Oscar 2015 Survival Guide - Southern Torch

Oscar-Bait (n.)

A film released in the last two months of the year with a big cast and "important" subject matter to attract the attention of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences".

(Urban Dictionary)

No one has time to see every film on the ballot between December and February. That being said, most people use the Oscars each year as a sort of Redbox rental guide for two months of Friday nights. For those of you whom this applies to, the following information is all you need to know for your Oscar party on Sunday night.

(In order of nomination count)

1) Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

"Are you afraid that people will say you're doing this play to battle the impression that you're a washed-up superhero?"

An actor famous for portraying a superhero in the 90's, ironically enough played by Michael Keaton, struggles with his ego and psychological health during the week before the opening of his new Broadway play.

9 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Michael Keaton), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Edward Norton) , Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Emma Stone), Best Achievement in Directing (Alejandro González Iñárritu), Best Writing (Original Screenplay), Best Achievement in Cinematography, Best Achievement in Sound Mixing, Best Achievement in Sound Editing.

2) The Grand Budapest Hotel

"Rudeness is merely an expression of fear. People fear they won't get what they want. The most dreadful and unattractive person only needs to be loved and they will open up like a flower."

"The adventures of Gustave H, a legendary concierge at a famous hotel from the fictional Republic of Zubrowka between the first and second World Wars, and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend." - (IMDb)

9 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Achievement in Directing (Wes Anderson), Best Writing (Original Screenplay), Best Achievement in Cinematography, Best Achievement in Film Editing, Best Achievement in Production Design, Best Achievement in Costume Design, Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Achievement in Music (Original Score).

3) The Imitation Game

"Sometimes its the people who no one imagines anything of who do the things that no one can imagine."

Based on the true story of Alan Turing, a socially ignorant analytics genius invents a "universal machine" (what we now call a computer) in order to break the code of the Enigma device used by Germany in World War II to encrypt communication.

8 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Benedict Cumberbatch), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Kiera Knightly), Best Achievement in Directing (Morten Tyldum), Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay), Best Achievement in Film Editing, Best Achievement in Production Design, Best Music (Original Score).

4) American Sniper

There are three types of people in this world: sheep, wolves, and sheepdogs."

"Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle's pinpoint accuracy saves countless lives on the battlefield and turns him into a legend. Back home to his wife and kids after four tours of duty, however, Chris finds that it is the war he can't leave behind." - (IMDb)

6 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Bradley Cooper), Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay), Best Achievement in Film Editing, Best Achievement in Sound Mixing, Best Achievement in Sound Editing.

5) Boyhood

"You know how everyone's always saying 'Seize the moment'? I don't know, I'm kind of thinking it's the other way around. You know, like the moment seizes us."

Shot over the course of twelve years with the same cast, Boyhood follows the life of one young man through childhood and adolescence.

6 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Ethan Hawke), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Patricia Arquette), Best Achievement in Directing (Richard Linklater), Best Writing (Original Screenplay), Best Achievement in Film Editing.

6) The Theory of Everything

"There should be no boundaries to human endeavor. We are all different. However bad life may seem, there is always something you can do, and succeed at. While there's life, there's hope."

The Theory of Everything follows the relationship between world-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking and his wife Jane through his diagnosis and battle with ALS at the age of 21.

5 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Eddie Redmayne), Best Actress in a Leading Role (Felicity Jones), Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay), Best Music (Original Score).

7) Whiplash

"There are no two words in the English language more harmful than 'good job'."

A drummer enrolls in a prestigious music academy and finds a mentor in a professor who often emotionally abuses students in order for them to reach their full potential.

5 nominations

Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Supporting Role (J.K. Simmons), Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay), Best Achievement in Film Editing, Best Achievement in Sound Mixing.

8) Selma