Fall Film Preview 2015 - Studios Heavy on True, Compelling, Dramatic, Stories
- Details
- Category: Film
- Published on Friday, 21 August 2015 13:25
- Written by Janet Walker
As OSCAR Season is approaching a worthy group of yet to be released titles are surfacing with pre-release buzz. In no particular order these are the must see upcoming films and most likely to be mentioned during Academy Award Nominations.
Joy, directed by David O. Russell, from Twentieth Century Fox, stars Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper all of whom secured OSCAR nods for Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook. Joy tells the dramatic story of Miracle Mop creator and entrepreneur Joy Mangano, a Long Island single mother struggling with three children growing up in a dysfunctional family. Joy opens December 25, 2015.
Steven Spielberg works his magic with Bridge Of Spies, a Cold War drama coded with OSCAR gold, from Amblin Entertainment, DreamWorks SKG. Bridge Of Spies, starring Tom Hanks, Amy Adams, Alan Alda and Austin Stowell, tells the story of an American lawyer recruited by the CIA for a top secret rescue mission behind the Iron Curtain. Other production companies involved in the epic include FOX 2000 Pictures, Marc Platt Productions, Participant Media, Reliance Entertainment, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures secured USA theatrical distribution. Spielberg’s 135 minute drama secured a slot on the main screening schedule at The New York Film Festival. Bridge of Spies opens October 16, 2015.
Black Mass, from RatPac-Dune Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros., the James “Whitey” Bulger drama, starring Johnny Depp in the lead and directed by Scott Cooper depicts the heyday of the mobster and his relationship with FBI Organized Crime Agent John Connelly. Early buzz on Depp has him immersed as the mobster in a chilling portrayal. (For the record Bulger lawyer, Hank Brennan has dismissed the film and hopes for a more responsible depiction of the incarcerated mobster). The trailer for Black Mass satisfies the American palate for mob films and Depp surprises with his handling. Black Mass stars Joel Edgerton as Connelly, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, Juno Temple and Dakota Johnson. Black Mass opens September 18, 2015.
Carol, from Director Todd Haynes and The Weinstein Company, presents previous OSCAR winner Cate Blanchett as an older married, bi-sexual, going through a divorce. Shopping for the holidays she stumbles on lonely department store counter clerk, played by Rooney Mara, just beginning life and longing for more. With all the taboos of the 1950’s Carol, with sexual depictions and connotations, presents a same sex relationship when “those things” were rarely discussed. Carol also stars Kyle Chandler and Sarah Paulson. Carol opens November 20, 2015.
The Revenant, from Birdman Director Alejandra Gonzalez Inarritu, set in the early 1800’s presents a tale of vengeance, revenge and triumph of the human spirit. From RatPac Entertainment and New Regency and distributed by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, The Revenant, based on true events, pits Leonardo DiCaprio as frontiersman Hugh Glass left for dead by his companions after a bear mauling who proceeds to hunt them down in this an epic suspense drama facing physical injury, the brutalities of a harsh Alaskan winter, mental exhaustion. Released on Christmas Day 2015 The Revenant stars Tom Hardy, Leonardo DiCaprio, Will Poulter and Domhall Gleeson.
Trumbo, from Groundswell Productions and ShivHans Pictures,directed by Jay Roach stars Elle Fanning, Bryan Cranston, Hellen Mirren and Diane Lane. Trumbo, distributed by Bleecker Street Media,tell the story of Dalton Trumbo, a 1940’s successful Hollywood Screenwriter blacklisted during Senator’s Joseph McCarthy’s reign of terror and destruction. Trumbo premieres at Toronto International Film Festival and opens in the U.S. November 6, 2015.
Spotlight, from Participant Media, Anonymous Content and Rocklin/Faust,directed by Thomas McCarthy stars Rachel McAdams, Live Schreiber, Mark Ruffalo and Michael Keaton, in the true story of how a team of Boston Globe investigative reporters exposed the massive child molestation and cover up with the Catholic Church. Open Road Films distributes, Spotlight exposes decades of abuse and forces the church to recognize the long hidden secret. The Boston Globe earned a Pulitzer Prize in Investigative Journalism for the series that refused to be hindered by the pressure. Told from the reporter’s viewpoint, similar to the Watergate expose All the President’s Men, starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman, Spotlight opens November 6, 2015.
Freeheld, from Double Feature Film, Endgame Entertainment and High Frequency Entertainment, stars Ellen Page, Julianne Moore. A New Jersey Police lieutenant, Laurel Hester (Moore) and her domestic partner, Stacie Adam (Page) battle the local, state and government officials to secure her pension benefits for her partner when she is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Directed by peter Sollett and written by Ron Nyswaner Freeheld also stars Steve Carell as Steven Goldstein and Michael Shannon as Dane Wells. Music by Hans Zimmer. Distributed by Lionsgate Freeheld opens October 2, 2015.
Other films receiving the OSCAR buzz bump are Jobs, the story of Steve Jobs, Suffergate, Women Daughters Rebels, starring perennial Oscar nominee Meryl Streep. The Danish Girl, a transgender drama with Amber Heard; By The Sea starring husband and wife team Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt and Directed by Jolie-Pitt, and Truth, a the behind the scenes look at News Anchor Dan Rather and his final days at CBS, and The Walk directed by Robert Zemeckis and distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Let’s all go to the movies!
Images of Johnny Depp courtesy of Warner Bros. and used with permission.
Images of Robert De Niro courtesy of 20th Century FOX and used with permission.
Images of Tom Hanks courtesy of DreamWorks SKG and used with permission.
Images of Michael Keaton courtesy of Participant Media and used with permission.
Images of Julianne Moore courtesy of Lionsgate and used with permission.
