2. Best Actress - Emmanuelle Riva
Let's be clear on one thing - Jennifer Lawrence will win an Oscar in her career. She has already proved herself a competent actress, good enough at mixing with the very best. 'Silver Linings Playbook' gives her her second Oscar nomination and, again, she's very good but the role doesn't, for me, have the same impact she had in 'Winter's Bone' - it's a fantastically vivacious performance but I don't know if she should win. I admit that, until recently, I would have said Lawrence deserved the victory - but after watching 'Amour', I had to change my mind. Those who have seen it will agree with me that Emmanuelle Riva, following her BAFTA victory, probably deserves the award for her heart-wrenching performance. It takes a lot to star in a Michael Haneke movie (I'd imagine...) but she was willing to jump into the role and she deserves a lot more recognition than I believe she's getting. Of course, this category will be won by Lawrence or Chastain. Will Riva's age count against her? I doubt it. I think her little-known status will, however, and the fact that Amour will be snubbed in every category save for the Best Foreign Film. It's a shame though because it's a wonderful film, a wonderful performance and I urge everyone to see it - word of caution: it's not an easy watch.