Roundup: Why this year's Oscar race is so money
Also: The playwrights in the writing race, and dressing 'Hitchcock'
A scene from "Lincoln."
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We may still be in the early stages, but one of the clear narratives of this awards season has been in place for some time now: after several straight years of independent productions ruling the roost, studio fare looks set to dominate this year's Oscars, with "Argo," "Lincoln," "Life of Pi" and (we presume) "Les Mis" all riding a wave of mainstream prestige combined with multiplex appeal. Pamela McClintock examines the situation and wonders if, after recent triumphs for limited performers like "The Artist" and "The Hurt Locker," this could be the year box office once more becomes a Best Picture prerequisite, and "event pics for adults" once more become a recognized Hollywood commodity. [Hollywood Reporter]
On the same theme, Tom Shone terms "Lincoln" the year's unlikeliest blockbuster, and suspects that will help it in the Oscar race. [The Guardian]
Ross Douthouat, meanwhile, considers the arguments of the film's more articulate dissenters. [New York Times]
Bob Verini considers how the screenwriters of "Lincoln, "Anna Karenina," "Quartet" and "Les Miserables," all of them accomplished playwrights, marry stage and screen dynamics in their adaptations. [Variety]
Oscar-nominated costume designer Julie Weiss breaks down the six guiding principles of her craft, and how she applied them in "Hitchcock." [Wall Street Journal]
"Les Mis" star Hugh Jackman will receive a tribute at New York's Museum of the Moving Image on December 11. [Screen]
Sasha Stone rewinds to the summer and states the Best Picture case for "The Dark Knight Rises." She knows It's not happening -- and personally, I don't think it should -- but Sasha's not going down without a fight. [Awards Daily]
Charlie Lyne considers the curious video for Jessie J's Best Original Song hopeful for "Silver Linings Playbook," then brings it round to the Best Actress race in a way I'm still trying to scrub from my brain. [Ultra Culture]
Next year's Sundance lineup features a record number of female-directed films, including half the titles in the US Competition strand. [Time]
Finally, happy news for longtime followers of the In Contention family: our former contributor Chad Hartigan's new film "This is Martin Bonner" will premiere out of competition at Sundance in January. Watch this space. [Martin Bonner]
2012-2013 OSCAR PREDICTIONS
Best Picture
Best Director
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Original Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Costume Design
Best Film Editing
Best Makeup And Hairstyling
Best Original Score
Best Original Song
Best Production Design
Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing
Best Visual Effects
Best Animated Feature Film
Best Documentary Feature
Best Foreign Language Film
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November 30, 2012 at 10:02AM EST Reply to CommentHuzzah for Chad! So glad to hear this news!
RichardZ
November 30, 2012 at 11:06AM EST Reply to CommentI sure hope that Chad will get to summarize the Box Office reports when his film breaks the top 10.
I just think that the studios success in the box office has more to do with making good films for adults with serious themes. The audience has always been there, waiting.
Mykill
November 30, 2012 at 12:16PM EST Reply to CommentYay Chad!!! Congratulations! I can't wait to see the film :^D
Maxim
November 30, 2012 at 1:49PM EST Reply to CommentThe so-called experts who write these peices about Lincoln being an unlikely blockbuster have no idea what they are talking about.
Lincoln didn't merely GROW into a popular film. It had appeal from week one. And that appeal is huge.
In fact, it would have been surprising if Spielberg doing a film on one of the key figures of the American history didn't easily clear $100 million.
I've said it before it came out that the film has what it takes to be $200 million grosser, especially if it's given more screens.
No other director can come close to him in consistent drawing power accross multiple genres. when Spielberg does history, people pay attention.
War Horse, which is, among other things, the highest grossing WW1 film (but is a fictional story) would have cleared $100 million had Tintin not been in play.
Al
November 30, 2012 at 2:31PM EST Reply to CommentGo Chad!
Edwin
November 30, 2012 at 3:40PM EST Reply to CommentI know it's probably my own personal opinion making me ignorant of others' preferences, but I'm frankly surprised that people still want "The Dark Knight Rises" to be an Oscar player. I don't even really know how to articulate my feelings about this without sounding like I'm trying to pigeonhole other people's opinions, so I'll simply say that I don't understand why people are holding onto this movie for any reason other than loyalty to Nolan.
Chad Hartigan
November 30, 2012 at 3:41PM EST Reply to CommentThanks, guys. Box office prospects for THIS IS MARTIN BONNER are bleak! Unless InContention can get that Best Picture buzz started now....
JLPatt
November 30, 2012 at 4:14PM EST Reply to CommentToo bad that Alabama Shakes song used in "Silver Linings" isn't original.
DefRef
November 30, 2012 at 8:20PM EST Reply to CommentI don't know who this Sasha Stone person is, but they are unworthy of scribbling what the voices in their head tell them in crayon on a wall much less being published in public view. They've been added to the "never read" list.
The Dark Knight Reloaded has already been forgotten. The rabid, delusional, insane overpraise that was heaped upon it at its release should be a point of shame for any of the overly enthusiastic apologists for Nolan, who made the first bad movie of his interesting and generally very good career. I can somehow understand how the herds went mad last summer, but to dip back into the crazy pills stash to whine about how it should be a Best Picture nominee is to announce one's retirement from intelligent film criticism and reality.