BAFTA Predictions 2014

Best Film

12 Years a Slave

American Hustle

Captain Philips

Gravity

Philomena

Who should win: 12 Years a Slave

Who will win: 12 Years a Slave

It’s basically one of the most important films ever made and if you haven’t seen it yet, then stop what you’re doing and watch it. It’s not just excellent acting, it Steve McQueen’s best film to date. And not only should it win, I have faith that it will. 

Snubs: Since the BAFTAs have a shorter list than the Oscars, there’s a lot of room for snubs. In my opinion any film, I don’t care which, could replace American Hustle which is an incredibly mediocre film compared to some of the greats released this year. 

Best Director

Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave

David O Russell – American Hustle

Paul Greengrass – Captain Philips 

Alfonso Cuaron – Gravity

Martin Scorsese – the Wolf of Wall Street

Who should win: Steve McQueen

Like I’ve already said, it’s not only his best work yet but it’s also the best work of the year. He’s one of the greatest and most important directors of this generation. That said, if he doesn’t win it (and I don’t think he will), he eventually will. 

Who will win: Alfonso Cuaron

He seems to be taking it at the moment, which is cool with me because Gravity, from a directorial point of view, is fantastic.

Snubs: Either Spike Jonze or the Coen Brothers could have easily taken David O Russell’s place.

Leading Actress

Amy Adams – American Hustle

Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine

Emma Thompson – Saving Mr Banks

Judi Dench – Philomena

Sandra Bullock – Gravity

Who should win: Cate Blanchett

Who will win: Cate Blanchett

Although the film in which she stars is created by a completely awful man, she is completely fantastic in it and she seems to be winning across the board. Since it’s the BAFTAs though, I could see a tiny chance of Judi Dench getting it. 

Leading Actor

Bruce Dern – Nebraska

Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave

Christian Bale – American Hustle

Tom Hanks – Captain Philips 

Leonardo DiCaprio – the Wolf of Wall Street

Who should win: Chiwetel Ejiofor 

Do I really have to write more about how incredible that film is?

Who will win: Chiwetel Ejiofor or Leonardo DiCaprio

Seeing as Matthew McConaughey isn’t nominated (which is weird as he seems to be first in line for the Oscar), I can see it going to Ejifor or DiCaprio.

Supporting Actor

Barkhad Abdi – Captain Philips 

Bradley Cooper – American Hustle

Daniel Bruhl – Rush

Matt Damon – Behind the Candelabra

Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave

Who should win: Michael Fassbender

DO I REALLY HAVE TO WRITE MORE ABOUT HOW INCREDIBLE THAT FILM IS?

Who will win: Probably Michael Fassbender

Snubs: It really seems like the BAFTAs aren’t big fans of Dallas Buyers Club, because where is Jared Leto’s nomination? Considering he is winning literally every award for his role it doesn’t make sense that he isn’t nominated here. Also, no Jonah Hill?

Supporting Actress

Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle

Julia Roberts – August: Osage County

Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave

Oprah Winfrey – the Butler

Sally Hawkins – Blue Jasmine

Who should win: Julia Roberts or Lupita Nyong’o

Look, I really want to make a case for Julia because she has done her career best work this year and her performance actually makes more sense in the Leading Actress category. Then again, Lupita is so so excellent.

Who will win: Lupita Nyong’o.

Seriously, just watch or rewatch 12 Years a Slave. 

Rising Star Award

Dane DeHaan

George MacKay

Lupita Nyong’o 

Will Poulter

Lea Seydoux

Who should win: Anyone

Who will win: Will Poulter 

Since it’s the British public that vote, I can see Will Poulter winning as most remember him from when he was in Son of Rambow back in 2007. Also, he was the best part of We Are the Millers. 

Snubs: To be fair, the five chosen have all done good, interesting work recently but nominations for Greta Gerwig, Miles Teller, Michael B Jordan and Brie Larson wouldn’t have gone amiss. 

Beth Johnston

Is 12 Years a Slave Too Good For The Oscars?

Despite having seen it twice, and having 3 months to mediate on the film between viewings, it's still hard to find the exact words to describe 12 Years a Slave. Incredible? Horrible? Controversial? A sell-out? One thing that can be agreed on by most parties is that it's exactly the sort of film that deserves to win ALL THE OSCARS. But after a disappointing result at Sunday's Golden Globes, (where it only received one award out of the seven that it was nominated for) I'm beginning to think that maybe it won't do too well when March rolls around.

The cast and crew celebrate winning Best Drama Film at a ceremony where they should've won everything.

Let's start with the obvious - The Academy do have an annoying habit of effing up, especially when it comes to the Best Picture award. A film by Ben Affleck won last year. Rocky won instead of Taxi Driver, Forest Gump won instead of Pulp Fiction. How Green Was My Valley won instead of Citizen Kane. And let's not forget the oddest travesty of all - way back in 2005, Crash won in the place of Ang Lee's extraordinary Brokeback Mountain. What do all four of the films that were cruelly ignored have in common? They're all timeless classics, made by esteemed directors. The winning films are still famous of course, but I'm not sure anyone would ever deign to describe any of them as the "best film ever".

Even Jack Nicholson, who was giving out the award, was not expecting Crash to win.

