Matt's Blog

My apologies for the lack of an update last week.  I've been extremely busy with work, the Brisbane International Film Festival and commitments with Golf Queensland.  I spent the weekend in Melbourne watching Adam Scott defend the Australian Masters title which was very exciting!

It’s that time of the year where I like to speculate as to which films will earn a best picture nomination at the Academy Awards.  The awards season kicks off on 4 December 2013 when the National Board of Review announces their winners.  What will follow are three intense months of campaigning in the lead up to the Oscars on 2 March 2014 (that’s a week later than usual so as to avoid a clash with the Winter Olympics).

Many of the films in contention have already been released or have popped up at film festivals.  Only a small few remain under wraps since they are yet to be completed (including American Hustle, The Wolf Of Wall Street).  It’s therefore relatively easy to pick which films will be the hunt.  Those with high critical approval and strong box-office success will always find a place on an Oscar forecaster’s list.

Two years ago, I correctly picked all 9 of the nominees with my early November picks.  Last year, I could only manage 7 of the 9 but did pick 3 of the 4 acting winners last year.  I'm not trying to brag (ok, maybe I am a little) but I'm just highlighting the general predictability of the Academy voters.

Having seen a few of the films and sized up the form guides offered by other Oscar bloggers, films already released that will contend this year include Gravity, Captain Phillips, The Butler, Fruitvale Station and Blue Jasmine.  Here’s a look at what we can expect to see over the next few months (with descriptions taken from the IMDB)…

American Hustle
Release Date In Australia: 12 December 2013
Director: David O. Russell  (Silver Linings Playbook, The Fighter)
Starring: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence
Plot Overview Per IMDB: A con man, Irving Rosenfeld, along with his seductive British partner Sydney Prosser is forced to work for a wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia.

Nebraska
Release Date In Australia: 26 December 2013
Director: Alexander Payne (Sideways, The Descendants)
Starring: Bruce Dern, Will Forte, June Squibb
Plot Overview Per IMDB: An aging, booze-addled father makes the trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim a million dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize.

Philomena
Release Date In Australia: 26 December 2013
Director: Stephen Frears (The Queen, High Fidelity)
Starring: Judi Dench, Steve Coogan, Sophie Kennedy Clark
Plot Overview Per IMDB: A world-weary political journalist picks up the story of a woman's search for her son, who was taken away from her decades ago after she became pregnant and was forced to live in a convent.

August: Osage County
Release Date In Australia: 1 January 2014
Director: John Wells (The Company Men)
Starring: Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Juliette Lewis, Ewan McGregor
Plot Overview Per IMDB: A look at the lives of the strong-willed women of the Weston family, whose paths have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Oklahoma house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional woman who raised them.

Saving Mr Banks
Release Date In Australia: 9 January 2014
Director: John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side)
Starring: Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Colin Farrell
Plot Overview Per IMDB: Author P. L. Travers reflects on her difficult childhood while meeting with filmmaker Walt Disney during production for the adaptation of her novel, Mary Poppins.

The Wolf Of Wall Street
Release Date In Australia: 23 January 2014
Director: Martin Scorsese  (The Departed, Hugo)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matthew McConaughey, Jonah Hill
Plot Overview Per IMDB: Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stockbroker living the high life to his fall involving crime, corruption and the federal government.

12 Years A Slave
Release Date In Australia: 30 January 2014
Director: Steve McQueen  (Shame, Hunger)
Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael K. Williams, Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt
Plot Overview Per IMDB: In the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.

All Is Lost
Release Date In Australia: 20 February 2014
Director: JC Chandor (Margin Call)
Starring: Robert Redford
Plot Overview Per IMDB: After a collision with a shipping container at sea, a resourceful sailor finds himself, despite all efforts to the contrary, staring his mortality in the face.

Inside Llewlyn Davis
Release Date In Australia: 20 February 2014
Director: Ethan Coen & Joel Coen (Fargo, No Country For Old Men)
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Justin Timberlake
Plot Overview Per IMDB: A week in the life of a young singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961.

Dallas Buyers Club
Release Date In Australia: TBA
Director: Jean-Marc Vallée (Café De Flor, C.R.A.Z.Y.)
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner, Jared Leto, Steve Zahn
Plot Overview Per IMDB: The story of Texas electrician Ron Woodroof and his battle with the medical establishment and pharmaceutical companies after being diagnosed as HIV-positive in 1986.

So on that note, my tips (in order) for the best picture Oscar are: 1. Gravity, 2. 12 Years A Slave, 3. The Wolf Of Wall Street, 4. Captain Phillips, 5. Blue Jasmine, 6. Inside Llewyn Davis, 7. American Hustle, 8. Dallas Buyers Club, 9. Saving Mr Banks, 10. August: Osage County.

The best actor prize looks to be a three horse race between Robert Redford (All Is Lost), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave) and Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club).  A tough choice but I’ll lean towards Robert Redford to win his first actor Oscar.

Sandra Bullock has been touted as a contender for best actress but I’ll be putting my house on Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine) to win.  Can’t see her getting beaten.

The best supporting actor category has bloggers divided between Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club) and Michael Fassbender (12 Years A Slave).  He’s been on a great run in recent years and my pick is Michael Fassbender.

Last but not least is best supporting actress and two African Americans have taken people’s fancy - Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years A Slave) and Oprah Winfrey (The Butler).  You can’t help but think the power of Oprah Winfrey will help her over the line in what is her first on screen performance in 15 years.

The nominations are announced on 16 January 2014 and as always, I’ll be hoping for a few surprises!