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Left-Field
Possibilities
By Joey
Magidson
Is Pixar destined for a
Best Picture nomination?
Every
single year, it seems we get at least one film nominated for best
picture that you never saw coming. As of late, it’s been indie comedies
(Little Miss Sunshine and Juno), though things like
Letters from Iwo Jima and Crash prove that heavy material has
potential too. That being said, it’s time to look (way) ahead and see
which non frontrunner film this year might pull a “Rocky” and
shock the world at the Oscars.
-Wall-E
A cartoon for Best Picture? Seems borderline impossible,
but the early looks we’ve been seeing of this charming little flick
seems to suggest that we might be in store for something special. The
lack of dialogue may prove a turn on to the Academy, and if this film
captivates both the young and the old, we might be in line for a big
shocker. Beauty and the Beast did it in 1991, can Wall-E
be the next one to do it?
-Vicky
Christina Barcelona
Woody Allen has been absent from the awards circle for quite
some time now (with the exception of the screenplay nomination for
Match Point and occasional writing nominations over the past 10
years, but no Annie Hall style accolades) and while there’s no
indication that this is any sort of “return to form” for him, it is an
incredibly well cast film (Scarlet Johansson, Javier Bardem, and
Penelope Cruz star), as all his are, and boasts a beautiful locale.
Perhaps Woody might get some inspiration and craft his first truly
winning (in more ways than one) comedy in what seems like forever.
-Synecdoche,
New York
Charlie Kaufman makes his directorial debut in what seems to
be his biggest and weirdest film yet (which is most definitely saying
something). He has assembled a top notch cast, headlined by the sudden
Academy favorite Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Kaufman’s scripts have caught
the attention of Oscar on many occasions, but they’ve never really
embraced the films on the whole. This could change all that, but we
first need to see how Kaufman fares as a director. If he’s up to the
task, then we may have a real contender on our hands here.
-Blindness
A dark tale about a world gone dark, this film seems to be
going after the Children of Men vibe, and that could be a good
thing, but at the same time, let’s remember that Children of Men
didn’t get nominated for Best Picture. If this premise ends up giving
us a superb film, then it may just rise above other apocalyptic tales
and become something truly special.
-The
Wackness
This year’s indie comedy that could? The jury will be out
for a while on that one, but it’s worth a quick mention here.
Overall, it’s too early to tell if any of these films will break through
to the Academy, but it’s worth giving everyone an early heads-up as to
which films might surprise everyone in the fall. Time will tell…
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