Hollywood’s awards season reaches its apogee on Sunday at the 87th Academy Awards, where “Birdman” and “Boyhood” will battle for best picture and veteran actors are likely to grasp their first golden Oscar statuettes. The film industry’s biggest night will serve up its share of suspense as three top honors – best picture, best director and best actor – are proving hard to predict, even for the most seasoned experts. But those nail-biters will come at the tail end of the three-hour ABC telecast from Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre, where first-time host Neil Patrick Harris will guide a show heavy on humor, magic and music from big artists like Lady Gaga.
