Film Review: Mud

Director: Jeff Nichols

A 2012 coming of age drama set in a small city called De Witt in Arkansas. The film competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival but lost out to Amour by Michael Haneke and then was shown at the Sundance Film Festival in early 2013. Apparently writer/director Jeff Nichols always had McConaughey in mind for the role after watching Lone Star and was inspired as a youngster by the Mark Twain novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. 

Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) and Ellis (Tye Sheridan)

Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) and Ellis (Tye Sheridan) are two 14 year old boys who find a boat stuck in a tree on a small island in the Mississippi River. They want to claim for themselves but realise that somebody has been living in it and find Mud (Matthew McConaughey) who has been sleeping in it. They slowly learn that Mud is actually a fugitive wanted by the local police department and so the boys begin to help him by bringing food to help him survive.

Both the young actors, Tye Sheridan especially, but in impressive performances as the boys are suddenly thrust into an adult world full of women, murder and divorces. They have to adapt to their surrounding quickly and become wise beyond their years. Considering their relative inexperience, only Sheridan has a former acting credit in Terrence Malicks The Tree of Life, they share the anguish and joy of their formative years with us very well.

Mud (Matthew McConaughey)

The scenes with McConaughey on the island have an escapist feel to them, like they are in another world that is safe from the city and its troubles. A place where they can leave their problems behind for the time that they are there before they go back to face the world. Whilst the rest of the film really drives home what it means to be a teenage boy in a family that is falling apart despite the best efforts of the people involved.

4/4 Strong performances in this engrossing young drama

This week's releases

Captain America: The Winter Soldier: The latest in the Avengers series from the Marvel comic books. A full preview can be found here

The Past: French drama starring Bérénice Bejo who won the Best Actress Award on the films release at the Cannes Film Festival last year. The film deals with the complex divorce of Ahmed (Ali Mossafa) from Marie (Bejo) who is now in a relationship with another man who also has kids as well as a wife in a coma.

The Muppets Most Wanted: The second in the latest series of Muppets films sees the group touring in Europe when Kermit's doppelganger escapes from a Siberian gulag and swaps places with Kermit. Starring Ricky Gervais as the Muppets manager as well as Tina Fey and many cameos similar to the first film.

Film Preview: Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

The sequel to the popular 2005 film sees Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez reunite as they work mostly with the second book in the franchise. The film serves as a prequel and a sequel depending on the story. Rodriguez announced soon after the first film that a sequel was to be made but there were a number of delays in getting to the stage of actually shooting the movie. Finalizing the script took longer than expected and the Weinstein brothers were also blamed for holding up the project meaning it has been nearly a decade between films.

Like it predecessor, we see the film broken down into smaller stories with Bruce Willis returning as John Hartigan in an earlier story and Jessica Alba as Nancy. We also see two new stories involving new characters played by Josh Brolin and Joseph Gordon-Levitt with the film once again shot in its unique style.

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is released in the UK on 22nd August 2014 and the trailer is embedded below:

Film Review: Sin City

Director: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino

Based on the comic book series by Frank Miller, it took a lot of persuasion from Robert Rodriguez and even a test scene (the opening scene) to convince him that his version was a "translation, not an adaptation". Miller was initially skeptical after negative experiences with RoboCop but agreed after seeing the proof of concept scene. This initial scene was then used to help recruit other big names to the project like Bruce Willis, Elijah Wood and Benicio del Toro.

Marv (Mickey Rourke)

The film follows three distinct stories that happen in the same city which are book-ended with a prologue and epilogue. All three stories deal with the shady underworld in this urban sprawl and features people operating outside the law to get what they want, including the policemen themselves. The film employed the Sony HDC-950 high-definition digital camera, having the actors work in front of a green screen, that allowed for the artificial backgrounds (as well as some major foreground elements, such as cars) to be added later during the post-production stage. Shooting started before all the actors had signed on to the movie so in some scenes stand-ins were used.

