The Oscar Season Movies You Should (and Shouldn't) Be Excited About

Your guide to the upcoming surge of movies that are going to be really pushing for that little gold statue.

Should - Silence

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To call this a Scorsese passion project would be a huge understatement. Rumor has it that the guy has been trying to make this one since 1991. And it's easy to see why. Starring Liam "Save-You-From-A-Concentration-Camp-Or-Beat-You-To-Death-Depending-On-The-Day" Neeson and Adam "Still-Cool-But-Less-Epic-Than-Liam-Neeson" Driver, Silence is about two Jesuit Missionaries who go to Japan to spread the Gospel. The natives convert and everyone lives happily ever after. Just kidding, shit gets bad.

Shouldn't - Sully

sully-movie.com / Via sully-movie.com

Hey, remember that guy who successfully crashed landed that plane on the Hudson? Pretty cool, huh? Cool enough for a full feature film? I don't think so. I'm not sure why Clint Eastwood and Tom Hanks felt the need to make this movie when Robert Zameckis and Denzel Washington already made Flight. Unless Hanks and Denzel are in a blood feud. God, please let that be the case...

Should - Fences

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You may know Fences from that clip of James Earl Jones performing the "How come you don't like me" scene from the play.

youtube.com / Via youtube.com

But Denzel did that show too. And he was damn good. Now he's directing the film adaptation, starring in it alongside Viola Davis. Covering race relations in the 1950's and tumultuous family dynamics, this is sure to be a big contender for some serious awards.

Shouldn't - Live By Night

Via traileraddict.com

First off, the title is clunky. I know Ben Affleck got a lot of buzz for Argo, and don't get me wrong, the dude's got some chops, but just take a minute to watch the trailer. Go ahead, I'll wait...

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Did you see it? That goofy white gangster outfit he was wearing?

Via esquire.com

Maybe I'm being too harsh. But before you come to his defense, just remember that he cheated on Jennifer Garner with his nanny! Also, I'm sorry, but I doubt BEN AFFLECK is going to reinvent the gangster genre. At best, I reckon it will be a competent stab at some old tropes. If the trailer's any indicator, there will be lots of hats.

Should - Moonlight

Via indiwire.com

This is the movie that's causing all the commotion this year. The little indi that's making big waves. It's about a young black man growing up in a rough neighborhood in Miami and struggling to come to terms with his sexuality. It was picked up by the studio A24, which has helped push a lot of indi movies into the spotlight (think Room, The Lobster, The Witch) and it's getting all kinds of critical buzz. Not to mention that the film's director, Barry Jenkins, claims making it almost killed him.

Just from watching the trailer, it's obvious that this is a deeply personal film that leaves everything out on the floor.

youtube.com / Via youtube

Shouldn't - Hacksaw Ridge

Hey, you know Andrew Garfield? This guy right here?

Via uk.pinterest.com

Well now he's playing this guy:

A down-home southern boy who was the first conscientious objector to be awarded the medal of honor.

And you know this guy, Vince Vaughn? This guy here:

Yeah, the guy from Fred Claus. Well now he's playing a hard-nosed drill sergeant who thinks that anyone who doesn't like killin' is a sissy.

Via metro.co.uk

Look, I could be totally wrong about this one. It has a 91% Fresh rating on Rottentomatoes. But it is hard to imagine Andrew Garfield's... let us say... subpar southern accent, being anything other than distracting. Plus, in the trailer, someone (presumably Andrew Garfield) punts a grenade and it explodes mid-air.

Now, admittedly, that could be amazing in the right hands. But Mel Gibson has been making a lot of questionable decisions these days.

Via primordiales.blogspot.com

You can watch the trailer and decide for yourself.

youtube.com / Via youtu.be