This Had Oscar Buzz

After their 2017 exposé of the horrors Harvey Weinstein inflicted upon women for decades, Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey detailed their process in their 2019 book She Said. Post-pandemic, Maria Schrader directed an adaptation that reflected the lives of both reporters in tandem with their work and their struggle to get women on the record about … Continue reading "405 – She Said"

Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a musical like no other. A Off-Broadway smash in 1998 from creators John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask, Mitchell also starred as the titular volatile rocker who escaped East Berlin after a forced surgery to live as a woman, only to have her songs stolen … Continue reading "404 – Hedwig and the Angry Inch"

We welcome back Richard Lawson this week to discuss Tommy Lee Jones’s final (to date!) directorial effort, 2014’s The Homesman. Led by Hilary Swank, the film follows a 19th century woman charged to transport three women with “prairie madness” across the Nebraska Territory. With Jones as a wayward man who assists her journey, the film debuted … Continue reading "403 – The Homesman (with Richard Lawson!)"

As The Odyssey continues to prove to be a career peak for Christopher Nolan and possible return to the Oscar stage, we’re looking back at a very different take on Homer’s epic poem. In 2024, The Return reunited Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche as the Ithacan king and queen – but limited the story just to the fallout from … Continue reading "402 – The Return"

In the bygone moviegoing trend of “interconnected stories of Angelenos,” this week’s episode is a forgotten entry with a loaded cast. Playing By Heart from writer/director Willard Carroll follows multiple stories of romantic struggles, with Gena Rowlands and Sean Connery as a TV chef and her producer husband as the film’s epicenter. With themes of … Continue reading "401 – Playing By Heart"

It’s our 400th episode this week, so we had to go big. What could be more fitting than a notorious bomb with major star pedigree?! No stranger to misfires, Warren Beatty nevertheless was one of the biggest names in Hollywood that could generate buzz with any project – and more prophetically in this case – … Continue reading "400 – Town and Country"

Emmy winner Jeff Hiller joins us this week to talk about one of our beloved Nicole Holofcener’s earliest films. Lovely and Amazing follows a Los Angeles family of women burdened by insecurities, from the mother (Oscar nominee Brenda Blethyn) opting in to liposuction to her two adult daughters who help her with a preteen adopted sister. Debuting … Continue reading "399 – Lovely And Amazing (with Jeff Hiller!)"

With Spider-Man: Brand New Day arriving in theatres this week, we’re looking back at director Destin Daniel Cretton’s 2013 debut, Short Term 12. Launched at SXSW and distributed in late summer by micro-indie Cinedigm, the film earned major critical support for its portrait of a child group home populated with compelling characters, both among its residents and the … Continue reading "398 – Short Term 12"

We welcome back Oscar-nominated My Year of Dicks filmmaker Pamela Ribon this week for [gasp] our very first documentary episode! In 1988, Errol Morris made a documentary hit out of The Thin Blue Line. Detailing police corruption and bias that led to the wrongful conviction of Robert W. Wood for a police shooting, the film became a non-fiction … Continue reading "397 – The Thin Blue Line (w/ Pamela Ribon!)"

We’re back talking about Nicole Kidman’s post-Oscar years this week and Griffin in Summer filmmaker Nicholas Colia is here to join us! After winning her Oscar for The Hours, each of the many projects Kidman attached herself to carried some degree of pedigree and buzz. One of them just happened to be a famous disaster: 2004’s The … Continue reading "396 – The Stepford Wives (with Nicholas Colia!)"

After becoming a critical and arthouse sensation with Memento, Christopher Nolan leaped to studio filmmaking with American remake Insomnia. The film (based on the 1997 Norwegian film) stars Al Pacino as a corrupt cop sent to Alaska to solve a murder, only to be caught in the web of the killer (Robin Williams). Though a successful summer … Continue reading "395 – Insomnia"

Letterboxd head of editorial Mitchell Beaupre returns to us this week to close out Pride month with one of Luca Guadagnino’s most divisive films. In 2024, with audiences still under the spell of Challengers, the director also brought to the screen a long-gestating passion project: an adaptation of William S. Burroughs’ Queer. Starring Daniel Craig as Burroughs … Continue reading "394 – Queer (with Mitchell Beaupre!)"

