There are no two bigger months at theaters. While the Summer may provide box office swing, both box office and Oscars dominate the final two months of the year with November likely the biggest of them all. This year, a number of top notch films will compete for audience dollars and critics’ appreciation going into the final weeks of pre-Oscar wrangling. This November features one of the most impressive line-ups Oscar has seen in some time, with many of them strong contenders for one or multiple nominations.

May 2-4, 2014

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

Premise: From IMDb: “Peter Parker runs the gauntlet as the mysterious company Oscorp sends up a slew of supervillains against him, impacting on his life.”
Box Office Prospects: $250 M
Expectations: Solid. The original franchise had a problem. Each subsequent film in the trilogy made less than its predecessor, this in spite of soaring ticket prices. With The Amazing Spider-Man starting out lower overall and with critics and audiences less enthused (barely) about the reboot, it’s probable that the second film will find a tough time matching its predecessor’s numbers.
Oscar Prospects: Poor. The original trilogy didn’t get a lot of Oscar attention, but it got some. The reboot got none. I see the same thing occurring ths time out, though it’s possible that the heavy use of CGI might bolster the film’s chances.

May 9-11, 2014

Chef

Premise: From IMDb: “A chef who loses his restaurant job starts up a food truck in an effort to reclaim his creative promise, while piecing back together his estranged family.”
Box Office Prospects: $65 M
Expectations: Uncertain. There’s no real prcedent for this type of film and although Jon Favreau succesfully established the Iron Man franchise, there’s no proof that he’ll be able to do the same for light comedy. Add to that the utter lack of marketing that seems to be out there so far and I doubt the film will do very well.
Oscar Prospects: None.

Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return

Premise: From IMDb: “Back in Kansas, Dorothy Gale decides to return to Oz in order to help her friends.”
Box Office Prospects: $25 M
Expectations: Poor. The film doesn’t look that great and advertising has been minimal. With no trailers on the front of recent animated film Frozen or kids film Muppets Most Wanted, I don’t know how the film can possibly succeed. It’s also possible that the trailers released in the next month catch on and kids of all ages decide to catch the latest re-telling of the L. Frank Baum classic. I just don’t think it looks like more than a standard direct-to-video affair.
Oscar Prospects: None.

Moms’ Night Out

Premise: From IMDb: “All Allyson and her friends want is a peaceful, grown-up evening of dinner and conversation . . . a long-needed moms’ night out. But in order to enjoy high heels, adult conversation and food not served in a bag, they need their husbands to watch the kids for a few hours-what could go wrong? Moms’ Night Out is an endearing, true-to-life family comedy.”
Box Office Prospects: $30 M
Expectations: Poor. No major names. No major advertising. It’s like this film doesn’t even exist, yet it’s scheduled for a wide release near the beginning of May. If a comedy wins the weekend, it will be Neighbors.
Oscar Prospects: None.

Neighbors

Premise: From IMDb: “A couple with a newborn baby face unexpected difficulties after they are forced to live next to a fraternity house.”
Box Office Prospects: $90 M
Expectations: Good. Anything else released this weekend will be sacrificial lambs to one of two films. Either to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opening the weekend before or Zac Efron / Seth Rogen comedy Neighbors. I suspect it will still come in second, but it will be the highest debut of the weekend and may carry forward for a few weeks as a strong holdover considering the immensely positive early word of mouth.
Oscar Prospects: None.

May 16-18, 2014

Godzilla

Premise: From IMDb: “The world’s most famous monster is pitted against malevolent creatures who, bolstered by humanity’s scientific arrogance, threaten our very existence.”
Box Office Prospects: $150 M
Expectations: Good. Sony attempted to reboot the monster movie staple in 1998. It was met with derision from critics and disgruntled audiences. Even though it ended with an obvious set up for a sequel, no sequel came. 17 years later, almost to the date, Warner Bros. is going to try its hand at it. They are sure to be more successful since they seem to be sticking close to the mechanics that made the original films so popular. The film hasn’t been seen by critics yet, so it could still be a dud, but to be worse than the 1998 version would take some heft effort.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. The film could be a contender in the Sound Mixing, Sound Editing and Visual Effects categories, but this year is so filled over capacity with technically-proficient films that I doubt it will even make it that far.