At first its hard to get over the effects used to shoot this movie, its an absolute triumph of visual beauty with its stark contrasting black and greys against white with the occasional use of colour for emphasis. It was a bold but ultimately impressive decision as it makes it a completely unique work. But this aside I was incredibly disappointed with this movie, its reputation proceeded it and visual beauty aside it offered so little. Clive Owen displayed why he doesn't get offered big roles anymore with an incredibly hammy performance and Bruce Willis is as wooden and unconvincing as he has been in most of his recent roles. Only Mickey Rourke offers a lead role in one of the stories that has anything likable about it.

Kevin (Elijah Wood) showing the monochrome shooting style to its fullest

The stories themselves were uninteresting and generally left you following characters you had little feeling or affection for, with nobody to root for it leaves you feeling like a bystander without any interest in which way the plot turns. Many of the set-pieces were just setup to see rich red blood splatter against the black and white background for visual effect. Possibly ditching the middle story "The Big Fat Kill" which Tarantino directed might have given more time for character development and an improved plot to the other two stories. But even then I'd still have had Bruce Willis constant narration for nearly an hour which almost made me want to watch the movie on mute.

1.5/4 Beautiful but unintelligent dull plot

Film Review: Winters Bone

Director: Debra Granik

A 2010 independent movie which became renowned for being the breakthrough performance by Jennifer Lawrence that made her famous. She was nominated at the Golden Globes and the Oscars for Best Leading Actress but won neither, the film itself also made the Best Picture nominee list at the Oscars but again was unsuccessful. Although it did win the Grand Jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival where it was released.

Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) is a 17 year old living in rural Missouri with her two younger siblings and her mentally ill mother. They are a very poor family whose father Jessup has disappeared and left them, but after being arrested for manufacturing methamphetamine he posts bail by using their house as collateral. So Ree sets out to find her father and bring him home but runs into a seedy rural underworld involving her uncle Teardrop (John Hawkes).

Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) with her brother and sister.

A hillbilly noir as we are about as far more removed from world of gangsters so often portrayed on the big screen. This is small town Missouri where everybody knows each other and knows what each other is doing, outsiders are viewed with suspicion. Most of Ree's acquaintances in the village seem to be sort of relation to her and her family. The film starts out depicting the quite simple existence of the local people who in many ways live off the land foraging and killing their own food but from there it descends into a dark and mysterious world.

Jennifer Lawrence is excellent in the lead role, a vulnerable teenager but with an iron will to protect her family and her home from the bailiffs taking her home as well as from the local crooks. Her uncle played by John Hawkes is a deeply intense brooding character whose inner workings of his mind are never fully clear, he's prone to flying off the handle very quickly and Hawkes is at his eerie best similar to his role in Martha, Marcy, May, Marlene. Its deeply harrowing viewing as the film progresses but its two lead roles are simply superb and it produces a fascinating climax.

3.5/4 Bleak and harrowing drama

This week's releases

A Long Way Down: A chance meeting on New Years Eve brings four people together to form a strange family unit that helps all four of them with their difficult lives. Aaron Paul (who replaced Emile Hirsch who was originally cast), Imogen Poots, Rosamund Pike and Pierce Brosnan form the unlikely quartet in this adaptation of a Nick Hornby book.

About Last Night: A sequel to the mid-80's film starring Demi Moore and Rob Lowe but updated to the modern day. We follow two couples as their relationships move from the bedroom into a much more serious place over time. Also features a number of cameos include one from ex-NFL player Terrell Owens.

Starred Up: A film about a man named Eric (Jack O'Connell) who is transferred from a young offenders institute into a main prison where he finally meets a man who is a match for him in Oliver (Rupert Friend) who just happens to be his Dad. British prison drama for debut screenplay writer Jonathan Asser.

