The Great Beauty has won the best foreign language film Oscar at the 86th Academy Awards, defeating a field that included The Hunt, from Denmark, Cambodia's The Missing Picture and Belgium's The Broken Circle Breakdown. In doing so, it becomes the first Italian film since Life Is Beautiful in 1998 to take the award.

Directed by Paolo Sorrentino, whose previous films include The Consequences of Love and Il Divo, The Great Beauty is an evocation of a prosperous level of Roman society as seen through the eyes of jaded writer Jep Gambardella, played by Toni Servillo. The film has already won a string of awards, including best foreign film at the Baftas and Golden Globes.

The Academy Awards are taking place at the Dolby theatre in Los Angeles, and are being hosted by Ellen DeGeneres.

• Xan Brooks liveblogs the ceremony

• Full list of winners as they're announced