The Academy have spoken….

Once again, Hollywood held its breath as a number of films and performances were acknowledged (and snubbed) during this afternoon’s Oscar nominations.

This year’s line-up is dominated by the crime comedy American Hustle and the sci-fi blockbuster Gravity, with an impressive ten nods apiece, including the prestigious Best Picture accolade.

American Hustle had the added advantage of garnering mentions in all four acting categories with Christian Bale (as Irving Rosenfeld) and Amy Adams (as Sydney Prosser) competing in Best Actor and Best Actress while co-stars Bradley Cooper (as Richie Di-Maggio) and Jennifer Lawrence (as Rosslyn Rosenfeld) are up for Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress respectively.

Additionally, edgy filmmaker David O. Russell receives double nods for his writing and directing. Remarkably, it is the second year in a row that a film directed by O. Russell has earned acting nominations in all four categories, after the success of Silver Linings Playbook (2012).

In the case of Gravity, the film scored multiple technical mentions, as well as a first Best Director nod for filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón and a Best Actress nomination for former winner Sandra Bullock (as Ryan Stone).

 

Elsewhere, Oscar favourite 12 Years a Slave picked up a healthy nine nods, including a deserved place on the Best Picture shortlist as well as a first Best Director nom for filmmaker Steve McQueen.

Additionally, the slavery drama also bagged three acting nominations with Chiwetel Ejiofor (as Solomon Northop) up for Best Actor while co-stars Michael Fassbender (as Edwin Epps) and newcomer Lupita Nyong’o (as Patsey) are in contention for the supporting awards.

 

All three features are joined in a strong Best Picture line-up that includes four films based on true stories; the sea-based thriller Captain Phillips (six noms), the AIDS-based drama Dallas Buyers Club (six noms), the comedic drama Philomena (four noms), and the money-making epic The Wolf of Wall Street (five noms).

The list is rounded off by two lower budget contenders in the form of the sci-fi romance Her (five noms), and the indie comedy Nebraska (six noms).

 

After recent success at the Golden Globes, Matthew McConaughey and Leonardo DiCaprio go head-to-head in the Best Actor category for their respective portrayals of Ron Woodroof and Jordan Belfort in Dallas Buyers Club and The Wolf of Wall Street and are joined by veteran star Bruce Dern (as Woodrow “Woody” Grant) in Nebraska.

Meanwhile, Cate Blanchett is heavily tipped to win Best Actress for her role as Jeanette “Jasmine” Francis in Blue Jasmine and is joined by British veteran Dame Judi Dench (as Philomena Lee) in Philomena, and an eighteenth Academy Award nod for the great Meryl Streep (as Violet Weston) in August: Osage County.

 

Elsewhere, Supporting Actor favourite Jared Leto will look to follow up his recent Golden Globe triumph after earning his first Oscar nom for his performance as Rayon in Dallas Buyers Club. His competition includes Somalian newcomer Barkhad Abdi (as Abduwali Muse) in Captain Phillips and surprise nominee Jonah Hill (as Donnie Azoff) in The Wolf of Wall Street.

The Supporting Actress line-up sees Julia Roberts receive her first Oscar nom since 2001 for her role as Barbara Weston-Fordham in August: Osage County with the other contenders being British actress Sally Hawkins (as Ginger) in Blue Jasmine, and 84-year-old veteran June Squibb (as Kate Grant) in Nebraska.

Meanwhile, Martin Scorsese earns another Best Director nod for his helming of The Wolf of Wall Street, while British comedian star Steve Coogan and collaborator Jeff Pope are in contention for the Best Adapted Screenplay gong for their script on Philomena.

 

Elsewhere, veteran composer John Williams is on the brink of a record fiftieth Oscar nomination for his work on the war drama The Book Thief, while Irish band U2 are in contention for Best Original Song for their ballad “Ordinary Love” from the factual drama Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.

However, the other notable songs looking to prevail in that category include the chart-topping hit “Let it Go” from Disney’s Frozen and the feel-good Pharrell Williams track “Happy” from Despicable Me 2.

Both animations are also shortlisted in the Best Animated Film line-up alongside The Croods, Ernest & Celestine and The Wind Rises. Meanwhile, Italy’s The Great Beauty, Denmark’s The Hunt and Cambodia’s The Missing Picture are among the films in contention for the Best Foreign Language Film prize.

Other high-profile films to receive technical nominations include The Great Gatsby, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Inside Llewyn Davis, Iron Man 3, The Lone Ranger, Lone Survivor, Prisoners, Saving Mr. Banks, Star Trek into Darkness, and more bizarrely, the Jackass spin-off Bad Grandpa!

