The Oscars according to City PM
JUDGING PANEL:
ANNABEL PALMER
STEVE DINNEEN
ALEX DYMOKE
BEST PICTURE
• NOMINEES
GRAVITY
DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
12 YEARS A SLAVE
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
PRISONERS
• WINNER
12 YEARS A SLAVE
SIMON THOMSON: "Steve McQueen directs with utter surety and the delicacy with which the film is composed, and the natural beauty of its Louisiana setting, reinforces the pervading sense of grinding terror. It’s a brilliant film that somehow captures the inexpressible horrors of slavery."
BEST DIRECTOR
• NOMINEES
PARK CHAN-WOOK – STOKER
ALFONSO CUARÓN – GRAVITY
DEREK CIANFRANCE – THE PLACE BEYOND THE PINES
STEVE MCQUEEN – 12 YEARS A SLAVE
MARTIN SCORSESE – THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
• WINNER
ALFONSO CUARÓN
STEVE DINNEEN: "Alfonso Cuarón gives you a glimpse of the unfathomable massiveness of space and the infinitesimal insignificance of the creatures bobbing around in it. It asks philosophical questions but doesn’t indulge you with answers. It is at once rapturously beautiful and utterly terrifying."
BEST ACTOR
• NOMINEES
CHRISTIAN BALE – AMERICAN HUSTLE
TOM HANKS – CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
LEONARDO DICAPRIO – THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – 12 YEARS A SLAVE
MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY – DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
• WINNER
MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY
ALEX DYMOKE: "Dallas Buyers Club is a rodeo ring for a bucking performance from Matthew McConaughey. His portrayal of Ron Woodroof – who goes from homophobic hill-billy to drag-queen hugging guardian of the gay community following an HIV diagnosis – confirms him as a big league Serious Actor."
BEST ACTRESS
• NOMINEES
ADÈLE EXARCHOPOULOS – BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR
MIA WASIKOWSKA – STOKER
CATE BLANCHETT – BLUE JASMINE
MERYL STREEP – AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTRY
SANDRA BULLOCK – GRAVITY
• WINNER
ADÈLE EXARCHOPOULOS
SIMON THOMSON: "Adèle Exarchopoulos, who was only 18 at the time of filming, is raw and entirely convincing as the French teenager undergoing a sexual awakening. She was jointly awarded the Palme d’Or at Cannes – an appropriate recognition of the centrality of her performance."
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
• NOMINEES
JAMES FRANCO – SPRING BREAKERS
JONAH HILL – THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
HUGH JACKMAN – PRISONERS
JARED LETO – DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
MICHAEL FASSBENDER – 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• WINNER
MICHAEL FASSBENDER
SIMON THOMSON: "Michael Fassbender is fearless in his portrayal of the virulent Edwin Epps, a lecherous, capricious plantation owner who wields fear, violence and scripture to control every aspect of his slaves’ lives. Fassbender shines in a film packed with star performances."
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
• NOMINEES
KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS – ONLY GOD FORGIVES
NICOLE KIDMAN – STOKER
SCARLETT JOHANSSON – HER
JUNE SQUIBB – NEBRASKA
LUPITA NYONG’O – 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• WINNER
KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS
STEVE DINNEEN: "Kristin Scott Thomas’ Crystal is by far the best thing about Only God Forgives. She plays a gaudy, malevolent Barbie doll with a wickedly barbed tongue. She nails the balance between hateful and hilarious – more screen time might have lifted an otherwise lacklustre movie."