Prospects look dim for Darkest Hour
Star Gary Oldman can expect a trophy but omens suggest voters don’t love the film
We’re handicapping the odds on the nine Best Picture contenders for the March 4 Academy Awards. Today: Darkest Hour.
Give Gary Oldman his glittering gold statue now.
He’s the overwhelming favourite to win Best Actor for portraying Winston Churchill, in this take on the political struggles behind the Second World War story that also fuels Dunkirk.
It’s a far dimmer situation, however, for Oldman’s movie Darkest Hour. The film is respected but it’s missing the love that would be reflected in an accompanying nomination for Best Director or one for the Screen Actors Guild’s ensemble prize, both usually necessary for Best Picture glory. Perhaps more damning is the failure to win Best Film on home turf at the BAFTAs, a.k.a. the British Oscars.
Quick Pitch: May 1940, and Nazi soldiers surround hundreds of thousands of Allied soldiers who are stranded on the beach at Dunkirk, France.
As Parliament rages, newly minted British PM Winston Churchill (Oldman) must weight the cost of fighting on — or surrendering.
Starring: Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas, Lily James, Ben Mendelsohn, Ronald Pickup and Stephen Dillane. Directed by: Joe Wright Nominations: 6 Key early kudos: Oldman’s sweep of Golden Globes, SAG Awards and BAFTAs. Box office (domestic, U.S. dollars): $53.6 million. Ladbrokes odds: 100/1 Howell’s line: Prepare the golden podium for Oldman, but there’s no light at the end of the tunnel for Darkest Hour.
Star rating: K (out of 4)