October is a real mixed bag. I have no idea now if George Hickenlooper’s Casino Jack is going to be able to make a dent and my gut tells me no. Nowhere Boy seems like a lost cause and after seeing Tamara Drewe in Cannes (my review) I don’t give that one any chance either. Hilary Swank’s ups and downs are hard to predict, but Conviction also boasts Sam Rockwell, and he’s about due. And out of Sundance I didn’t get the vibe The Company Men was going to be blowing any doors off either.
However, the teaser trailers for David Fincher’s The Social Network already have me convinced it’s going to be great. I also think Secretariat has a strong chance to pull a Blind Side this year serving as the family drama to get audiences and pundits talking. Secretariat could score one of those bottom five Best Picture slots and get Diane Lane her first Oscar nomination since Unfaithful.
The there’s Clint Eastwood’s Hereafter teaming him with his Invictus star Matt Damon once again. Billed as a supernatural drama, this is a bit of a change for Eastwood, but with a script from Peter Morgan (The Queen and Frost/Nixon) and Eastwood at the helm I’d say we should expect good things.
November offers a pair of animated contenders with DreamWorks’ Megamind and Disney’s Tangled. Of the two I would expect Tangled to be better received by the Academy, but that’s just gut instinct and not based on anything more considering I haven’t watch the trailer for either and have only heard mild online buzz from the masses.
Morning Glory may end up being too much comedy and not enough drama, but I think it should remain in the conversation and Burlesque is the film that could stand up and be a surprise audience and Academy favorite. Considering the lack of musicals this year (even though this isn’t strictly a musical) it seems like it’s an instant candidate for a Golden Globe nomination, but will the Academy embrace the Cher and Christina Aguilera team up?
The Weinstein’s have bounced Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech all around the release schedule and for the time being it would appear the director of HBO’s “John Adams” miniseries will see his latest film released on November 24. With a cast like Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Michael Gambon, Timothy Spall, Jennifer Ehle and Derek Jacobi in tow and having already found success with his television period piece “Elizabeth I” this is certainly not a film to overlook. This year has a major lack of period feel and if this film is of any measure of quality I am sure Harvey will be at work reminding people of how he brought Shakespeare in Love seven Oscars including Best Picture.
Paul Haggis returns to the director’s chair with The Next Three Days with Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks, but the synopsis on that one reeks of melodrama though I could obviously be wrong.
This leaves the only new addition to my list of Contenders in Welcome to the Rileys, a film I have added out of pure curiosity considering I can’t for the life of me figure out just what exactly it will be nominated for. Is it possible this could get a Best Picture nomination? Could Ken Hixon get an original screenplay nom? How about acting nominations for either James Gandolfini, Melissa Leo or Kristen Stewart? Personally I don’t think any of this is all that possible, but the questions are out there so it must not be overlooked. This film performed well at Sundance in January and a late year release could give it some buzz as nominations roll around.
And December, the month it all comes to a head. The month we may end up seeing Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life and wait to bestow upon it a reaction many gave There Will be Blood, or will it be dismissed just like Malick’s New World was back in ’05? It’s certainly the buzzy film of the year so far and no one’s even seen it.
A couple of films that have already been seen by many include Derek Cianfrance’s Blue Valentine (my review) starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams and Mike Leigh’s Another Year (my review). I saw both at Cannes and fell in love with Another Year and didn’t understand all the fuss surrounding Blue Valentine. I will admit the performances in Valentine are excellent, but the film itself is particularly unbalanced. It wouldn’t surprise me if it earned some acting noms, but I think it ends there. As for Another Year, Lesley Manville deserves a Supporting Actress nomination and in my opinion the film is one to consider for picture, original screenplay and director.
December also offers Sofia Coppola’s Somewhere, The Fighter from David O. Russell, James L. Brooks’ Everything You’ve Got, The Debt from John Madden and the Coen brothers return with True Grit. Sylvain Chomet’s The Illusionist will be released on Christmas Day and it is a film not to be overlooked for Best Animated film after Chomet’s The Triplets of Belleville was nominated back in 2004.
Of course, this list isn’t complete as several films are still without release dates and a couple without distributors. Here’s a list of candidates that didn’t make the above list because they are still without officially announced domestic release dates.
Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours; 3 Backyards; Andrew Jarecki’s All Good Things with Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst; Barney’s Version; Jodie Foster’s unfortunately timed The Beaver with Mel Gibson; Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s Biutiful which is still looking for a distributor; Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan; Brighton Rock; Robert Redford’s Lincoln assassination picture The Conspirator; Alexander Payne’s The Descendants with George Clooney, Jim Sheridan’s Dream House with Daniel Craig, Naomi Watts and Rachel Weisz, Doug Liman’s Fair Game; Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire; Last Night; William Monahan’s London Boulevard; Edward Zwick’s Love and Other Drugs with Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, Julian Schnabel’s Miral; Rabbit Hole with Aaron Eckhart and Nicole Kidman, Bruce Robinson’s Rum Diary with Johnny Depp, Julie Taymor’s The Tempest; and Peter Weir’s The Way Back.
You can stay up-to-date on everything Oscar related in my “The Contenders” section and with the Toronto International Film Festival just around the corner Oscar talk is really about to heat up.
