Oscar Nominations and Predictions 2014

OSCAR NOMINATIONS AND PREDICTIONS

So the nominations for the 2014 Oscars have finally been released and as is usual, the Academy have failed to nominate some of the absolute best films of the past year. I certainly don't envy the people who have to whittle down the hundreds and hundreds of movies to find the absolute crowning achievements because the past 12 months have given us some of the greatest films I have ever seen. However, they have overlooked some wonderful pieces of work so I am going to just quickly mention them and highlight just how good these films were.

First and foremost, by far the biggest oversight for me is the fact that Tom Hanks hasn't been nominated for Best Actor for his extraordinary work in 'Captain Phillips', an astonishingly tense film from director Paul Greengrass. It was my favourite movie of 2013 and in my eyes, it should certainly be recognised at the Oscars. Thankfully, it has been nominated for Best Picture (an award which it sadly won't win), Barkhad Abdi has been nominated for Best Supporting Actor and it has also got a few technical nominations such as Best Editing and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Another massive error on the part of the Academy is the fact that the bold and daring 'Blue Is The Warmest Colour' has not been nominated for Best Foreign Language Film despite unanimously winning the Palme D'or at The Cannes Film Festival last March. It is a shame that such a daring and remarkable work won't be given a mention at the Oscars ceremony, but I am sure that it will garner a shed load of other awards from other ceremonies. Other omissions include Ron Howard's hugely exciting 'Rush' (especially Best Supporting Actor for Daniel Bruhl), Forrest Whittaker for his central role in Lee Daniel's 'The Butler' and 'Blackfish' for Best Documentary Feature. All of these films deserve awards and it is a shame that the Academy has failed to recognise them for the great works they really are. 

I may not be a betting man, but here are my predictions for the winners of the 86th annual Academy Awards. As was the case with last years BAFTAS, I will give both my personal preferencial winners and the movie which I believe will eventually win (preferred winner will be in regular type and actual prediction will be in bold).

Best Makeup & Hair - Dallas Buyers Club/Dallas Buyers Club

Best Costume Design - The Great Gatsby/The Great Gatsby

Best Production Design - The Great Gatsby/The Great Gatsby

Best Film Editing - Gravity/12 Years A Slave

Best Cinematography - Gravity/Gravity
Best Sound Mixing - Gravity/Gravity
Best Sound Editing - Gravity/Gravity
Best Original Song - Let It Go/Let It Go
Best Original Score - Saving Mr. Banks/Gravity

Best Visual Effects - Gravity/Gravity
Best Original Screenplay -American Hustle/American Hustle

Best Adapted Screenplay - The Wolf Of Wall Street/The Wolf Of Wall Street

Best Documentary - The Act Of Killing/The Act Of Killing

Best Film Not In The English Language - The Hunt/The Great Beauty
Best Animation - Despicable Me 2/Frozen 

Best Supporting Actor -Barkhad Abdi/Jared Leto

Best Supporting Actress - Lupita N'yong'o/Jennifer Lawrence

Best Actor - Chiwetel Ejiofor/Chiwetel Ejiofor

Best Actress - Sandra Bullock/Cate Blanchett
Best Director - Alfonso Cuaron/Alfonso Cuaron

Best Picture - Captain Phillips/12 Years A Slave

I think that 'Gravity' and '12 Years A Slave' will dominate most of the night, but who knows? The Academy Awards are known for controversy and I can't see any reason why this year will be no different. Competition is at an all time high in Hollywood and it always rears it ugly head with some ferocity at the Academy Awards. With such a great year in film behind us, I just hope that the filmmakers, actors and actresses in the audience will respect their craft and bid farewell to what was the greatest year in film in nearly a decade.

ps. HOW IN GOD'S NAME HAS 'JACKASS : BAD GRANDPA' BEEN NOMINATED FOR AN ACADEMY AWARD????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????