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And the nominees will be ... who knows?
As Oscar season nears, there's very little talk about best picture candidates
 | Potential best picture nominees, include, clockwise from top left, “Up in the Air,” “Up,” “Precious” and “The Hangover.” |
Paramount, Lionsgate, Buena Vista Pictures, Warner Bros. |
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NEW YORK - While the country continued to find ways to cut back in tough times, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decided it was time to supersize. In October, it announced a doubling of the number of nominees in the best picture category, bringing the grand total to 10.
So which films are the contenders? The obvious potentials in theaters now seem to be “Precious,” “Hurt Locker,” and “An Education.” Some yet-to-be-released films, like “Invictus,” “Up in the Air” and “The Lovely Bones” have buzz but nothing like the slow, steady drip of anticipation that was last year’s walk up to “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”
The idea behind the 10 slots was to allow the category to cut through a larger swath of diverse films — big budget fan favorites like “Up,” or even “Star Trek” could be included alongside indie films that are more critical than commercial successes. With the right balance, it stands to reason the Oscar red carpet could be populated with more of the A-list, which translates to ratings; everybody wins. So with that in mind, the holiday movie season officially upon us, and ballots for nominations due next month, why does it not yet feel like the race has begun?
Two factors loom large in the way this year’s best picture buzz has flatlined upon arrival: the calendar, and, wait for it… the economy. With the former, it just happens to be the case that the big contenders are being released closer to the Academy deadline. And the reason we aren’t hearing about them yet? That’s where the economy comes into play, something Sony Pictures Classics co-president and co-founder Michael Barker has noticed.
“Because of the economic moment, people (studios) are trying to streamline. They’re being very careful about how they spend their money,” Barker said. “Advertising dollars are being spent differently — they’re being spent closer to the opening (of a film) rather than further ahead.”
Later not always better, and definitely not cheap
David Glasser, president of international distribution for The Weinstein Company, isn’t totally onboard with that theory because economically, waiting doesn’t come cheap.
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There’s also a change in the way films are being advertised since the swine flu-like spread of “Benjamin Button” promotional ads just last year.
“Less money is being spent on that kind of traditional advertising you saw with ‘Benjamin Button,’ which is more in line with ‘Avatar’ right now, and more is being spent on Internet advertising,” said Barker.
All good points, but this could be a case of can’t-see-the-forest-for-the-trees. There is one big factor that won't make its way into any marketing materials — this year, there is no “Slumdog Millionaire.”
“This year is different in that last year, as soon as ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ showed for the first time at Telluride and Toronto film festivals, there was a general feeling that there, there was a best picture,” Barker said.
“The environment of this year's films is there isn't that front runner. Anything is possible, and there’s still speculation about many movies that haven’t been seen.”
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