Back in October, I wrote a full review of Captain Phillips, which can be read here.

Now that awards season is in full swing, Captain Phillips is up for two major Oscars: Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor (Barkhad Abdi). Tom Hanks was surprisingly not nominated for Best Actor. With consistent nominations but no wins at The Golden Globes or the SAG Awards, it’s hard to say if Captain Phillips’ chances are very good.

Barkhad Abdi in Captain Phillips (blackfilm.com)

Barkhad Abdi in Captain Phillips (blackfilm.com)

Both categories are tough, with Abdi competing against Jared Leto, Jonah Hill, Bradley Cooper and Michael Fassbender. In the Best Picture category, eight other major films from the past year will be hard to beat. Captain Phillips is an incredible movie, but I think it’s unlikely it will take home either of these prizes. The movies nominated for Best Picture this year are heavy hitters. If Captain Phillips were to take home either of the awards, it would be a pleasant surprise to see Abdi walk away a winner. As I mentioned in my review, his portrayal of the movie’s antagonist is so carefully crafted that it causes you to think about good and evil as less of a binary opposition.

Captain Phillips is also nominated for Film Editing, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Best Adapted Screenplay. The technical awards will most likely go to Gravity, while 12 Years a Slave or Philomena might take Best Adapted Screenplay.