9) Love & Mercy
Love & Mercy is an atypically brave and bold biopic that features not one but two stellar portrayals of The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, from Paul Dano and John Cusack. Both actors do stunning, career-best work portraying the music icon, and the unconventional structure of the biopic is such that their stellar performances are front and center throughout. Elizabeth Banks is also fantastic in the supporting role of Wilson’s love interest, who is more than just a pretty face and actually becomes an instrumental part of the film.
The actors in the Academy will definitely respond strongly to this pic, especially because Cusack has never been Oscar-nominated despite a lengthy career of great work. He’s a strong contender, while Dano and Banks’ prospects are a little dicier but still solid.