Following the release of Suffragette, The Martian and now Spectre, Oscar season is now upon us.  In the following months (owing to Oscar voters’ inability to remember anything that before October) distributors and studios will be veiling their ace cards in the hope of glory in February. Out of the sea of Oscar hopefuls this year, here are Varsity’s picks:     

Brooklyn

If there’s been a trend of Best Picture nominees recently, it’s that Oscar voters love a favourite from Sundance, the world’s biggest indie film festival. The film this year that seems to have crept out the woodwork is Brooklyn, a tale set in the 1950s about a young Irish woman who emigrates to America. Featuring a stellar cast lead by the always impeccable Saoirse Ronan, a screenplay by the ever reliable Nick Hornby, and a sweet-natured story about adolescence and the nature of home, on paper, Brooklyn ticks all the boxes.       

Brooklyn is released on 6th November.

Steve Jobs

Hollywood seems to have a knack for doubling up on biopics. The most famous examples are Capote and Infamous, both centring on Truman Capote and released within 12 months of each other, the former achieving Oscar glory, the latter being for the most part ignored. Luckily for director Danny Boyle and writer Aaron Sorkin, the critical and financial failure of Jobs, the 2013 biopic starring Ashton Kutcher in the title role, means they have a relatively clean slate. Starring the elemental force that is Michael Fassbender as the former Apple boss, an actor who hasn’t made a false step in about eight years, the trailer for Steve Jobs couldn’t be more Sorkin if it tried, which will sit well with Oscar voters. 

Steve Jobs is released on 13th November.

Carol

After an eight-year-long absence from cinema, much acclaimed auteur Todd Haynes is back with Carol, a story set in 50s New York about a middle-class married woman who enters into a homosexual relationship with a department store clerk. Ever since its premiere in Cannes, Carol has received nothing but rapturous praise, with Oscar nominations for leads Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara looking extremely likely. It’s unclear as to whether Carol will set the box office alight; however, the sheer critical love for the film may just push it over the finish line.  

Carol is released on 27th November.

Joy

It’s difficult to describe director David O. Russell as anything other than an Oscar machine. His last three films, The Fighter, Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle have all been showered with nominations, and Joy looks set to follow the trend. Lead by regular muse and Academy darling Jennifer Lawrence, Joy is a biopic of Joy Mangano, a single mother of three and creator of a business empire following her invention of the Miracle Mop. With a Christmas Day release in America and box office magnet Lawrence at the film’s forefront, Joy looks set to be a financial hit. Should audience and critical reaction be positive, Joy will be difficult to ignore come awards season.   

Joy is released on New Year’s Day.

The Revenant

When is Leonardo DiCaprio finally going to win an Oscar, you ask? With some luck, 2016 may be his year. After Oscar glory last year with Birdman, Alejandro G. Iñárritu is back with The Revenant, a Western thriller inspired by frontiersman Hugo Glass, who seeks to wreak revenge on the men who left him for dead. Critical opinion on the film is currently unavailable as it hasn’t premiered at any festivals this year. However, the trailer looks bloody beautiful, and if there’s anything we’ve learned from Iñárritu over the years, it’s that The Revenant is set to stir things up. 

The Revenant is released on 15th January.

Room

An adaptation of a popular novel, should it be well made, is a classic recipe for Oscar success. Following in the footsteps of films like Life of Pi and Gone Girl, books which upon release were declared unfilmable, Room, adapted by author Emma Donoghue from her own novel, follows a mother and a child who are being held captive in a garden shed. The film’s subject matter may prove too dark for some of the more conservative members of the Academy; however, indie darling and relative newcomer to mainstream audiences Brie Larson is currently favourite to take the Best Actress gong, which will undoubtedly help the film in other categories.

Room is released on 15th January.