This Had Oscar Buzz

Heavily anticipated by Oscar predictors in fall 2007, Justin Chadwick’s historical fiction The Other Boleyn Girl paired Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johnasson as their Oscar stars were rising. But when the film was rescheduled into early 2008, all signs pointed towards a disappointment that the film ultimately proved to be. With Eric Bana as King … Continue reading "133 – The Other Boleyn Girl"

Most remembered as “that movie about fracking”, this week we are talking about 2012′s Promised Land. Originally developed and written by John Krasinski and Dave Eggers, the film began as a potential directing vehicle for Matt Damon before the star brought on his Good Will Hunting director Gus Van Sant to take the reins. Damon stars … Continue reading "132 – Promised Land"

No matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t keep pushing this movie aside – and Tea with Mussolini breaks through for this episode for you! The film is one of Cher’s few post-Oscar films and stars the icon opposite acting legends Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Joan Plowright, and Lily Tomlin – all cast as ex-pat women raising … Continue reading "131 – Tea with Mussolini"

We’re bringing you a special BONUS episode to talk about all the goings on at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival! Chris and Joe both just participated in the virtual festival and have some exciting films to talk about. First, we discuss the few films eligible in this current Oscar season, including the one with (we … Continue reading "BONUS – Sundancing at Lughnasa"

For this episode, we’re returning to 2003 with the film that almost won the Listeners’ Choice for our previous 2003 miniseries: Tom McCarthy’s The Station Agent. Starring Peter Dinklage in his breakout role as Finn, a loner who inherits a vacant train station in rural New Jersey and reluctantly makes a small circle of friends with … Continue reading "130 – The Station Agent"

For our third episode on Meg Ryan, we’re going back to 1994 with When A Man Loves a Woman. One year after her megasmash in Sleepless in Seattle, the film stars Ryan as a woman entering recovery for alcoholism and Andy Garcia as her husband struggling to find normalcy. Though the film was a critical and box … Continue reading "129 – When A Man Loves A Woman"

It’s time to finally talk about such serious things as digital fur technology and the perils of tribalism – you’ve been begging for it, we’re finally talking about Cats. Our first Class of 2019 film discussed on the podcast, Cats was announced to the immediate revulsion of many, but Oscar predictors saw some possibility thanks to the participation … Continue reading "128 – Cats"

This episode, we’re looking at 2010′s Conviction starring Hilary Swank as Betty Anne Waters, a real life Massachusetts woman who earned a law degree to fight for the innocense of her brother wrongly convicted of murder. With a cast that includes Minnie Driver, Peter Gallagher, and Sam Rockwell as Betty’s jailed brother Kenny, the film received a … Continue reading "127 – Conviction"

For our first episode of the new year, we’re taking things back to the very This Had Oscar Buzz beginning. Back when this old podcast was just a single service Tumblr, the first THOB entry was 2007′s Reservation Road, a domestic drama starring Joaquin Phoenix and Jennifer Connelly as a family mourning the loss of a … Continue reading "126 – Reservation Road"

Happy New Year, listeners! To close out 2020, we’ve compiled all of your questions for this special mailbag episode! We kick things off by surveying the state of the current, pandemic-delayed Oscar race including First Cow’s win with New York critics. the New York Times’ 25 Greatest Actors of the 21st Century list, and how the … Continue reading "Mailbag Fishing In The Yemen"