Over the last three days, I’ve gotten a handful of screeners, but due to time constraints, I couldn’t get anything posted until now. The titles I received were DreamWorks’ Rise of the Guardians and Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted; and Summit Entertainment’s The Impossible and The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Impossible

Stars: Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, Geraldine Chaplin, Tom Holland, Samuel Joslin
Director: Juan Antonio Bayona
Premise: From IMDb: “An account of a family caught, with tens of thousands of strangers, in the mayhem of one of the worst natural catastrophes of our time.”
Oscar Chances: Unknown: The film is gathering strong notices, but I have no idea how the Academy will receive the film. If critics line up behind it, then it could be something of a contender, but something about the film makes it seem like it’s not going very far with Oscar voters, though both Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts could be in line for nominations.
Campaign-Proposed Categories:

• Best Picture (Belen Atienza, Alvaro Augustin, Enrique Lopez-Lavigne, Ghislain Barrois)
• Best Director (J.A. Bayona)
• Best Original Screenplay (Sergio G. Sanchez)
• Best Actor (Tom Holland)
• Best Actress (Naomi Watts)
• Best Supporting Actor (Ewan McGregor)
• Best Cinematography (Oscar Faura)
• Best Art Direction (Eugenio Caballero, Pilar Revuelta)
• Best Film Editing (Elena Ruiz, Bernat Vilaplana)
• Best Costume Design (Anna Bingemann, Sparka Lee Hall, Maria Reyes)
• Best Original Score (Fernando Velazquez)
• Best Sound Mixing (Peter Glossop, Marc Orts, Marc Blanes, Oriol Tarrago)
• Best Sound Editing (Oriol Tarrago)
• Best Makeup and Hairstyling (Alessandro Bertolazzi, Sarah Love, Rick Findlater, David Marti, Montse Ribe)
• Best Visual Effects (Felix Berges, Pau Costa)

Rotten Tomatoes:
88% (17 critics; as of 11/29/12)
Metacritic:
80 out of 100 (8 critics; as of 11/29/12)

Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted

Stars: Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith, Sacha Baron Cohen, Cedric the Entertainer, Andy Richter, Tom McGrath, Frances McDormand, Jessica Chastain, Brian Cranston, Martin Short
Director: Eric Darnell, Conrad Vernon, Tom McGrath
Premise: From IMDb: “Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman are still fighting to get home to their beloved Big Apple. Their journey takes them through Europe where they find the perfect cover: a traveling circus, which they reinvent – Madagascar style.”
Oscar Chances: Mediocre: Before Rise of the Guardians disappointed in its Box Office debut, I would have said this third film in the franchise wasn’t going anywhere near the Oscar race, but with slightly better reviews, it could make some ground at the Annie Award Nominations, which would put it closer to securing a nomination than Guardians. However, being a sequel, its chances aren’t very strong otherwise.
Campaign-Proposed Categories:

• Best Picture of the Year (Mireille Soria, Mark Swift)
• Best Animated Feature (Mireille Soria, Mark Swift)
• Best Director (Eric Darnell, Conrad Vernon, Tom McGrath)
• Best Adapted Screenplay (Eric Darnell, Noah Baumbach)
• Best Production Design (Kendal Cronkhite-Shaindlin, Shannon Jeffries)
• Best Film Editing (Nick Fletcher)
• Best Original Song (“Love Always Comes as a Surprise” performed by Peter Asher, written by Peter Asher and Dave Stewart)
• Best Sound Mixing (Will Files, Gary Summers)
• Best Sound Editing (Dennis Leonard)
• Best Visual Effects (Mahesh Ramasubramanian)

Rotten Tomatoes:
78% (122 critics; as of 11/29/12)
Metacritic:
60 out of 100 (26 critics; as of 11/29/12)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Stars: Logan Lerman, Ezra Miller, Emma Watson, Dylan McDermott, Kate Walsh, Johnny Simmons, Nina Dobrev, Paul Rudd
Director: Stephen Chobsky
Premise: From IMDb: “An introvert freshman is taken under the wings of two seniors who welcome him to the real world.”
Oscar Chances: Weak: The film has had months to build some kind of reputation with Oscar voters and it’s seldom, if ever mentioned. I think the film is likely to be one of those well respected, but ultimately ignored films.
Campaign-Proposed Categories:

• Best Picture (Lianne Halfon, John Malkovich, Russell Smith)
• Best Director (Stephen Chbosky)
• Best Adapted Screenplay (Stephen Chbosky)
• Best Actor (Logan Lerman)
• Best Supporting Actor (Ezra Miller)
• Best Supporting Actress (Emma Watson)
• Best Cinematography (Andrew Dunn)
• Best Art Direction (Inbal Weinberg, Merissa Lombardo)
• Best Film Editing (Rita DaSilva, Robert Frazen, Yana Gorskaya, Mary Jo Markey)
• Best Costume Design (David C. Robinson)
• Best Original Score (Michael Brook)
• Best Sound Mixing (Jeffree Bloomer, Joe Barnett, Marshall Garlington)
• Best Sound Editing (Perry Robertson, Scott Sanders)
• Best Makeup (Evelyne Noraz, Suzy Mazzarese-Allison)
• Best Visual Effects (Adam Avitabile)

Rotten Tomatoes:
86% (139 critics; as of 11/29/12)
Metacritic:
67 out of 100 (36 critics; as of 11/29/12)

Rise of the Guardians

Stars: Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Jude Law, Isla Fisher, Hugh Jackman, Dakota Goyo, Khamani Griffin, Kamil McFadden
Director: Peter Ramsey
Premise: From IMDb: “When the evil spirit Pitch launches an assault on Earth, the Immortal Guardians team up to protect the innocence of children all around the world.”
Oscar Chances: Above Average: Were it not for the critics being less than excited and the public following suit, this could have been a dominating force at this year’s Oscars. However, its underperformance may have allowed for a wide open race where almost any film could take this one home. I’m still leaning towards this film being one of the five, being a DreamWorks production, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was left out altogether.
Campaign-Proposed Categories:

• Best Picture of the Year (Christina Steinberg, Nancy Bernstein)
• Best Animated Feature (Christina Steinberg, Nancy Bernstein)
• Best Director (Peter Ramsey)
• Best Adapted Screenplay (David Lindsay-Abaire)
• Best Production Design (Patrick Marc Hanenberger, Max Boas)
• Best Film Editing (Joyce Arrastia)
• Best Original Score (Alexandre Desplat)
• Best Original Song (“Still Dream” performed by Renee Fleming, music by Alexandre Desplat, lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire)
• Best Sound Mixing (Andy Nelson, Jim Bolt)
• Best Sound Editing (Richard King)
• Best Visual Effects (David Prescott
• Best Visual Consultant (Roger Deakins)

Rotten Tomatoes:
75% (107 critics; as of 11/29/12)
Metacritic:
57 out of 100 (34 critics; as of 11/29/12)