Oscars 2014: Who Is Winning Best Picture Race?

1. 12 Years a Slave

12 Years A Slave In the battle between 12 Years a Slave and Gravity, I still give the slight edge to 12 Years a Slave. The subject matter, while maybe a bit difficult to stomach for some when presented in such a stark and unfettered manner, is right up the Academy's alley, and I'm sure there are many an Academy member who are only too eager to declare possibly the first serious cinematic endeavor to tackle the issue of Southern Slavery, a Best Picture winner. Also, the film is much more likely to appeal to the Academy's Actors branch given how technologically dependent Gravity is, which is a definite advantage for Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave. Nomination Chances: 99%

2. Gravity

Sandra Bulluck Gravity 600x300 Gravity has become a cultural sensation. With three consecutive weeks atop the box office, approaching nearly $200 million in U.S. box office, for most of the public, Gravity is certainly going to be one of the most memorable experiences of the year in film for 2013 (definitely more so than 12 Years a Slave, which sadly far too few will see). For some in Hollywood, every extra million dollars Gravity makes is another convincing argument in its favor, although as we saw in 2009 with Avatar, all the money in the world doesn't necessarily buy you a Best Picture Oscar, especially if you're a science fiction film. Nomination Chances: 98%
Contributor
Contributor

A film fanatic at a very young age, starting with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movies and gradually moving up to more sophisticated fare, at around the age of ten he became inexplicably obsessed with all things Oscar. With the incredibly trivial power of being able to chronologically name every Best Picture winner from memory, his lifelong goal is to see every Oscar nominated film, in every major category, in the history of the Academy Awards.