Oldboy
Although this remake by Spike Lee of Korean Park Chan-Wook’s cult classic Oldboy (2003) is less twisted or original—there’s still a lot to root for. Josh Brolin is excellent as Joe Doucette; the womanizing, heavy-drinking ad exec and absentee father, who gets imprisoned for 20 years in a motel room, with food passed through a metal door by an anonymous attendant and a TV as his only window to the outside world. After he escapes, Doucette attempts to make amends, with his long-lost daughter, but the mystery deepens after encounters with social worker Mary (Elizabeth Olsen), who he is attracted to, and tormenter Adrian (Sharlto Copley), who he attempts to kill. Revealing more will spoil the fun, but look out for Samuel L. Jackson as Chaney, who runs the prison joint, and a single-take three-minute fighting sequence that apparently took six weeks to rehearse.
Showing now

12 Years a Slave
If Steve McQueen’s critically-acclaimed slave drama does not bag a single award at the upcoming Oscars, we’ll shoot ourselves. Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Solomon Northup, a black man from New York who is abducted and sold into slavery, during pre-Civil War America. The ever reliable Michael Fassbender plays his sadistic owner, while Brad Pitt, a Canadian abolitionist, alters Northup’s course in life. A supporting powerhouse cast, including Paul Pano, Paul Giamatti and Alfre Woodard, increase its chances of an Oscar. The period costumes don’t look too shabby either.
Opens December 19

Diana
Even if reviews for the film have not been kind, Naomi Watt’s much talked-about performance should score an Oscar nomination. Downfall’s Oliver Hirschbiegel focuses on the love story between Diana and her doctor Hasnat Khan, and Watt’s performance is one of her best yet (never mind the naysayers).
Showing now

The Wolf of Wall Street
Is this Leonardo DiCaprio’s latest shot at the Oscars? He and frequent collaborator Martin Scorsese’s return to the big screen, after 2010’s Shutter Island, looks like a fun, breezy examination into the life of the controversial Jordan Belfort, the millionaire stockbroker who served 20 months in prison for defrauding investors in a massive security scheme in the ‘90s. With Scorsese at the helm, the cat’s in the bag.
Opens January 9

Last Vegas
It’s not exactly typical award-season material, but with previous Oscar winners Morgan Freeman, Michael Douglas, Robert DeNiro and Kevin Kline headlining this comedy, about four old friends rekindling their friendship in Las Vegas through a series of high-staked adventures, you never know.
Showing now