Best Actress – Page 10 – This Had Oscar Buzz

031 – How to Make an American Quilt

Coming off of two successive Oscar nominations, Winona Ryder led an immaculate female ensemble for Jocelyn Moorhouse’s How to Make an American Quilt. But instead of furthering Ryder’s mounting Oscar narrative, the film wound up as a surprise SAG Ensemble nominee – and, as Joe and Chris argue, a welcome one. This week, we take a look back at SAG Ensemble’s history, including most and least favorite nominees that didn’t translate to Best Picture nominations.

The film itself is a (however delightful) mixed bag of infidelity narratives that don’t always serve a top notch ensemble of Ellen Burstyn, Anne Bancroft, Kate Nelligan, Alfre Woodard, Lois Smith, 90s mega hottie Johnathon Schaech – and yep, even Maya Angelou. It may be too many plot threads for a 60-Second Plot Description, but also for one modest movie as well. Topics also include underrated Snatch Game performances, SAG’s silly title card rule for its Ensemble prize, and the reason the MTV Movie Awards should exist: the Best Kiss category.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS

022 – Cake

2014 was a year of mirrored Best Actress hopefuls launched at the Toronto International Film Festival: out of nowhere, Julianne Moore capitalized on a “weak” field and finally won for Still Alice. And then, ultimately snubbed on nomination morning after being recognized by the other big prizes, there was Jennifer Aniston in Cake.

Notorious among Oscar watchers, Cake stars Aniston as a woman dealing with grief and chronic pain, and felt like a dubious candidate from the beginning. Was it the bad reviews, or was it the public’s sometimes cruel consideration of Aniston’s film career, or was it “Anna Kendrick as imaginary friend on a pool inflatable nudging her into suicide” that spelled disaster? Regardless, Aniston’s snub was perhaps the year’s least shocking “most shocking” missed nomination.

This week, we get into 2014′s bench of great, but less Oscar-friendly lead female performances, the mythos of Aniston, and detour into Gaga Five Foot Two.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS

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.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS

004 – Ask the Dust

What’s that? You’re not familiar with the 2006 romantic drama Ask the Dust? Where a handsome young writer played by Colin Farrell moves to California, negs the hell out of waitress Salma Hayek, and begins a torrid love affair amid the dusty environs of the Great Depression? That’s probably because the early Oscar buzz on this one — goosed by the presence of writer/director Robert Towne (Chinatown) — died a swift death. Let’s talk about it!

Topics include Salma Hayek’s very emotional 2006, whether Colin Farrell’s sex tape made him look good or bad, and whatever the hell Idina Menzel was doing here (and which Looney Tunes character she reminded us of).

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS

003 – Pay It Forward

This week we’re calling all angels as we discuss 2000’s major critical disaster and thwarted Oscar grab, Pay It Forward. That’s right, the one where a post-Sixth Sense Haley Joel Osment teaches the world to pass on one favor to three strangers. A film notorious in This Had Oscar Buzz lore, Pay It Forward‘s awards hopes were spoiled by epic failures of miscasting and egregious emotional manipulation, not to mention the ever-changing landscape of Kevin Spacey’s burn makeup.

On this episode, we look back at the beloved Entertainment Weekly Fall Movie Preview issues, Jon Bon Jovi’s emerging acting career, and composer Thomas Newman copying himself in the span of a single Oscar season. Just one of several failed awards players from the major studios in 2000 (as well as one of several Helen Hunt movies), Pay It Forward is perhaps the most infamous.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS

002 – Tulip Fever

This week’s piece of failed awards bait is the 2017 costume drama/romantic “thriller” Tulip Fever, and by “2017,” we mean “filmed in 2014 and originally intended to be released at various times over the course of the next three years, only to finally limp into theaters after several waves of frantic test screenings, horrid buzz and derisive jokes.” From the director of The Other Boleyn Girl, people! How could it have all gone so very wrong?

Topics include: Dane DeHaan and baby pandas, Judi Dench running Goldman-Sachs-for-flowers, whether we’re living in a post-costume-drama world, whether this would have been Alicia Vikander’s Norbit, and how much would have been different if DreamWorks had been able to make this movie in 2004 as originally intended.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS

001 – Mona Lisa Smile

Our first episode of This Had Oscar Buzz is about 2003’s Mona Lisa Smile, director Mike Newell’s Wellesley College period melodrama, starring Julia Roberts and all of the It Girls of the early Aughts. Come for the art history lesson, stay for the dashed awards hopes.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | RSS