Reese Witherspoon gets Wild

Trailers upon trailers upon trailers.

In the midst of a comeback of sorts, Reese Witherspoon has a busy year ahead of her. Teaming up with "Dallas Buyers Club" director Jean-Marc Vallée backed by Oscar heavyweight Fox Searchlight, "Wild" will certainly be one of the films in the Academy Award conversation this year.

The film is based on a true story, adapted from the popular best selling memoir written by Cheryl Strayed.

This looks to be Witherspoon's meatiest role in years (since her Oscar win for 2005's "Walk the Line"), certainly more so than her role in "The Good Lie". The film looks beautifully shot, and with the hot momentum of Dallas Buyers Club (those 3 Oscar wins and a nomination for Best Picture are nothing to ignore), this film could be even more financially successful, and rake in more awards. Partnered with her supporting turn in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Inherent Vice", this should almost definitely land Witherspoon a nomination in Best Actress.

Take a look at the trailer below. Wild will be released December 5th.

Reese Witherspoon's Comeback?

I for one, used to be a fan of Reese Witherspoon. In her early years, Witherspoon delivered a string of great performances ("Election, Freeway), and her breakout work in "Legally Blonde" turned the film into a phenomenon (I for one believe it was work worthy of an Oscar nomination, but you know how the Academy is with comedy). After solidifying herself as one of Hollywood's most bankable leading ladies ("Sweet Home Alabama", "Legally Blonde 2: Red White and Blonde") she took home the Oscar for Best Actress and a dozen other awards for her portrayal of country music singer June Carter-Cash in "Walk the Line". And then... nothing.

Since her Oscar win, Witherspoon's work has not only grown less enthusiastic, but her project choices have become less inspired. She had a small supporting role in last year's "Mud" alongside Matthew McConaughey, but it was McConaughey that won the raves, while Witherspoon was a forgotten element of the film.

Partnered with that embarrassing DUI arrest, it's safe to say that she's in need of a career resurgence/renaissance, which might just be this year.

Well, That's A Wrap!

Truly, this is my favorite picture from last night... I can't take my eyes off of her, she's divine. One of the best, most deserving, and most Oscar winners we've had in awhile. 

It seems like we've been following the 2013 awards season forever, hasn't it? Though last year was one of the best years in film we've had in awhile, this Oscar season seemed much longer than the others. What was shaping up to be a competitive year settled into a somewhat predictable horse race. On some levels, I'm okay with it, and on others, not so much.

What Could the BAFTA's Do For the Oscar Race? My Predictions

The BAFTA's are the last precursor award we hear from before the Oscars. Unlike the past few years where Best Picture has been prematurely decided before we even hear from the first voting body. 2010 was The King's Speech, 2011 was The Artist, and 2012 was Argo. This year, 3 films have been clearly in the lead: 12 Years A Slave, Gravity and American Hustle, with Her and Captain Phillips nipping at their feet.

Gravity and 12 Years A Slave, however, have the most heat, with American Hustle lurking in the background, looking to swoop in. As I've discussed before, Gravity has the box office and star power, 12 Years A Slave has the prestige and the "important" narrative, with American Hustle having not only the actors behind it, but the fact it's a "lighter" choice than the others.

Here is a breakdown of the last few months in terms of awards (in case you haven't been looking at my awards tally tab):

Toronto Audience award- 12 Years A Slave
New York Film Critics- American Hustle
National Board of Review- Her
Los Angeles- Her & Gravity
Southeastern Film Critics- 12 Years A Slave
Golden Globes- 12 Years A Slave
Critics Choice- 12 Years A Slave
Producers Guild- 12 Years A Slave & Gravity
Screen Actors Guild- American Hustle
Directors Guild- Gravity
Eddies- American Hustle & Captain Phillips
Writers Guild- Captain Phillips & Her
Scripters- 12 Years A Slave

Where will the BAFTA's figure in to all of this?

