Oscar must knows: the good old top 10 list

Where:

Dolby Theatre, Hollywood

Host:

Ellen DeGeneres

When:

8.30 pm, their time

What:

Some of the closest fought races in the recent cinematic history.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to what is the biggest awards hoopla in the world.

The Academy Awards 2014

are only a few days away - just the time you need to ramp up on your Oscar knowledge. In case you have not watched the

Big Ones

, the films, we also tell you which films to cram them into your weekend.

Here are the 10 things that you MUST know before the March 2 extravaganza happens and related discussions take over the social networking sites, locker rooms, water cooler - basically your life.

American Hustle

and

Gravity

are the two biggies this year, having garnered 10 nominations each. The harrowing

12 Years a Slave

has got nine nominations - all three are also in the fray for best film Oscar. In term of acting Oscars, American Hustle is the clear favourite as its stars have been nominated in all major categories.

Gravity

may have the upper hand in terms of Oscars but a closer look reveals most of its Oscars are in the technical category. Other than Best Actress in a Leading Role (Sandra Bullock), Best Director (Alfonso Cuaron) and Best Picture, rest of its nominations are in technical categories. But then, it is a sci-fi movie which literally went out of the box! George Clooney was the other star in this two-actor film. Any nominations for him? Nope.

The big question then is: what you need to watch if you want to show off the day after? Here are our picks -

12 Years a Slave, American Hustle, Frozen

(nominee in best film animation category). If a movie marathon is your idea of fun,

Dallas Buyers Club

,

Gravity

and

The Wolf of Wall Street

are highly recommended.

This is

Matthew McConaughey's

first

Oscar

nomination. He is also a clear favourite after losing an insane amount of weight to portray a man diagnosed with AIDS.

Thrice nominated

Leonardo DiCaprio

is yet to take an Oscar statuette home. Unbelievable, right? He has been nominated again for the best actor in a leading role for The Wolf of Wall Street. Will he get it this time? Dunno but fingers crossed, just in case.

The talented

Ms Jennifer Lawrence

also appears to be a lucky charm. Her Silver Linings Playbook in 2013 was the first film to get nominations for Best Picture, Directing, Writing and all four acting categories in a really long time. Her American Hustle, she has been nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, repeats that feat. She is also the youngest actress who has been nominated thrice. And she will be presenting an Oscar too. Phew!

Will you be excited if you are nominated for an Oscar? Will you be excited if you are nominated for an Oscar for the 18th time? That must be the dilemma of

Meryl Streep

who has been nominated, yet again, for the Best Actress in a Leading Role for August: Osage County. Not that we are complaining, we simply cannot have enough of La Streep.

Despite rave reviews and promise of Oscar glory,

The Butler

has largely been left out of nominations. Even

Oprah Winfrey

, who acted in the film after 15 years, didn't make the cut.

Emma Thompson

was also left out in the cold for her performance in Saving Mr Banks.

Can we predict who will emerge as winners based on how the

other awards

- Golden Globes, Directors Guild, Critics Choice or SAGs - were given? The answer is a definite no. Academy Awards revel in being different and there is always something or the other they have up their sleeve.

With

Thomas Newman's

nomination for Original Score for Saving Mr Banks, the Newman family has made a record of sorts - they have snagged a total of 88 nominations!

Now the most important question - just what do you need to enjoy the Oscar ceremony when it is screened live? A very strong cup of coffee (the event begins 5.30 am our time) and your smartphone. You don't want to miss the action on telly or on the social networking sites.

First Published: Feb 27, 2014 10:54 IST