Oscars: 12 Years A Slave best picture, but Gravity pulls in most gongs|

published 3 March 2014

ALFONSO CUARON'S space thriller Gravity landed seven Academy Awards last night but failed to win the coveted Best Picture gong – that accolade went to Steve McQueen's historical drama 12 Years A Slave.

So did the prizes end up in the right hands?

Some critics were "mystified" by the success of Alfonso Cuaron's Gravity. It may be a "superlative piece of entertainment, with state-of-the-art digital effects cunningly yoked to some old-fashioned hokey melodrama", writes Peter Bradshaw for The Guardian's film blog, but "I must express my reservations." Rather than being a great picture, he says, Gravity is merely a "technical achievement".

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HOLLYWOOD, CA - MARCH 02:(L-R) Actors Matthew McConaughey winner of Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, Cate Blanchett winner of Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role, Lupita Nyong'o winner of Best Performance by an Actress in a Sup

In effect, the competition between 12 Years A Slave and Gravity was "a battle between art and science", says Kate Muir in The Times. In the end, though, the Academy "chose wisely", rewarding Gravity for its "technical genius" but reserving the best picture award for its rival.

Controversy followed a number of nominees on the night, including Best Actress winner Cate Blanchett, who thanked director Woody Allen for casting her in Blue Jasmine. Many critics felt the acknowledgment was contentious due to recent child abuse allegations levelled against Allen, but most agreed that Blanchett's performance was a worthy winner. "Her Jasmine was one of the great female roles of the year," Muir says.

Best Actor went to Matthew McConaughey for his role in Dallas Buyers Club, "a movie that punctuated an amazing comeback for the actor, who last year delivered equally strong performances in the small film Mud and best picture nominee The Wolf of Wall Street", said Ann Hornaday in the Washington Post.

HOLLYWOOD, CA - MARCH 02:Actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie attend the Oscars held at Hollywood & Highland Center on March 2, 2014 in Hollywood, California.(Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images)

The biggest winner of the night, however, was host Ellen DeGeneres whose "epic selfie," a photograph taken during a break in proceedings with A-listers Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Julia Roberts, Jennifer Lawrence and Meryl Streep among others, became the most retweeted post in Twitter's history. The picture overtook a photograph taken of Barack Obama embracing his wife Michelle after winning a second term in office. That tweet garnered 778,424 retweets; Degeneres's effort went over the million mark within the space of 45 minutes and ended up with more than two million retweets.