she ran with a whole bunch of real dogs ― “to be sort of a pack leader was fun,” she says with a laugh ― but she held back tears when talking about how working with little kids in the movie gave her a new perspective on motherhood. “It made me want to go back. Monotony becomes memory and then it's gone, and it's replaced by something else and it's really beautiful."
Stream Jude Law's new 'Star Wars' show 'Skeleton Crew'
"Star Wars" has been accused of ignoring the kids and tapping into adult nostalgia in recent years, but the new Disney+ show "Skeleton Crew" definitely skews toward a new generation of fans: A group of youngsters find a buried spaceship and accidentally catapult themselves into an intergalactic coming-of-age adventure, kind of a "Goonies" meets the Force. (The little alien dude with an elephant-like face is most likely to do the "Truffle Shuffle.") And to keep with the kid motif, TV critic Kelly Lawler is feeling mid about the "uncomplicated and straightforward" show, writing in her ★★½ review that "if you're looking for "Andor" levels of mature and complex storytelling, you'll be sorely disappointed."
Law plays the enigmatic pirate captain Jod Na Nawood, who helps the kids in their quest to get home. And in an interview about his latest projects, the actor says he's had a soft spot for the galaxy far, far away ever since watching the first "Star Wars" growing up: "It just changed my life, blew me away. And it also began my love affair just with going to the movies."
Catch up with 'Disclaimer,' 'Shogun' and the best TV series of 2024
Fun fact: I watch a lot of movies. A lot. Especially this year. And because of that, there's a ton of great TV I need to catch up on, hopefully over Christmas break. If you're in that year-end mode too, check out Kelly's list of the best shows of 2024. She writes that her No. 1 pick, the Apple TV+ mystery thriller "Disclaimer," is a cure for our current TV era full of "lightweight, simplistic fluff that can't make you stop scrolling long enough to pay attention." She also praises FX's Emmy fave "Shogun" (which I still haven't seen!) as well as HBO's "True Detective: Night Country" and Amazon's "Fallout" (which are both rad!).
My top TV pick, HBO's "The Penguin," didn't make her list – but not I'm not mad about it because everybody's got different tastes. And speaking of that ... my year-end best-of movies list is coming next week! So stay tuned.
Even more goodness to check out!
- DC honcho James Gunn talks Max superhero show "Creature Commandos" and building a new, connected DC universe.
- Watching "The Odyssey" adaptation "The Return" made me ponder: Why don't we have a Homeric Cinematic Universe already?
- We went to the Hallmark Christmas Experience and all we got was this feature (plus a ton of Yuletide cheer).
- Cheers to Ted Danson! He's getting the Carol Burnett Award at the Golden Globes in January.
- And are you ready for ... the Paste BN Movie Meter?!
Got thoughts, questions, ideas, concerns, compliments or maybe even some recs for me? Email btruitt@usatoday.com and follow me on the socials: I'm @briantruitt on Bluesky, Instagram and Threads.