The Oscar Files Part 5

For our final installment of The Oscar Files, we'll be taking a look at Atonement, which stars James McAvoy and Keira Knightley. As of February 14th, the film had grossed about $46 million domestically. If you haven't seen the movie, check out this review at The Movie Blog, it's a good take, and his reviews are generally spot on.

I've probably seen the most television advertising for Atonement out of the other 4 nominees. Even before it was nominated, I remember seeing a cardboard display at the local Regal Cinema, and countless TV spots. Now that it has been nominated, I've seen a huge increase in TV spots. But then again, now that the nominations are out, I've seen more TV spots for all the nominees. The TV spot is OK, it's really not too different from any other spot for a movie.



It effectively communicates the plot to the audience, and that it's an epic, war torn romance. That's more then I can say for a lot of TV spots, so in that respect, it's good. I just wish there were a way to be innovative with a TV spot for a movie.

The extended trailer for the film is probably the best part of the marketing campaign. The way the trailer was constructed screams, "this is going to be one of the best films of the year." It's epic. It's compelling. It's exactly the kind of film you expect to be released around Oscar season. Check out the trailer below.



Since the nomination, there's been some minor blog buzz about Focus's slightly racy For Your Consideration ad (check out this post at Defamer to see it).

Other then that, there really isn't much else out there about this film. It's sad really. You'd think a picture that was produced with the intent of being competitive in the Oscar race would have taken the time to come up with some creative marketing. But no. I guess it's easier to stick to the norm then it is to take a chance and branch out.