The Reel Life

It's that time of year when the Oscar hopefuls come out in theaters. Studios love to release their Oscar-bait right before the deadline, so that Academy voters will remember their films and nominate them. Not many trophies will help a movie's marketing power more than an Oscar.

There are many films to catch that have either just came out or are coming soon to a theater near you. Due to this columnist's OCD issue, they'll be listed by their release date. First, you may want to check out the summer's two most highly praised films, The Dark Knight and WALL-E. Animated and comic book films usually never get the honor of having one of those five slots, but things might change this year. Clint Eastwood has a pair of films this year; the first is The Changeling and the second is Gran Torino, a film about an old racist who inserts himself in racial violence in his neighborhood - what a perfect film for Eastwood to star in. The second of the two has the better chance of a nomination.

There are many films being released in the coming months that have some serious buzz surrounding them. During Thanksgiving time, we have Gus Van Sant's Milk starring Sean Penn and Baz Luhrmann's Australia starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman. Both directors have had a film nominated for a top prize, and both films have already received great reviews. A couple of days later, the highly praised Indian indie film Slumdog Millionaire will be wide released. There is a "little engine that could" every year, and I expect this one to be it.

There is a long list of good films that will come out later, with some highlights being Defiance, Doubt, Frost/Nixon, and The Reader. Most of them will just get acting and screenplay nods, but then the two heavyweights come in: Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road starring Kate Winslet and Leo DiCaprio, along with David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button starring Brad Pitt. Each director came into fame in 1999, with American Beauty and Fight Club, respectively. Yet since then, neither has produced a movie that has wooed critics and voters. These two will be the difference.

If I were a betting man (which I am, I just lost $50 in roulette), I would say the five films on the Best Picture shortlist will be The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire, Milk (because of that entire Prop. 8 thing), and just for kicks, The Dark Knight. You heard it here first, folks.