The 86th Annual Academy Awards: Won vs. Predicted

Well gang, it was quite a year. I didn't see the ceremony, but what a nailbiter finish. I was at work but a good friend kept me up to date the entire time, so it was almost the same as watching. I got 20/24 right, continuing my trend of doing better every year. What follows is the breakdown of won vs Predicted.

Best Supporting Actor
Predicted/Won: Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club

Best Costume Design
Predicted/Won: The Great Gatsby

Best Makeup
Predicted/Won: Dallas Buyers Club

Best Animated Short
Predicted: Get a Horse!
Won: Mr. Hublot

Best Animated Feature
Predicted/Won: Frozen

Best Visual Effects
Predicted/Won: Gravity

Best Live Action Short
Predicted/Won: Helium

Best Documentary Short
Predicted/Won: The Lady in Number 6

Best Documentary Feature
Predicted/Won: Twenty Feet From Stardom

Best Foreign Film
Predicted/Won: The Great Beauty

Best Sound Mixing
Predicted/Won: Gravity

Best Sound Editing
Predicted/Won: Gravity

Best Supporting Actress
Predicted/Won: Lupita Nyong'o for 12 Years of Slave

Best Cinematography
Predicted/Won: Gravity

Best Editing
Predicted: Captain Phillips
Won: Gravity

Best Production Design
Predicted/Won: The Great Gatsby

Best Original Score
Predicted/Won: Gravity

Best Original Song
Predicted/Won: Let It Go from Frozen

Best Adapted Screenplay
Predicted/Won: 12 Years a Slave

Best Original Screenplay
Predicted: American Hustle
Won: Her

Best Director
Predicted/Won: Gravity

Best Actress
Predicted/Won: Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine

Best Actor
Predicted/Won: Matthew McConaughey for Dallas Buyers Club

Best Picture
Predicted: Gravity
Won: 12 Years a Slave

Final Thoughts: I always learn something new at every Oscars, and this year I learned that you don't vote for the film with SAG or WGA backing. Also, the preferential balloting system has ushered in a new era where the wealth is spread around a little bit. I guarantee you if Best Picture was as simple as tabulating how many voted for which one, very few could justify picking 12 Years when they had given Gravity so many awards. Or they would have handed 12 Years more awards to justify its win. Either way, the unpredictability of this year's Best Picture race proves that sometimes a little drama can be found on Oscar night. Though if I still got 20 categories right it wasn't THAT exciting of a night.