Million Dollar Arm

Premise: From IMDb: “A sports agent stages an unconventional recruitment strategy to get talented Asian cricket players to play Major League Baseball.”
Box Office Prospects: $80 M
Expectations: Decent. Disney is no stranger to popular sports dramas, but most of their highest grossing films were family-oriented. This one doesn’t seem like such a film even if it has some elements that might make it appealing. Still, it’s been 22 years since the highest grossing baseball film of all time released and A League of Their Own, even not adjusting for inflation, is likely to maintain that title for a bit longer.
Oscar Prospects: None.

May 23-25, 2014

Blended

Premise: From IMDb: “After a bad blind date, a man and woman find themselves stuck together at a resort for families, where their attraction grows as their respective kids benefit from the burgeoning relationship.”
Box Office Prospects: $110 M
Expectations: Good. Adam Sandler may not have had a lot of success in recent years, at least not without help from friends, but he is surprisingly strong at drawing viewers to his romantic comedies. His Jennifer Aniston co-starring film netted just north of $100 million while his last pairing with Drew Barrymore secured $120 million (adjustd to $162 million with inflation). This will be the ultimate test of whether Sandler still commands respect at the box office and I suspect he’ll still succeed. Yet, I think his brand may be weakened enough that he’s unable to hit his prior highs, but still clears the $100 million treshold.
Oscar Prospects: None.

X-Men: Days of Future Past

Premise: From IMDb: “The X-Men send Wolverine to the past in a desperate effort to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants.”
Box Office Prospects: $160 M
Expectations: Good. While not as popular as the Avengers universe, the X-Men have a solid reputation at the box office. None of their films have dipped below $130 at the box office, though none have topped $240. That said, First Class was a popular and acclaimed refresh of the brand and the disappointing Origins film for Wolverine should be forgotten. While Jennifer Lawrence is hardly recognizable in the trailers so far and the focus has been entirely on Wolverine, there is plenty to suggest that this will top its predecessor at the box office and might even do better than even I expect.
Oscar Prospects: Poor. This franchise has been an Oscar pariah, so I see little hope for the film this time around.

May 30-June 1, 2014

Maleficent

Premise: From IMDb: “The untold story of the villain from “Sleeping Beauty” reveals the events that hardened Maleficent’s heart and drove her to curse the baby, Aurora, only to later realize that the child may hold the key to peace in the land.”
Box Office Prospects: $200 M
Expectations: Excellent. The last two live-actino adaptations of classic fairytales with twists on the subject were quite popular. Snow White and the Huntsman only managed $155, but Oz the Great and Powerful secured $234 million. I suspect this one will fall somewhere between those two numbers, closer to Oz than Snow White.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. Disney doesn’t know how to campaign for the Oscars anymore. After the failure of Saving Mr. Banks, I would be shocked if they mounted a much better campaign this time out. Thankfully, they only have to focus on the creative categories, like Production Design, Costume Design, Makeup and Hairstyling, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing and Visual Effects. Those are much easier to court than the pesky top tier categories where it would most definitely not come close.

A Million Ways to Die in the West

Premise: From IMDb: “As a cowardly farmer begins to fall for the mysterious new woman in town, he must put his newfound courage to the test when her husband, a notorious gun slinger, announces his arrival.”
Box Office Prospects: $100 M
Expectations: Weak. There’s no possible way lightning strikes twice for Seth MacFarlane. Ted tapped into a unique concept that hadn’t been explored fully on the big screen before. His raunchy, questionable humor fit quite effectively into the grown-up teddy bear conceit. This time out, he’s up against much harsher comparative competition. Mel Brooks has already created the definitive western spoof. He made almost $120 million at the box office 40 years prior. That adjusts to about $514 million today. MacFarlane will be lucky to gross a fifth of that.
Oscar Prospects: None.