How we watch television in 2024 has changed radically since this intrepid writer was a wee lad. Back when we were kids, with the internet and streaming a thing of rumour and something out of the 70s dystopian sci-fi film that would lead to the rise of machines and the demise of the human race (which might still happen, of course), we had to make sure we carved out the time to see the show we wanted because then it would disappear. No repeats, no catch-up, no YouTube. Consumption and consumerism have become different beasts in the decades since and, in their sophomore feature, Jane Schoenbrun dissects our relationships with the box with the big glow, just one of the many narratives flowing through this intoxicating new film.

1996: Owen (Justice Smith and Ian Foreman) is a young teenager in a Clinton-era America struggling to find his place in life, school, and his general surroundings, feeling conflicted about his relationships with other people, his mother, and his sexuality. At a teacher/parent conference-style evening, he meets Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine, stunning) who, to Owen, is a much more together person than himself, exuding cool aloof, and confident. Maddy confides that she likes girls, whereas Owen states he likes TV shows, and soon enough she recommends he watch her favourite television show, The Pink Opaque, which may help him through some tough times as it did her: part Buffy the Vampire Slayer, part David Lynch nightmare, the two lead characters may hold some answers for them, both in this world and in the world of the show.

For anyone coming into this one cold, make sure it stays that way but one way to prep yourself is to devour Schoenbrun’s debut feature We’re All Going To The World’s Fair. Released in 2022 at the height of the pandemic after its Sundance debut a year earlier, it showcased the writer/director’s unique prowess as a filmmaker and immediately put them on the map in a big way. A coming-of-age narrative is never the most challenging of genres to tap into but under their visual intensity and knack for the visceral and the challenging, it made the usual cliches feel new and fresh as it delved into internet culture, fan forums, and how we can get lost in new worlds that replace our own. With Glow, they set their sights on our consumption of television and our over-reliance on them for escapism and, by extension, being seen. 

The characters of the show-within-the-show may be fake but for Owen and Maddy they allow them to feel comfort, to feel seen, and to feel the love and affection their real world hasn’t provided: whether it’s part of a family dynamic or their own curiosities and sexuality, it allows them safety and guidance where those around them haven’t been able to. Indeed, it delves deep into our fascination as humans with the old gogglebox and how much we rely on it to service our everyday needs and affections, even if it means missing everything going on around us – heck, we even observe people in social experiments, people dancing on TikTok and watch other people watch the television in some bizarre Truman Show-esque nightmare that only gets more and more compelling. 

With panache, colour, and dense, intriguing texture, Schoenbrun’s exhilarating filmmaking is to be admired and applauded, taking us on original adventures through old pastures and making us look, think and feel everything very differently, even if a few notes don’t quite hit the heights of the rest of them. It will polarise audiences, for sure, but in a cinema landscape that is becoming increasingly more predictable, their voice is one to be shouted about through the flatscreens. 

When Emmy FYC events began in March, FX’s “Shōgun” was in the midst of its acclaimed run, with viewers tuning in weekly to lap up the court intrigue, feudal politics and, yes, those tense tea ceremonies.

At the time, everyone figured that “Shōgun” would be an Emmy powerhouse — in the limited series categories. The 10-episode adaptation of James Clavell’s 1975 historical novel told the book’s story from beginning to end. It was a brilliant, nuanced rendition. And it was complete. It doesn’t get more limited than that.

But then, a week after the Emmy submission date, FX announced that “Shōgun” would return for “likely” two more seasons. And just like that, “Shōgun” shifted to the Emmys’ drama categories because, you see, it’ll be back. Someday. So, to put “Shōgun” in limited series would be disingenuous. Of course, someone at the network might have surveyed the competition in the drama categories and seen a barren landscape, ripe for the taking. Why not move it?

To which I have only one thing to say: Thank you!

It’s unthinkable now to imagine the Emmy drama categories without “Shōgun.” What series would have won? I heard from readers after the nominations wondering how programs like “Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” “The Morning Show” and “3 Body Problem” could possibly have been nominated for drama series. What? You wanted Marvel’s “Loki” or “Star Wars: Ahsoka” instead? Thanks to the strikes, this was the weakest group of contenders in decades.

So get ready for one of those Emmy nights where five shows win just about everything. And one of the shows will be “Shōgun.” As for nearly everyone else, in the immortal words of Hiromatsu: “You will know what it is to be denied.”

DRAMA SERIES
“The Crown”
“Fallout”
“The Gilded Age”
“The Morning Show”
“Mr. & Mrs. Smith”
“Shōgun”
“Slow Horses”
“3 Body Problem”

Winner: “Shōgun”

If you’re going to complain that “Shōgun” isn’t a drama series, I’m going to assume you don’t think “The Bear” is a comedy either. OK. But then doesn’t the high camp of “The Gilded Age” mark it squarely as a comedy? What’s it doing here? And if half the audience is tuning in to “The Morning Show” purely to hate-watch, shouldn’t that disqualify it as a drama, even if the Primetime Emmys don’t have a soap opera category?

LEAD ACTRESS
Jennifer Aniston, “The Morning Show”
Carrie Coon, “The Gilded Age”
Maya Erskine, “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”
Anna Sawai, “Shōgun”
Imelda Staunton, “The Crown”
Reese Witherspoon, “The Morning Show”

Winner: Sawai

For a while, it felt like the only person who could take this Emmy over Sawai was Emma Stone, who won her second Oscar earlier this year for “Poor Things” and might have been even better in “The Curse,” in which she and Nathan Fielder played hosts of a home renovation show. But then Stone wasn’t nominated. And neither was “The Curse” — for anything. That shutout feels more cringe-inducing than anything this weird, disquieting show offered.

