Is it time for the “Hawke” to swoop in and nab his Oscar prey?
After 4 Academy Award nominations spanning each performing and writing, Ethan Hawke could have discovered the function that lastly earns him an Oscar. In Richard Linklater’s “Blue Moon,” the actor delivers a searing efficiency as lyricist Lorenz Hart, one half of the legendary Broadway songwriting crew Rodgers and Hart.
The movie premiered in February at the Berlin International Film Festival, the place Hawke’s co-star Andrew Scott gained the Silver Bear for greatest supporting efficiency. “Blue Moon” has since screened on the Telluride Film Festival, the place Hawke obtained one of many pageant’s Silver Medallions — a distinction that has confirmed to be an Oscar bellwether.
Latest Silver Medallion recipients embrace eventual nominees Cate Blanchett for “Tár” (2022) and Adam Driver for “Marriage Story” (2019), together with eventual winners Anthony Hopkins for “The Father” (2020), Renée Zellweger for “Judy” (2019) and Casey Affleck for “Manchester by the Sea” (2016).
Set to be launched by Sony Footage Classics, the movie takes place in early 1943 — the opening night time of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Oklahoma!” — and finds Hart within the depths of despair and alcoholism. Reasonably than celebrating his former associate’s new success, Hart retreats to Sardi’s restaurant in Manhattan, drowning his sorrows whereas reflecting on his tumultuous previous.
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Hawke embodies Hart’s wit and vulnerability with outstanding precision, channeling the person behind classics like “Blue Moon,” “The Girl Is a Tramp” and “My Humorous Valentine.” The efficiency captures brilliance colliding with despair, rendered with each humor and heartbreaking authenticity.
Regardless of a long time of important acclaim, Hawke has by no means gained Hollywood’s high performing prize. His earlier nominations embrace supporting actor for “Coaching Day” (2001) and “Boyhood” (2014), plus shared screenplay nominations for “Earlier than Sundown” (2004) and “Earlier than Midnight” (2013) with Linklater and Julie Delpy. His enduring partnership with Linklater — “Blue Moon” marks their ninth collaboration — has constantly produced career-defining work.
The Academy has a confirmed monitor file of rewarding actors portraying real-life musicians and performers, from Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles in “Ray” (2004) to Marion Cotillard as Édith Piaf in “La Vie en Rose” (2007). Nonetheless, tales about lyricists and composers stay uncommon, probably making Hawke’s portrayal stand out.
Hart represents a singular determine — somebody indispensable to the American songbook but deeply fragile in his non-public life. This duality affords the type of advanced, transformative function that Oscar voters historically embrace.
The best actor race appears to be like to be exceptionally aggressive this yr. Venice Movie Competition alone showcased a number of potential contenders: George Clooney in “Jay Kelly,” Oscar Isaac in “Frankenstein,” Dwayne Johnson in “The Smashing Machine” and Jesse Plemons in “Bugonia.” Different viable candidates embrace Michael B. Jordan within the field workplace smash “Sinners,” Wagner Moura in “The Secret Agent” who gained greatest actor at Cannes and Leonardo DiCaprio within the yet-to-be-released “One Battle After One other.”
At Telluride, Hawke additionally introduced his music documentary “Freeway 99: A Double Album,” about nation legend Merle Haggard. Whereas nonetheless looking for U.S. distribution, the challenge demonstrates Hawke’s versatility as each actor and filmmaker — a top quality that usually resonates with Academy voters.
In “Blue Moon,” Hawke delivers a flip that’s each theatrical and intimate, showcasing an actor on the top of his craft. He renders Hart as a person hanging by a thread whereas compelling audiences to soak up each second. As well as, if the Academy embraces Hawke’s worthy efforts, it might assist proper the incorrect of Andrew Scott’s Oscar snub for “All of Us Strangers” (2023), which additionally premiered in Telluride. There are lots of cases of the place a well-regarded main flip in a biopic will help pull via an equally compelling supporting participant, even when the movie as entire isn’t garnering a lot traction (i.e., Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Sturdy from “The Apprentice” or Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon from “Invictus”).
With no clear frontrunner rising on this yr’s awards race, the mixture of a beloved actor, a humanistic portrayal and a celebrated filmmaker like Linklater might show irresistible to voters.
For Hawke, after years of near-misses, the celebs might lastly be aligning for Oscar gold.
“Blue Moon” additionally stars Andrew Scott, Margaret Qualley and Bobby Cannavale and is scheduled to be launched on Oct. 17.
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