BEST PICTURE
Nominees: 12 Years A Slave, American Hustle, Captain Phillips, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, Her, Nebraska, Philomena, The Wolf of Wall Street
Reaction: Philomena is the only real surprise here, otherwise, this was all expected. We’ve got a legit three horse race between 12 Years A Slave, American Hustle, and Gravity.
BEST DIRECTOR
Nominees: Steve McQueen (12 Years A Slave), David O. Russell (American Hustle), Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity), Alexander Payne (Nebraska), Martin Scorsese (The Wolf of Wall Street)
Reaction: I’m disappointed Spike Jonze (Her) didn’t get in, and not that it really had a chance anyway, but this officially eliminates Her from pulling any sort of Best Picture upset. Overall though, I’m pretty happy with the selections here. It’s great to see Scorsese and Payne get in, and people can hem and haw all they want, but Paul Greengrass (Captain Phillips) didn’t deserve it…get over it. I know everyone just assumes this is between Cuaron and McQueen, but don’t be surprised if Scorsese walks away with this March 2nd…
BEST ACTOR
Nominees: Christian Bale (American Hustle), Bruce Dern (Nebraska), Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave), Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club)
Reaction: Phewwwww. That’s what I did when I saw DiCaprio’s name listed. In the craziest category of the year, the dust has settled, and this is how it looks. All in all…I’m pretty happy. I’m sure everyone is up and arms about Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips) getting snubbed, but the fact of the matter is that this category was just too stacked. There had to be a tough cut made. The big surprise is of course Christian Bale. I’m thrilled to see him here, and his nomination convinced me that American Hustle could legitimately take Best Picture – clearly the Academy loves this film. But getting back to Best Actor…it’s going to be one hell of a race.
BEST ACTRESS
Nominees: Amy Adams (American Hustle), Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine), Sandra Bullock (Gravity), Judi Dench (Philomena), Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)
Reaction: I feel like an idiot for leaving Meryl Streep out in my nomination predictions. Come on, Dan! You can’t keep a good Streep down I guess. I was shocked to see it was Emma Thompson (Saving Mr. Banks) who got the boot though…wow. With Sreep in, I figured Adams would be the odd woman out. But again, it just goes to show you how much the Academy loves American Hustle.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Nominees: Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips), Bradley Cooper (American Hustle), Michael Fassbender (12 Years A Slave), Jonah Hill (The Wolf of Wall Street), Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club)
Reaction: So much for that Wolf of Wall Street controversy. AWESOME to see Jonah Hill get in! Other than that, no surprises. This is a battle between Leto and Fassbender.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Nominees: Sally Hawkins (Blue Jasmine), Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle), Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years A Slave), Julia Roberts (August: Osage County), June Squibb (Nebraska)
Reaction: Aside from Best Original Screenplay, it’s the only one I got completely right. This will be a fun category to analyze, as it’s a dead heat between Lawrence, Nyong’o, and Squibb.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Nominees: Eric Warren Singer & David O. Russell (American Hustle), Woody Allen (Blue Jasmine), Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack (Dallas Buyers Club), Spike Jonze (Her), Bob Nelson (Nebraska)
Reaction: No surprises here. This will be tight between Singer/Russell and Jonze, with Nelson in the fight as well.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Nominees: Richard Linklater/Julie Delpy/Ethan Hawke (Before Midnight), Billy Ray (Captain Phillips), Steve Coogan & Jeff Pope (Philomena), John Ridley (12 Years A Slave), Terence Winter (The Wolf of Wall Street)
Reaction: With the exception of Ray, I could see any of these nominees taking this award. It’s easy to say Ridley, but I’m actually leaning towards Coogan/Pope right now. Glad to see Winter get in.
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