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Taylor Swift Eyes Record at Grammys as Women Take Center Stage 

US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift arrives for the 81st annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California, on January 7, 2024. (AFP)
US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift arrives for the 81st annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California, on January 7, 2024. (AFP)
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Taylor Swift Eyes Record at Grammys as Women Take Center Stage 

US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift arrives for the 81st annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California, on January 7, 2024. (AFP)
US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift arrives for the 81st annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California, on January 7, 2024. (AFP)

All eyes are on -- who else? -- Taylor Swift ahead of Sunday's Grammys, when the megastar could break the record for most Album of the Year wins at a gala where women finally are taking center stage.

SZA will arrive at the star-studded event in Los Angeles as the evening's top nominee with nine, while Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo and Miley Cyrus are also in the running for the show's top prizes.

With her sophomore album "SOS," SZA explored an eclectic blend of styles and genre including pop, rock and jazz, with dreamy electro inflections that scored her the most nominations of any artist.

And supergroup boygenius -- Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus -- are up for six Grammys.

The trio met as up-and-comers in the indie music scene and, tired of constant comparisons to each other as "women in rock," decided to collaborate while also continuing to produce solo work.

Bridgers has a seventh nomination for her collaboration with SZA.

Janelle Monae and Lana Del Rey are in the mix for Album of the Year, while Victoria Monet is a contender for Record of the Year.

So it's highly likely a female act will win the top awards -- unless Grammys darling Jon Batiste does.

The piano virtuoso is the sole man up for the two major prizes, two years after he bested pop's royalty to dominate the proceedings.

It will be a particularly poignant evening for Batiste, whose triumph in 2022 was paired with immense personal struggle behind the scenes as his wife, the writer Suleika Jaouad, was receiving treatment for a recurrence of leukemia.

This time around, she will be able to join the party as her partner contends for some of music's most prestigious honors.

Among his accolades, Batiste is up for the top songwriting prize for "Butterfly," written for Jaouad while she was in hospital.

"For us to be able to celebrate the album and that song, and to also be at the Grammys again, with her this time? That's what my favorite part of this is," Batiste told AFP in an interview late last year.

"It's full circle."

Another day, another Swift record

If Swift's "Midnights" wins Album of the Year, it would be a record-breaking fourth win of the prize for the 34-year-old, who's already the toast of the music world, making headlines with every breath.

She is currently tied in elite company with Frank Sinatra, Paul Simon and Stevie Wonder at three top album honors.

Swift's in-demand producer Jack Antonoff scored six nominations for his work, notably with her and Del Rey, the baroque pop singer whose album "Did you know there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd" earned her five nominations.

And the soundtrack of the blockbuster film "Barbie" could also clean up: music from the effervescent summer smash earned 11 nods thanks to performances including from Eilish as well as Dua Lipa, rapper Nicki Minaj and the movie's sleeper standout... Oscar-nominated actor Ryan Gosling.

Bubbly Bronx rapper Ice Spice is also up for an award for her work on "Barbie" as well as the prize for Best New Artist, which industry watchers predict she could take home after a banner year that saw her go totally viral.

Joni, Billy, U2 set to perform

The vast majority of the more than 90 competitive trophies are doled out prior to the Grammys gala broadcast, which is heavy on spectacle: many of the top nominees, including SZA, Eilish and Rodrigo are on deck to perform.

Nigerian sensation Burna Boy, country singer Luke Combs and rapper Travis Scott will also deliver sets.

And the legendary Joni Mitchell will take the stage in her first ever performance at the Grammy Awards.

The 80-year-old -- who has nine competitive Grammys and a Lifetime Achievement Award -- is in the running for best folk album for her live record entitled "Joni Mitchell at Newport."

She won her first Grammy for "Clouds" more than half a century ago.

"Piano Man" Billy Joel also will perform on the heels of releasing his new single "Turn The Lights Back On" -- his first original music in 17 years -- on Thursday.

And U2 will make a special remote appearance from Las Vegas, where the rockers have a residency at the new Sphere arena.

The main Grammys gala airs on Sunday at 5:00 pm (0100 GMT Monday) on US network CBS.

Comedian Trevor Noah, who's up for best comedy album, will host for the fourth consecutive year.

