On January 14, 2016, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the nominees for this year’s Oscars. This means you have a month and a half to watch every movie receiving buzz for the top prize. We’ve made it easy for you by compiling the 20 you can’t miss—bookmark this page now.
45 Years
The Plot: On the eve of their 45th wedding anniversary, Geoff (Tom Courtenay) and Kate Mercer (Charlotte Rampling) must come to terms with their marriage when the body of Geoff’s ex-girlfriend—and first love—is found 50 years after her tragic death.
Possible Nominations:
Best Actress, Charlotte Rampling
Best Adapted Screenplay
Beasts of No Nation
The Plot: In the midst of a violent civil war, a child soldier (Abraham Attah) is trained for battle by the fearsome Commandant (Idris Elba).
Possible Nomination:
Best Supporting Actor, Idris Elba
The Big Short
The Plot: Based on the book of the same name, the latest from Adam McKay tracks the build-up of the housing and credit bubble that lead to the financial crisis of the late aughts. The A-list cast includes Brad Pitt, Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Melissa Leo and Marisa Tomei.
Possible Nominations:
Best Actor, Steve Carell
Best Adapted Screenplay
Black Mass
The Plot: Based on the true story of James “Whitey” Bulger (Johnny Depp), Boston’s most formidable gangster, who joins forces with the FBI to bring down his rivals in the Italian mob in the 1970s.
Possible Nominations:
Best Actor, Johnny Depp
Best Supporting Actor, Joel Edgerton
Bridge of Spies
The Plot: During the Cold War, American lawyer James B. Donovan (Tom Hanks) must arrange for the release of Francis Gary Powers (Austin Stowell), a pilot whose plane was shot down over the Soviet Union, in exchange for a Soviet Spy (Mark Rylance) captured by the U.S.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, Bridge of Spies
Best Actor, Tom Hanks
Best Supporting Actor, Mark Rylance
Best Original Screenplay
Brooklyn
The Plot: Irish immigrant Ellis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan) adjusts to life in America and falls in love with a young Italian man (Emory Cohen). When tragedy calls her home for a visit, she must decide where her future lies.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, John Crowley
Best Actress, Saoirse Ronan
Best Supporting Actress, Julie Walters
Best Adapted Screenplay
Carol
The Plot: In 1950s New York, Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett), a housewife in the midst of a divorce, falls in love with aspiring photographer Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara). When her ex-husband threatens to keep her daughter away, Carol must make a difficult choice.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, Todd Haynes
Best Actress, Cate Blanchett
Best Supporting Actress, Rooney Mara
Best Adapted Screenplay
Clouds of Sils Maria
The Plot: When actress Maria Enders is asked to revive the play that made her famous more than 20 years ago, she decamps to Sils Maria, a small town in the Alps, with her assistant Valentine (Kristen Stewart) to prepare for the role. Stewart won a César Award (the French equivalent of the Oscar) for Best Supporting Actress.
Possible Nomination:
Best Supporting Actress, Kristen Stewart
Concussion
The Plot: Forensic pathologist Bennet Omalu battles the NFL over his research connecting football-related injuries and brain damage.
Possible Nomination:
Best Actor, Will Smith
Creed
The Plot: The latest in the Rocky series sees the famed boxer (Sylvester Stallone) training the son (Michael B. Jordan) of his late arch rival.
Possible Nomination:
Best Supporting Actor, Sylvester Stallone
The Danish Girl
The Plot: The Danish Girl tells the story of Lili Elbe, the first transgender woman to undergo sex reassignment surgery, and her wife, painter Gerda Wegener.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, Tom Hooper
Best Actor, Eddie Redmayne
Best Supporting Actress, Alicia Vikander
Best Adapted Screenplay
Grandma
The Plot: When her granddaughter (Julia Garner) becomes pregnant, Elle (Lily Tomlin) takes her on a road trip to find the money for an abortion.
Possible Nomination:
Best Actress, Lily Tomlin
The Hateful Eight
The Plot: In Wyoming after the Civil War, a bounty hunter (Kurt Russell) and his prisoner (Jennifer Jason Leigh) are stranded at athe stagecoach inn with six strangers in the midst of a snowstorm.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, Quentin Tarantino
Best Supporting Actress, Jennifer Jason Leigh
Best Original Screenplay
I’ll See You in My Dreams
The Plot: A lonely widow (Blythe Danner) reevaluates her life, sparking new friendships and pursuing romantic relationships.
Possible Nomination:
Best Actress, Blythe Danner
Inside Out
The Plot: Five emotions—Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger and Disgust—compete for prominence inside the mind of 11-year-old Riley when her family moves from Minnesota to San Francisco.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Original Screenplay
Joy
The Plot: Based on a true story, David O. Russell’s latest tells the story of Joy Mangano (Jennifer Lawrence), the single mother-turned-entrepreneur who invented the Miracle Mop in the early ’90s.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, David O. Russell
Best Actress, Jennifer Lawrence
Best Original Screenplay
The Lady in the Van
The Plot: Playwright Alan Bennett (Alex Jennings) strikes up a friendship with Miss Shepherd, an eccentric who parks the van where she lives in his driveway.
Possible Nomination:
Best Actress, Maggie Smith
Love and Mercy
The Plot: As his mental health declines, The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson (Paul Dano) quits touring and works to produce “the greatest album ever made,” Pet Sounds. Twenty years later, an older Wilson (John Cusack) meets Melinda Ledbetter (Elizabeth Banks), who saves him from his abusive psychologist, Dr. Eugene Landy (Paul Giamatti).
Possible Nominations:
Best Supporting Actor, Paul Dano
Best Supporting Actress, Elizabeth Banks
Best Original Screenplay
Macbeth
The Plot: The latest take on William Shakespeare’s (arguably) most famous tragedy sees Michael Fassbender take on the iconic role, with Marion Cotillard co-starring as Lady Macbeth. Forget everything you learned in high school English.
Possible Nomination:
Best Supporting Actress, Marion Cotillard
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Plot: Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) and Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) ban together to rescue the five wives (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Zoe Kravitz, Riley Keough, Abbey Lee and Courtney Eaton) of despotic cult leader Immortan Joe in a post-apocalyptic desert world.
Possible Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Director, George Miller
Best Actress, Charlize Theron
