Off the top, this is shaping up to be a very unique season in my eyes. I wouldn’t say the quality of content is particularly higher than usual or raking in loads of money (spoiler alert: the box office is struggling this season). However, I just get the feeling that this season is feeling the wave of a lot of films that have a classic, old-school vibe to them. And clearly I am not the only one who feels this way as this has been a frequent topic in reviews as well.
We have a big budget 40s crime-drama starring two big movie stars in Lowell. Mid-budget films that feel like they easily could’ve been made (and be successful) in the 90s like Attraction/Deception and Bad Dreams Come True. The premises of upcoming films like Tumor and Caesar sound like they could be made in any era. And there is the work of Dwight Gallo this season that seem like send-ups to 70s/80s crime-action movies. The gritty vigilante film The Punisher (starring a movie star from that era) is all we’ve had so far but Cocaine Cowboys sounds like it fits that bill as well.
Compound that with the relative lack of big-scale superhero movies that we usually get and this season starts to emerge as its own unique thing. We’ve also got a relative lack of critical darlings thus far: only four films have gotten higher than a 70 MetaScore. There have been similar numbers in the past but this season feels particularly more unpredictable. We’ll cover some of the “front-runners” here but it feels like there are still a few big shoes to drop.
I previously mentioned Lowell and it is fair to say that is the early favorite thus far, of what we have seen. Affleck’s resume at LRF has been strong and that doesn’t seem like it will stop here. Outside of some of the production categories, it is difficult to forecast what the film’s casting nominations will be given the large ensemble. Part of it will depend on who Malone and Ellis put forward to be eligible for nomination. The other undisputed critical success is The Punisher and the awards outlook for that one is unclear. As was mentioned in a few reviews, action films usually have an uphill battle when it comes to scoring awards nominations but it’s not totally out of the question.
With those two films in mind, the Best Actor race has two established stars like Affleck and Gibson who will certainly be in contention. Another recent addition to that race is Robert Pattinson for his performance in Worried Mind. The overall reception to Less probably hurts Ewan McGregor’s chances but that is the type of performance that is usually awards-friendly. The Best Actress race is a bit juicier at the moment as the studio has featured a good amount of strong female lead roles this season. Dakota Johnson set the stage early on with Lock Every Door but it looks like she will be facing some stiff competition. One of the main storylines we will be following is the reception of Sleeping Beauties. Can Elisabeth Moss score a rare double nomination? That remains to be seen.
Looking ahead, there are a few notable releases that we know about thus far. Malone and Chad Taylor reunite for their first collaboration outside of the Scion franchise with Caesar. This also marks the long-awaited return of former Best Director winner Christopher Nolan after a long time away from the studio. Both of Jimmy Ellis’s upcoming films also sound like dramas with awards potential, especially in both of the main acting categories. Additionally, I could see Julianne Moore having a real shot at being nominated for Best Director if Tumor is well received. And then, of course, there are still a few unknowns out there that could always shake things up.
Since this is the Trades and we're talking about studio news, I wanted to make note of one last big development within the LRF world: the return of legendary screenwriter Mo Buck. We haven’t heard much from the writer outside of his initial announcement but it is certainly a welcome return as Mo is an institution here at Last Resort Films.
The second half of the season always goes by faster than you’d expect so we’ll be in true awards season before you know it. I’ll check back in then with the annual For Your Consideration. See you then!
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