By Richard Suchet
Gravity, 12 Years A Slave or American Hustle – which will be the big winner at the Academy Awards on Sunday?
The most commercially successful films are rarely the big winners on Oscars night. Success is usually reserved for the weightier, more profound movies. With that in mind, I can’t help but feel The Wolf Of Wall Street and Captain Phillips may struggle, regardless of how popular they have been with cinema-goers.
Awards season has been dominated by two films – Gravity and 12 Years A Slave (although Matthew McConaughey has picked up a number of prizes for his performance in Dallas Buyers Club).
Gravity is a truly phenomenal and immersive cinematic experience that will change the way films are made.
Christian Bale is nominated for his role in American Hustle
There has been nothing like it before. New technologies had to be invented to create the illusion of weightlessness, light had to appear as if it was reflecting off the surface of Earth, sound had to be recorded through vibration to make it seem as if the action was taking place in a vacuum.
The plot might be simple but it is a masterful piece of work and it has been a box office smash.
Steve McQueen’s 12 Years A Slave is the polar opposite. Low budget, profound, and difficult to watch. It tackles the issue of slavery head-on and is a heart-wrenching tale.
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender and Lupita Nyong’o all put in stellar performances. It has hardly cleaned up at the box office but it is the kind of film the Academy traditionally goes for and I think it is favourite to win best picture.
Here are my predictions for this year’s Oscars:
BEST PICTURE
The film I think should win: Gravity
The film I predict will win: 12 Years A Slave
BEST ACTOR
The actor I think should win: Matthew McConaughey for Dallas Buyers Club
The actor I think will win: Chiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years A Slave
BEST ACTRESS
The actress I think should win: Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine
The actress I think will win: Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine
SUPPORTING ACTOR
The actor I think should win: Michael Fassbender for 12 Years A Slave
The actor I think will win: Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
The actress I think should win: Jennifer Lawrence for American Hustle
The actress I think will win: Jennifer Lawrence for American Hustle
BEST DIRECTOR
The director I think should win: Alfonso Cuaron for Gravity
The director I think will win: Alfonso Cuaron for Gravity
The film I predict will win most awards on the night: Gravity (by a distance).
Films that may have a disappointing night: American Hustle, Captain Phillips, August: Osage County, Nebraska, The Wolf Of Wall Street.
The dark horse: Philomena (Judi Dench nominated for Best actress, Steve Coogan nominated for Adapted Screenplay).
The film I most enjoyed: The Wolf Of Wall Street.
Source: Sky News