Film Review: American Gangster

Director: Ridley Scott

Denzel Washington with one of his more under-stated performances as he plays real life gangster Frank Lucas, who said he was excited about the film but admitted that only small parts of it were actually true. The 2007 biographical crime drama is one of the more intelligent gangster movies to ever hit the big screen, its far more than just running scams and shooting anyone who gets in your way. The elements of class in society and the human side to the character of Frank Lucas also separates this film from its counterparts.

In 1968, Frank Lucas inherits the criminal empire of Harlem gangster Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson (Clarence Williams III). He was previously his limo driver but after Bumpy has a heart attack he takes over and starts shipping a potent brand of heroin called "Blue Magic". This puts him on a collision course with honest cop Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) who is looking to stamp out the supply from the very top after a colleague dies of an overdose of "Blue Magic". Lucas also has to contend with the Italian Mafia and other corrupt cops who all want a part of his large profits for working in their territory.

Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) with a show of intimidation

Russell Crowe puts in one of his better performances, akin to his role in L.A. Confidential that helped put him on the map in Hollywood. The cast is impressive across the board but its Ruby Dee as Mama Lucas that steals the plaudits and rightfully so (she was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress). One of the criticism of the film was that Washington's portrayal lacked the  "illiterate, vicious and violent" nature of Lucas himself, showing him to be more of a man to be revered, although that is something that many gangster films are guilty of. The swagger we see from his role as a dirty cop in Training Day is lost here even though he's still working on the wrong side of the law.

2.5/4 Decent acting and an engaging story

The Rolling Picture Award Winners

Best Picture: Fruitvale Station

Snubbed by the Oscars mainly because it didn't campaign for its own inclusion/bribe the Oscar committee for a nomination. But Michael B. Jordan's performance as Oscar Grant III on that fateful New Years Eve at Fruitvale BART station was sensational and yet heart-breaking. Whilst the tension throughout the final 20mins is superbly shot.

Best Actor: Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station)

A real breakthrough performance on the big screen as he lives the final 24 hours in the life of Oscar Grant III who was unlawfully murdered. As he tries to leave behind his troubled past and moved onto a better life for him and his daughter it makes for sobering viewing.

Best Actress: Scarlett Johansson (Her)

The husky dulcet tones of Johansson lend a lot of credibility to the entire premise of Her. The fact she has such depth to her voice and feelings despite not having a physical form makes the entire concept of a relationship with a computer feel so much more realistic and possible. Her interactions with Joaquin Phoenix's character as well as the ups and downs could be representative of any relationship between a couple.

Best Supporting Actor: Vithaya Pansringarm (Only God Forgives)

The first film to bring Ryan Gosling and Nicholas Winding Refn together divided critics but it was the performance of the lesser known Vithaya Pansringarm which was where its true strength lied. The unrelenting almost heartless performance as the police office and self appointed angel of vengeance also showed a softer side during some rather odd karaoke routines in a local bar.

Best Supporting Actress: June Squibb (Nebraska)

Genuinely a weak category this year but June Squibb added a touch of familiar humour to the road drama of Nebraska. Her lack of tolerance towards her husbands Alzheimers and inexcusable behaviour at times over the years truly uplifts the entire movie whilst giving it a different edge.

Best Director: Alfonso Cuáron (Gravity)

Between the special effects and cinematography as well as the personal interactions between Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, Alfonso Cuáron created something unique in the field of cinema that arks back to the ground breaking sci-fi classic like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Solaris. 

The Christ Rock in Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back Award (Best small role/cameo): John Goodman (Inside Llewyn Davis)

Rob Lowe nearly stole this just for the work done to make his face look so warped from plastic surgery but the bitingly funny cameo from Goodman was true genius. His mocking of folk music and general disdain for those around him made for an intriguing middle act.

Best Soundtrack: Inside Llewyn Davis

The Coen brothers have helped conjure up a beautiful yet raw sound for this 1960's folk film with excellent vocal performances from Oscar Isaac, Justin Timberlake and Marcus Mumford who co-wrote one of the main songs.

