With the 86th Annual Academy Awards just a couple of days away - here is a look at the nominees of the best actress category.<br /> <br />First up is Amy Adams, who earned her fifth Oscar nod for her lead role in "American Hustle."<br /> <br />In the film she plays a con woman alongside con man Christian Bale, forced to work for an unconventional FBI agent.<br /> <br />Next up is Australian actress Cate Blanchett who got her sixth Oscar nomination for her role in Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine" as a down-on-her-luck former socialite.<br /> <br />The 44-year-old is considered a heavy favorite, after she swept all the lead actress prizes so far this year.<br /> <br />Sandra Bullock got her second nomination for her role in the special effects-rich film "Gravity."<br /> <br />Bullock plays an astronaut adrift in open space trying to get back to Earth.<br /> <br />Dame Judi Dench is in the mix with her seventh Oscar nod as an Irish woman in search for her son in "Philomena."<br /> <br />The 79-year-old actress has previously won an Oscar