On deck this week is a sentimental recent fav, Mike Mills’ beautiful black-and-white tribute to modern day youngsters and the state of mind that is “uncle.” C’Mon C’Mon casts Joaquin Phoenix as a radio journalist who takes in his sister’s kid when she has to handle the father’s mental health crisis. With Gaby Hoffman and Scoot McNairy … Continue reading "393 – C’Mon C’Mon"

We’re back to discussing the filmography of director Ridley Scott this week, though this episode was recorded… before the news of his Honorary Oscar. Nope, there is also a new riff on a Robin Hood this week, so we’re talking his ongoing collaboration with Russell Crowe and their 2010 take on the fable. Arriving at … Continue reading "392 – Robin Hood (2010)"

With Steven Spielberg returning to theatres with this week’s Disclosure Day, we’re taking the rare opportunity to discuss one of his films! Kyle Amato returns to talk about Spielberg’s take on Roald Dahl’s classic children’s fable The BFG. The film was a reuniting of Spielberg with his recent Oscar winning actor Mark Rylance in the role, all … Continue reading "391 – The BFG (with Kyle Amato!)"

We’re back after our May Miniseries and it’s Tonys week! Rather than a musical, we’re talking about a movie that disappointed in part because it wasn’t a big screen version of the Broadway smash… In 1998, director Bille August brought a condensed version of Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables to the screen. With Liam Neeson headlining … Continue reading "390 – Les Miserables (1998)"

CATEGORY IS… comes to a close this week and we’re ending this May Miniseries by looking to the future. Next year’s 100th Academy Awards will bring the Academy’s first award to Stunts! This episode, we go into the decades-long effort to make the category happen, how we want to see the category presented on the … Continue reading "CATEGORY IS… – Stunts"

The May miniseries CATEGORY IS… chugs along this week with Choreography! You know we love talking about dance on film, so this was a category we couldn’t pass up discussing. We’re talking about the three (early) years that Oscar once awarded Dance Direction, when the lines might blur between choreography and fight choreography, iconic musical … Continue reading "CATEGORY IS… – Choreography"

Our 2026 May Miniseries CATEGORY IS… continues this week with a discussion about a dreamed-for category that stirred a lot of conversation, particularly in the 2000s. We’re talking about Voice Acting! This episode, we dive into a Disney-centric history of celebrated Disney performances and which of them might have been Oscar frontrunners, from Robin Williams … Continue reading "CATEGORY IS… – Voice Acting"

It’s May Miniseries time!! Presenting CATEGORY IS…! We’re in a moment of the Academy Awards introducing new categories for the first time in many years, and we’ll be spending the whole month discussing the categories already announced and a few we think should be! First up: Best Casting! This episode, we discuss the Oscar’s newest … Continue reading "CATEGORY IS… – Casting"

If you make a remake to a cinema classic (and Oscar nominee), chances are the buzz starts there. But in revamping The Manchurian Candidate to the post-9/11 culture, Oscar winning director also added the pedigree of recent winner Denzel Washington and then-recent nomination record breaker Meryl Streep, the buzz multiplied. But this version of a … Continue reading "389 – The Manchurian Candidate"

We’re talking about one of our favorite films of the 2020’s this week with Alice Rohrwacher’s La Chimera. Told with magical realism and an earthy bespoke quality, the 2023 film follows Josh O’Connor as a British archaeologist in Italy who belongs to a crew of tombaroli, grave robbers who sells off their findings. With O’Connor speaking … Continue reading "388 – La Chimera"

As maverick director David Lowery returns to theatres this week with Mother Mary, we’re looking back at his 2013 film Ain’t Them Bodies Saints. The film follows two Texas lovers played by Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara torn apart by a showdown with local police, where he accepts guilt and jail time when she shoots a … Continue reading "387 – Ain’t Them Bodies Saints"

With The Christophers finally arriving in theatres, we are returning to the ever-evolving filmography of director Steven Soderbergh. In the period of his one-for-you-one-for-me jostling between micro budgets and mainstream fare, 2011 offered his paranoid eco-thriller Contagion about a virus that overtakes the world. Though the film was an early fall box office success with major Oscar winners as … Continue reading "386 – Contagion"

We’re journeying back to the early 1990s this week to discuss the forgotten failure Billy Bathgate. Adapted from E.L. Doctorow’s Pulitzer finalist, the film cast Dustin Hoffman as real-life mobster Dutch Schultz opposite a Loren Dean as the fictionalized street kid who falls under his wing. With Bruce Willis in a supporting role at the peak … Continue reading "385 – Billy Bathgate"

