Why It's Desperate: Broaching a topic as controversial and hot-button as concussion injuries in the NFL is always going to garner awards interest, and considering that Will Smith has been out of the awards game since 2008's underwhelming Seven Pounds, there is naturally plenty of interest to see whether he can rise to the occasion. Smith clearly wants the Oscar badly, and the film is aiming to be 2015's big, incendiary movie that crowbars open a debate for the general public. Will It Succeed?: Reviews so far point to no. The film is well-reviewed albeit at the three-star level, though almost all the major praise goes towards Smith's performance above all else, so while he may end up nominated, this feels like a film in a predicament where the star's performance is vastly superior to the content of the movie itself. As such, Smith may be nominated, but he's unlikely to win against some of this year's more fierce competitors in movies that are more rapturously received on the whole.