Worst Film: Gangster Squad

Difficult to choose as there were some real stinkers with Ben Affleck and Justin Timberlake just missing the cut with Runner Runner but it was pipped at the post. For some an ensemble cast they should have invested in some better screen writers as the characters were poor whilst the dialogue was hammy and at times laughable. Expected so much more!

Film Preview: Touchy Feely

The latest film from director Lynn Shelton who previously worked with Rosemarie DeWitt in her 2012 film Your Sister's Sister, which also starred Emily Blunt and Mark Duplass. They reunite alongside Ellen Page, Josh Pais and Allison Janney for this independent drama. Touchy Feely showcases relationships involving siblings and the complexities that surround quiet but notable flings we may neglect to mention to our friends.

It was nominated for the Grand Jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 2013.

Abby (DeWitt) is a masseuse who suddenly develops an aversion to bodily contact that naturally affects her job. Her brother Paul (Josh Pais) works as a dentist, with his directionless daughter Jenny (Ellen Page). When Jenny impulsively states that Paul has a "healing touch" when it comes to his dental work, the fib becomes true as Paul's work begins to heal many of his customers and their dental issues.

Touchy Feely is released in the UK in March 2014 (official release date hasn't been set) and the trailer is embedded below as usual:

This week's releases

Need for Speed: Hot on the heels of the popular video game and the huge success of the Fast & Furious franchise, Need for Speed arrives to deliver more high speed action as a street racer fresh from prison seeks revenge after being framed by a wealthy associate. So he drives cross the country in a race to dispense his revenge. Stars Aaron Paul and Dominic Cooper.

The Zero Theorem: The latest film from Terry Gilliam takes place in very familiar territory for his fans. Qohen Leth (Christoph Waltz) is an eccentric and reclusive computer genius who lives in an Orwellian corporate world and suffers from existential angst. He waits for a phone call explaining the meaning of life. Under the instruction of a shadowy figure known only as "Management", Qohen works to solve the "Zero Theorem", a mathematical formula derived from Big Crunch theory

Veronica Mars: The TV series is now moving to the big screen. Years after walking away from her past as a teenage private eye, Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) gets pulled back to her hometown - just in time for her high school reunion - in order to help her old flame Logan Echolls, who's embroiled in a murder mystery.

Film Review: Wall-E

Director: Andrew Stanton

A 2008 science fiction comedy that actually features very little real dialogue through the first half of the film, the action was mostly CGI created by the popular animation studio Pixar. The film deals with the issues of the destruction of our planet, the impact  that the laziness of the human race has on the planet and consumerism as well as the ability of the main characters as robots to break their programming and develop emotions. It won the Best Animated Feature Award at both the Golden Globes and the Oscars in 2009.

Wall-E is a robot whose job is to collect up trash and compact it into small cubes to help tidy planet Earth. The planet is deserted due to the huge swathes of rubbish produced by mass consumerism facilitated by the mega-corporation Buy 'n' Large, once it becomes apparent that the task is too large the corporation shutdown all these trash compactors except one whilst they escape in large spaceships to live in space. Wall-E seems to have broken his programming and is capable of independent thought but after 700 years alone he finally has a visitor.

Wall-E and Eve

Despite being an animated film that appeals to children, it certainly deals with some much more complex topics like the ones stated above. Stanton stated that he named Eve after the biblical character because Wall-E's loneliness reminded him of Adam, Stanton is a practicing Christian. The film manages to cover and properly dissect all the points without them being distracting, we are always first and foremost rooting for the lovable Wall-E. Whilst his moments with love interest Eve produces some funny and touching moments it does leave a slightly predictable ending for the pair but the film develops excellently from the halfway point. Wall-E does capture the essence of the silent movie era, with very little actual dialogue in the first half so much is expressed by the eyes and body language of the robots themselves.

3.5/4 Sweet but clever satire of how we treat our planet

The Rolling Picture Previous Award Winners

With this years nominations released last week its time to take a look back at the previous winners of the most prestigious film awards that doesn't have its own ceremony.

