Let's dust off the old part-time specialty feature “Oscar Bait” with some news on an acquisition, shall we?
Now, this time last year a lot of eyes were turned toward Naomi Watts in what seemed like a baity role as Princess Diana in “Diana.” Then the film waited for a distributor, and waited, and waited. The writing was on the wall by the time Entertainment One grabbed it and it went nowhere with critics, audiences and, certainly, awards-voting bodies.
This year, the upstart distributor has another play that may or may not work out on the circuit, “You're Not You” starring two-time Best Actress Oscar winner Hilary Swank. Emmy Rossum, Josh Duhamel, Loretta Divine, Ernie Hudson and Marcia Gay Harden also star. Here's the official synopsis:
“'You're Not You' centers on the relationship between Kate (Swank), a woman who has been immobilized by ALS – also known as Lou Gehrig”s disease – and Bec (Rossum), the aimless and self-absorbed college student she hires to be her caregiver in spite of her husband”s (Duhamel) objections. What was supposed to be a part-time job instead becomes a life-changing experience for Bec as her relationship with Kate transforms her into a young woman with newly-found confidence and ambition.”
The film is directed by George C. Wolfe (“Nights in Rodanthe,” “Lackawanna Blues”).
Swank's two Oscar wins, of course, came for 1999's “Boys Don't Cry” and 2004's “Million Dollar Baby.” She had a couple near misses otherwise in Fox Searchlight titles “Amelia” and “Conviction.” Which way will the needle drop on this one? Time will tell. She also has Tommy Lee Jones' “The Homesman” set for this year, which could end up overshadowing this modest play.
“You're Not You” has no official release date yet but it will hit theaters in 2014.