Contenders: September Update

For our September update, several films moved on from one stage to the next. Today, we’ll look at where each film moved and look at a new ranking of each of the contenders.

Moving to Stage 2

We have eight films moving into Stage 2. This means that these films have finally had all of their background information set. Just click on the links below to see their pages. What is most often missing at this stage is information on distribution, MPAA ratings, and length. Rarely, the missing information is credited individuals, such as composers, editors, and cinematographers.

All of Us Strangers (Stage 2 of 6)
The Bikeriders (Stage 2 of 6)
The Creator (Stage 2 of 6)
Dumb Money (Stage 2 of 6)
The Marvels (Stage 2 of 6)
May December (Stage 2 of 6)
Radical (Stage 2 of 6)
Rustin (Stage 2 of 6)

Moving to Stage 3

There are a further eight films that have moved on to Stage 3. This means their theatrical releases have already closed or a contender has been released wide (none of these films).

El Conde (Stage 3 of 6)
Fremont (Stage 3 of 6)
The Inventor (Stage 3 of 6)
King Coal (Stage 3 of 6)
Klondike (Stage 3 of 6)
Our Body (Stage 3 of 6)
Our Father, the Devil (Stage 3 of 6)
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (Stage 3 of 6)

Moving to Stage 4

If a film has surpassed a month in release, it is eligible for a move to Stage 4, but must first have already completed Stage 3 as well, so a lot of films stay in Stage 3 for a relatively long period of time while others move to Stage 4 rather quickly. We have only five films that have arrived in Stage 4.

Barbie (Stage 4 of 6)
Golda (Stage 4 of 6)
Medusa Deluxe (Stage 4 of 6)
Oppenheimer (Stage 4 of 6)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Stage 4 of 6)

Moving to Stage 5

Stage 5 is the final stage before the critics, guilds, and other organizations start handing out awards. This will be the final stage all of our films will reach prior to December (at the earliest). This means they have fully completed their box office runs.

Twelve films have moved into Stage 5 as of this update. They are below:

Asteroid City (Stage 5 of 6)
Earth Mama (Stage 5 of 6)
Elemental (Stage 5 of 6)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Stage 5 of 6)
Joy Ride (Stage 5 of 6)
The Little Mermaid (Stage 5 of 6)
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning – Part One (Stage 5 of 6)
Sound of Freedom (Stage 5 of 6)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Stage 5 of 6)
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Stage 5 of 6)
Theater Camp (Stage 5 of 6)
The Unknown Country (Stage 5 of 6)

With that, the number of films waiting at Stage 5 for precursors to begin is now 81.

And those are the films that are moving to new stages. Now, let’s look at the top ranked films in each of the five stages. We’ll look primarily at the top ten at most stages. Those with fewer than ten will have all titles listed while stage stage 5 will have twenty.

Best of Stage 1 (Out of 20 points)

1. The Palace (Stage 1 Rating: 16 out of 20)
2. Coup de Chance (Stage 1 Rating: 14 out of 20)
*. Lee (Stage 1 Rating: 14 out of 20)
4. The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (Stage 1 Rating: 12 out of 20)
*. Wonka (Stage 1 Rating: 12 out of 20)
6. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (Stage 1 Rating: 10 out of 20)
*. The Color Purple (Stage 1 Rating: 10 out of 20)
*. Ferrari (Stage 1 Rating: 10 out of 20)
*. Migration (Stage 1 Rating: 10 out of 20)

Plus seven films with 8 out of 20 (not listed due to the large number).

Best of Stage 2 (Out of 30 points)

1. Killers of the Flower Moon (Stage 2 Rating: 27.88 out of 30)
*. Maestro (Stage 2 Rating: 27.88 out of 30)
3. The Holdovers (Stage 2 Rating: 25.63 out of 30)
4. Nyad (Stage 2 Rating: 25.38 out of 30)
5. May December (Stage 2 Rating: 25.25 out of 30)
6. Napoleon (Stage 2 Rating: 25. out of 30)
7. Poor Things (Stage 2 Rating: 22.25 out of 30)
8. Saltburn (Stage 2 Rating: 19.13 out of 30)
9. Next Goal Wins (Stage 2 Rating: 18.63 out of 30)
10. The Killer (Stage 2 Rating: 18.25 out of 30)

Best of Stage 3 (Out of 50 points)

1. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (Stage 3 Rating: 34.08 out of 50)
2. El Conde (Stage 3 Rating: 27.96 out of 50)
3. The Inventor (Stage 3 Rating: 17.5 out of 50)
4. Our Father, the Devil (Stage 3 Rating: 16.42 out of 50)
5. Klondike (Stage 3 Rating: 14.63 out of 50)
6. Fremont (Stage 3 Rating: 11.5 out of 50)
7. Our Body (Stage 3 Rating: 11.42 out of 50)
8. King Coal (Stage 3 Rating: 10.25 out of 50)

Best of Stage 4 (Out of 70 points)

1. Oppenheimer (Stage 4 Rating: 52.52 out of 70)
2. Barbie (Stage 4 Rating: 51.22 out of 70)
3. Golda (Stage 4 Rating: 40.95 out of 70)
4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Stage 4 Rating: 36.0 out of 70)
5. Medusa Deluxe (Stage 4 Rating: 28.05 out of 70)

Best of Stage 5 (Out of 80 points)

1. The Lost King (Stage 5 Rating: 59.84 out of 80)
2. Air (Stage 5 Rating: 57.16 out of 80)
3. Asteroid City (Stage 5 Rating: 56.66 out of 80)
4. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning – Part One (Stage 5 Rating: 55.94 out of 80)
5. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Stage 5 Rating: 55.34 out of 80)
6. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Stage 5 Rating: 54.35 out of 80)
7. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Stage 5 Rating: 54.28 out of 80)
8. The Little Mermaid (Stage 5 Rating: 53.5 out of 80)
9. Showing Up (Stage 5 Rating: 53.41 out of 80)
10. Elemental (Stage 5 Rating: 53.2 out of 80)
11. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Stage 5 Rating: 52.68 out of 80)
12. You Hurt My Feelings (Stage 5 Rating: 52.43 out of 80)
13. BlackBerry (Stage 5 Rating: 52.37 out of 80)
14. A Good Person (Stage 5 Rating: 51.0 out of 80)
15. Past Lives (Stage 5 Rating: 50.85 out of 80)
16. The Starling Girl (Stage 5 Rating: 50.18 out of 80)
17. John Wick: Chapter 4 (Stage 5 Rating: 49.91 out of 80)
18. Emily (Stage 5 Rating: 49.82 out of 80)
19. L’Immensitá (Stage 5 Rating: 49.4 out of 80)
20. Fast X (Stage 5 Rating: 49.03 out of 80)