Now that the Oscar nominations for Best Picture are in, the speculating and stratgeizing can really begin.
No, not about which one of the eight nominated flicks will win.
Rather, what order will they play in during the upcoming AMC Theatres' Best Picture Showcase? And, what does one wear, eat and otherwise do or not do (hint: Don't ingest too many liquids) while trying to survive watching four movies in a row — on two consecutive Saturdays, if you're really dedicated or crazy.
Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, this year’s BPS (as regulars refer to it) will take place on Feb. 20 and 27. The participating AMC theaters include three in Georgia, all in or around metro Atlanta: Avenue Forsyth 12, Parkway Pointe 15 and Sugarloaf Mills 18. Tickets go on sale next Wednesday, Jan. 20.
For the uninitiated, the BPS is a way to see all the nominees for Oscars’ top prize in one — actually two — sittings. When it started 10 years ago, only five films could be nominated, so AMC used to commandeer select theaters the Saturday before the Sunday night ceremony and show them all back-to-back in a day. When the category was expanded a few years ago to include up to 10 nominees, it meant having to spread the event across two Saturdays.
But just like the rest of us, AMC doesn't know ahead of time how many films will be nominated each year. After the noms are unveiled, it's a matter of figuring out which movies should be shown on which Saturday, and in what order. It's both an art and a science, as an AMC bigwig explained to the AJC a few years ago.
So, while they're trying to decide if "Bridge of Spies" should come before or after "The Martian," and whether "Mad Max: Fury Road" and the scary bear in "The Revenant" need to be separated by a week, you can decide whether you have The Right Stuff to make it through this year's Best Picture Showcase. I tried it for the first time last year, and the experience both was and wasn't anything like I expected. Read all about it (and my secret ham sandwich) here.
For more information on tickets and the lineup of films, go to www.amctheatres.com.
