Johnny Depp has grabbed headlines all over the world for his transformative turn as Boston crime boss Whitey Bulger in thriller Black Mass. The film, directed by Crazy Heart's Scott Cooper, follows Bulger's dominance of the city's underworld and his conspiratorial involvement with Joel Edgerton's FBI agent John Connolly. It's a brutal movie, anchored by Depp's performance and channeling the movies of Martin Scorsese's heyday. Black Mass boasts the kind of A-list ensemble cast that could secure acting nominations aplenty and boasts the sort of real-life story that often seduces Academy voters. It isn't the most polished or well-received film on this list, but it may benefit from being completely different to the gold-plated biopics that could suffer from having to battle against each other for the love of the Academy's electors when they fill out their Best Picture ballots.
Freelance film journalist and fan of professional wrestling. Usually found in a darkened screening room looking for an aisle seat and telling people to put away their mobile phones. Also known to do a bit of stand-up comedy, so I'm used to the occasional heckle.
