Oscar Preview Time: The Tentative Release Dates

I was more than a little surprised to read this week that the Weinstein Company had chosen a summer release date for their Sundance pick-up Fruitvale whilst Fox Searchlight went with the Weinstein-like December 27th for Steve McQueen's Twelve Years A Slave. While summer is by no means a bad move for Fruitvale (movies without stars, instant hooks, or famous directors need time to build) and Fox Searchlight can sell a movie to Oscar with any date, it's weird to see the Weinstein Company go this route; Harvey Weinstein is more than a little responsible for the modern "DECEMBER OR BUST!" fanaticism that awards campaigns live by. For a moment I worried that they might have no faith in Fruitvale at all.

It's never been true, of course, that you have to release a movie in December to be an Oscar player but the important thing in regards to release dates is that it feels true to the studios which is why we get movie gluts every year 'round Christmas. ANYWAY... that's just the two most recent release date announcements. Here's what's coming our way -- a monthly calendar after the jump -- that might conceivably have Oscar dreams of some sort or another. (Feel free to add to the list in the comments so I can finally get around to the first Oscar predictions of the year!)

Already Released

• Stoker, Oz The Great and Powerful, The Place Beyond the Pines

April

• 42 (Warner Bros) -The inspirational sports saga biopic subgenre is crowded but usually a no-hitter with Oscar.  But every once in a while something catches.
• To the Wonder (Magnolia) -It's Malick! But the reviews haven't been kind.
• Oblivion (Universal) - Tom Cruise does his best Wall•E in this sci-fi pic. With Andrea Riseborough and Morgan Freeman.
• At Any Price - Dennis Quaid stars as a farmer in Ramin Bahrani's latest and it always feels like Bahrani's on the edge of wider recognition, doesn't it? 

May (The Oscar race in several categories probably begins right here.)

• Iron Man 3 (Disney/Marvel) - three Oscar nominations in total from the first two adventures of Tony Stark
• Love is All You Need - Oscar winning Danish director Susanne Bier trains her camera on Pierce Brosnan for a romantic comedy set in Italy
• The Great Gatsby (Warner Bros) -Baz Luhrmann's glitzy return. In 3D for some reason. Enjoy it because he'll disappear again until at least 2020. (sigh)
• Star Trek Into Darkness (Paramount) - overexcited pundits thought that the previous one in 2009 would be Best Picture nominated but it did score four tech noms which is nothing to sneeze at. Can Into Darkness also win tech nods?
• Frances Ha (IFC) - Noah Baumbach's latest black and white film is said to be a real charmer and a potential breakthrough for Greta Gerwig who is always on the verge.
• Before Midnight (SPC) - part three of Celine and Jesse's talky romance. Before Sunset won an Adapted Screenplay nomination but stupidly no Oscar traction for Julie Delpy. Will Oscar finally realize what magic this franchise is?
• The English Teacher (Cinedigm)
  What Maisie New (Millenium) - Sit up straight people. It's Ms. Julianne Moore twice over. 

June

• After Earth (Columbia) - Will Smith and Spawn of Will Smith star in M Night Shyamalan's postapocalyptic sci-fi epic
• Much Ado About Nothing (Lionsgate & Roadside) Joss Whedon & Friends throw toss off a little Shakespeare party
• The Bling Ring (A24) - the Return of Sofia Coppola. Yay!
• Man of Steel (Warner Bros) - aka Superman Returns... Again.
• World War Z (Paramount) - Brad Pitt and family try to survive the zombie apocalypse
• Monsters University (Disney/Pixar) - the Monsters Inc sequel. Can it win Best Animated Feature and avenge Monsters Inc's loss?
• I'm So Excited (SPC) - Pedro Almodovar returns to comedy in this airplane set farce
• White House Down - Channing Tatum defends the White House in this action flick from Roland Emmerich. No, I don't know why I included in this list either. Shut up. 

July

• The Lone Ranger (Disney) - Johnny Depp rides and quirks again
• The Hunt (Magnolia) - this Danish film about communal hysteria and a spreading lie stars Mads Mikkelsen and is supposedly excellent. From Thomas Vinterberg, a famous Oscar snubee from way back when for The Celebration (1998) which was just an awesome motion picture.
• Pacific Rim (Warner Bros) - the geeks are very excited about this sci fi would be blockbuster from Guillermo Del Toro. With Charlie Hunnam & Rinko Kikuchi
• Turbo (Dreamworks) - a snail becomes a speedy racer in this cartoon
• Only God Forgives (Radius/TWC) - Nicolas Winding Refn and Ryan Gosling, who were so sensational paired in Drive attempt to recapture the magic.
• The Wolverine (20th Century Fox) - James Mangold attempts to rescue Hugh Jackman's solo X-franchise from the horror that was "Origins" (just discussed)
• Fruitvale (Weinstein Co) - the Sundance winner is a true story about a young man (played by Friday Night Lights' Michael B Jordan)  in the Bay Area on a fateful day in 2008
• Blue Jasmine (SPC) - Woody Allen directs Cate Blanchett, Sally Hawkins, Peter Sarsgaard and Alec Baldwin in this comedy about a fashionable New York housewife in crisis. 

August

• The Spectacular Now (A24) - this Sundance hit is a romantic teen drama starring almost-Oscar nominee Shailene Woodley (The Descendants) and very far from but shoulda been almost Oscar nominee Miles Teller (Rabbit Hole)
• Elysium (Columbia) - a scifi drama from District 9's Neill Blomkamp starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster. Yes, please.
• Aint Them Bodies Saints (IFC) - Sundance reports suggest that this indie outlaw western (starring Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara) is a major achievement in cinematography at the very least. We shall see.
• The Grandmaster (Weinstein Co)- Wong Kar Wai and Tony Leung Chiu Wai reunite for this story about Bruce Lee's mentor. It's been a long long long time in coming (and in the making). Can it hurdle the dumb general indifference foreign films often meet in the US market? 
• Closed Circuit (Focus Features) Rebecca Hall and Eric Bana at a terrorist trial

September

• Prisoners (Warner Bros) - Hugh Jackman's daughter goes missing and detectives Jake Gyllenhaal and Paul Dano are on the hunt in this drama from acclaimed Canadian director Denis Vileneuve.
• Rush (Universal) - Ron Howard, who hasn't been in the Oscar race in forever, attemps a comeback with this sports drama about the rivalry between two 70s racers played by Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl.
• Runner Runner (20th Century Fox) - Brad Furman isn't exactly an "Oscar" director but given that his new thriller stars Ben Affleck who AMPAS loves right now... who knows? 

October

• Gravity (Warner Bros) - Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are lost in space in this ambitious sci-fi drama from Alfonso Cuaron
• Captain Phillips (Columbia) - Tom Hanks stars in this true story dramatic  thriller from Paul Greengrass about the first hijacking of an American ship by Somali pirates in hundreds of years
• Oldboy (FilmDistrict) Spike Lee remakes Park Chan Wook's cult favorite about a wrongly imprisoned man out for revenge on his captors. With Josh Brolin
• The Butler (Weinstein Co) Lee Daniels, attempts a Precious big comeback with Oscar post-The Paperboy (though he has so little to apologize for there despite the reviews) with this Oscar friendly concept film about the butler to many presidents. Forest Whitaker headlines.
• Carrie (Screen Gems) the remake with Chloe Grace Moretz and Julianne Moore... just discussed
• Malavita (Relativity) Robert DeNiro and Michelle Pfeiffer headline this mafia comedy from Luc Besson
• Seventh Son (Warner Bros) Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore battle in this supernatural fantasy adaptation. Love the cast but can it capture the box office? 

November

• Ender's Game - this classic sci-fi novel finally gets the big screen treatment. With Harrison Ford but will recent negative buzz for Orson Scott Card hurt the enthusiasm to see this visualized?
• August: Osage County (Weinstein Co) - Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts star in this female-led drama about squabbling daughters and their drug addled mother in Oklahoma reunited when their man of the house goes missing. Based on the sensational stage play.
• Thor: The Dark World (Disney/Marvel) - I guess they repaired that rainbow bridge.
• The Counselor (20th Century Fox) - Ridley Scott, who has weirdly never won the Oscar, returns with an all star cast in this legal drama about the drug trade. Cormac McCarthy
• The Wolf of Wall Street (Paramount) - Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio based on Jordan Belfort's hard-partying memoirs
• The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Lionsgate) - Katniss (freshly Oscar clubbed Jennifer Lawrence) goes on her victory tour... but all is not well in The Capitol
• Black Nativity (Fox Searchlight) - Kasi Lemmons who made the memorable Eve's Bayou (1997) many moons ago returns for this stage-to-screen adaptation in which a teenager dreams of a black nativity at Mass. With Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker and Jennifer Hudson.
• Frozen (Disney) - a new animated musical in which Disney aims to extend their princess line. With the singing voices of Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, and Jonathan Groff
• The Fifth Estate (Touchstone) - Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters) returns to dramatize the early days of WikiLeaks. With Benedict Cumberbatch and Daniel Brühl 

