The Doubt Trailer has Arrived!

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/doubt_has_a_trailer_filled_with_oscar_potential/

Overall, I thought it was a pretty good trailer. Meryl looks great as always, but I think that Hoffman, Davis and Adams look even better. I think the film will be a success, however, the direction looks way too theatrical, rather than cinematic. But that's not surprising considering who the director is. All in all, I'll be seeing this for sure, and it'll be a big acting contender (or so it looks), but I'm not too sure about BP anymore.

"Doubt" Teaser

Thanks to Everything Oscar for the image and Smarttoper for reminding me to post it.

It's a nice poster. Hopefully this means that a trailer is soon to come.

First Round Predix: Best Original/Adapted Screenplay

Well, here we are. The last part of our first-round predix. Overall, there are about...a million things I want to change. But I won't let myself.

Now, onward...

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

1. Vicky Cristina Barcelona-I'm starting to love this project...

2. Hamlet 2-This one, too...

3. Synecdoche, New York-And yet, this is a great premise. The script reviews have been mixed, though, so I don't know.

4. Australia-I'm warming up to this quite a bit, but dramas have a clear disadvantage in this category.

5. WALL-E-Pixar is overdue for a win, but this category tends to prefer dialogue-heavy comedies.

IN THE RUNNING

6. The Soloist (original or adapted? It says it's based on articles, but the Academy counted Letters from Iwo Jima as original, so...)
7. Burn After Reading
8. Milk
9. Changeling
10. The Trial of the Chicago 7 (anyone else get a bad vibe from this?)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

1. Doubt-This is a very dialogue-intense play, which will help it greatly in this category.

2. Frost/Nixon-Play adaptations tend to do well in this category, but Doubt is baitier.

3. Body of Lies-Wow, I have little faith in this project anymore. It gets this spot just because it's my BP prediction as of now.

4. The Road-This might be too bleak and sci-fi-oriented for the Academy to embrace, but if it's a success (which it probably will be), I can see it getting nods here and for Best Actor.

5. The Reader-The push here will probably be in Best Actress, but this looks to be another intellegent film, which they love here.

IN THE RUNNING

6. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
7. Revolutionary Road
8. Appaloosa
9. Defiance
10. Blindness

Let the Embarrassment Begin!

Without further ado, here are my first predictions for the nominations (and winners in bold) in the Big Eight for our next Academy Awards...

(note: I will predict Benicio only if his films come out in different years...otherwise I think the prospect of vote splitting is way too high)

Best Picture
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Director
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road
John Patrick Shanley, Doubt
Steven Spielberg, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Gus Van Sant, Milk

Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
Harrison Ford, Crossing Over
Jamie Foxx, The Soloist
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Viggo Mortensen, The Road

Best Actress
Emily Blunt, The Young Victoria
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Julianne Moore, Blindness
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin, Milk
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
John Malkovich, Burn After Reading
Michael Sheen, Frost/Nixon

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, Doubt
Kathy Bates, Revolutionary Road
Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Viola Davis, Doubt
Carice van Houten, Body of Lies

Best Original Screenplay
Burn After Reading
Hamlet 2
Milk
Synecdoche, New York
WALL-E

Best Adapted Screenplay
Body of Lies
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road

First Round Predix: Best Supporting Actress

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1. Viola Davis, Doubt-This category is very kind towards newcomers, and diversity could be the ticket to her success--especially with 2007's all-white winners.

2. Amy Adams, Doubt-The lovely Adams will surely become an Oscar winner someday...I just hope the Academy is smart enough to wait a while. Still, there's no denying that she's a huge threat.

3. Catherine Keener, The Soloist-After very strong performances in Being John Malkovich and Capote, you could kind of say that she's overdue. My guess is that either this or Synecdoche will get her the nod.

4. Scarlett Johansson, Vicky Christina Barselona-Woody Allen will not rest until she becomes a superstar, and this sounds like a classic pretty-young-thing Allen role. The only problem is that so many people hate her (for some reason).

5. Renee Zellweger, Appaloosa-I'd like to see her make a mini-comeback, but this film could go either way for me.

IN THE RUNNING

6. Kathy Bates, Revolutionary Road-I love her and she's got tons of buzz, but I've heard her character's role in the novel is very small. That didn't hurt Ruby Dee, but I remain skeptical.

7. Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button-Lead or supporting? Either way, Cate could easily get a nomination somewhere this year just because she's Cate, but I have my doubts about this film. But, dare I say, she may get a nomination for her allegedly incredible work as the villain in Indy 4. Well...no she couldn't, but I can dream.

8. Amy Ryan, Changeling-I'm still mad she didn't win the Oscar (though Swinton is a good alternative), and I would love to see her win or at least get a nomination, but you know my feeling about the film. Why am I predicting Jolie, again?

9. Samantha Morton, Synecdoche, New York-The Academy seems to like her, and she is a very good actress, but she has a lot of competition against her own co-stars.

10. Tilda Swinton, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button/Burn After Reading-I think both of these films will be only a modest success, and even if they're huge, that could cause some vote-splitting. But who knows?

Doubt: Meryl Streep

Apparently pictures from the set of Doubt have been online for a while but I've just now found them. For those who haven't seen them, here is Streep looking especially great:

First Round Predix: Best Actress

BEST ACTRESS

1. Meryl Streep, Doubt-She's terribly overdue for a third win, and this is the very definition of a baity role.

2. Kate Winslet, The Reader-Everyone wants her to win, but both of her projects this year sound shaky. Still, I remain optimistic.