Secondly, with the exception of actors like Daniel Day-Lewis and Meryl Streep, who give consistently good performances regardless of the quality of their films, I feel like The Academy never really give Best Actor or Actress to quite the right people. Although, that's mainly because most of the time they haven't even nominated the actors that gave the best performances of the year - Sam Rockwell in 2009 and Denis Levant in 2012, come on guys - The Oscars also have a tendency to go for the obviously. It seems very unlikely that Chiwetel Ejiofor will miss out on a Best Actor nomination - ditto Michael Fassbender and Lupita Nyong'o for Supporting Actor/Actress - but will they really be rewarded? After all three missed out on winning at the Golden Globes, it seems as though their chances are slipping somewhat.

We're all aware that The Academy love true stories, but that also means that Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto or (groan) Jennifer Lawrence could easily overshadow them. Plus, there's something important that sets American Hustle and The Wolf of Wall Street apart from 12 Years - they're "fun"! Were I voting, this would put me off, but we should all be aware that sometimes fun films with a "dark" side (e.g. Chicago, The Artist and Silver Linings Playbook) win big awards. Dallas Buyer's Club is pretty much the opposite of fun, but it still has some optimism running through it. 12 Years a Slave of course does not. The only time I felt optimistic whilst watching it is when Michael Fassbender showed up. Then I realised he was an evil psychopath and the horror continued on.

The cast of the "fun" American Hustle doing their thang.

There's another angle to look at all of this though, one that sounds less like a miserable rant against the tyranny of the Oscars and more like praise of the film. Maybe that film doesn't need Oscars. I'm not saying that statues wouldn't be the perfect recognition of Ejiofor, Fassbender and Nyong'o's incredible performances, Mcqueen's direction, Zimmer's score, Ridley's script and the (hopefully) many others that get nominated, because it would of course. It would also suggest some radical change within the film industry, as Mcqueen and Ejiofor would be the first black britons to win Best Director and Actor. It would also show the Academy genuinely giving awards to the right people for once, instead of messing it up. But what will happen if the film doesn't pick up any awards? Will it just disappear from existence in a ball of flames, never to be thought of again? No. The opposite in fact. Can you imagine how many angry articles similar to this will be published if the film gets snubbed? How many debates about race in Hollywood will start? There will be even more furore over the incompetence and unfairness of awards than ever. 12 Years has been getting us to look at our past with different eyes, so perhaps it being snubbed will get us to reexamine our present and future with regards to the film industry.

And really, shouldn't the film itself be the perfect reward for the cast and crew? It is a perfect piece of cinema as it stands, and the addition of the words "Oscar Winner" to its poster will do nothing to alter this for good or bad. Surely being able to watch themselves transform into these characters should be enough for the cast? And surely watching his vision completed on the big screen should be enough for McQueen? If the worst comes to the worst when the nominations are announced tomorrow, or on the big day, I think that this will be enough for me. We all know that 12 Years a Slave is a good film. Now we'll have to see if the Oscars are good enough to reward it. 

Grace Barber-Plentie

LFF Review: 12 Years a Slave

It seems almost redundant at this point to compare Steve McQueen's third film and potential breakthrough into Hollywood to Quentin Tarantino's blood-spattered "Southern" Django Unchained, and yet, it also seems impossible not to. After all, the films are so similar, and so very different. Having watched Django just a few days ago, it remains all too fresh in my head. And while, at the beginning of the year, I was very much sold on Django as a film that managed to combine both the suffering of slavery with unmistakably Tarantino-ish gestures, (blood, feet... more blood...) 12 Years a Slave without a doubt is greater than Django (and this comes from an undying Tarantino fan), and, in all honesty, most films that have so far been released this year.

The film tells the real-life tale of Solomon Northup, a freeborn black man and classical violinist, who is unwittingly kidnapped on a trip to Washington. From here, Northup is sold into slavery, and is put through a series of harrowing ordeals as a slave. For TWELVE WHOLE YEARS. So far, so white guilt, but unlike pretty much every director who's made a film about slavery, McQueen (who is himself black, though really his race should be irrelevant with regards to this film) is surprisingly unsentimental. He doesn't need to be. The thought of slavery alone is a horrible one, and there are scenes in this film that had me crying without the saccharine melodrama of Hollywood. So while, with all slavery films, we can see that the white slave owners are of course in the wrong, we don't cheer when wrong befalls them like we do when Django shoots someone in the genitals. Probably because everybody is too busy sobbing into their popcorn.

One thing that has been universally heralded are the performances. You may hear the words "power-house" thrown around in the next few months, and these descriptions are completely accurate. Chiwetel Ejifor has always been a remarkable actor, from Love Actually to the brilliant Dirty Pretty Things, and now finally comes the time for him to be revealed as the star that he really is. If he doesn't receive Best Actor come January, I'm sure a lot of people, myself included, will be eating their proverbial hats. Also astonishing and award-worthy is newcomer Lupita Nyong'o as fellow slave Patsey, the unfortunate object of her master's lust and mistresses hatred. In fact, it feels a little mean to draw just those two actors out of an ensemble who are all at the top of their game. I've had many reasons to be angry at Michael Fassbender over the years, (the domestic abuse claim, the time he ordered his drink wrong in Inglorious Basterds...) but working for the third time with McQueen and back in the crazy zone, he is brilliant.

I feel a little cruel writing this review as I remember that this film isn't actually out in the UK until 2014. But I haven't felt such a strong sense of passion, a sense of "everything about that was perfect" about a film for a long while. It seems incredible that such a film about slavery can really have been made by a British man, but it's true. When we come to look back on slavery, when children are educated and we come to reflect on 2013/14 in film, 12 Years a Slave will, I'm sure, instantly jump out. McQueen has added yet another classic to an ever-flourishing career.

Grace Barber-Plentie