3. Paul Greengrass - Captain Phillips
Paul Greengrass' mix of documentarian-realism and quick-cutting action hasn't exactly caught on with the Academy yet. The Bourne movies were obviously never going to compete for Oscars outside of the technical categories, but Greengrass' last feature, Green Zone, pretty much bombed on all accounts. The only film of his that met with minor success at the Academy was his 9/11 flick, United 93, which earned Greengrass a Best Director nomination. Due to this history, I have been a little skeptical of both Greengrass' chances and the chances of his newest film, Captain Phillips, when it comes to the 2014 Oscar season. The film, which as typical of much of Greengrass' work, is based on a true story. It tells the tale of a Captain of a U.S. cargo ship who offered himself up as hostage to Somali pirates in order to attain the freedom of his crew. It was kind of a big event on the news when it occurred and if modern society and technology hasn't shortened our memories to the point of a few years (the events occurred in 2009), the film will likely draw in viewers who were captivated by the story when it occured. As I was saying though, while many Oscar pundits have been high on this film's awards prospects since the beginning of the year, I have been a bit more hesitant on its odds until very recently, when the first trailer for the film dropped. While you must always take precautions about putting too much importance on a trailer (as I'm sure many of you have learned over the years), as trailers go, this is quite the gem. Terse, focused, and self-restrained, this looks to be Greengrass' most unfussy, straight forward film to date (which is a good thing in my book). Greengrass may have some good narratives (other than the film's story) to go along with the movie too. Particularly with the film's star, Tom Hanks, there will be a lot of Hollywood insiders who will be all too eager to welcome Hanks back into the awards season shuffle after nearly a decade away. This attention on Hanks can only benefit the film's, as well as Greengrass', prospects at receiving awards notices. Until we get some early reviews, this film will definitely remain somewhat of a mystery, and if it is too action-oriented, I think we can all but dismiss its chances, but as time goes on, I am only becoming more convinced that Captain Phillips and everyone associated with it will likely be major awards players come a few months time.