December

• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (New Line) - this horribly titled Rings epic is likely to snag some Oscar noms. They always do. 
• Abscam (Columbia) - David O. Russell is definitely in his Oscar moment so will the writer/director have another winner hot on the heels of The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook? This year's actorly collision involves Amy Adams and Christian Bale as criminals, Bradley Cooper as a federal agent and Jeremy Renner as a politician so obvs Russell is still trying to win his own gold. 
• The Monuments Men (Columbia) - George Clooney directs himself in this true WW II story about men trying to save great pieces of art. 
• Saving Mr. Banks (Disney) -biopic alert. biopic alert. Tom Hanks would like a third Oscar please. He's playing Walt Disney in this film that concerns the making of Mary Poppins. With Emma Thompson
• Grace of Monaco (Weinstein Co) - Nicole Kidman stars at the legendary movie star, long past her movie princess years as she helps settle a political dispute in 1961. From the director of La Vie En Rose.
• 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight) - Steve McQueen along with his muse Michael Fassbender (Hunger, Shame) bring us this pre Civil War drama about a slave (Chiwetel Ejiofor), slaveowner (Fassy) and an abolitionist (Brad Pitt). With Quvenzhané Wallis
• 47 Ronin (Universal) - Keanu Reeves headlines this action epic. With Oscar nominee Rinko Kikuchi (Babel)

TBA NO RELEASE DATE YET

• Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS Films) - the new Coen Bros picture about a folk singer played by Oscar Isaac is a looking at a fall release. With Carey Mulligan and Justin Timberlake
• The Railway Man (Lionsgate) - Colin Firth seeks to find his torturers in this post WWII drama. With Nicole Kidman.
• Nebraska (Paramount) - Alexander Payne directs a father son road trip. With Bruce Dern and Will Forte
• Foxcatcher (Columbia) - Bennet Miller (Moneyball, Capote) directs Steve Carell as paranoid schizophrenic John Du Pont and Mark Ruffalo as his Olympic athlete victim in this bizarre true story. With Channing Tatum.
• Snowpiercer (Weinstein Co) - this sci-fi drama with amazing cast and director (Boon Jong-Ho) is looking at the summer. But since it's Weinstein you never know. Might see it two years from now.
• Nymphomaniac (Magnolia) - Lars von Trier's latest provocation with Charlotte Gainsbourg as a woman recalling her erotic journey
• Out of the Furnace (Relativity) - writer/director Scott Cooper attemps to recapture the Oscar excitement of his debut (Crazy Heart) with this story of two brothers and a crime ring in the Rust Belt. With Christian Bale, Woody Harrelson, Forest Whitaker, Casey Affleck and more.
• Ernest & Celestine (GKids) - an animated film from France about a bear and a mouse who are friends
• Therese (LD Entertainment) - Elisabeth Olsen and Jessica Lange star in this adaptation of the famous play Therese Raquin
• Labor Day (Paramount) - Jason Reitman directs Kate Winslet in this dramatic thriller about a woman who offers a convict a ride

TBA NO US DISTRIBUTOR THAT I'M AWARE OF (YET)...

• Under the Skin - Jonathan Glazer's long awaited follow up to Birth with Scarlett Johansson as the alien lead
• The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: His
  The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Hers - Jessica Chastain stars in this double feature from debut director Ned Benson
• Serena - Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper reteam for this Susanne Bier depression era drama about a timber tycoon and his barren wife
• The Two Faces of January - Oscar Isaac, Kirsten Dunst and Viggo Mortensen star in this adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith novel
• The Past - Asghar Farhadi's first film since A Separation might have used the same title. It's a drama about the troubled dissolving marriage of an Iranian man and French woman. Will Oscar notice it?
• Dallas Buyer's Club -Matthew McConaughey in a true story about a womanizing homophobe who contracted full blown AIDS in 1986 (this is the one he lost all the scary weight for) and his struggle to survive with smuggled drugs
• Her - the inventive Spike Jonze helms this story of a lonely writer who develops an unhealthy relationship with an appliance. With Joaquin Phoenix and a collection of beauties in support: Mara, Adams, Morton, Wilde, Doubleday
• Night Moves - Kelly Reichardt returns alas sans Michelle Williams for this tale of young environmentalists who are ought to blow up a dam.
• A Long Way Down - a dramedy cowritten by Nick Hornby about a surrogate family forming on New Years Eve. With Toni Collette and Rosamund Pike

2014? 2013?