We’re tackling Sam Mendes’ third feature this week, 2005’s war adaptation Jarhead. The film followed Jake Gyllenhaal as Gulf War marine Anthony Swofford trapped in an existential wartime malaise. With a supporting cast that included recent Oscar winner Jamie Foxx and Peter Sarsgaard, expectations were sky high for the film before it received a muted critical … Continue reading "384 – Jarhead"

Continuing our Oscar hangover tradition, we’re cracking the seal on the previous Oscar season’s lineup and have we got a doozy of a Class of 2024 title for you! After Joker walked away from the 2019 season with a Golden Lion and an Oscar for Joaquin Phoenix, souring opinions kicked into high gear when follow-up Joker: Folie à … Continue reading "383 – Joker: Folie à Deux"

We keep losing movie legends, but this week we wanted to memorialize the great Robert Duvall. In 2010, the actor entered the race with Get Low, a tale (based on regional legend) of a town outcast who decides to throw his own funeral. With Bill Murray, Sissy Spacek, and Lucas Black filling out the ensemble, the … Continue reading "382 – Get Low"

After the edgy sexual comedy The Opposite of Sex made Don Roos a hot indie name and the drowsy romance of Bouncedampened the vibe, Roos returned in 2005 with ensemble dramedy Happy Endings. With a cast of Lisa Kudrow, Steve Coogan, and Laura Dern, the film looks at the secrets and sexual boundaries of a group of Los Angelenos. … Continue reading "381 – Happy Endings"

After the tremendous success and Oscar comeback for Robert Altman with 2001’s Gosford Park, the idiosyncratic director delivered a more understated work for what would become his second-to-last film, 2003’s The Company. Set within Chicago’s Joffrey Ballet, the film follows a dance company both on and offstage, all in their sometimes less than glamour pursuit of artistry. … Continue reading "380 – The Company"

2022’s Amsterdam was a high profile box office dud from disgraced director David O. Russell with timely themes, a big budget, and a ton of stars. The film tells a (partly true) story about fascist maneuverings in America, with Christian Bale, John David Washington, and Margot as a friendship trio who sets out to thwart them after … Continue reading "379 – Amsterdam"

Is the “buzzy literary adaptation to Oscar bonafide” pipeline kaput? This week, we’ve got a forgotten, pre-production-buzzy title on deck: 2012’s Being Flynn! Based on Nick Flynn’s memoir Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, the film follows Paul Dano as the author grappling with addiction, grief, and an absent, addict father played by Robert De Niro. While … Continue reading "378 – Being Flynn"

After our Class of 2025 episode last week, we’re doing one of the most requested from the Class of 2023! After his COVID-stunted release (and beloved THOB title) The Nest, Sean Durkin’s next film would be the true and tragic story of the Von Erich wrestling family. With Zac Efron headlining the film as Kevin Von … Continue reading "377 – The Iron Claw (w/ Roxana Hadadi!)"

It’s the biggest This Had Oscar Buzz episode every year! Now that we have this year’s crop of Oscar nominations, that means it’s time to welcome a whole year’s worth of films to the THOB fold. We unpack the Class of 2025 in all its glory, from the films that deserved better to the ones … Continue reading "Class of 2025"

As Rachel McAdams returns to movie screens with Sam Raimy’s horror film Send Help, we thought it a good time to look back at one of her most beloved performances to date. In 2023, Kelly Freeman Craig adapted a book beloved by (and controversial for) generations: Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret. With Abby … Continue reading "376 – Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret."

We’re finally pulling one of our most passionate entries to our 100 Snubs series, Gus Van Sant’s My Own Private Idaho. Adapted loosely from multiple Shakespeare plays (particularly both Henry IVs), the film follows an epileptic young sex worker named Mike (River Phoenix) as he drifts the globe with his loyal cohort Scott (Keanu Reeves). Van Sant … Continue reading "375 – My Own Private Idaho"

Happy New Year, Garys! We’re kicking off 2026 with something more bubbly and light-hearted, 2019’s Booksmart. Sold as an ultra-modern and female take on boy-led high school raunch comedies, the film stars Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein as best friends who decide to live it up after spending their entire high school experience stuck in books. … Continue reading "374 – Booksmart"

With Marty Supreme in theatres, we thought it was perfect timing to talk about the Safdies and the gems. And we’ve finally brought in The Ankler’s Chris Rosen to join us! In 2019, the ascendant Josh and Benny Safdie brought us Uncut Gems, an anxiety-inducing comic thriller set in New York City’s Diamond District and hinging on the … Continue reading "373 – Uncut Gems (w/ Chris Rosen!)"

