(Photo: Francois Duhamel, Columbia Pictures) Story Highlights 'Gravity' takes top prize at Directors Guild Awards 
 
 '12 Years a Slave,' 'American Hustle' still front-runners for best picture 
 
 Best picture race the tightest in years 
 
 After years devoid of drama, the best-picture Oscar race is shaping up to be a cage match. With 10 Oscar nominations, Cuaron's film is likely to gain the most Academy Awards this year. In another: American Hustle, the caper comedy that has also been a regular on the award circuit, most importantly a best-ensemble prize with another critical Oscar forecaster, the Screen Actors Guild. With Gravity director Alfonso Cuaron's coronation at the Directors Guild of America Awards Saturday night, three films head into the March 2 Academy Awards with serious award hardware under their belts. However, like many DGA winners, "Argo" went on to win the best-picture prize at the Oscars. Among them was Bradley Cooper of "American Hustle," Rob Reiner of "The Wolf of Wall Street," Tom Hanks of "Captain Phillips," Sara Paulson of "12 Years a Slave."
– Alfonso Cuaron and Gravity added top film honors to their collection at last night's Directors Guild of America Awards, building momentum in what's seen as a tight three-way race to the Oscars. The award all but guarantees Cuaron the Best Director Oscar (though don't ask Ben Affleck about that particular almost-guarantee), and gives Gravity another boost over American Hustle and the faltering 12 Years a Slave, notes the AP. The latter two films had been seen as the strongest contenders in a flip-a-coin contest at the March 2 Academy Awards, but as Scott Bowles at USA Today notes, "Now the coin has three sides."