Gugu Mbatha Raw: Africa at this Year’s Oscars Contending for Best Actress

Last year’s Oscar saw Lupiter Nyongo making Africa proud from her performance in “12 Years a Slave”. This year Africa is featured again and looking up to Gugu Mbatha Raw for stunning performance is “Belle” to do the trick.

The film “Belle” Ghanaians would be proud to know was directed by a Ghanaian, Ama Asante who came down home and premiered the film at the Silver Bird Cinema.

Gugu Mbatha Raw is competing against giants of the industry. As to whether she stands the chance of swopping the award for Best Actress I leave that judgment to you after looking at the 5 other contenders. 

Gugu Mbatha-Raw

'Belle'

Two noms from the British Indie Film Awards instantly boosted her competitiveness. She's spellbinding in her valiant battles with 18th-century British bigotry and stupidity. Voters who have the DVD should linger and marvel.

Julianne Moore

'Still Alice'

Nominated twice as actress and twice as supporting actress, Moore finally gets a role robust enough to bring home the bacon. She sends her Columbia professor, mind slipping away due to early onset Alzheimer's, through all the grief stages with aching precision.

Rosamund Pike

'Gone Girl'

Helmer David Fincher's instincts were right on. Past femme fatale nominees (Glenn Close in “Fatal Attraction”; Gene Tierney in “Leave Her to Heaven”) didn't go half as far as Pike does in beguiling zigzags from vamp to victim and back.

Hilary Swank

'The Homesman'

Swank must bide her time sniffing out award-worthy roles, because whenever she pops up she's in one. Cuddy, a knot of anguish beneath a confident veneer, is her most affecting role since “Million Dollar Baby” snagged Swank her second Oscar.

Shailene Woodley

'The Fault in Our Stars'

She's the people's choice and teen choice (four PC Award noms and four TC Award wins for this and “Divergent”), but is she the Academy's? Her sensitive artistry may not have appeared on older voters' radar, but $300 million-plus grosses surely have.

Amy Adams

'Big Eyes'

Domestic abuse comes in many guises. Adams' character endures one of the subtlest and cruelest — the subjugation of a wife's talent by an ambitious spouse. Timely theme and demonstrable Academy affection for Adams could easily result in nomination No. 6.

Remember the famous speech of Lupiter when she picked the Oscar that faithful night “wherever you are, your dream is valid.”

Go Gugu! Go Mbatha Raw! Go and make Africa proud!