The 2014 Academy Award Nominations
And here they are! Essentially, we as Oscar fanatics start guessing at what will be nominated more or less the day after the Oscars telecast each year. We make what we consider to be educated guesses about films that haven’t even been screened yet right up until the last possible moment and we still end up being wrong most of the time. This year, a year that many consider to be a tremendous year in film, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has nominated nine films for Best Picture. It always boggles my mind a little that when there is so much love for some films, the Academy can’t squeeze something into that last slot. Still, the nine that are there are quite deserving and represent something for everyone.
As always, for some to be nominated, some must be snubbed. Before we get to the nominees, let us look at those who had hoped for glory but fell short. The Academy showed no love to the Coen brothers in the major categories, as INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS missed out on Picture and Writing nods and had to settle for recognition in the Cinematography and Sound Mixing categories. Other major films to miss out on Best Picture include SAVING MR. BANKS and LEE DANIELS’ THE BUTLER. The former saw its lead actress, Emma Thompson, miss out, while the latter was shut out entirely when it was considered an early favourite. This means no nomination for Oprah! That one was a bit shocking to me. The Best Actor category meanwhile, a category most people would say was the most difficult one this year, had to have inevitable snubs and the names that missed out are huge, including Tom Hanks for CAPTAIN PHILLIPS and Robert Redford for ALL IS LOST. And perhaps what is my biggest disappointment this morning is not hearing Chris Hemsworth say Sarah Polley’s name for Best Documentary Feature, for STORIES WE TELL.
AMERICAN HUSTLE and GRAVITY lead this year’s nominations with 10 each, followed swiftly by 12 YEARS A SLAVE with 9. Here are the 2014 Academy Award nominations … (Click any title for the full Black Sheep Review.)
BEST PICTURE
BEST DIRECTOR
DAVID O. RUSSELL, AMERICAN HUSTLE
ALFONSO CUARON, GRAVITY
ALEXANDER PAYNE, NEBRASKA
STEVE MCQUEEN, 12 YEARS A SLAVE
MARTIN SCORSESE, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
BEST LEADING ACTOR
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
BEST LEADING ACTRESS
AMY ADAMS, AMERICAN HUSTLE
CATE BLANCHETT, BLUE JASMINE
SANDRA BULLOCK, GRAVITY
JUDI DENCH, PHILOMENA
MERYL STREEP, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
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
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
SALLY HAWKINS, BLUE JASMINE
JENNIFER LAWRENCE, AMERICAN HUSTLE
LUPITO NYONG’O, 12 YEARS A SLAVE
JULIA ROBERTS, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY
JUNE SQUIBB, NEBRASKA
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
ERNEST & CELESTINE
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
THE ACT OF KILLING
CUTIE AND THE BOXER
DIRTY WARS
THE SQUARE
20 FEET TO STARDOM
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN
THE HUNT
THE MISSING PICUTRE
OMAR
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
BEST FILM EDITING
BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING
JACKASS PRESENTS: BAD GRANDPA
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
ALONE YET NOT ALONE from ALONE YET NOT ALONE
HAPPY from DESPICABLE ME 2
LET IT GO from FROZEN
THE MOON SONG from HER
ORDINARY LOVE from MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
BEST SOUND EDITING
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
BEST SOUND MIXING
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
CAVEDIGGER
FACING FEAR
KARAMA HAS NO WALLS
THE LADY IN NUMBER 6: MUSIC SAVED MY LIFE
PRISON TERMINAL: THE LAST DAYS OF PRIVATE JACK HALL
SHORT FILM – ANIMATED
FERAL
GET A HORSE!
MR. HUBLOT
POSSESSIONS
ROOM ON THE BROOM
SHORT FILM – LIVE ACTION
AQUEL NO ERA YO (THAT WASN’T ME)
AVANT QUE DE TOUT PERDRE (JUST BEFORE LOSING EVERYTHING)
HELIUM
DO I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING
THE VOORMAN PROBLEM
The Academy Award winners will be announced on Sunday, March 2.
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Like you, I was supremely disappointed that Polley’s name wasn’t announced, though I did a little happy dance when they did say “20 Feet From Stardom”. Personally, I was hoping for a little Oscar love for the indies (Short Term 12, The Way Way Back, The Spectacular Now, Spring Breakers)
I was on the radio today and all I could keep saying was how competitive a year it was. I haven’t seen 20 Feet From Stardom but I’ve heard lovely things. I will make a point to see it. As for the indies, I’m partial to Short Term 12 and The Spectacular Now too, and in other years, they could have squeezed in to at least the writing categories. This year though, it was about flash, splash and the money to make sure people saw your movie. It’s just like Robert Redford said when he essentially blamed Roadside Attractions for his snub, saying they didn’t campaign properly and that they didn’t really have the money to do so either. Another casualty of this would be Inside Llewyn Davis, although I thought CBS’s promotion was quirky and different. Of course, that doesn’t explain the resounding success of other little movies like Nebraska and Dallas Buyers Club. At least there weren’t any undeserving nods. Well, aside from Meryl Streep anyway. 😉
I’ll give you Meryl if you allow me to vent about Jonah Hill (whose movie success I will never understand!) being nominated over Daniel Brühl, Will Forte, James Gandolfini, Keith Stanfield (Short Term 12)…heck…even James Franco was better in Spring Breakers!!!!
So, I kinda really liked Jonah Hill in Wolf. Did I like him more than Gandolfini? No. I would definitely give it to him over Forte and Stanfield, probably over Franco but that’s just because I am mixed on Spring Breakers. Bruhl is a tough one. I really enjoyed Rush and thought it should have been a more serious contender this year.
I think McConaugheyHEY made more of an impact in Wolf than Hill did and there have been performances with less screen time that received Oscar considerations. I’m with you about Rush and I borderline loathed Spring Breakers but grudgingly admired the cinematography and Franco in it.