Here Come the Swans

This, that, and the other.

My Photo
Name:

I like balsamic vinegar.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Ranking the Oscar nominees

If I were to rank the Oscar nominees and choose the winners:

Best Picture
1. The Reader
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. Milk
4. Frost/Nixon
5. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

1-4 are all great, but Ben Button was teh suck (zzzzzzzz). If the precursors are any indication, BP will go to Slumdog, and I'll be happy for Boyle and company.

Best Director
1. Danny Boyle
2. Stephen Daldry
3. Gus Van Sant
4. Ron Howard
5. David Fincher

Coin toss between Boyle and Daldry here, and I'll admit to being swayed by Boyle's body of work. Shallow Grave and Trainspotting are two of my all-time favorites.


Best Actor
1. Richard Jenkins
2. Mickey Rourke
3. Sean Penn
4. Frank Langella
5. Brad Pitt

Jenkins is my sentimental pick, but doesn't have a chance in hell. Rourke and Penn were both fantastic. (My prediction for the win on Sunday is Penn.)
What the **** is Brad Pitt doing in this category? Can you say "stick out like a sore thumb"?

Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet
2. Meryl Streep

Wow, I'm really underprepared in this category. Frozen River is sitting on our living room table, and will be watched before Sunday. Melissa Leo has the Richard Jenkins glad-to-be-nominated nod in this category, and as an obsessive fan of Homicide: Life on the Street, I'm really glad to see her recognized for her work.

Best Supporting Actor
1. Robert Downey, Jr.
2. Josh Brolin
3. Philip Seymour Hoffman

Still haven't seen the Batman movie, and I have little desire to see Revolutionary Road, but Michael Shannon won me over with his performance in this small indie called Shotgun Stories that I recently viewed on Sundance.

Best Supporting Actress
1. Marisa Tomei
2. Penelope Cruz
3. Amy Adams
4. Viola Davis
5. Taraji P. Henson

Cruz will probably win, but I'm rooting for Tomei.
If Davis had a larger role, she'd be rated higher, but really, her role is a cameo, and cameo nominees bug me.
For what it's worth, Taraji P. Henson was the best thing about Ben Button.

Best Original Screenplay
1. WALL-E
2. Milk
3. In Bruges

Three great screenplays! Glad to see In Bruges here.


Best Adapted Screenplay
1. The Reader
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. Frost/Nixon
4. Doubt
5. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Another great category, except for that freaking Button movie.

3 Comments:

Blogger Yum-Yum said...

What's the deal with all these weird ass movies? I mean, I haven't seen any of these. ;)

The Reader? #1? Wow, I didn't expect that.

You sound like Jon Stewart. (He openly mocked the dullness of the Ben Button movie a couple of weeks ago.)

It's nice to see that Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei lived up to the hype.

Oh, and could you slap the person over at CNN who spelled Ottawa "Ottowa" during their coverage of President Obama's brief visit. Thanks, that would be great. ;)

6:30 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Just so long as Slumdog gets more awards than Button, I will be happy... I guess. Button doesn't get the same profound reviews that Slumdog gets.

2:50 PM  
Blogger Karim Amir said...

Yummers, I've picked up on those Stewart swipes against Ben Button, and I giggle each time.

d. and I really liked The Reader, and The Wrestler was fantastic. I'm bitter it was nominated for BP.

Ottowa? Yeah, that deserves a slap. The next time we're in Hotlanta, I'll stop by CNN headquarters. :D

A local news station's website had report on l'affaire Michael Phelps in which the word "marijuana" was misspelled TWICE (and misspelled in two different ways). I'm normally not a grammar nazi, despite my job title, but I had to drop them a line to let them know about their faux pas.

3:52 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home