This will have a huge impact on the Oscars for both 2013 and 2014.  The Monuments Men has been moved to an undetermined date in 2014 because, according to the LA Times, George Clooney simply didn’t have enough time to finish the picture to his standards to make the scheduled December 18th  release date.

The World War II drama based on a true story of a unit who worked behind enemy lines to save precious works of art from destruction WAS the odds-on favorite to win Best Picture  when betting opened in Vegas at the beginning of the year.  I have no doubt that when they say “undetermined” date in 2014, they’re not talking a few months.  This is an Oscar picture.  This will get set back to  next fall (possibly late summer so it doesn’t conflict with Clooney’s big 2014 holiday film, Tomorrowland) so it’s extremely disappointing to think we’re not going to get this right away.  It does continue to build my opinion of George Clooney as a film maker more interested in quality than anything else.

 

Don’t be fooled be angry eyes here.  Monuments Men removed from the 2013 Oscars is great news for Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Scorcese and his finance drama The Wolf of Wall Street, originally thought to be moving to 2014, now set for Christmas Day.

This is also great news for Gravity and Captain Phillips, which have to be the Best Picture favorites thus far in an extremely weak year for films.  We’re just getting into Oscar season, but The Monuments Men was a major piece of the puzzle.  It actually might do even better in 2014 where, aside from Chris Nolan’s Interstellar, the fall looks like a barren wasteland.