Playing Catch Up: Dallas Buyers Club & Enough Said

I went to the movies this weekend! Well.. sorta

Enough Said and Dallas Buyers Club are 2 films that had been alluding me for quite some time (both were never playing in my area when I finally had the time to sit down and watch them), but luckily, I was able to catch up with them both in a sort of double feature. Of the 2, Dallas Buyers Club is the one with the chances at Oscar glory; the film itself, Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, and possibly other [deserving facets] will get nominated.

Enough Said, however, is a film that deserves much more acclaim than it has won (and it's won quite a bunch). It isn't easy territory, but the trio of director/screenwriter Nicole Holofcener, and stars Julia Louis Dreyfus and James Gandolfini elevate what could have very well been a simple "rom com" to a greatly touching, memorable and mature film.

Writer's Guild Nominations: Blue Jasmine & Dallas Buyers Club Get a Boost, Another loss for Inside Llewyn Davis

Support from the PGA and now WGA mean great things for these 2 "underdogs".

Yesterday's PGA nominations found Dallas Buyers Club continuing its Screen Actors Guild success by landing a nomination for Best Film; with both PGA and SAG behind it, Best Picture seemed pretty likely. But now, with the WGA backing it, there seems to be a lot more support behind the film than previously thought.

Woody Allen's screenplay for Blue Jasmine was always seen as a sure thing given his track record. But after receiving a PGA nomination yesterday and a Golden Globe nomination for Sally Hawkins, it seems there's more support for the film outside of Cate Blanchett's masterclass turn and Allen's screenplay.

Films that were ineligible for the WGA include 12 Years A Slave, Philomena, Rush, Blue Is the Warmest Color, Short Term 12, Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom, Fruitvale Station and In a World. I imagine that's how Lone Survivor (a film that's been ignored all season) made it in.

The Coen Brothers' Inside Llewyn Davis was passed over for a nomination after being passed over by the PGA. Though the PGA loss is less worrisome (they didn't nominate A Serious Man back in 2009 and it managed to get a Best Picture nomination), the WGA exclusion is more worrisome; the WGA has always gone for the Coens. Though this isn't a nail in the coffin, it can be telling in terms of consensus.

You can read the full list of nominations below.

Producers Guild Nominations: Our Potential Best Picture Lineup?

Blue Jasmine, American Hustle, Captain Philips and Dallas Buyers Club among the list of nominees

The Producers Guild, much like the Screen Actors Guild, is an important precursor to have behind your film; the Best Picture winner and most of the films to be nominated for picture (save for a few surprise inclusions/exclusions on nomination morning) are always included on this long list.

That bodes well for the small Dallas Buyers Club, which was only seen as a vehicle for stars Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, but managed to score a nomination here AND a Best Ensemble nomination with SAG a month ago; a Best Picture nomination looks very likely now. Blue Jasmine, the film that will undoubtedly win Cate Blanchett her second Oscar (first Leading Actress trophy), also landed on the long list of nominees; that writing nomination for Woody Allen and Best Supporting Actress nomination for Sally Hawkins aren't seeming too crazy now with the level of support being expressed for the film.

Another surprise was the critically adored Inside Llewyn Davis being passed over for Wolf of Wall Street. Both were passed over by SAG, but Wolf's inclusion over Davis here could be pretty telling... then again, there's still time for that to change.

Other than that, the nominees are pretty standard; both 12 Years A Slave and American Hustle landed nominations.

Take a look people; this could very well be our Best Picture lineup

Precursor Buzz: Could Scarlett Johansson get an Oscar Nomination for "Her"? & Other Recipients.

Scarlett Johansson has had an interesting career ever since her she burst onto the scene. She gained indie cred and acclaim with roles in "North" and "Ghost World", but her breakout role in Sofia Coppola's "Lost In Translation". She unexpectedly won the BAFTA award for Best Leading Actress (though she missed out on the Oscar), and turned in another acclaimed performance in the little seen "Girl With The Pearl Earring", and again in Woody Allen's "Match Point".