• The Grand Budapest Hotel (Fox Searchlight) Wes Anderson trains his singular eye on a hotel concierge (Ralph Fiennes) and protégé (?) and stolen paintings. With a delicious and huge cast of stars
• Miss Julie - Jessica Chastain stars in the classic Strindbergh role for director Liv Ullman
• Philomena - Stephen Frears directs Judi Dench as a woman on a 50 year search for the child she gave up
• An Enemy - Denis Villeneuve's other Jake Gyllenhaal film is about a man searching for his exact lookalike

So... big years ahead for Daniel Brühl, Oscar Isaac, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hanks, Forest Whitaker, Carey Muligan, Rinko Kikuchi, and Michael Fassbender each with multiple films. And another big year for two megastars for whom it's always a big year: Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio. 

These are just the films with tentatively announced release dates. What else might pop up? I gotta get my Oscar charts up!

Comments

[John T]

Though I don't know if there's an official release date in the US yet, the battle of the best friends/princesses will almost certainly be a hook the media can't resist, so I'd remember Naomi's Diana to go with Nicole's Grace.

[Jorge Rodrigues]

Don't forget The Past, Ashgar Farhadi's new movie, with Oscar nominee Berenice Bejo and should have been Oscar nominee if they watched the movie Tahar Rahim ;)

[Will h]

Really really really really really looking forward to Rush. All of the footage they've shown from the set looks great, and it is a killer story,

Keeping my eyes on this movie: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458413/ Don't think it has a set US release, but it seems like a possible festival break out to me.

[NATHANIEL R]

Will h -- the cast is certainly worthy.

Jorge -- weird that this Farhadi is also about divorce.

[Philip H.]

I am most excited about ...

The Great Gatsby (Baz! Interested to see what Toby Maguire does too)

Much Ado About Nothing (Joss Whedon!)

The Bling Ring (Sofia Coppola, really interesting story, Emma Watson)

Only God Forgives (Ryan and Refn and Kristin Scott Thomas ... yes)

Fruitvale (Heard good things and interested to see Octavia post-Oscar)

Gravity (Very interested to see Sandra in this role because I believe in her and I've been waiting for this movie forever - it sounds so interesting!)

The Butler (Oprah back to acting! And Lee Daniels)

August: Osage County (No explanation needed)

Grace of Monaco (Nicole. Nicole. And Nicole)

12 Years A Slave (Interested to see Quvenzhané post-Oscar nod)

[Henry]

These caught my eye:
Great Gatsby--trailer makes it look like a mess, but I love me some Baz overkill.
Star Trek---Possibly the best reinvention of a series outside of DC as Bond.
Blue Jasmine--Allen and Cate==will they be as good together as Allen and Davis?
Oldboy--I like when Spike works other people's material.
The Counselor--I always enjoy Scott's work.
Black Nativity--I loved Eve's Bayou. I hope Debi Morgan is in this one.
Grace of Monaco--Didn't care much one way or another till you mentioned La Vie.
Twelve Years a Slave--I think McQueen has such a deft touch that it will work.

These I'm cautious about:
Much ado about nothing--Premise sounds good, but I liked the Branagh version.
Malavita--DeNiro/comedy==not interested, but Besson/Pfeiffer==wonderful.
White House Down--I know exactly why you put it here and I agree.
Russell project--Cast looks good.

Heard bad things from people who should know:
Lone Ranger, Wolverine, Rush, Butler, August, Mr. Banks, 47

[Volvagia]

Nat: Personally, I think I'm holding out hope that The World's End could win traction somewhere. Edgar Wright deserves at least an original screenplay nod at this point.

[Melissa]

@Phillip H. Saw 12 Years at a test screening, Q. Wallis has a small no speaking role. Pitt is just a cameo. I loved it though.

Excited for Dunst in Two Faces of January.

[Bia]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Spring Breakers. Maybe they can work the Globes.

[Rami]

Greta Gerwig , it's about time isn't it? Here's hoping Michelle Pfeiffer gets some traction too

[Travis]

Another film for your "No Release Date" list, but still expected in 2013 is Spike Jonze "Her" starring Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Samantha Morton, etc...

[Jorge Rodrigues]

Shall we consider Terry Gilliam's THE ZERO THEOREM with Damon, Waltz and SWINTON also an Oscar prospect?

Even 'Dr. Parnassus' earned 2 Oscar nods...

[Aaron]

Great list!
Other possibilities for this year:
Bennett Miller's Foxcatcher, with Steve Carrell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1100089/
and Matthew McConnaughy's AIDS drama Dallas Buyer's Club
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0790636/ It feels more likely for actor since it's a baity role and he'll hopefully be considered overdue after last year.

Really curious about Malavita because of Pfeiffer but afraid to get my hopes up.

[Paolo]

Heard bad things about At Any Price during TIFF, The men I shared drinks with practically bonded over how crappy it was.

I just bought Osage the book to refresh my memory. I don't remember the first monologue being two pages long. If this movie doesn't get acting nominations across the board, it would have to screw up that bad (I'm personally rooting for Margo Martindale getting an Oscar and an Emmy during the same year).

So Gatsty, Much Ado, Osage, Ender's, Oldboy and Monuments are best adapted screenplay. Are there any others that we missed. I wanna read some books, preferably copyright free ones.

[Jorge Rodrigues]

And what about James Gray's LOWLIFE with Phoenix and Cotillard?

And Jason Reitman's LABOR DAY with Kate Winslet and Tobey Maguire?

Guillaume Canet's BLOOD TIES also has a very good cast - Mila Kunis, Marion Cotillard, Clive Owen, Zoe Saldana, Mattias Schoenaerts...

DEVIL'S KNOT with Reese and by Atom Egoyan?

FOXCATCHER by Bennett Miller, with Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo and Channing Tatum?

THE MONUMENTS MEN from Clooney with himself + Daniel Craig, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray and John Goodman?

NEBRASKA by Alexander Payne who many dubbed already 'the picture to beat'?

Kelly Reichardt's THE NIGHT MOVES with Jesse Eisenberg and Dakota Fanning but sadly no Michelle Williams? :)

Scott Cooper's OUT OF THE FURNACE with Bale and Casey Affleck?

Wes Anderson's fantastic-looking GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL?

P.S. - I know you will be sad to know (as I was) that the new Almodovar has been getting terrible reviews in Spain...

[Jorge Rodrigues]

And Mike Newell's REYKJAVIK with Waltz as Gorbachev and Michael Douglas as Reagan (potential Frost/Nixon?)

I love this time of the Oscar season, when we know that from a 100+ list of potentially great movies, almost 50% will not get to even be part of the awards conversation - many will not get distribution; some will be buried by the campaigning/buzz/critics, some will just be plain bad... and only a few survive! :)

[Mark]

Gold Derby has early winner predictions which look like so for lead actress:

Streep
Wattts
Kidman
Winslet
Mulligan

[Donovan Warren]

The Railway Man might be one to watch. It's a World War II drama about a real-life individual that stars Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman.

[Kurtis O]

I can't believe no one's mentioned that it's absolutely effing awesome that the first two legit Oscar contenders being discussed here are entirely dominated by people of color. Boo ya.

Also, if The Place Beyond the Pines is Oscar bait, then I'm the Queen of Versailles.

[The Seeker]

Emmm, what about Miller's Foxcatcher, Jonze's Her, Anderson's Grand Budapest Hotel and Payne's Nebraska? Also, but in less degree as a Oscar contender, The World's End.

Expecting:
-Elysium
-Untitled David O Russell Project/Abscam
-Nebraska
-Foxcatcher
-Monuments Men
-The Past
-The Dissapereance of Eleanor Rigby
-Her
-Anything with Cumberbatch
-The World's End

Wow, Sony has a crowded slate: Monuments Men, Abscam, Foxcatcher, Captain Phillips, Elysium, Her, Before Midnight. The worst thing can happend with Sony is a bloodbath between Clooney/Heslov (Monuments), Ellison (Abscam/Foxcatcher/Her) and Rudin/De Luca/Brunetti (Captain Phillips).

[Nathaniel R]

Paolo -- i cannot recommend The Great Gatsby in book form enough.

[Josh]

Lets not forget McConaughey and Jared Leto in Dallas Buyers Club

[Luiserghio]

Mmm... Nymphomaniac? and what about Spike Jonze's Her or Cronenberg's Map to the Stars. I know that with Malick you never know but I really want to see his Untitled Project with Gosling, Fassbender, Bale, Portman, Blanchett, Del Toro and Mara. And I'm curious about You Are Here, the Matthew Weiner directed film debut.

[Eoin Daly]

If Chastain gets nominated for Eleanor Rigby and Miss Julie next year that would be like a record for four nominations four years in a row.

