Oscar Watch: The Theory of Everything

From the Venice to Telluride to Cannes to Toronto Film Festivals – we’ve seen a great number of Oscar hopefuls screen already that could easily be contenders at the end of the year. I’ve written about many of them – Foxcatcher. Boyhood. The Imitation Game. Birdman. This evening, I add James Marsh’s The Theory of Everything to the growing list.

This true story is based on Jane Hawking’s book. She is the now ex-wife of noted physicist Stephen Hawking and the film tells the tale of their romance and marriage. The couple is played by Eddie Redmayne (from Les Miserables) and Felicity Jones. Both performers are receiving considerable Oscar buzz for their roles.

Redmayne enters an already highly competitive and crowded field for Best Actor. Already – Steve Carell (Foxcatcher), Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), and Michael Keaton (Birdman) appear shoo-ins for nominations. Based on reviews and festival reaction, so does Mr. Redmayne. The problem is there’s only five nominees and other contenders haven’t even been screened yet. Nevertheless, pencil his work in for a nod.

It isn’t totally clear whether Jones will be touted by the studio in the Actress or Supporting Actress category. The latter seems more probable. Either way- count on her being nominated.

Audience reaction at the Toronto Film Festival indicates it’s a crowd pleaser and, as of now, a Best Picture nomination seems more likely than not. It’s a bit tougher to gage whether Marsh will be recognized and we’ll have to see how the Director race plays out over time.

As always, I’ll be updating Academy Award possibilities as they come!