For all movie fans, the chilly months of January, February and March are the time where the buzz from 2013 films winding down their theatrical runs begins to transfer to upcoming 2014 ones. This year, many of those films currently finishing their time in multiplexes find themselves in the heat of awards season, and several are in the race for the ultimate prize: the Oscars.
In the nominations announced on Jan. 16, three films etched themselves into the position of potential front-runner for Best Picture: David O. Russell’s star-laden crime caper “American Hustle,” Alfonso Cuarón’s space drama “Gravity” and Steve McQueen’s slavery epic “12 Years a Slave.” In total, “American Hustle” and “Gravity” are tied for the most nominations with 10 apiece, with “American Hustle” gaining notoriety for garnering nominations in all four acting categories, a feat last achieved by Russell’s previous film, last year’s “Silver Linings Playbook.” (Three of that film’s nominated stars – Best Actor nominee Bradley Cooper, Best Supporting Actor nominee Robert De Niro and Best Actress winner Jennifer Lawrence – appear in “American Hustle,” with Cooper and Lawrence earning supporting nods in this year’s race.) “Gravity” also adds lead actress contender Sandra Bullock, while “12 Years a Slave” contributed three actors to the competition, with lead actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, supporting actor Michael Fassbender and supporting actress Lupita N’yongo earning nods from the Academy.
Amid the buzz from the Oscar nominations and the results of major awards shows such as the Critics’ Choice, Golden Globes and Screen Actors’ Guild, front-runners in the acting categories have taken shape as well. Continuing his career revival, Matthew McConaughey has emerged as the front-runner for Best Actor for his performance as Dallas electrician Ron Woodruff in the Best Picture-nominated “Dallas Buyers Club.” Although he faces competition from Ejiofor’s unjustly enslaved free man in “12 Years a Slave,” Christian Bale’s slick con man in “American Hustle,” Leonardo DiCaprio’s sleazy stockbroker in “The Wolf of Wall Street” and Bruce Dern’s performance as a booze-addled father in “Nebraska,” his chances look good at this point.
McConaughey’s co-star, Jared Leto, has become the overwhelming favorite to win the supporting actor prize as Ron’s cross-dressing partner in crime and fellow AIDS patient. Leto faces challenges from Cooper in “American Hustle,” Fassbender’s vicious plantation owner in “12 Years a Slave,” Barkhad Abdi’s debut turn as a Somali pirate in “Captain Phillips,” and Jonah Hill as DiCaprio’s despicable partner-in-crime in “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
In the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories the race is still unclear. Although Cate Blanchett’s performance as a Manhattan socialite suffering a nervous breakdown in Woody Allen’s “Blue Jasmine” has won her the majority of the awards throughout the awards season, Amy Adams has the potential to take the award, but only time will tell if the film itself has enough support to push her over Blanchett. Other nominees in Best Actress include Bullock, Judi Dench as a mother searching for her son in “Philomena” and Meryl Streep as a pill-addicted widow in “August: Osage County.”
In supporting actress, the race has boiled down to Lawrence and N’yongo. While Lawrence won the Golden Globe over N’yongo, N’yongo took home both the Critics’ Choice and Screen Actors’ Guild prizes over Lawrence. It’ll be a race to the finish as the two films battle it out. Whichever actress wins here on Oscar night could be an indication of which film will win Best Picture. Rounding out the Best Supporting Actress category are June Squibb as a long-suffering wife in “Nebraska,” Sally Hawkins as Blanchett’s well-to-do sister in “Blue Jasmine” and Julia Roberts as Streep’s strong-willed daughter in “August: Osage County.”
Finally, in the Best Picture race, front-runners “American Hustle,” “Gravity” and “12 Years a Slave” are joined by “Captain Phillips,” “Dallas Buyers Club,” the tech-romance “Her,” “Nebraska,” “Philomena” and “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
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