So that leaves Sawai, who probably would have won easily anyway. Maybe her breathtaking turn as Lady Mariko will prompt more people to watch “Pachinko,” which returns on Aug. 23 for a second season. She’s terrific in that too, playing a young woman trying to be taken seriously in the corporate world of late-1980s Japan.

LEAD ACTOR
Donald Glover, “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”
Walton Goggins, “Fallout”
Gary Oldman, “Slow Horses”
Hiroyuki Sanada, “Shōgun”
Dominic West, “The Crown”
Idris Elba, “Hijack”

Winner: Sanada

Oldman has enjoyed a brilliant career, and the foul-mouthed, flatulent, booze-soaked veteran secret agent Jackson Lamb might be the best thing he has ever done. It was nice to see him — and “Slow Horses” — finally receive some love from Emmy voters. Could he go on to win? Not with Sanada in the category. Here’s another actor with a stellar résumé and plenty of accolades from his native Japan. It’s his moment.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Christine Baranski, “The Gilded Age”
Nicole Beharie, “The Morning Show”
Elizabeth Debicki, “The Crown”
Greta Lee, “The Morning Show”
Lesley Manville, “The Crown”
Karen Pittman, “The Morning Show”
Holland Taylor, “The Morning Show”

Winner: Debicki

How does “Shōgun” pull in 25 nominations but not one for Moeka Hoshi? Were voters behind some sort of “eightfold fence” when they were watching the show?

Looking at the nominees, it is strange that they hail from just three shows. I found it difficult to predict which women from “The Morning Show” would be nominated. Voters’ answer? Everyone! Meanwhile, Gary Oldman and Jack Lowden made it in for “Slow Horses” but not Kristin Scott Thomas. It makes for a weird slate.

Debicki stands as the overwhelming favorite for her sensitive portrayal of a melancholy Diana on “The Crown,” but castmate Manville might be more deserving. You know this if you saw Manville’s showcase episode, “Ritz,” the gorgeous, devastating highlight of “The Crown’s” final season. It’s Manville’s first Emmy nomination. Debicki was recognized last year, ultimately losing to Jennifer Coolidge for “The White Lotus.” Voters likely will elevate her this year.

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Tadanobu Asano, “Shōgun”
Billy Crudup, “The Morning Show”
Mark Duplass, “The Morning Show”
Jon Hamm, “The Morning Show”
Takehiro Hira, “Shōgun”
Jack Lowden, “Slow Horses”
Jonathan Pryce, “The Crown”

Winner: Crudup

Say what you will about “The Morning Show,” but even the people who watch it to complain about how bad it is have nothing but love for Crudup and his charming, chaotic Cory Ellison. For many, Crudup, who won an Emmy for the series’ first season, is the only reason they still tune in. And “The Morning Show” did haul in 16 nominations, including nine for acting. Clearly, someone loves all that emoting.

Cuckoo is a stylish horror movie screening at the Fantasia Film Festival. Gretchen (Hunter Schafer, Euphoria) has moved to the Bavarian Alps with her father and stepmother. Not wanting to be there, she constantly calls her mother who is back in the United States. Between sending voicemails to her mother, Gretchen must also contend with a series of odd occurrences involving sick guests at the resort she has taken a job. On top of all that, a creepy woman seems to have an interest in her.

While the film introduces a number of characters, it essentially serves as a showcase for Schafer. Despite being built on a foundation of Final Girl tropes – her parents think she is hysterical, for example – there is more to her than heavy bandages and teenaged brooding. Gretchen has all the resourcefulness and personality that makes for an endearing protagonist. Whether it is quiet moments of contemplation or frantic encounters involving brain numbing cacaws, Schafer is engaging. 

Regrettably, the same cannot be said for all of the other characters. Her stepmother Beth (Jessica Henwick, Game of Thrones) seems to be there to be an antagonist to Gretchen, but she never does anything particularly sinister. Her father Luis (Marton Csokas, The Last Duel) has more depth to him, but it is not enough to form an opinion of him.

Dan Stevens as the mysterious Mr. Konig is fantastic, however. The pleasant attitude is over the top and the villainy borders on cartoonish in a combination of qualities that would make someone overbearing in real life but a delight to watch on screen. Some of the best moments in Cuckoo involve him just interacting with others.

The movie sets up a creepy atmosphere that will keep audiences on the edge of their seats. The beautiful setting is the perfect contrast to the uneasiness that hangs over everything.. The excellent score also adds to the feeling of discomfort. Cuckoo is more about providing an experience than telling a story. This will not sit well with everyone. The first two acts take time creating a tone, before the third act dives headlong into chaos. Even in its quieter moments, Cuckoo does not take too much time explaining things. There is enough to know what is going on, but just barely. And anyone looking for motivation will be disappointed.

Cuckoo may not pack the emotional punch it is going for in its tale of grief, but the scares are very effective. The villain is a hell of a lot of fun and Schafer holds her own as the increasingly injured hero. It may not reveal all of its secrets, but it is a hell of a ride.

The Fantasia International Film Festival takes places from July 18 – August 4. Check out the latest news HERE

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