I Have Found

Though I was less than pleased to be awake before 9am today, I was lucky enough to catch the Oscar nominations as they were announced. As everyone who knows me knows, I've been on a movie crusade as of late, making a list of movies and crossing them off one by one. I haven't finished off the list yet, but I've seen enough to have some serious opinions about these nominees...

First off, the best picture nominees are not *too* surprising: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire, and The Reader. I've seen 3 out of 5 here (Milk, Slumdog, and The Reader). It's almost a sure thing at this point in the game that Slumdog Millionaire will take this award, which I do believe is fairly deserving. There's been a lot of talk about The Dark Knight being "snubbed", but judging by the previous award shows, I don't know why people were expecting the Oscar nom. Christopher Nolan was robbed a director nom, but I couldn't see the

Academy recognizing a comic book film: which, I hate to break it to the die hard fans, is exactly what it is. I can't completely form my opinion until I see the last 2 of these, but my heart would be overly content with The Reader taking this award. It was the most unexpectedly moving and enthralling film I've seen thus far, also turning in one of the finest performances I've seen in a long time. Which brings me to...

This is Kate Winslet's year. It has to to be. She's nominated for Leading Actress for The Reader, against Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Angelina Jolie, and Melissa Leo. I'd say her only real competition is Meryl for her work in Doubt. I think the Academy may realize they're overlooked Kate's work for too long. But you never know. They've surprised/pissed me off in the past.

Everything else seems pretty straight-forward; Heath Ledger for Dark Knight, Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler. I'm pretty livid that Leonardo DiCaprio was overlooked for Revolutionary Road, when his performance was just that: revolutionary, in a movie that I found less than fantastic. My dream wins? The Reader for Best Picture, Kate Winslet for Leading Actress, Sean Penn for Leading Actor (a very moving performance), Heath Ledger for Supporting Actor, Amy Adams for Supporting Actress, Stephen Daldry for Direction, The Reader for Adapted Screenplay, and In Bruges for Original Screenply. Obviously some of these choices may change after seeing the remainder of the movies, but that's how it stands as of now. I should be the Academy.

*K