2018 Venice Film Festival Preview: Early Oscar Contenders?

The 75th Venice Film Festival begins on Wednesday, August 29th, and the race for Oscar glory truly begins here as we see the first films reaching for the gold premier. So what’s coming up at this year’s festival that could knock the socks off Academy voters? Here’s a day-by-day look of films to keep an eye on.

 

First Man | August 29th

This is probably the film that will take the early frontrunner status for Best Picture. Not only do we have Damien Chazelle, our Best Director winner from two years prior, returning, but we have Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, and a number of great supporting actors in this one, and a script by Spotlight’s Josh Singer, who himself won an Oscar for his work on that film. The film’s about the space race and Neil Armstrong’s landing on the moon, an event that is widely considered one of the greatest achievements in American history, that is if you’re not a skeptic. Again it’s worth noting that previous Oscar players La La Land, Birdman, Gravity, The Ides of March, and Black Swan also opened the festival, and that’s just in the last ten years. We should have skyrocketed hopes for this one.

 

The Favourite | August 30th

Screening on the 30th is Yorgos Lanthimos’ newest film, The Favourite. From the trailers, it looks like a comedic period piece about Queen Anne’s affections being split between Abigail Masham, her cousin, and close friend Sarah Churchill. While Yorgos’ films tend to fight against the mainstream culture, this time he may have picked a project that will find a much bigger audience than his more recent ventures, especially with a cast like Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz, and Emma Stone as the three ladies and Nicholas Hoult and Joe Alwyn in supporting roles.

 

Roma | August 30th

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp_i7cnOgbQ

Also screening on the 30th is Alfonso Cuaron’s long-awaited follow-up to Gravity, Roma, set in 1970s Mexico City and following the perils of the lower classes. From the trailer, this looks like a personal work from Cuaron, who not only directs the film, but also wrote, co-produced, and had a hand in the cinematography and editing. It’s also one of the few films this year to be shot in black and white, which will help it stand out even more from the rest of the competition. Netflix has had a troubled past trying to get contenders into the Oscar race, but last year proved that they will not be shut out entirely from main competition. So Roma may continue where Mudbound left off, and could be the first Netflix film to land a Best Picture nomination.

 

A Star is Born | August 31st

Arguably the busiest day of the festival is Friday the 31st, where we see these three films enter the foray. A Star is Born, the first film directed by Bradley Cooper, will not only see his debut behind the camera, but also Lady Gaga take up her first leading role. While it may be the fourth film made with that title, the trailers look very promising. Cooper did the rare three-for-three a few years ago, getting nominated for Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, and American Sniper in back-to-back-to-back years, and his work here may garner him multiple nominations this time.

 

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs | August 31st

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a very interesting case. Originally planned as a six-part limited series on Netflix, the Coen Brothers and Netflix have now decided to shorten it down to an anthology western film with six segments. Not too much is known about whether or not this is the kind of anthology where a few things line up at the end, or if it’s one where everything is disconnected and it’s all just a fun ride. With the Coen Brothers at the helm, either way could be a massive success.

 

The Other Side of the Wind | August 31st

Now we get to what could be the most controversial film on the docket for Venice this year: Orson Welles’ uncompleted film, The Other Side of the Wind. It’s not very often that films that were started but not finished get this treatment, and since nearly all the major players in the project from the start are no longer with us, we could see some protests along the lines of “you can’t finish what someone else started”, and that’s a fair argument. Still, since there is such a storied history to this production, which initially took six years and had a lot of starts and stops along the way, that it would be a shame to let the footage go to waste and be forgotten about.

 

Peterloo | September 1st

Mike Leigh marks his next project with the historical drama Peterloo, which encapsulates the Peterloo Massacre of 1819. Leigh’s projects always gather some attention when it comes to Oscars, and even if they’re strikeouts as far as nominations go, there’s always an interest in what this legendary filmmaker will do next.

 

Suspiria | September 1st

I don’t think I’ve been shy with articles I’ve written in the past indicating that perhaps my most anticipated film of the rest of the year is Luca Guadagnino’s remake of Suspiria. Mostly every horror fan-boy has gone silent with complaints about yet another remake of a horror classic with this one. Luca’s assembled a terrific ensemble cast, kept a good number of his crew from Call Me by your Name onboard for the follow-up, and the trailers have been disturbing, shocking, and exhilitaring. Horror doesn’t always lend itself to multiple Oscar nominations, but like Get Out last year, every now and again there is an exception.

 

The Sisters Brothers | September 2nd

Another western in play this year, though we don’t know how comedic Buster Scruggs will be, is The Sisters Brothers, which based off the trailers will have a comedic edge to it. With John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix as the titular pair, and Jake Gyllenhaal and Riz Ahmed in supporting roles, this looks like a fun romp. While I’m not confident it will be a major contender for the Oscars, sometimes a little fun adventure like this one serves audiences well.

 

At Eternity’s Gate | September 3rd

Next up is Julian Schnabel’s newest film, At Eternity’s Gate, and it’s a new film that portrays an on-screen representation of Vincent Van Gogh, this time played by Willem Dafoe. The film hasn’t locked down a release date yet, but CBS Films is behind the project, so it could still enter the race this year. If not, it’ll be a little bit of a wait, but with Schnabel, it’s probably going to be worth it.

 

Vox Lux | September 4th

Another film that hasn’t officially been marked down for a release date yet is Brady Corbet’s Vox Lux. This film centers on a punk rock star, played by Natalie Portman, and also stars Jude Law, Jennifer Ehle, Stacy Martin, and Raffey Cassidy. Cassidy plays a younger version of Portman’s character, and the two were photographed shooting a scene together, so that makes the film really interesting. Corbet’s first film, The Childhood of a Leader, did not make a splash when it debuted, but maybe this one will.

 

22 July | September 5th

The festival officially closes on September 8th, but the last film I’ve got my eye on for this year screens on the 5th: 22 July. Another long-awaited follow-up, this time it’s Paul Greengrass, and he’s focusing on the terrorist attacks in Norway on July 22nd of 2011. Greengrass’ last effort on a real-life story like this, Captain Phillips, did well at the Oscars, and while he doesn’t have a huge star like Tom Hanks starring in this project, I’d trust someone like Greengrass to do this subject matter justice. Even if that means we don’t have a multiple Oscar-winning actor in it.

Venice marks the first films that dare to dip their toe into the dreaded Oscar spotlight, and sometimes we see films start here with great reception that lands with multiple Oscar wins, and sometimes we see films start here that end with no nominations, no love, no attention. It’s all a big crapshoot, but that’s what we live for. We love to see the competition aspect of these festivals and the Oscar race in general.

Some other things to keep in mind as the festival begins: last year’s Golden Lion, the top prize of Venice, was awarded to The Shape of Water, and that’s the first time a future Best Picture winner took home the prize. Also we have a number of big names on the jury this year, with the president of the jury being Guillermo Del Toro, and jury members including Taika Waititi, Christoph Waltz, and Naomi Watts. Once again, the festival starts on the 29th and ends on the 8th.