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Tuesday, November 26, 2013

AWARDS SEASON 2014
And The Best Actress Oscar Nominees Will Be . . .
 

Cate Blanchett as Jasmine in "Blue Jasmine", directed by Woody Allen.  Sony Pictures Classics

       

by
Omar P.L. Moore/PopcornReel.com        Follow popcornreel on Twitter FOLLOW                                           
Tuesday, November 26, 2013

The Oscar nominees for Best Actress will be...

CATE BLANCHETT, "Blue Jasmine"

A finely-tuned state of anxiety, denial and mental illness are focused in an economical and brutally authentic performance.  Cate Blanchett seamlessly accomplishes the task of playing a loathsome character who is achingly sympathetic at times, and devastating.  Ms. Blanchett is a darling of the Academy, and her return to Hollywood after an absence (in Australia running her theater production company) will likely be rewarded with a nomination.


SANDRA BULLOCK, "Gravity"

The intimacy Sandra Bullock cultivates in "Gravity" is palpable, and that variable is the engine that drives the human element of Alfonso Cuaron's beautiful space adventure.  Ms. Bullock uses her character's emotions in different ways to accentuate her rookie space adventurer character's growth.  Her reactions and actions compliment Mr. Cuaron's visual splendors well.  Academy voters seem to like and respect Ms. Bullock, who won them over with her fierce lobbying several years ago for "The Blind Side".


JUDI DENCH, "Philomena"

There's a tenderness in Judi Dench's portrayal that touches your heart in this true story of a clerical worker on a journey to find the son that was taken from her.  Ms. Dench's work leaves you pining for more.  It's work that the Academy will give a nod to for sentimental reasons as well as the simple way she makes the title character so un-self-conscious, honest and utterly without self-righteousness.


MERYL STREEP, "August: Osage County"

Another film, another masterful acting turn by Meryl Streep.  The three-times Oscar winner is bombast, biting one-liners and deeply-pained agony as the matriarch of a dysfunctional family in John Wells' drama based on Tracy Letts' stage play.  (Mr. Letts also wrote "Killer Joe" for the stage.)  Ms. Streep is also extraordinarily funny at times, and she turns on a dime spectacularly in an electrifying performance.  The Academy will writer her name in once they receive nomination ballots.


EMMA THOMPSON, "Saving Mr. Banks"

A fine effort by Emma Thompson who returns as a lead in a major Hollywood motion picture for the first time in more than a while.  As P.T. Travers, the creator of Mary Poppins, Ms. Thompson combines cutting wit while recalling her character's troubled childhood.  Her precision and passion are well-executed, making Travers a signature, larger-than-life being in her own right.  It's delightful, jaunty, show-stopping work, which the Academy, who admires British actors, won't resist.

Soon: Supporting actress Oscar nominee predictions
 

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