‘Gone Girl’ film already touted for Oscar race

Sounds like the film awards season is about to begin — and it’s only July! Here’s the deal: “Gone Girl,” the film David Fincher has directed, starring Ben Affeck and Rosamund Pike — based on Chicagoan Gillian Flynn’s novel — has been tapped to open the prestigious New York Film Festival Sept. 26.

While that alone isn’t any kind of guarantee of nominations or awards, in recent history the movies that opened the Big Apple fest have included “Captain Phillips,” “Life of Pi” and “The Social Network” — all of which did very well during the annual run-up to the Academy Awards.