August 2018 – This Had Oscar Buzz

011 – Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

In 1997 we celebrated a giant sinking ship with James Cameron’s Titanic, but we are here this week to talk a different cinematic capsizing that year: Clint Eastwood’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

Adapted from the wildly successful work of nonfiction by John Berendt, this film opened to massive expectations its unimpressive production could never match. Riding the wave of Kevin Spacey’s first win as he stars as closeted antique meister Jim Williams, Midnight is likely more fascinating in the contemporary context of Spacey’s actions than it was at the time.

Listen along as we discuss the film’s half-hearted attempts at oddness, John Cusack’s Oscar nomination that has yet to happen, and our deep affection for the film’s greatest performer, national treasure The Lady Chablis. (Oh and we finally discuss those much-maligned Oscar changes!)

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010 – Hyde Park on Hudson

Lend us a hand and listen along as we discuss this week’s case of failed Oscar buzz: 2012’s Hyde Park on Hudson.

Opening with the burden of Bill Murray’s mounting Oscar hopes but in the shadow of The King’s Speech success handling a shared historical figure, Hyde Park on Hudson couldn’t charm its way into Oscar’s good graces. Even with Murray playing beloved American president FDR, this film couldn’t get past its odd business of picnic food and expositional handjobs.

This week we discuss another ephemeral awards season organization, director Roger Michell’s fascinating and underacknowledged career, and the beloved ensemble of actresses including Laura Linney and the Olivias Colman and Williams – not to mention Dr. Pinder-Schloss herself, Elizabeth Wilson.

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009 – Serena

Grab your snake-catchin’ eagle and buckle up for this week’s Oscar misstep: Susanne Bier’s literary adaptation Serena.

Set during the Great Depression, this lumber baron romantic thriller starred Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper and became a question mark lingering over multiple Oscar seasons. After a beleaguered post-production process and its struggles to find a distributor, the film immediately disappeared when it finally arrived in theatres, after both stars had delivered multiple blockbusters and two Oscar successes with David O. Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle.

Listen in as we unpack a movie that asks “how much animal symbolism is too much?” and “what would happen if Lady Macbeth and the Monopoly guy fell in love?” The answers: “never enough” and failed Oscar buzz.

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008 – Double Jeopardy

Before this year’s Oscar season kicks off, we have a cautionary tale for your early predictions: 1999′s revenge thriller smash hit Double Jeopardy!

That’s right, you may have forgotten, but leading actress Ashley Judd started pulling Oscar buzz when Double Jeopardy opened and started raking in the cash. But this blockbuster (which opened opposite eventual Best Picture winner American Beauty) was never meant to be with Oscar, even though it also starred Tommy Lee Jones in the same vein as his Oscar winning role in The Fugitive.

This week we discussed Judd’s underappreciated career, 1999′s many breakout actresses, and the badass maven of the crime procedural, Roma Maffia.

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