Tag: Tom Hiddleston

Oscar Watch: I Saw the Light

As you may have noticed on the blog over the past couple of weeks, the array of recent film festivals that includes Toronto, Telluride and Venice has assisted in making the 2015 Oscar race a bit clearer. These fests have vaulted such titles as The Danish Girl, Carol, Steve Jobs, The Martian, Suffragette, Spotlight and Black Mass into the conversation for various nominations. On the flip side, these festivals can also pretty much crush the hopes of other pictures that are screened and receive a negative reaction.

That appears to be the case with I Saw the Light, the biopic of country singer Hank Williams that has been mentioned as an Oscar contender. Then it screened and critical reaction has not been kind. In fact, it currently sits at a troubling 14% on Rotten Tomatoes. While the pic itself has been met negatively by reviewers, the performances are receiving high marks. Tom Hiddleston (known to most as Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe) stars as Williams. His work has gotten high marks but the bad reaction to the film itself probably means he won’t make the cut in the Best Actor race. Playing his wife, Elizabeth Olsen has had even better notices from critics. In my initial round of predictions a couple of weeks back, I included her as a nominee for Supporting Actress. She could still make the cut, but I’m far less certain than I was before. Don’t be surprised to see her name left out when I do my second round of predictions.

Bottom line: while these festivals do a great job at showcasing future Academy contenders, they can bury others. I Saw the Light appears to be just such a casualty.

2015 Early Oscar Predictions: Best Actor

How about this for a 2015 Best Actor category? You could have Miles Davis, Steve Jobs, Dalton Trumbo, Whitey Bulger, Dan Rather, Hank Williams, Edward Snowden, and Lance Armstrong all competing against one another? Yep, it’s true as this year’s possibilities contain a number of high-profile performers playing real life characters.

Today is part four of my very early Oscar predictions. In 2014, I made my initial round at the same time. For the races of Best Actress and Supporting Actor and Actress, these early 2014 prognostications yielded just two of the eventual five nominees. Yet last year in the Best Actor race, they correctly predicted four of the five eventual nominees and the fifth was mentioned in the other possibilities section.

Back to the real life folks. Of the many I mentioned, I currently only have Don Cheadle’s work as Miles Davis in Miles Ahead and Michael Fassbender’s portrayal of Steve Jobs getting in. Fassbender, it should be noted, also remains a contender for this fall’s Macbeth. Any of the others mentioned could bubble up: Bryan Cranston in Trumbo, Johnny Depp as Whitey Bulger in Black Mass, Robert Redford as Dan Rather in Truth, Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams in I Saw the Light, Ben Foster as Lance Armstrong in The Program, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Snowden. Like Fassbender, Gordon-Levitt could be a contender for Robert Zemeckis’s The Walk, too.

Last year’s winner Eddie Redmayne has a showy role in the period piece transgender drama The Danish Girl and he could easily see a second nod in as many years. Beloved veteran thespian Michael Caine has received raves for Youth. And Leonardo DiCaprio, who’s yet to win, is sure to receive attention for December’s The Revenant. 

As festivals begin to roll on and some of these aforementioned films will be reviewed, the picture should continue to become clearer. As for now:

TODD’S EARLY PREDICTIONS – BEST ACTOR

Michael Caine, Youth

Don Cheadle, Miles Ahead

Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant

Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs

Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

Other Possibilities:

Bradley Cooper, Burnt

Bryan Cranston, Trumbo

Matt Damon, The Martian

Johnny Depp, Black Mass

Michael Fassbender, Macbeth

Colin Firth, Genius

Ben Foster, The Program

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Snowden

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, The Walk

Tom Hanks, Bridge of Spies

Tom Hardy, Legend

Tom Hiddleston, I Saw the Light

Brad Pitt, By the Sea

Robert Redford, Truth

Best Director will be up tomorrow with Best Picture on Saturday! Stay tuned…

If you missed my previous posts covering Actress and the Supporting races, click here:

https://toddmthatcher.com/2015/09/02/2015-early-oscar-predictions-best-actress/

https://toddmthatcher.com/2015/09/01/2015-early-oscar-predictions-best-supporting-actor/

https://toddmthatcher.com/2014/08/29/todds-early-oscar-predictions-best-supporting-actress/