Best Picture: 
2013: Untouchable
2012: Margin Call

Best Actor: 
2013: Omar Sy (Untouchable)
2012: Jean Dujardin (The Artist)

Best Actress: 
2013: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
2012: Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

Best Supporting Actor: 
2013: Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)
2012: Christoph Waltz (Carnage)

Best Supporting Actress: 
2013: Helen Hunt (The Sessions)
2012: Jessica Chastain (The Help)

Best Director: 
2013: Andrew Dominik (Killing Them Softly)
2012: J.C. Chandor (Margin Call)

Best Documentary
2013: Undefeated
2012: No Award

Best Soundtrack/Score: 
2013: Les Miserablés
2012: Drive

The Chris Rock Award (Best Cameo): 
2013: Chris Tucker (Silver Linings Playbook)
2012: Jeremy Irons (Margin Call)

Worst Film of the Year: 
2013: Cosmopolis
2012: Jack & Jill

The Rolling Picture Award Nominations

Best Picture: 
Gravity
Fruitvale Station
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Before Midnight
Her
Dallas Buyers Club
Prisoners
12 Years a Slave

Best Actor:
Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club)
Joaquin Phoenix (Her)
Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips)
Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station)
Robert Redford (All is Lost)

Best Actress: 
Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
Sandra Bullock (Gravity)
Amy Adams (American Hustle)
Scarlett Johansson (Her)
Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave)

Best Supporting Actor: 
Vithaya Pansringarm (Only God Forgives)
Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club)
Bradley Cooper (American Hustle)
Jake Gyllenhaal (Prisoners)
Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave)

Best Supporting Actress:
Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle)
Octavia Spencer (Fruitvale Station)
June Squibb (Nebraska)
Carey Mulligan (Inside Llewyn Davis)
Rooney Mara (Ain't Them Bodies Saints)

Best Director: 
J.C. Chandor (All is Lost)
Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station)
Spike Jonze (Her)
Paul Greengrass (Captain Phillips)
Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity)

The Christ Rock in Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back Award (Best small role/cameo):
John Goodman (Inside Llewyn Davis)
Rob Lowe (Behind the Candelabra)
Ed Harris (Gravity)
Chris Pratt (Her)
Robert De Niro (American Hustle)

Best Soundtrack: 
American Hustle
Inside Llewyn Davis
Her
Dallas Buyers Club
Nebraska

Worst Film: 
Gangster Squad
Anchorman 2
Runner Runner
Prince Avalanche
Man of Steel
Star Trek: Into Darkness

This week's releases

300: Rise of an Empire: The sequel to the surprise hit of 2006 starring Gerard Butler. Greek general Themistokles (Sullivan Stapleton) leads the charge against invading Persian forces led by mortal-turned-god Xerxes and Artemisia, vengeful commander of the Persian navy. Expect some epic battle scenes and plenty of gory deaths.

Escape from Planet Earth: Animated comedy from the artists who helped produce Ice Age: Continental Drift. The story takes place on planet Baab where admired astronaut Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) is a national hero to the blue alien population. But he finds himself caught in a trap when he responds to an SOS call from an alien planet.

The Grand Budapest Hotel: The latest Wes Anderson film stars an ensemble cast of huge proportions with Ralph Fiennes, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe and Edward Norton all appearing to name just four. The film follows the adventures of Gustave H (Fiennes) who is the concierge of the hotel between the World Wars and his most trusted friend Moustafa who is learning the ropes from him as we encounter the strange clients who frequent the rooms.

The Comeback of Matthew McConaughey

For many a year he was never taken that seriously in Hollywood, he was renowned for bad rom-coms that generally were poorly written, had mediocre box office takings and involved him being topless. In the serious acting circles he wasn't even on the radar but suddenly he now has an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Actor for Dallas Buyers Club as well as being in serious contention for an Emmy for his role as Rust Cohle in True Detective. 

