Sony Pictures Classics has added Telluride Film Festival hit The Last Station to its burgeoning 2009 slate of possible Oscar contenders. (Here’s my Telluride feature on the movie.) The studio specialty subsidiary, which acquired North And Latin American rights, will push for Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer and James McAvoy for Oscar nominations.
Meanwhile, SPC will hold back recent Toronto acquisition Get Low, which features strong performances from Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek, for the summer of 2010.
That makes sense, as the movie could find support between the coasts, given time to build word-of-mouth. Besides, SPC has plenty of awards fodder on its plate, especially An Education, which premiered in L.A. last night with director Lone Scherfig and star Carey Mulligan on hand.
by Anne Thompson, posted to Awards, Oscars, Festivals, Telluride, Toronto, Studios, Sony/Screen Gems/Sony Pictures Classics on October 2, 2009 at 7:51am PDT | Permalink | Comments (9)
Updated 11/18/2009
Comments
Anne, did you heard about SPC’s Oscar plan for “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”? (SPC is set to open “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” in Christmas 2009, so they may have hope for this film’s Oscar potential?)
So glad this film now has a N.A. distributor and that they’re going to mount Oscar campaigns for the principals!! Really looking forward to seeing this film.
This is indeed GREAT news - thus far all the reviews and the two video snippets look wonderful. What a brilliant cast, cant wait to see this film.
Wonderful news! This film looks like it will be phenomenal. I’m so excited to see it!
YES! This is enthralling news. I am rooting for James McAvoy to get that Oscar nod that’s eluded him in recent years (freakin’ robbed for Atonement), as well as Christopher Plummer to receive a long overdue nomination. I also wouldn’t mind another Helen Mirren nom, as I adore her; that is, just so long as it doesn’t rob Mulligan, Sidibe, or Cotillard—if she goes lead, though.
Or do you think Mirren will be pushed in the supporting category, which would be easier to score a place in? Hm….
Wonderful news! I’m dying to see this film, have been waiting for it for more than a year. And I would love to see all the three main actors receiving nominations, but especially James McAvoy, who (and agreeing with the poster above) was so unjustly robbed of a well deserved nomination for Atonement. And The Last King of Scotland, when you think about it!
Ladies and Gentlemen! It’s really Christopher Plummer who we should want them to push. He’s the star of the film, in a sublime and non-ham wonderful performance of a man who runs away from his wife - at age 80 or so!! Can anyone explain to me why this film was not screened at Toronto? (I saw it with a great audience in New Hampshire. The crowd loved it. Anyone who’s married should see it. Makes you feel good.)
Cris: So glad you agree! I think we certainly could’ve afforded him the waste of a slot that Depp unfortunately snatched-up. We could’ve done without. (At the time, it seemed McAvoy had lost, so I was rooting for Gosling to get in for Lars and the Real Girl, which was my favorite performance that year in Best Actor. Either/or would’ve been a superior nom to Depp.) But I also wanted to add that I completely agree regarding The Last King of Scotland: he was equally as potent and riveting as Whitaker, especially given his inexplicable character. Here’s hoping justice is served this year!
James - It wasn’t only the inclusion of Depp that appalled me, but also Clooney and Tommy Lee-Jones (who has only been playing “Tommy Lee-Jones” for I don’t know how many years) receiving nominations for weak and forgettable roles. McAvoy deserved to be there more than them. Let’s see if his talent is finally acknowledged next year!
And loveascreen - I’m rooting for Plummer too!