Oscar Frontrunners Make Strides at Telluride and Venice

With the Venice and Telluride Film Festivals opening this past week, the Oscar contenders wasted no time in making their stakes at the front of the evolving race.

Below are a list of the films that received a boost from critics and bloggers after their respective premieres.

Eddie Redmayne is Front and Center on "The Danish Girl" Poster

We're still on the fringe of Oscar season, but all of the contenders are beginning to fall in place. Eddie Redmayne, our most recent Best Actor winner, is already predicted by many experts to be our frontrunner.

Redmayne's back with another transformative performance, this time as Lili Elbe. Elbe was the first recipient of sex reassignment surgery in the 1920s after being a stand in for a female model in one of her wife's paintings.

Though we've discussed why Redmayne's casting over actual Trans actresses is problematic, there's no doubt in my mind the Academy will take notice. Again, Redmayne won an Oscar just a few months ago, which means a buzzy role like this is likely to provide an 'afterglow' nomination. Not to mention that the film is being directed by Academy Award Winner Tom Hooper.

The film also stars Alicia Vikander, who is being poised as the newest it girl; hot off her success with "Ex-Machina", she will also star in the newest installment of the "Bourne" series. It's also possible she will follow in Felicity Jones' footsteps and land a nomination for playing Redmayne's wife.

Take a look below at the poster for the film, which will screen at the Venice Film Festival and Toronto Film Festival before being released on November 27.

Why Eddie Redmayne starring in "The Danish Girl" is a Problem

Eddie Redmayne will play Lili Elbe in the film directed by Academy Award winner Tom Hooper. 

If you were worried that Eddie Redmayne would disappear the way of Adrien Brody after winning the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role, then fear not! The first image for his next high-profile project has just been released (pictured above). The actor will headline "The Danish Girl", a biopic about Lili Elbe, the first woman to undergo a sex-change operation.

The film will be the second collaboration between Redmayne and director Tom Hooper, who previously worked together on the Academy Award winning "Les Miserables". The film's screenplay has been adapted from David Ebershoff's novel of the same name, by Lucinda Coxon. It's no doubt a high-profile project; buzz is pretty loud given Redmayne's newly coronet status as an Oscar winner and Hooper's own Oscar past. But this is anything but good news, and I'm here to tell you why.

BAFTA Winners: Boyhood Makes a Comeback!

"Birdman" may have sailed to frontrunner status with wins at the PGA, DGA and SAG, "Boyhood" hit the ground running at the BAFTA's, winning in Supporting Actress, Director and Picture. Birdman, on the other picked up a win with Cinematography, with Eddie Redmayne (expectedly) walking away with the Best Actor trophy. He is the favorite to win the Oscar at this point.

"The Grand Budapest Hotel" also picked up some major wins; it's clear that the enthusiasm is spread between these three films; but which one is going to end up on top come Oscar time?

Take a look at the full list of winners below.

Theory of Everything is too Conventional for its Own Good

Both Felicity Jones and Eddie Redmayne have been on the brink of career breakthroughs for several years now. Jones won acclaim for her naturalistic performance in 2011's "Like Crazy", which failed to nab her substantial awards attention, and any success with meaty roles. Redmayne has been apart of several high profile projects, namely 2012's "Les Miserables" which, I believe almost nabbed him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

So, it makes no sense then that 2 actors on the verge of mainstream success team up in a buzzy, high-profile biopic detailing the relationship between the brilliant Stephen Hawking and his incredibly strong (now ex) wife Jane. Directed by James Marsh, the film has enjoyed much acclaim, especially for Redmayne's performance. which requires a vast amount of physical commitment from the young actor.

But despite the Oscar buzz, "Theory of Everything" is far from relevatory, and in fact, is just an ordinary biopic.

Some Takeaways From TIFF & Telluride

Both the Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals have become feverishly important events in the Oscar race, especially in recent years. Though some winners peak early in the year (for example, 2011's Best Picture winner, "The Artist" premiered at the Cannes Film Festival), more and more often it seems that Telluride and (especially Toronto) are 2 of the biggest places to build buzz.

It should come as no surprise then, that in the near aftermath of these 2 festivals, several contenders have built enormous amount of buzz, buzz that should very well carry them over the finish line.

Though the People's Choice Award (Toronto Film Festival's highest honor) has yet to be announced, here are some things we've learned over the last few days as films have had their premieres: