This film publicity image released by Fox Searchlight shows Chiwetel Ejiofor in a scene from “12 Years A Slave.” This year’s best picture race at the 86th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 2, 2014, has shaped up to be one of the most unpredictable in years. The favorites are “12 Years a Slave,” “Gravity” and “American Hustle.” (AP Photo/Fox Searchlight Films, Jaap Buitendijk, file)