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Empanada is a Mexican-American food resembling a closed taco. By putting the emphasis on nada, the Spanish word for nothing, Joey makes it clear that his enemies aren’t eating anything at all.

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Expected to go toe-to-toe with Boyhood for best picture, Birdman is a dark, strange and thoroughly entertaining film directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. It stars Michael Keaton as an aging actor that used to play an iconic superhero, trying to write, direct, and act a Broadway play to restore his credibility.

Bolstered by an all-star supporting cast composed of Edward Norton, Emma Stone, Zach Galifianakis, and Naomi Watts, and featuring one of the most unique accomplishments in filmmaking this year – the entire movie is made to look like one take – Birdman has a good chance at winning the big one.

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On the cusp: “Life Itself”, the Roger Ebert documentary by Steve James. This was the second notable snub of James' career, as many expected 1994’s Hoop Dreams to take home a nomination as well.

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With David Oyelowo failing to get a Best Actor nomination for Selma, this means that all 20 actors and actresses nominated are white. Given the absence of female directors/screenwriters as well, 2015 was as good a year as ever to be a white male.

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In a year of firsts for Wes Anderson, this is the first of his non-animated movies to receive a Best Picture nomination, despite having acclaimed films like The Royal Tenenbaums and Moonrise Kingdom under his belt.

The story switches between 3 time periods, from the adventures of Zero and Monsieur Gustave H. in the 1930s, to the author of The Grand Budapest Hotel’s encounter with Zero in 1968, to a brief scene with an older Author in 1985.

The plot is delightfully ridiculous, as it revolves around the will of an octogenarian lover, but the comedy, dialogue, and a great performance by Ralph Fiennes more than earned Grand Budapest a spot on this list.

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Critics didn’t hold their tongue when it came to Interstellar’s story, but the one thing that they could all agree on was that it was stunning visually. Nolan stayed true to his refusal to use CGI and made full use of the IMAX camera, but what makes Interstellar the favorite for this category is Nolan’s collaboration with physicist Kip Thorne.

The Nolan brothers worked with Thorne to create an outer space that was not only breathtaking, but also very realistic as far as sci-fi movies go. Not to mention the fact that this is the only movie who can claim their visuals led to an actual important scientific discovery.

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On the cusp: the biographical drama about J.M.W. Turner called Mr. Turner, historical drama on the civil rights movement Selma, a Tim Burton comedy-drama Big Eyes, and the crime drama A Most Violent Year.

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On the cusp: Rene Russo in Nightcrawler, Jessica Chastain in A Most Violent Year, Tilda Swinton in Snowpiercer.

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Clint Eastwood’s adaptation of Chris Kyle’s autobiography was not without controversy, but the overall reception was positive. Considered a longshot to receive a Best Picture nomination coming into award’s season, it is now considered a true dark horse thanks to its dominant box office run and the Academy’s love for Eastwood.

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Pike captured both the terror and charm of “Amazing Amy” with her multifaceted performance in David Fincher’s Gone Girl. Being able to change to audience’s opinion of the character as the movie progressed was crucial to the success of a movie that dealt heavily with narrators and point-of-view. And seeing as Pike was able to transform from the victim to universally hated by the end of the movie, her performance was a smashing success.

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