I am still compiling my list and making considerations before I open the doors on the 2011 edition of “The Contenders,” but Fox Searchlight has all but guaranteed they think Alexander Payne’s first feature film since 2004’s Sideways is one for the Oscar pundits to keep an eye on as they announced today a December 16, 2011 release date for The Descendants. The film will, of course, have a limited platform release, likely expanding throughout the first months of 2012.
The Descendants is a film I actually included on my preview for last year’s Oscars, and it stars George Clooney as Matt King, an indifferent husband and father of two girls, who is forced to re-examine his past and embrace his future when his wife suffers a boating accident off of Waikiki. The event leads to a rapprochement with his young daughters while Matt wrestles with a decision to sell the family’s land handed down from Hawaiian royalty and missionaries. Along with Clooney, the film co-stars Judy Greer, Beau Bridges, Matthew Lillard, Robert Forster, Shailene Woodley, Kaleigh Kennedy, Mary Birdsong and Nick Krause.
Payne shared an Oscar win with his Sideways co-writer Jim Taylor and was also nominated for Best Director for that film, which was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor (Thomas Haden Church), Supporting Actress (Virginia Madsen) and, of course, Best Picture.
Any Payne fans out there already excited for this one? Want to wager a guess on Oscar nominations?
One thing that stands out to me is to wonder if Judy Greer may have finally found herself a supporting role she will be recognized for. Greer has turned in several fantastic supporting performances in her career, but most of them in comedies or films that simply don’t get as much awards attention. Second billing on this one is already a good start.
