In theaters now is the Sundance hit Beasts of the Southern Wild, which I saw (and reviewed) at the Cannes Film Festival back in May. Meanwhile, back in March, I declared it one of the top 25 contenders for Best Picture and I think that still holds true, especially as it continues to do well in limited releases. Question is, can it make enough noise to become one of the potential ten nominees?
Based on the play by Lucy Alibar who co-wrote the script with director Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild also holds what may be a pair of acting nominations, one of them being 8-year-old actress Quvenzhané Wallis whose performance as Hushpuppy gives the film its heart and soul. Playing her father, Wink, Dwight Henry is the other clear contender and depending on how the race plays out, Fox Searchlight may be smart attempting to go the supporting route for him, depending on which field becomes the most competitive. A case could be made for either category.
The reason I ask this question now is 1) because I’m genuinely curious how it may do; and 2) because Fox Searchlight just released the following featurette for the film taking a look at the mythical aurochs seen throughout the picture leading up to an emotional and climactic finale. While I enjoyed the film, I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as most, but that ending packs a wallop of a punch.
Considering the small stature of this tiny independent film, that picture above is a pretty good representation of the competition it will face come Oscar time. The small budgeted film will be taking on the likes of Steven Spielberg, Paul Thomas Anderson, Ang Lee, Tom Hooper and more. Will it be able to stare them down and come out victorious?
Beasts of the Southern Wild added 48 theaters this weekend and is now playing in a total of 129, for a theater near you click here. You can check out the featurette below and see how they turned a tiny pig into a hulking beast.
