On March 2nd the film industry will pay tribute to the greatest cinematic achievements of the past year. The best of the best. The cream of the crop. For the most part, anyway. The Academy Awards always generate a hefty amount of hype – with Harvey Weinstein on the prowl there’s no surprise there! – and perhaps more so this year than in the recent past given the relatively open landscape in just about all the heavy-hitting categories.
The Academy announced their nominations for each category earlier today, so let’s go through some of them and pick out a few potential winners.
I haven’t seen all of the films listed yet, which means a portion of the following bout of foreshadowing will be partly down to instinct and partly taking into consideration where the main bouts of buzz are landing. Heck, we can come back and amend stuff nearer the time… once I’ve consumed all the films. Ahem.
The Nominations
Best Picture
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street
– What will win: 12 Years a Slave
– What I want to win: Undecided
– What should’ve been nominated: Blue is the Warmest Colour
Best Actor
Christian Bale
Bruce Dern
Leonardo DiCaprio
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Matthew McConaughey
– Who will win: Chiwetel Ejiofor
– Who I want to win: Leonardo DiCaprio
– Who should’ve been nominated: Tom Hanks
Best Actress
Amy Adams
Cate Blanchett
Sandra Bullock
Judi Dench
Meryl Streep
– Who will win: Cate Blanchett
– Who I want to win: Cate Blanchett
– Who should’ve been nominated: Adèle Exarchopoulos
Best Supporting Actor
Barkhad Abdi
Bradley Cooper
Michael Fassbender
Jonah Hill
Jared Leto
– Who will win: Jared Leto
– Who I want to win: Barkhad Abdi
Best Supporting Actress
Sally Hawkins
Jennifer Lawrence
Lupita Nyong’o
Julia Roberts
June Squibb
– Who will win: Jennifer Lawrence
– Who I want to win: Undecided
Best Director
David O. Russell
Alfonso Cuarón
Alexander Payne
Steve McQueen
Martin Scorsese
– Who will win: Alfonso Cuarón
– Who I want to win: David O. Russell
Best Original Screenplay
American Hustle
Blue Jasmine
Dallas Buyers Club
Her
Nebraska
– What will win: American Hustle
– What I want to win: American Hustle
– What should’ve been nominated: Inside Llewyn Davis
Best Adapted Screenplay
Before Midnight
Captain Phillips
Philomena
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street
– What will win: 12 Years a Slave
– What I want to win: Undecided
Best Documentary Feature
The Act of Killing
Cutie and the Boxer
Dirty Wars
The Square
20 Feet From Stardom
– What will win: The Act of Killing
– What I want to win: The Act of Killing
– What should’ve been nominated: Blackfish
On an interesting side note, every year the Oscars devote a part of the ceremony to a certain theme. Last year for instance, a variety of musical numbers were unfurled on stage (remember Seth MacFarlane’s “Boob Song”?) paying tribute to film music.
This year the theme is ‘Movie Heroes’. That’s everyone from the normal person on the street, to the surgeon saving a life, to those larger-than-life superheroes we’ve come to know and love.
His film won Best Picture last year… I wonder if a certain newly appointed masked crusader will unveil his bat-wings this time around.
Consumed By Film 
i think you’ve underestimated the wolf of wall street a bit. i doubt that it won’t win one of the major awards (best picture, screenplay, director, actor/actress). personaly i’m rooting for the wolf and dallas buyers, amazing movies. especially in the present time when the competition is lousier each year. and i hope scorsese wins it, he’s like the leonardo dicaprio of directors. it’s totally unfair considering all the spectacular films he made. great blog btw, and awesome reviews, keep it up. 🙂
Thanks man, appreciate it! Funnily enough, i’ve just seen Wolf and agree with you – need to update my predictions! Thought it was great and Leo was phenomenal!