We had no films release this past weekend with the potential for Oscar nominations.

After Earth

Before it’s bomb-like box office opening, the prospects of an M. Night Shyamalan earning an Oscar nomination were remote. Still, the visual effects were impressive in the trailer and the sound mixing and sound editing were likely inventive. Now that the film has failed to materialize as a box office hit, will this finally mean Shyamalan will get no other directing vehicles? We can hope so. However, that’s not what this post is about. It should be pointed out that John Carter and Battleship both had similarly disappointing debuts in spite of impressive visual effects. Yet, the Academy had almost entirely forgotten the two films by Oscar time and were subsequently ignored. I imagine that not even Will Smith’s clout will get this one recognized. It might make the short list for Best Visual Effects, but like John Carter, that’s about as far as it will make it.