15 Awesome 2014 Performances That Deserve Oscars (But Won't Get Nominated)

2. Marion Cotillard - Two Days, One Night

The Dardenne brothers characteristically deliver with another astounding slice-of-life drama, starring Marion Cotillard as Sandra, a young mother who suffers a nervous breakdown and, while recuperating, her boss conspires to eliminate her job by offering a ‚1,000 bonus to her employees if they all assume her hours and vote to fire her. The weekend before the vote is to take place, Sandra attempts to visit all 16 of her co-workers in an effort to convince them to vote for her job over the bonus. Though the majority of the movie merely consists of Sandra walking from place to place and begging people, Cotillard imbues her character with such a deeply human desperation that it's almost impossible not to be affected by the political statement the brothers are clearly trying to make. It's difficult to think of a stronger or more pervasive depiction of the realities of depression in recent cinema: Cotillard makes of Sandra a tear-stained husk who must try to persevere in the face of a mountain of bad news and rejection. Though the actress has won a handful of Best Actress awards on the precursor circuit, it seems that the movie is just too "art-house" to land her an Oscar nod, and that it's in a foreign language no doubt doesn't help.