His Speech Was Better This Time Around

It's a tough choice. How could the Screen Actors Guild voters decide between these stellar 2014 Sag Award nominees for Best Actor in a Motion Picture? There's Bruce Dern for Nebraska, Chiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years a Slave, Tom Hanks for Captain Phillips, Matthew McConaughey for Dallas Buyer's Club, and last but not least, Forest Whitaker for Lee Daniels' The Butler. The 2014 Golden Globe in this category went to McConaughey, and it looks like the Guild agrees. The 2014 SAG Award winner for Best Actor is Matthew McConaughey.

Ostensibly, it was McConaughey's trophy to lose. After his Golden Globe win, it became clear he was on his way to becoming an awards season darling. His dynamic performance as an AIDs patient wowed viewers and obviously, critics. His questionable Globes' acceptance speech left a little to be desired, but this time around, he did better.

He honored his fellow nominees and acknowledged how their work "shines a light on this bull ride we call acting." And when it came time to acknowledge Dallas Buyers Club and what its story means, McConaughey did. He said it was an "important story about an important time" and continued that he was "humbled by [his character's] humanities and drunk off [his] obsessions." In some ways, McConaughey's speech was reminiscent of a spoken word poem, mostly for its bouncy cadence.

When all is said and done, though, it's worth mentioning that Forest Whitaker's nomination for his titular role in Lee Daniels' The Butler is his first and last this awards season. He was not nominated for the Golden Globe and Whitaker, let alone the entire movie, was completely snubbed by the Academy: It did not receive one nomination for a 2014 Oscar.

Congratulations to Matt, and like he said, keep on livin'.