2018 is rapidly approaching its end and with that comes the beginning of “Awards Season” for the movie industry. This is the time when studios release the movies that they think have a chance at scoring big at the Academy Awards, Golden Globes, or at other award ceremonies. Many times, these movies have no effect on the average person. There are several movies that come out and nobody sees, yet critics call them the best of the year. While this is often the case, there have been many popular movies released this year which are garnering awards buzz. So what’s the likelihood that they turn their popularity into awards?

Black Panther came out back in February and steamrolled everything in its path. It became the highest grossing superhero movie in the US and received almost unanimous praise from critics. Since then, debates have been raging wondering if it will be the first superhero movie to sneak into the Best Picture race. It has captured the cultural zeitgeist in a way that no other film this year has, but will this translate into the big award? Other superhero movies, from The Dark Knight to Guardians of the Galaxy, have been predicted to be nominated before, but it has never happened. The odds are not in its favor, but if Disney is able to campaign it in such a way that differentiates it from every positively reviewed superhero movie ever, it could happen. While it’s possible that it will go all the way, it is more likely to just score in technical categories and maybe Adapted Screenplay.

A few months later, A Quiet Place came out and proved (again) that horror movies can be excellent, scary, and have real characters at their center. John Krasinski crafted an intense, moving story of a family in extreme circumstances. It became the biggest hit movie to not be an adaption of some prior work since Gravity in 2013. Last year, Get Out did translate its buzz into awards, so its not out of the question that the Academy could honor a scary movie. Nominations for Best Screenplay and various technical aspects are the most likely. Paramount will probably push this for Best Picture and Best Actress, but that is very unlikely to result in a nod as Emily Blunt will be competing against herself in Mary Poppins Returns.

The summer ended with a bang when Crazy Rich Asians debuted and showed the world that people would still go to the movies to see a rom-com. While at times it did stick pretty close to the formula, it used that formula extremely effectively and was filled with more than enough funny moments to make up for it. Critics enjoyed this one greatly as well, and while it has a chance of success at the Golden Globes, the only potential Oscar nomination would be Adapted Screenplay (and maybe some technical ones as well).

A Star is Born has been the Best Picture frontrunner since it premiered at the Venice Film Festival in August, and has been bringing in money since then. But being the frontrunner at the beginning isn’t necessarily the best thing, as movies like La La Land show. It helps that it has made a ton of money, and casting Lady Gaga will continue to give it a lot of free press. Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Screenplay, and many technical nominations are pretty much guaranteed. The only question now is whether it remains the front runner by March 4th.

Every studio is in the middle of campaigning their movies for the hundreds of awards shows that take place at this time of year After we’re back from break. Cistercian will be holding its own, giving YOU the chance to vote on your favorite films of the year.