This Day in Movie History: February 9

13 years ago Today in Movie History – February 9 – the eagerly awaited sequel Hannibal debuted in theaters. It was the follow-up to 1991’s The Silence of the Lambs, which was an instant classic and won the Academy Award for Best Picture, Director, Actor, and Actress. Silence director Jonathan Demme and costar Jodie Foster chose not to return and it was Ridley Scott who stepped in behind the camera with Julianne Moore assuming the role of Clarice Starling. Anthony Hopkins would return to the title role and that was enough for the picture to open with $58 million – which at the time was the third largest debut of all time. Its domestic run topped out at $165 million. While crowds turned out, they didn’t necessarily love what they saw. Both audiences and critical reaction was mixed and trended toward negative as it currently stands at 39% on Rotten Tomatoes. However, if you want to see Ray Liotta with half his head removed and a truly bizarre performance from Gary Oldman, this is your movie. Hopkins would return to the signature role one more time less than two years later in Red Dragon.

As for birthdays, Charlie Day is 38 today. He’s best known for his work on TV’s cult hit “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” but broke into movies in a big way with 2011’s Horrible Bosses. A sequel to that is on the way this year. Last year, Day costarred in Pacific Rim and his voice can be heard in this weekend’s blockbuster The Lego Movie.

Tom Hiddleston is 33 today. He’s garnered rave reviews for his villainous turn as Loki in both Thor flicks and The Avengers. Other notables pictures include War Horse and The Deep Blue Sea and Hiddleston will soon appear in Muppets Most Wanted.

As for Six Degrees of Separation between the two actors:

Charlie Day was in Horrible Bosses with Kevin Spacey

Kevin Spacey was in A Time To Kill with Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson was in The Avengers with Tom Hiddleston

And that’s today – February 9 – in Movie History!

Box Office Results: November 8-10

Disney/Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World opened as expected, posting the fourth highest debut of 2013 with $86.1 million. This is right in line with my $85.6M prediction so I’ll give myself a nice pat on the back for this one! Thor benefited from the continued Avengers momentum and the rock solid opening bodes well for next spring’s Captain America sequel.

While I am pleased with my Thor prediction, the same cannot be said for my estimate for About Time, the rom com with Rachel McAdams. I predicted it would earn $12.8 million, but also noted in my post that it could tank. And tank it did with a dismal $5.1 million debut for only 9th place.

As for the rest of the top five, it was Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa second again with $11.3 million (I was right there with $11.2M predicted). The animated Free Birds was in the #3 slot with $11.2 million, just above my $10.4M projection. The all-star comedy Last Vegas was fourth with $11.1 million (I said $11M… pat back again). I was, however, off with the performance of Ender’s Game in its sophomore frame. I predicted the sci-fi pic would hold up reasonably well and make $13.6 million. It dropped to #5 with $10.3M. It’s safe to say this one is now a box office disappointment.

And there’s your results! Be sure to check the blog later today for my prediction post on next weekend’s only newcomer, The Best Man Holiday.

Thor: The Dark World Box Office Prediction

The second weekend of November should bring huge results as an Avenger returns in Thor: The Dark World, the sequel to the 2011 hit. Chris Hemsworth is back as the title character along with returnees Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Rene Russo, and, of course, fan favorite Tom Hiddleston as villainous Loki. TV vet Alan Taylor takes over directing duties from Kenneth Branagh, who moved on to film Jack Ryan.

The original debuted to a strong $65.7 million two and a half years ago, but expectations are understandably higher this time around. Summer 2012 brought us a little movie called The Avengers that broke box office records and increased Thor’s visibility to an even wider audience. The question is: just how high can this pic open?

Conventional estimates are forecasting above $75 million and I would envision Thor easily grabbing that number. A debut in the mid-80s seems most likely though it may land a little lower and (more likely) around $90 million. Reviews have been pretty solid – not that it matters a whole lot. Thor: The Dark World is destined to be a gigantic hit and propel momentum for the next Avengers themed pic coming next spring, the Captain America sequel.

Thor: The Dark World opening weekend prediction: $85.6 million

For my About Time prediction, click here:

https://toddmthatcher.wordpress.com/2013/11/03/about-time-box-office-prediction/