Continuing our “Oscar Watch” series, we are on to November. Some reminders:
– These are only movies that could/should generate – or are already generating – some degree of Oscar hype
– All release date and plot info taken from IMDB
– I will only be focusing on the 6 major categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Lead Actor/Actress, Supporting Actor/Actress
– If I feel strongly about a movie’s chances in any other category, I may make mention of it
– All movie titles will link to said movie’s IMDB page
You can look back at the post for October here. Let’s get to it.
Bohemian Rhapsody (November 2)
“A chronicle of the years leading up to Queen’s legendary appearance at the Live Aid (1985) concert.”
Best Picture
Initial reviews have been mixed, so this is looking less and less likely.
Best Director: Bryan Singer
Lead Actor: Rami Malek
Various technical categories: Maybe one or more out of Sound Editing; Sound Mixing; Costume Design; maybe others
Boy Erased (November 2)
“The son of a Baptist preacher is forced to participate in a church-supported gay conversion program after being forcibly outed to his parents.”
Lead/Supporting Actor: Lucas Hedges and/or Russell Crowe
The Lead Actor category looks like it’s going to be loaded this time around. I could see the studio trying to push Hedges into the Supporting Actor category if they don’t think Crowe will get nominated. If those two are competing against each other for a nomination, I wouldn’t like either of their chances. I don’t know that Hedges can overcome some of the heavyweights he would be competing with for a Lead Actor nomination. But he has already proven himself to be an exceptional young actor, so I wouldn’t completely count him out.
Supporting Actor: Joel Edgerton
Lead/Supporting Actress: Nicole Kidman
It looks like she will have more of a supporting role, but she’s heavily featured in the trailer, so she could make a push in the Lead category.
Adapted Screenplay: Joel Edgerton
The Front Runner (November 21)
“American Senator Gary Hart’s presidential campaign in 1988 is derailed when he’s caught in a scandalous love affair.”
Best Picture
Best Director: Jason Reitman
Lead Actor: Hugh Jackman
Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (November 16)
“The second installment of the “Fantastic Beasts” series set in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World featuring the adventures of magizoologist Newt Scamander.”
Costume Design
Production Design
Visual Effects
Possibly other technical categories
Widows (November 16)
“Set in contemporary Chicago, amidst a time of turmoil, four women with nothing in common except a debt left behind by their dead husbands’ criminal activities, take fate into their own hands, and conspire to forge a future on their own terms.”
Best Picture
It looks good for sure, but I don’t know if I see a Best Picture. But that’s what some of the buzz has been so it’s worth mentioning.
Best Director: Steve McQueen
If it’s in the discussion for Best Picture, it would follow that the director might get a nod as well.
Lead/Supporting Actors
We’ll see how the screen time plays out, but this movie is loaded with talent. They might cancel each other out, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see one break through and earn a nomination.
Lead Actress: Viola Davis
Ralph Breaks the Internet (November 21)
“Six years after the events of “Wreck-It Ralph”, Ralph and Vanellope, now friends, discover a wi-fi router in their arcade, leading them into a new adventure.”
Best Animated Feature
The first Wreck-It-Ralph was great and it’s a Disney movie. So it would follow that this, even being a sequel, will be good too. However, I am pulling back my expectations a little bit. I mean just watch the trailer. It could turn into one long advertisement, which would tank the movie.
Creed II (November 21)
“Under the tutelage of Rocky Balboa, newly crowned light heavyweight champion Adonis Creed faces off against Viktor Drago, the son of Ivan Drago.”
Lead Actor: Michael B. Jordan
Admittedly a stretch, but he’s seriously talented. And this should be a fan-favorite movie. I would put this at “extremely unlikely,” but he could sneak his way in.
Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone
He was nominated here for Creed in 2015 – and he had a lead actor nomination for the original Rocky – so why not again?
Original Screenplay: Sylvester Stallone and Juel Taylor
In addition to the lead actor nomination, Sly also snagged a screenplay nomination, for Rocky. Similar to his being in the Supporting Actor conversation, why not again here too?
Green Book (November 21)
“A working-class Italian-American bouncer becomes the driver of an African-American classical pianist on a tour of venues through the 1960s American South.”
Best Picture
Best Director: Peter Farrelly
Lead Actor: Mahershala Ali
Supporting Actor: Viggo Mortensen
The Favorite (November 23)
“In early 18th century England, a frail Queen Anne occupies the throne and her close friend Lady Sarah governs the country in her stead. When a new servant Abigail arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah.”
Best Picture
This does not look like a movie for me. But I’m just one man, and The Favourite has been getting tons of hype. I will certainly still go see it, and will hopefully be pleasantly surprised.
Best Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Lead Actress: Olivia Colman
Supporting Actress: Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz
If Beale Street Could Talk (November 30)
“A woman in Harlem desperately scrambles to prove her fiancé innocent of a crime while carrying their first child.”
Best Picture
Best Director: Barry Jenkins
Lead/Supporting Actor/Actress
I’m not sure how the screen time will break down here. But from the looks of it, there will be a number of superb performances here, so it will be interesting to see what the movie’s Oscar push/marketing strategy will be.
Adapted Screenplay: Barry Jenkins
And that’s it for November. Be sure to get out and check out as many of these films as you can!
Follow me on Twitter @MattHambidge and Instagram @matthambidge
Follow News From The Couch on Twitter @NFTCouch and Instagram @newsfromthecouch