3. Julianne Moore, Savage Grace-I desperately want her to win, and with this and Blindness, it looks possible. But so far, Meryl and Kate are stealing her thunder.

4. Angelina Jolie, The Changeling-The film itself sounds questionable, but she was snubbed this year and this is Clint. And yet...

5. Kerry Washington, Mama Black Widow-It would just be too boring to have the typical lineup of Meryl, Kate, Julianne and Angelina. So I'm throwing in Kerry Washington. She probably has no chance at all, but I want to be adventurous.

IN THE RUNNING

6. Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button-The Academy will have a hard time being Cate-free for a year, but I remain on the fence about the film.

7. Nicole Kidman, Australia-Honestly, I wouldn't trust her to turn in good work anymore.

8. Penelope Cruz, Vicky Christina Barcelona-The talented and lovely Cruz could be looking at Oscar gold again, but I don't think the film will be big enough.

9. Keira Knightley, The Dutchess-She's got the talent, but the project itself sounds like it's destined for failure.

10. Meryl Streep, Mamma Mia!, Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road, Julianne Moore, Blindness-If they don't get the nod for the film I predicted them to get it for, they'll probably get it here.

My Top 10 Most Anticipated Films of 2008

Now that the 2007 season is done with, it's time to shift our attention to next year. 2008 is looking to be a good but not great year for movies, heavy on adaptations and dramas and light on sequels (thank you!!!). It's not looking like a great year for comedies, and there aren't many action movies in release, but the ones that are are looking pretty good. Let's begin...

10. Mamma Mia!
I'm not a fan of this show, but the trailer looked like super-gay, super-flashy fun. And the idea of hearing Streep's voice is enough to get me excited.

Award Potential: Not a whole lot, besides maybe an Original Song nod (if there is one) and possibly some tech awards like Art Direction. However, if it gets good enough reviews, it shouldn't have any trouble sneaking in Best Actress and Best Picture at the Globes. It looks like this is the only musical this year, and we know they love that.

9. Burn After Reading
The odds of the Coens striking gold twice in a row is a bit hard to see, but they *are* the Coens. And any movie that employs George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Tilda Swinton and Frances McDormand can only be so bad.

Award Potential: After Sunday, it has an extremely slim chance at WINNING Best Picture, and it's virtually impossible for it to garner Best Director (Original Screenplay is unlikely, but eh). It will need excellent reviews.
8. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
This will probably be the strangest movie this year, but it also appears to be one of the best. It's looking like a good year for Brad Pitt...

Award Potential: Probably too weird for the Academy, so if it's a success, they'll probably just go for Adapted Screenplay and maybe an acting nod somewhere. It could do quite well at the Globes, though.

7. Milk
Perhaps the baitiest film of the year. Telling the inspiring, tragic story of the assassination of the openly gay congressman Harvey Milk, the film is at once well cast, and a great project for Gus van Sant.

Awards Potential: The Academy may view this as an opportunity to prove they're not homophobic after all (they're not) and shower this with awards, especially for Josh Brolin. But it will have to be extraordinary.

6. Sex and the City: The Movie
In case putting Mamma Mia! and Milk on this list wasn't gay enough for you, here you are. I really do enjoy this show, and the thought of seeing the four girls complain about orgasms on the big screen makes me smile. Normally I would be apprehensive about a TV-to-film adaptation, but The Simpsons Movie kind of broke the curse. Not to say that that means this will be great, but it's possible.

Awards Potential: Perhaps a GG nod for Sarah Jessica, but beyond that, probably nothing.
5. Doubt
A very baity, well-written play that could easily translate well on film. And the casting of Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman makes me excited.

Awards Potential: If it gets the reviews it should be able to get, Streep has a great chance at becoming a three-time Academy Award winner. A nomination for Hoffman isn't out of the question, either.

4. Stop Loss
This film will probably be a total flop, seeing as how it's coming out in late March, but for some reason, I thought the trailer looked outstanding. More than likely, this will be the film I love and everyone else hates.

Awards Potential: None, really, unless the reviews are AMAZING (they won't be).

3. Synecdoche, New York
Early script reviews have been love-it-or-hate-it, but I am soo in love with Charlie Kauffman. Anything he touches makes me melt with anticipation, and the fact that he's behind the camera makes it all the more interesting. Plus, the amazing cast can't hurt (god...great casts this year. Hopefully that means quality; not stuff like Evening).

Awards Potential: Sounds like the screenwriter branch's wet dream, but it will have to be a major success first.

2. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
I, for one, thought the trailer looked absolutely exhilarating. Seeing Indy on the big screen is a very exciting thought for me, and the fact that Cate Blanchett and Shia LaBeouf are involved as well definitely don't hurt.

Awards Potential: Beyond some possible tech nods, I'm about 99% sure it's not getting anything except box office numbers.1. The Road
Based on Cormac McCarthy's bleak but amazing novel, The Road is probably my most anticipated 2008 release; especially now that we know that the impeccable Viggo Mortensen will be playing the unnamed lead. This is an unbelievably challenging book to adapt, but I remain hopeful. I cannot wait!!

Awards Potential: If the world were perfect, we would have two consecutive years where a McCarthy novel won Best Picture. I'm saying that it'll be a success, but it could really go either way.


Well, there we have it. I'll start my first batch predix soon.