[NATHANIEL R]

Eoin -- actually the record is five consecutive nominations. That's a tie between Greer Garson and Bette Davis. Marlon Brando is in second place with 4 consecutive nominations. But yeah it would really be something if she could pull it off.

Josh -- no distributor that i'm aware of yet but i will add it to the tba

[John]

know you're not the hugest jessica lange fan, but her perf in THERESE is maybe a possibility? looks more like a CHERI or COUSIN BETTE, but with her profile increased with AHS lately, might be slightly more high profile.

[CMG]

Jeff Nichols' Mud with McConaughey in lead will also be in select theaters in late April.

[Pat]

Don't forget 'What Maisie Knew'! Julianne Moore is excellent. Her role could go either lead or supporting. Onata Aprile really has the lead, but more gets top billing, appears in half the movie (ish), and is pretty darn good. Could be one to watch for Best Adapted Screenplay, too.

You also mentioned Prinsoners, but the other Villeneuve/Gyllenhaal pic 'An Enemy' had a test screening a few weeks ago. It has a lot of potential, but the cut I saw probably isn't going near award season. (And I say this as a major Villeneuve/Saramago fanboy.)

Also:
-Stories We Tell!
-Ernest et Celestine for Best Animated film. (Maybe even France's foreign?)
-The Sapphires: might have trouble with early release/so-so BO, but it could pull through to the Globes... (O'Dowd anyways)

[Josh]

Focus feature is supposedly very close to picking it up is the latest announcement as of friday.

[Alex]

Heh, you spelled Neill Blomkamp's name like Mein Kampf.

[Pat]

Oh, we forgot 'A Long Way Down'! Great book could work really well with the cast. Maureen's a great part, so maybe Toni Collette will find her way back to the Oscars. Distrib TBA for USA.

[Jorge Rodrigues]

The AN ENEMY Gylenhaal movie is the one based on the José Saramago novel, right?

P.S. - Nathaniel, I think you have to add Jason Reitman's Labor Day to your Oscar preview. He'll probably be in contention again. At least Kate Winslet will be.

[The Seeker]

Oh, and I forgot The Way, Way Back also, with Steve Carell, Toni Colette and Sam Rockwell

[El Escritor]

I thought August: Osage County had an overwhelmingly positive test screening in NY? I could be wrong but I think that movie is going to be giant box office, plus Oscar nominations. They can only make it better between now and November. Yes to Meryl Streep and Benedict Cumberbatch working together in the future.

The dueling princess biopics I am a little wary of, but I would love to see Nicole and Naomi both do well. Grace of Monaco could be a gold mine for Nicole/TWC. If one princess is not nominated, does it cause an international crisis?

For sheer boy rocket pleasure, Man of Steel and Gravity.

For higher brow, The Railway Man and Twelve Years a Slave.

[Volvagia]

El Escritor: Um...if you want those "boy rocket pleasures" (by which I think you'd mean light, fluffy, enjoyable sci-fi with at most occasional moments of cynicism), I think Pacific Rim, The World's End and even Iron Man 3 are FAR safer bets this year.

[Volvagia]

El Escritor: Those two you listed as "boy rocket pleasures"? As far as I can wager, they're going to be prestige sci-fi pitched squarely at upper middle-brow tastes.

[El Escritor]

Thanks. I'll take any boy rocket that hits its target.

[CMG]

Considering Gravity supposedly has a single-shot opening that supposedly will clock in at 20 minutes and is at the hands of Tree of Life DP Lubezki, I am with Volvagia, that Gravity is likely going to be far away from 'boy rocket pleasures'. Cuaron's Harry Potter is the closest he will ever get to box office domination.

[adri]

I'm still looking forward to Jim Jarmusch's new film Last Lovers Left Alive(?) with Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston as the lovers. Isn't there an Oscar category for most swoon worthy couple? The screenplay could be pretty good too.

[Paolo]

Nat: Took me like a week to finish it. Probably the best novel ever written.

Also guys, we are not getting the point of August: Osage County. The whole point of that movie is that Little Charlie Aiken is another notch in Benedict Cumberbatch's belt of roles in which his sex life is weird, and that his love interest, Juliette Lewis, will be the most envied woman in the English speaking world.

#DropsMic

[Sijmen]

Dear children of the past,

this is a voice from the future. I've come down to tell you that you have mentioned all the films that will end up with an Oscar nomination for Best Picture. Well done.

I'm not going to say which films that are. That would change things. And we don't want that, do we...

See you all in the near future.