2. August: Osage County
While I personally couldn’t be more disinterested by this darkly comic drama, its Oscar pedigree is undeniable. I mean, the movie is based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning play, for crying out loud. And look at that cast: Meryl Streep is playing a drug-addled cancer patient, Julia Roberts stars as her strong-willed daughter, and the list of supporting actors reads like an actual Oscar ballot, with names like Ewan McGregor, Abigail Breslin, Margo Martindale, Chris Cooper, Juliette Lewis, and Sam Shepard.
August: Osage County follows a dysfunctional family clashing over the course of several weeks after they come together under one roof following the suicide of one of their own. Divorces, funerals and forbidden romances all pit the characters against each another as they try to survive their time together.
Also boosting the film’s Oscar cred is the backing of heavyweight film producers like Harvey Weinstein and George Clooney. Check out the trailer below.
I’d expect a host of acting nominations, most likely for Streep and Roberts, who have the film’s meatiest roles, but perhaps also for supporting cast members like Shepard and Martindale. A Best Picture nomination is certainly not far off, especially if the ensemble cast clicks together as well as it is predicted to.
August: Osage County opens December 25.
