We had one film release this past weekend with the potential for Oscar nominations.

The Light Between Oceans

Period dramas about love and loss have been Oscar bait for decades. This concept or romance in the face of fatalism gets attention, but seldom wins the awards themselves. The Light Between Oceans is Derek Cianfrance’s fourth feature film, third since his breakout success of Blue Valentine. Cianfrance is no stranger to dark romanticism as Blue Valentine follows the crumbling relationship between Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams told in flashbacks as the couple comes together while their present-day relationship crumbles.

The Place Beyond the Pines was similar in its story of a motorcycle stunt driver (Gosling again) committing robberies to provide for his estranged wife. This time out, The Light Between Oceans focuses on the rescue of an infant from the sea by new couple Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander who discover later that the child’s mother (Rachel Weisz) is despondent over the loss. The trailer easily painted this portrait and also set the film up to be a weepy period drama.

All three of his recent films have earned similar ratings, solid, but not ecstatic reviews. Blue Valentine earned one nomination while Place Beyond the Pines earned none. What stands in the way of this film is its good, but not great reviews. It’s also a problem that the popular novel did not translate into audience numbers with the film opening in eighth place for the week with a disappointing $4.6 million. The combination of weak box office and reviews will not give the film many inroads to the Oscars. However, it’s possible that, like Blue Valentine, the film can nab an acting citation. Fassbender, Vikander and Weisz are all Oscar nominees, the latter both being winners, so the Academy will certainly take notice.

However, all things considered, Weisz may have the juicier, more baity role. Vikander and Fassbender don’t have any other options for nominations this year, so they could push themselves, but I suspect that the studios will focus on better opportunities elsewhere, which might explain why the film was dumped on the worst trafficked holiday weekend of the year: Labor Day.