Happy Holidays, Garys! This week, we have some unfinished business with Keira Knightley and who better than our pal, actress Natalie Walker to join us for the holiday season. In 2018, Oscar pedigreed Lasse Hallström and family friendly Joe Johnston adapted the classic Nutcracker story for the screen in a grab bag of Disney certified … Continue reading "372 – The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (w/ Natalie Walker!)"

This week, we got one of the most requested episodes finally on the feed. In 2016, Michael Keaton had already had two comeback seasons on the Oscar trail with both Birdman and Spotlight. Neither earned him Oscar gold but our sights were on The Founder, a retelling of the story of McDonalds and the man the made it … Continue reading "371 – The Founder"

With a new Benoit Blanc out for you to devour, we decided it was a great time to talk about the great Rian Johnson. In 2012, Johnson delivered his genre hybrid Looper, set in a dystopic future where, through the magic of time travel, a hitman (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) faces off against his older self (Bruce Willis) … Continue reading "370 – Looper"

This week, we are talking about Charlie Kaufman in the director’s chair and how our thoughts have settled on what’s probably his most divisive film. In 2020, Kaufman returned to directing by adapting Iain Reid’s psychologically intense i’m thinking of ending things, told from the perspective of an unnamed woman visiting her new boyfriend’s rural home. … Continue reading "369 – i’m thinking of ending things"

Our annual Thanksgiving tradition means The Ankler’s Katey Rich is back! And this year, we’re got a stone cold bummer to go with the turkey! In 2020, while we were all stuck in our homes, Netflix delivered a lockdown crime saga hit with The Devil All the Time. Directed by Antonio Campos, the film follows several … Continue reading "368 – The Devil All the Time (with Katey Rich!)"

Outside of his place in the Star Wars canon, Lawrence Kasdan has a quick rise in the 1980s after his debut Body Heat. With multiple Best Picture nominees to his name like The Big Chill and The Accidental Tourist, Kasdan’s status took a downward trajectory in the 1990s, closing the decade with 1999’s Mumford. Starring Loren Dean as a man pretending to … Continue reading "367 – Mumford"

One of 2023’s most quickly forgotten buzzed titles just so happened to star some of the most heralded actors of their generation. Based on the hyped Iain Reid novel, Foe cast Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal as a married couple in the dystopian future whose lives are upended with a visit from Aaron Pierre as a corporate … Continue reading "366 – Foe"

We were heartbroken at the news of Diane Keaton’s passing, so we decided to quickly get another of her films in the THOB books. Keaton’s final directorial effort was Hanging Up, based on Delia Ephron’s fictionalized experience coping with distant sisters during the final years of their father’s life. Co-written by Delia and Nora Ephron, Meg … Continue reading "365 – Hanging Up"

With Halloween this week and Luca Guadagnino’s After the Hunt now in theatres, what better time to discuss the BONES! The 2022 fall festival season felt like the first real movie moment post-COVID and anticipation was high for Guadagnino reuniting with his Call Me By Your Name star, Timothee Chalamet. Bones and All was a tale of young love … Continue reading "364 – Bones and All"

In the 2011 summer movie season overcrowded with sequels and IP, J.J. Abrams’ Super 8 stood out as an original event film. Arriving with a mysterious marketing campaign that was the Abrams signature, the film follows a group of kids in the late 1970s who capture footage of an alien while shooting a monster movie in their … Continue reading "363 – Super 8"

We love talking forgotten awardsy films here on This Had Oscar Buzz and this week’s episode is a doozy. In 1992, Todd Graff’s off-Broadway play The Grandma Plays was adapted into the film Used People with both a high Oscar and theatre pedigree. The Beeban Kidron film starred Shirley MacLaine as a new widow finding love (in Oscar nominee … Continue reading "362 – Used People"

One of the defining stories of the 2000 Oscar year was the one-two punch of Steven Soderbergh delivering both Traffic and Erin Brockovich, making good on the past decade’s worth of promise kicked off by Sex Lies and Videotape. In 2001, the victory lap was Ocean’s Eleven, a Vegas heist remake that cast some of … Continue reading "361 – Ocean’s Eleven"