Welcome back for another week of Awards Season talk! I’m not sure what sort of formula and routine this column will take, but I will always be trying to make improvements (and you can always comment at the bottom for suggestions, questions, or concerns)

For the most part I will probably just go off on little rants about movies, highlight important elements, and we’ll go from there.

Let’s get to it:

“Far from the Madding Crowd”:

Now, if you don’t follow my blog (I’m doubting you do so I will shamelessly plug RagingFilm.com, and encourage you to subscribe) you will know that “Far from the Madding Crowd” has been one of my favorite films of the year. It has an enchanting performance from Carey Mulligan, some of the most gorgeous and painterly cinematography for a long time, and an unforgettable score. The problem is, is that it was released in May, which is far from the Oscar race (though “Grand Budapest Hotel” was released in March, and it had a large number of nominations.)

My full review: http://ragingfilm.com/2015/05/18/far-from-the-madding-crowd-review/

“The Martian”:

Science-fiction movies are a tough genre when it comes to the Oscars. “Gravity” was the last major contender (I half-expected it to win over “12 Years a Slave”), but for the most part sci-fi’s aren’t taken seriously. I mean, Star Wars was nominated for Best Pic back in ’77 (I know, right?) and Avatar won the Golden Globe over Hurt Locker but lost the Oscar, so it isn’t rare for one to be nominated, but it’s even rarer for one to win.

“The Martian” has already been a considerable success at the box office as with critics. It has the power of Ridley Scott (who won for “Gladiator”) and it has an enormous cast with the highlight of Matt Damon. It’ll be really hard to judge this one until other contenders come out.

My full review: http://ragingfilm.com/2015/10/03/the-martian-review/

I wish I could talk more—these first few weeks will be a matter of catching up with stuff that has already come out. So stay tuned—I will try to discuss ALL of the major contenders. If you have a specific movie you want me to talk about, comment below and I will be glad to discuss it the next week.

Happy watching!

Coming soon…The Walk, Steve Jobs, Crimson Peak, and Bridge of Spies.