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Movie Review: In ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ the Superhero Movie Finally Accepts Itself for What It Is 

Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds attend the premiere of "Deadpool & Wolverine" in New York City, New York, US, July 22, 2024. (Reuters)
Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds attend the premiere of "Deadpool & Wolverine" in New York City, New York, US, July 22, 2024. (Reuters)
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Movie Review: In ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ the Superhero Movie Finally Accepts Itself for What It Is 

Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds attend the premiere of "Deadpool & Wolverine" in New York City, New York, US, July 22, 2024. (Reuters)
Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds attend the premiere of "Deadpool & Wolverine" in New York City, New York, US, July 22, 2024. (Reuters)

If one thing is certain about “Deadpool,” it’s that its titular hero, for reasons never explained, understands his place in the world — well, in our world.

Indeed, the irreverent and raunchy mutant is sure to belabor his awareness of the context in which he lives — namely an over-saturated, increasingly labyrinthine multibillion-dollar Marvel multiverse which spans decades, studios and too many films for most viewers to count.

From its inception, the “Deadpool” franchise has prided itself on a subversive, self-aware anti-superhero superhero movie, making fun of everything from comic books to Hollywood to its biggest champion, co-writer and star, Ryan Reynolds.

It’s no surprise then, as fans have come to expect, that the long-anticipated “Deadpool & Wolverine” further embraces its fourth wall-breaking self-awareness — even as it looks increasingly and more earnestly like the superhero movie blueprint it loves to exploit. That tension — the fact that “Deadpool” has called out comic book movie tropes despite being, in fact, a comic book movie — is somehow remedied in “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which leans into its genre more than the franchise’s first two movies.

Perhaps this gives viewers more clarity on its intended audience. After all, someone who hates superhero films — I’m looking at you, Scorsese — isn’t going to be won over because of a few self-deprecating jokes about lazy writing, budgets for A-list cameos and the overused “superhero landing” Reynolds’ Deadpool regularly refers to.

But this time around, director Shawn Levy — his first Marvel movie — seems to have found a sweet spot. Levy is surely helped by the fact that the third film in the franchise has a bigger budget, more hype and, of course, a brooding Hugh Jackman as Wolverine.

That anticipation makes their relationship, packed with hatred and fandom, all the more enticing. Their fight scenes against each other are just as compelling as their moments of self-sacrificial partnership in the spirit of, you guessed it, saving the world(s).

Speaking of worlds, there is one important development in our own to be aware of ahead of time. The first two “Deadpool” films were distributed by 20th Century Fox, whose $71.3 billion acquisition by the Walt Disney Co. in 2019 opened the door for the franchise to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, “Deadpool & Wolverine” takes full advantage of that vast playground, which began in 2008 with Robert Downey Jr.’s “Iron Man” and now includes more than 30 films and a host of television shows. The acquisition is also a recurring target of Deadpool’s sarcasm throughout the movie.

Although steeped in references and cameos that can feel a bit like inside baseball for the less devoted, “Deadpool & Wolverine” is easy enough to follow for the casual Marvel viewer, though it wouldn’t hurt to have seen the first “Deadpool” and Jackman’s 2017 “Logan,” a harbinger of the increasing appetite for R-rated superhero violence. The Disney+ series “Loki” also gives helpful context, though is by no means a must watch, on the Time Variance Authority, which polices multiverse timelines to avoid “incursions,” or the catastrophic colliding of universes.

A defining feature of “Deadpool” has been its R rating and hyper violent action scenes. Whether thanks to more money, Levy’s direction or some combination of the two, these scenes are much more visually appealing.

But “Deadpool & Wolverine” does succumb to some of the deus ex machina writing that so often plagues superhero movies. Wade Wilson’s (the real identity of Deadpool) relationship with his ex (?) Vanessa is particularly underdeveloped — though it’s possible that ambiguity is a metaphor for Deadpool’s future within the MCU.

The plot feels aimless at points toward the end. One cameo-saturated battle scene in particular is resolved in a way that leaves its audience wanting after spending quite a bit of time building tension around it. While there are a few impressive stars who make an appearance, audiences may be disappointed by the amount of MCU characters referenced who don’t make it in.

The bloody but comedic final fight scene, however, is enough to perk viewers back up for the last act, solidifying the film’s identity as a fun, generally well-made summer movie.

The sole MCU release of 2024, “Deadpool & Wolverine” proves it’s not necessarily the source material that’s causing so-called superhero fatigue. It also suggests, in light of Marvel’s move to scale back production following a pandemic and historic Hollywood strikes, that increased attention given to making a movie will ultimately help the final product.