 

Unfortunately, there were also a variety of disappointing snubs, particularly for three notable acting contenders.

Though Captain Phillips picked up multiple nominations, leading man Tom Hanks was shockingly ignored for his role as real-life sea captain Richard Phillips. Similarly, Emma Thompson missed out on a Best Actress nod for her portrayal of author P. L. Travers in Saving Mr. Banks, despite picking up key mentions at a number of awards guilds.

German star Daniel Brühl also had the misfortune of being snubbed in the Best Supporting Actor category for his role as real-life Formula One driver Nikki Lauda in Rush, with the film itself completely overlooked elsewhere.

Additionally, other films like Blue is the Warmest Colour, The Butler and Fruitvale Station were also shut out along with blockbusters The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Man of Steel and Pacific Rim.

The 86th Academy Awards will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday 2 March with chat show host Ellen DeGeneres returning for a second stint.

The full list of Oscar nominees are below (with my early predictions in blue):

BEST PICTURE
AMERICAN HUSTLE
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
GRAVITY
HER
NEBRASKA
PHILOMENA
12 YEARS A SLAVE
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

 

BEST DIRECTOR
Alfonso Cuarón, GRAVITY
Steve McQueen, 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Alexander Payne, NEBRASKA
David O. Russell, AMERICAN HUSTLE
Martin Scorsese, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

BEST ACTRESS
Amy Adams, AMERICAN HUSTLE
Cate Blanchett, BLUE JASMINE
Sandra Bullock, GRAVITY
Judi Dench, PHILOMENA
Meryl Streep, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY

BEST 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 SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Sally Hawkins, BLUE JASMINE
Lupita Nyong’o, 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Jennifer Lawrence, AMERICAN HUSTLE
Julia Roberts, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY
June Squibb, NEBRASKA

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 ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
BEFORE MIDNIGHT (Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke)
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (Billy Ray)
PHILOMENA (Steve Coogan & Jeff Pope)
12 YEARS A SLAVE (John Ridley)
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET (Terence Winter)

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
AMERICAN HUSTLE (Eric Warren Singer & David O. Russell)
BLUE JASMINE (Woody Allen)
DALLAS BUYERS CLUB (Craig Borten & Melisa Wallach)
HER (Spike Jonze)
NEBRASKA (Bob Nelson)

 

 

BEST FILM EDITING
AMERICAN HUSTLE
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
GRAVITY
12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
THE GRANDMASTER
GRAVITY
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS
NEBRASKA
PRISONERS

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
AMERICAN HUSTLE
GRAVITY
THE GREAT GATSBY
HER
12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
AMERICAN HUSTLE
THE GRANDMASTER
THE GREAT GATSBY
THE INVISIBLE WOMAN
12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
JACKASS PRESENTS: BAD GRANDPA
THE LONE RANGER

BEST SOUND MIXING
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
GRAVITY
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS
LONE SURVIVOR

BEST SOUND EDITING
ALL IS LOST
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
GRAVITY
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
LONE SURVIVOR

 

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
GRAVITY
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
IRON MAN 3
THE LONE RANGER
STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS

 

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
THE BOOK THIEF (John Williams)
GRAVITY (Steven Price)
HER (William Butler & Owen Pallett)
PHILOMENA (Alexandre Desplat)
SAVING MR. BANKS (Thomas Newman)

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
ALONE YET NOT ALONE (“Alone Yet Not Alone”)
DESPICABLE ME 2 (“Happy”)
FROZEN (“Let It Go”)
HER (“The Moon Song”)
MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM (“Ordinary Love”)

 

BEST ANIMATED FILM
THE CROODS
DESPICABLE ME 2
ERNEST & CELESTINE
FROZEN
THE WIND RISES

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN (Belgium)
THE GREAT BEAUTY (Italy)
THE HUNT (Denmark)
THE MISSING PICTURE (Cambodia)
OMAR (Palestine)

 

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
THE ACT OF KILLING
CUTIE AND THE BOXER
DIRTY WARS
THE SQUARE
20 FEET FROM STARDOM

 

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
DO I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING?
HELIUM
JUST BEFORE LOSING EVERYTHING
THAT WASN’T ME
THE VOORMAN PROBLEM

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
FERAL
GET A HORSE!
MR. HUBLOT
POSSESSIONS
ROOM ON THE BROOM

BEST 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