We had five films release this past weekend with the potential for Oscar nominations.

Passengers

In spite of the critical drubbing this film has received, Passengers did satisfactorily at the U.S. box office. That means it’s not going to be instantly ignored by the Academy.

When the project was announced, many thought that with Oscar nominee Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game) on board to direct and Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence to star alongside fellow box office star Chris Pratt, the film would have the potential to become a major Oscar player.

Before that could happen, Arrival showed up and wowed critics, making it the year’s heavy favorite to be an Oscar player. Passengers could still have overcome and made a second play, but then people saw it. The reviews weren’t good and audiences were even lukewarm to it giving it a weak “B” rating with CinemaScore.

While the film could still be a competitor in Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Visual Effects, its overall chances have been downgraded and with the competition in both categories, its chances are dying by the day.

Sing

Solid box office numbers, a positive reception from audiences, and a decent one from critics, help keep the film afloat in this year’s Oscar race.

The story of a theatre manager trying to save his decaying theater is reminiscent of music competition shows like American Idol had the makings of a huge success. With the raft of Oscar winners (Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Hudson) in the cast, it has a bit of heft to it.

The musical numbers, mostly covers of popular songs of the present and past, are engaging and the original song is quite catchy. It has always been a solid contender for a Best Animated Feature nomination, but it is now also a slight competitor for Best Original Song. I’m doubtful either categories work out for the film, but they are still possible.

Patriots Day

The film is still in limited release, but will go wide at the beginning of the year. That type of release window could put it in a solid position for Oscar representation just before votes are due.

The story of the Boston Marathon Bombing and the events immediately following promise to be very emotional for all those who attend. Peter Berg has slowly become a dependable director for broad appeal, which gives the film some heft going into the Oscar race.

Although I doubt it can make it into the Best Picture race, Sound Mixing and Sound Editing are very likely, with Film Editing also a distinct possibility. The rest of its options are fairly limited at this juncture.

A Monster Calls

What should be one of the year’s most celebrated films seems to have failed to catch on so far. With a sterling response from critics, the film may ultimately follow the Children of Men path to the Oscars, which means fewer than necessary.

The film, about a boy coping with his mother’s cancer diagnosis and worsening health problems is a stirring three-hanky picture that marvelously captures the humanistic elements of life on the brink of emotional collapse.

The film is reminiscent of Pan’s Labyrinth and Bridge to Terabithia in how it deals with grief, but director J.A. Bayona hasn’t had much success with Oscar in the past. The Orphanage was celebrated by critics and received several awards the year of its release, but couldn’t manage a Foreign Language Film nomination for Spain. The Impossible was also well received and finally managed an Oscar nomination for Naomi Watts in Best Actress, but not in Best Visual Effects or Best Editing (among others) it deserved to be recognized in.

The same is likely to befall A Monster Calls simply because the studio representing the film simply doesn’t understand how to sell it. It should be a major player, especially Best Supporting Actress (Felicity Jones), but I’d be surprised to see it recognized where it most deserves, such as Best Art Direction.

Silence

In 2013, Paramount botched the pre-season release of the film failing to get much traction with critics for their year-end ballots or most other groups, including the Screen Actors Guild where it would have been a slam dunk nominee for Best Ensemble, Best Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio), and possibly even Best Supporting Actor (Joan Hill). Ultimately, the film earned those two acting citations and three others from the Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director, but not without a major post-precursor effort.

The very next year, Paramount did the same thing with Selma, waiting until the last minute to screen the film and failing to build the kind of momentum the film deserved. It ultimately nabbed two whole Oscar nominations, one for Best Picture and one for Best Original Song, which it later won. It was the smallest nomination tally for a Best Picture nominee in decades.

Last year, they almost suffered the same fate, but managed to get The Big Short out to several groups, earning it more precursor attention than its two prior years’ worth of efforts. The film picked up five nominations and an eventual win for writing, but how much better could it have performed with a longer lead time.

Enter 2016. Scorsese is once again at the hands of Paramount’s publicity department, which barely got the film seen by the New York and Los Angeles critics, but doesn’t seem interested in getting it into the hands of other groups. The Broadcast Critics voted too early and missed all opportunities. The Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild voters also ignored it. That’s not a good position to be in prior to the Oscars.

This failure is reminiscent of all their past failures and is indicative of problems with their awards team. That said, the film still has a shot with Oscar voters, like all the others before it. It should also do a bit better than the prior films’ five (or two) nominations as there are more creative elements eligible for consideration. How big a hit it is will determine whether Paramount has screwed themselves out of hefty tallies or if their attempts aren’t hurting the films at all.