The 2014 Oscar Nominations Are In!
The Oscars’ golden luster did not shine as heavily upon the realm of cinematic geekery this year as it has in years past. While critically acclaimed movies like American Hustle (10 nominations) and 12 Years A Slave (9 nominations) raked in the glory on nomination day, big fantasy and science fiction movies like The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and Star Trek Into Darkness were largely ignored.
2014 Oscar Nominations
The second installment of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy led the pack with three nominations for Best Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, and Visual Effects, categories where fan-favorite sci-fi and fantasy flicks are often found. 2014 was no exception to said rule as The Desolation of Smaug was joined in the Best Visual Effects category by Iron Man 3, Star Trek Into Darkness, and The Lone Ranger, which also enjoyed a nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling despite its recent walloping on Razzie nomination day.
The fifth nominee in the visual effects category, Gravity, is probably the closest relative to a triumph for geek-friendly movie lovers as it tied with American Hustle for the title of most nominated film of 2014. Alfonso Cuarón’s chillingly realistic space disaster movie received nominations for such paramount categories as Best Picture, Best Director (for Cuarón), and Best Actress in a Leading Role (for Sandra Bullock) as well as numerous technical categories like Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Cinematography and Best Production Design.
Another geek-friendly movie that found joy on nomination day is Her, Spike Jonze’s artificial intelligence-infused romantic comedy starring Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson. Her was nominated for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Production Design, Best Original Score, and Best Original Song (“The Moon Song”).
Additionally, fans of literary adaptations may or may not be pleased to know that Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of The Great Gatsby received two nominations (Best Production Design and Best Costume Design) while hugely successful adaptations like Hunger Games: Catching Fire and World War Z were entirely shut out.
Lovers of Disney movies can also rejoice as Frozen was nominated for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song (“Let It Go”). Such happiness also applies for avid lovers of anime, as Hayao Miyazaki’s The Wind Rises joined Frozen in the Best Animated Feature category.
Now, for those of you wondering what non-sci-fi/fantasy films made Oscar’s cut this year, here’s a brief rundown of the major categories and the honored within:
Best Picture
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street
12 Years A Slave
Best Director
Alfonso Cuarón for Gravity
Steve McQueen for 12 Years A Slave
Alexander Payne for Nebraska
David O. Russell for American Hustle
Martin Scorsese for The Wolf of Wall Street
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Christian Bale for American Hustle
Bruce Dern for Nebraska
Leonardo DiCaprio for The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years A Slave
Matthew McConaughey for Dallas Buyers Club
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Amy Adams for American Hustle
Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock for Gravity
Judi Dench for Philomena
Meryl Streep for August: Osage County
Best Actor in Supporting Role
Barkhad Abdi for Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper for American Hustle
Michael Fassbender for 12 Years A Slave
Jonah Hill for The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Sally Hawkins for Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence for American Hustle
Lupita Nyong’o for 12 Years A Slave
Julia Roberts for August: Osage County
June Squibb for Nebraska
Best Animated Feature
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Ernest and Celestine
Frozen
The Wind Rises
Click here for a complete list of this year’s Oscar nominees.
What say all of you about the Academy’s 2014 selections? Are you hopping skyward with glee? Are you centiseconds away from pummeling a hole in your laptop? What movie should have been nominated that went without recognition? Let us know in the comments below!