We put an Oscar Lens on Minari and Sound of Metal before reviewing the trailers of Hillbilly Elegy, Soul, and Ammonite. Then we talk about Amazon’s Coming 2 America, some good news/bad news regarding movie theaters, & the Mad Max prequel: Furiosa.

AlsoMike Has His Final Critic Form - Top of Show

What is This Episode? - 2:30

ARE ONLINE FESTIVAL COMPONENTS HERE TO STAY? - 2:50

MINARI NONSPOILER REVIEW:

Best Picture Odds - 6:57

Original Screenplay - 11:25

Steven Yeun - 16:10

SOUND OF METAL:

Sound Design - 20:03

Riz Ahmed - 23:30

CONTENDER TRAILER REVIEWS:

Hillbilly Elegy Trailer 1 - 28:55

Soul Trailer 1,000,000 - 34:20

Ammonite Trailer 2 - 38:29

INDUSTRY/CONTENDER NEWS:

Amazon Buys Coming 2 America for $125M - 41:50

(Why is Paramount Selling So Much? Why AREN’T Other Studios? Is There Reason to Worry About Paramount TV?

Box Office Apacolypse, Chapter 2 - 47:40

(NY Theaters Outside NYC Can ReOpen, But AMC May Be Out Of Liquidity; And Why Disney May Be Getting Ready to Abandon Theaters Altogether.)

We Were Wrong About ‘Another Round’ - 55:32

Furiosa Prequel Casting (or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Trust New Mutants As a Top 20 Film) - 56:23

Your Homework/PLEASE LEAVE US 5*’S - 59:27

What Else Is Next From MMO/Words of Wisdom - 1:00:34

Oscar Race Checkpoint is back, and we begin by weighing the awards chances of Minari and Sound of Metal. Can Steven Yeun or Riz Ahmed overcome the competition in Lead Actor? Will Minari break through in Original Screenplay? Does Sound of Metal seize its moment in Sound Design? And hell, could one of these films even break through in Best Picture? We share some first reactions, as well as some long term projections to begin this episode.

Then we have to talk about Glenn and Amy. Is this what Oscar desperation looks like? Or does Hillbilly Elegy mark yet another example of a bad trailer cut of a good movie? However it shakes out, Netflix is releasing one must see movie after the next, - case in point, that Ma Rainey trailer. (Though unfortunately, you’ll have to wait until our next episode for that trailer review as we finished recording before realizing it was released.) But we did get a chance to review the latest trailer for Soul, where we speculate about the possibilities of a Pixar cinematic universe, and Ammonite, where subtext is apparently, not a thing.

Finally, we have a smattering of stories to finish the show, including Amazon’s acquisition of Coming 2 America, some good news/bad news about the state of movie theaters, and we speculate about the Mad Max prequel: Furiosa.

As always, we want to hear your thoughts on anything or everything we discussed in this episode. We’re at MMandOscar on Twitter, and we are on Instagram, Facebook, Reddit, and Gmail. You can subscribe / rate / review / like / share / & hear us on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Google Play, Tune In, Spotify, and just about wherever you might listen. We’re Mike, Mike, & Oscar, and we’re making awards season year round, without the stuffiness. Thanks for clicking play.