Oscar Hopeful “A Hidden Life” Gets Release Date

Terrence Malick made one of the best films of the decade with 2011's The Tree of Life, which was nominated for three Oscars and lost to – checks notes – The Artist? His films since then have tested the patience of even his most devoted fans, as well as the actors in them. But his latest is a bit of a departure, earning him some great reviews out of Cannes and an intense bidding war won by Fox Searchlight (now part of Disney).

A Hidden Life is based on the true story of Franz Jagerstatter, an Austrian farmer who refused to fight for the Nazis, even under threats of violence against him and his family. The film stars August Diehl, who ironically played a gleeful Nazi major in Inglourious Basterds, as Franz. The cast also includes Bruno Ganz, Matthias Schoenaerts and Michael Nyqvist, in his final film role. While Emmanuel Lubezki was unavailable to shoot the film, Jorg Widmer – who served as a camera operator on all of Malick's films this century – stepped up to provide the sumptuous beauty that's a hallmark of these stories.

A Hidden Life will enter limited release on December 13. Expect it to be a major Oscar contender.

About Kip Mooney

Like many film critics born during and after the 1980s, my hero is Roger Ebert. The man was already the best critic in the nation when he won the Pulitzer in 1975, but his indomitable spirit during and after his recent battle with cancer keeps me coming back to read not only his reviews but his insightful commentary on the everyday. But enough about a guy you know a lot about. I knew I was going to be a film critic—some would say a snob—in middle school, when I had to voraciously defend my position that The Royal Tenenbaums was only a million times better than Adam Sandler’s remake of Mr. Deeds. From then on, I would seek out Wes Anderson’s films and avoid Sandler’s like the plague. Still, I like to think of myself as a populist, and I’ll be just as likely to see the next superhero movie as the next Sundance sensation. The thing I most deplore in a movie is laziness. I’d much rather see movies with big ambitions try and fail than movies with no ambitions succeed at simply existing. I’m also a big advocate of fun-bad movies like The Room and most of Nicolas Cage’s work. In the past, I’ve written for The Dallas Morning News and the North Texas Daily, which I edited for a semester. I also contributed to Dallas-based Pegasus News, which in the circle of life, is now part of The Dallas Morning News, where I got my big break in 2007. Eventually, I’d love to write and talk about film full-time, but until that’s a viable career option, I work as an auditor for Wells Fargo. I hope to one day meet my hero, go to the Toronto International Film Festival, and compete on Jeopardy. Until then, I’m excited to share my love of film with you.