Early Oscar contenders for 2014 (so far??)

Given there's less than a month left in 2014 (!!!), Oscar season is coming up. I know most filmakers nowadays probably leave their releases of the Oscar contenders until late December, so we can't have a full list of movies that could win Best Picture, but we'll try to give it a shot. As for me, aside from Interstellar (which I honestly haven't seen yet, so I can't comment on that), I don't see any clear favourites yet. What do you think? (You can throw in other categories as well.)

The thing to keep in mind when it comes to the Oscars is that the nominees are chosen from voters' #1 pick of the year. So it comes down to not how widely loved a film is, but how intensely loved it is.

That being said, given the reactions that Interstellar has received since its release (not to mention the general love that Nolan receives from the Academy), I think that it is a prime canidate for a Best Picture nomination. Likewise, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) seems to be the perfect combination of Academy Voters' tastes and pristinely conceived / executed filmmaking. Boyhood's unique filming and high praise make it another seeming Best Picture candidate for me (although I sadly have yet to see it). Given how much the Academy seems to love Clint Eastwood as well as the warm receptions that they have given to films such as The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty in the recent past, I can only presume that American Sniper is a clear contender as well.

Other than that, Nightcrawler, Gone Girl, Rosewater, Foxcatcher and Selma all seem like viable options with the Academy. It depends on how well some of those are ultimately received, but they all share either a tone or subject matter that the Academy seems most comfortable with nominating.

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I'm really not intrigued by as many of the films as in years past. I'll likely give Birdman a watch as well as Boyhood but neither seem like films I will absolutely love. We will see I guess. There aren't a lot of performances that sound awesome to me either, but who knows.

Interesting you should mention those two specifically Raul, as those are the only 2014 releases I've absolutely loved so far.

In regards to supporting actor, I think it'd be fantastic if JK Simmons won an oscar. He's always been a favourite of mine. Edward Norton too, but I'd imagine he'll have another shot in the future, whereas this is a 'now or never' situation for Simmons, not dissimilar to when Bill Murray was nominated for Lost in Translation.

Ok, Christmas is a week away and I have no idea what the Oscars will look like this year! WTF?!


Last year everyone was talking about 12 Years a Slave and Gravity and Her and The Wolf of Wall Street and American Hustle. Where the heck are all the Oscar movies this year? Where's all the buzz? Did I lose complete touch with the Oscar buzz or is this the lamest awards season ever?

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Well, on paper it looks like a down year, of course that may mean that it's one of the greatest years ever

Boyhood will win Best Picture and Director. Guaranteed.

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"Don't be so gloomy. After all it's not that awful. Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock."

God, I hope Boyhood doesn't win best picture. If there's anyone from that crew that probably deserves an Oscar, that for me would be Ethan Hawke.

Sadly like HL said Boyhood will probably win the important awards because the academy goes for safe, non-controversial peaceful films that have been worshiped by mainstream critics and most of all, the voters. This is why we have situations where Titanic wins best picture and director instead of L.A Confindnetial, which was a true masterpiece.

Birdman, Boyhood and Nightcrawler were all fantastic films that deserve awards IMO. Also Grand Budapest Hotel.

Lego Movie and How to Train Your Dragon 2 were great animated films.

This wasnt a bad year for movies at all. I do predict Boyhood will take home the big ones, and rightly so.

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-Aragorn: The Lord of the Rings the Return of the King

I for one welcome our new Linklater overlord.

I'll see about coming back here on a later day (hopefully not too much later). I've got ideas on predictions, but I'll need to sort them out first.

According to many, these seem to be strong contenders. I happen to agree....

BEST PICTURE

• Boyhood (Richard Linklater)
• Birdman (Alejandro González Iñárritu)
• Gone Girl (David Fincher)
• Foxcatcher (Bennett Miller)
• The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson)
• Interstellar (Christopher Nolan)
• The Theory of Everything (James Marsh)
• American Sniper (Clint Eastwood)
• Nightcrawler (Dan Gilroy)

BEST DIRECTOR

• Richard Linklater, Boyhood
• Alejandro González Iñárritu, Birdman
• Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
• David Fincher, Gone Girl
• Bennett Miller, Foxcatcher
• James Marsh, Theory of Everything
• Christopher Nolan, Interstellar
• Clint Eastwood, American Sniper

BEST ACTOR

• Michael Keaton, Birdman
• Eddie Redmayne, Theory of Everything
• Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler
• Steve Carell, Foxcatcher
• Ralph Fiennes, The Grand Budapest Hotel
• Bradley Cooper, American Sniper
• Ellar Coltrane, Boyhood

BEST ACTRESS

• Julianne Moore, Still Alice
• Reese Witherspoon, Wild
• Felicity Jones, Theory of Everything
• Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
• Shailene Woodley, The Fault In Our Stars

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

• J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
• Edward Norton, Birdman
• Ethan Hawke, Boyhood
• Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher
• Robert Duvall, The Judge
• Tyler Perry, Gone Girl
• Alec Baldwin, Still Alice
• Charlie Cox, The Theory of Everything
• Andy Serkis, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
• Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game
• Emma Stone, Birdman
• Laura Dern, Wild
• Rene Russo, Nightcrawler
• Kristen Stewart, Still Alice
• Carrie Coon, Gone Girl