To be fair this change didn't come about out of nowhere, McConaughey starred alongside Chris Cooper in the impressive Lone Star. A film set in Texas about the solving of a murder of a policeman played right into his strengths and his roots, McConaughey hails from Uvalde in Texas. He impressed here and then went onto to make a A Time to Kill with Samuel L. Jackson and Sandra Bullock where he plays a defense lawyer for a black man who is alleged to have murdered two people and raped a 10 year old girl. Against the backdrop of a resurgent Ku Klux Klan he's forced to fight for the mans freedom. This showed the promise of what would come about well over a decade later.

McConaughey picking up his Best Actor award at the Oscars

In the years inbetween was a lot of the formerly mentioned rom-coms that he then became renowned for with the likes of How to lose a Guy in 10 days, Failure to Launch and The Wedding Planner all having varying degrees of success and more failure whilst the terribly named Surfer, Dude probably representing the low point just before the resurgence in 2008. But following that he began to turn heads again with films like The Lincoln Lawyer and Killer Joe showing that potential we saw back in the mid-90's, his violent homicidal nature in William Friedkin's Killer Joe was stunning to watch. From there he barely looked back with more impressive performances in Mud and The Paperboy all leading him to the Oscar win for Dallas Buyers Club. 

Now all he needs is to complete the set with an Emmy win for the simply sublime True Detective which has its final episode of the first season next Sunday. His character Rust Cohle is a damaged yet obsessive Police Detective in Louisiana trying to solve a string of ritualistic murders, against the tide of the rest of the police force who believe the case to be over. His portrayal in this crime drama is stunning and one of the most intriguing performances I've watched on the small screen in quite a few years.

So what next for Mr McConaughey? The only known projects are a role in Christoper Nolan's new film Interstellar and a possible sequel of Magic Mike. But it will be interesting to see what the next few years have in store.

My Oscar Predictions Results

With the Oscars now done and the Awards season over (except for the all important Rolling Picture Awards which will see the nominations released this week). There is just time to see how close my predictions for the winners on Sunday night were:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave. CORRECT

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity). CORRECT

Best Actor in a Lead Role: Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club). CORRECT

Best Actress in a Lead Role: Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine). CORRECT

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club). CORRECT

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyongo (12 Years a Slave). WRONG

Best Original Screenplay: Her. WRONG

Best Adapted Screenplay: 12 Years a Slave. WRONG

Best Documentary: 20 Feet from Stardom. WRONG

In the main categories it was all going so well except for the Best Supporting Actress and after that it was downhill all the way. 5/9 being about average I guess. Cleveland Indians Pitcher John Axford successfully picked the winner of all 18 awards!

Oscar Winners 2014

BEST PICTURE:
12 Years a Slave - WINNER
BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:
Matthew McConaughey - Dallas Buyers Club - WINNER
BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE:
Cate Blanchett - Blue Jasmine - WINNER
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Jared Leto - Dallas Buyers Club - WINNER
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Lupita Nyong'o - 12 Years a Slave - WINNER
BEST DIRECTOR:
Alfonso Cuaron - Gravity - WINNER
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The Great Gatsby - WINNER
BEST MAKE-UP & HAIRSTYLING:
Dallas Buyers Club - WINNER
BEST SHORT FILM (ANIMATED):
Mr Hublot - WINNER
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM:
Frozen - WINNER
BEST SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION):
Helium - WINNER
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT:
The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life - WINNER
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:
20 Feet from Stardom - WINNER
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
The Great Beauty (Italy) - WINNER
BEST SOUND MIXING:
Gravity - WINNER
BEST SOUND EDITING:
Gravity - WINNER
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS:
Gravity - WINNER
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Gravity - WINNER
BEST FILM EDITING:
Gravity - WINNER
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN:
The Great Gatsby - WINNER
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:
Gravity - WINNER
BEST ORIGINAL SONG:
Let It Go - Frozen - WINNER
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
John Ridley - 12 Years a Slave - WINNER
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Spike Jonze - Her - WINNER