I'm aware of what the kids are talking about today.

Bonnaroo 2010 line-up!

Today is an important day because I now know that Steve Martin makes music. The world feels perfect again. If I were to ever go to Bonnaroo, it would be to see him. Not even joking. I know this entire thing feels really sarcastic. But seriously. Steve Martin is the freaking man.

Also GWAR would be hysterical/badass.

And despite my lack of interest in rap music, I too am under Jay-Z's spell and wouldn't mind bearing witness to him being awesome in person.

People are also excited about Tokyo Police Club, Baabal Maal, Jimmy Cliff, and Monte Montgomery. I don't know who any of these people are, but I sure do like their names.

IN OTHER NEWS: Saints Parade in New Orleans. It's totally happening. I didn't watch the Super Bowl. I only watched the commercials. Oh, and the half-time show, which I thought was pretty badass even though then men on stage could have died of natural causes at any time during the performance. (Because they're OLD.) But I'm glad the Saints won. New Orleans definitely needed a win. So, they're gonna have a parade now!

What else? Gmail buzz. I have been on gmail all day and this is the first I'm hearing of it... but as soon as I figure out exactly what it is and how it works, I'm pretty certain I'll love it. Because Google can do no wrong. Well..... okay, there was Google Wave, but we can forgive that, can't we? Everyone who ever knew what it was has already forgotten about it anyway.

And lastly on my agenda for the evening, NYC schools closed due to snow. Also Mike's job. And probably one of my jobs. Snow, y'all.

*K

I Have Found v2.75

JUST RELEASED.

New blog template! All the fabulous credit goes to http://ericulous.com/. As if you actually believe I created this by myself. Pah.

It's going to take some time to get used to, but I think it's pretty spiffy. See where it says SIDEBAR? ---->

Click it.

Yeah, the side bar pops out. That's just how I roll now.

Links up top. Cute Twitter link in the top right corner. Pictures of some hot chick. Best blog layout ever.

That's all. Direct all questions elsewhere.

*K
(I'm an Oscar Fish. The real mascot of the Oscars.)

Okay, kiddies. I've kept quiet about award season until now. I figured it didn't matter to whine about anything until the Oscar nominations were finally out. So what is the verdict?

Overall: okay, Academy. Okay.

Everything makes sense and was pretty easy to call - best actor noms, supporting actor and actress (why they even bothered nominating anyone besides Christoph Waltz and Mo'Nique...) Best Actress? Well, yes and no. We all know by now that Sandra Bullock is going to win, unless the Oscar angels grant me my one wish of Carey Mulligan walking away with the golden man. Helen Mirren, Gabourey Sidibe - makes sense. I haven't seen The Last Station, but it's Helen Mirren, so I'm willing to bet she's giving a Helen Mirren quality performance. Gabourey is fantastic in Precious, and were it any other year I think she'd have a serious shot. So, here comes the kicker. Meryl Streep for Julia and Julia.

Maybe it isn't a "kicker". Maybe I should have seen it coming. She's Meryl Streep. And she's nominated BECAUSE SHE'S MERYL STREEP. I would find it hard to take anyone seriously who could look at me and say that she deserves that nomination spot over Emily Blunt or Marion Cotillard. Julie & Julia was a really good movie. I loved it. I read the book the minute it was over. She was great, Amy Adams was great. They were both charming in a Nora Ephron penned feel good "chick flick". It is not - I WILL REPEAT - it is not an Oscar worthy role. And with so many other performances out there, I think it's embarrassing that the Academy felt the need to nominate her. And trust me, I think just as highly of Meryl as everyone else. But I'm realistic about it.

All of that aside, the winners are fairly easier to figure out.

But I'm here today to call shenanigans on the new NOMINATE EVERY MOVIE EVER rule.

Well, no. Not every movie ever. Because somehow A Single Man was overlooked for a sentimental, run of the mill movie like The Blind Side.

Why, dear Oscars, do you feel it's necessary to nominate TEN movies? I mean, TEN. Really? TEN? Is it really that difficult to make up your mind? I can't wrap my head around why this is a good or even relevant change. Did you feel, dear Oscars, you were leaving too many people out? Were you hurting feelings? Did someone complain to the teacher? But wait, this is HOLLYWOOD NOT KINDERGARTEN.

Movies get overlooked all the time, usually for lesser quality movies that sneak their way into the nominations. That sucks, it does, but that's how it works. If they were really concerned about this, maybe try to vote for quality movies, EH? We all know that five or ten nominees, the outcome will be the same. Let's be honest here.

Does this look right to you:

OSCAR NOMINATED THE BLIND SIDE.

UP, OSCAR NOMINATED FOR BEST ANIMATED FEATURE AND BEST PICTURE! BECAUSE WE LOVE TALKING DOGS!

I am, however, thrilled that this put An Education into the mix. But I would have understood had it not made it into the normal five movie list.

The whole change is just bizarre and I still can't understand the thought process. But, c'est la vie.

On that note, if Avatar wins best picture, I'll have lost faith in all humanity.

Not really.

But, well, a little bit. I'm not saying Avatar is bad, I'm really not. I did really enjoy it. I love Pocahontas. (HAH! I kid. Sort of). But it is NOT the best movie ever made. It is especially not the best movie of the year. Up against brilliant, original, WELL ACTED, finely crafted movies like The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, Up in the Air, and An Education... I'd find it hard to be at peace if a movie mainly being praised for it's technical feats walked away with the big prize.

Same goes for James Cameron as director - win all the technical awards there are, dude. You deserve them. It's really a stunning movie to look at. But best director? No, no, no. Kathryn Bigelow better walk away with that award. The Hurt Locker is so engaging and difficult and thrilling, it would be so unjust for her not to win. And, yeah, I'm a little biased being a woman. She would be the first woman to win best director. THE FIRST. I'm thinking... yeah, it's time.

Who knows what the academy has in store for picture and director - I honestly can't predict it.

Leaving you now with the full list of nominees, my personal picks bolded. Because you care. Deeply. Also comments in bold. Because sometimes I comment on things.

(Categories not bolded are categories I have absolutely no clue about. That happens. Sometimes I don't know things. Sometimes. I'll put those first.)


Best Short Film (Animated)
'French Roast'
'Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty'
'The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)'
'Logorama'
'A Matter of Loaf and Death' (Is it bad that I want this to win based on title alone?)


Best Short Film (Live Action)
'The Door'
'Instead of Abracadabra'
'Kavi'
'Miracle Fish'
'The New Tenants'


Best Documentary Feature
'Bruma VJ'
'The Cove'
'Food, Inc'
'The Most Dangerour Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers'
'Which Way Home'


Best Sound Mixing
'Avatar' (Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson)
'The Hurt Locker' (Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett)
'Inglorious Basterds' (Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano)
'Star Trek' (Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin)
'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen' (Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson) (Though, it has to be said, part of me would LOVE a Transformers movie to win a freaking Oscar just for the mass quantities of LOLs that would ensue).


Best Sound Editing
'Avatar' (Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle)
'The Hurt Locker' (Paul N.J. Ottosson)
'Inglorious Basterds' (Wylie Stateman)
'Star Trek' (Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin)
'Up' (Michael Slivers and Tom Myers)


Best Visual Effects
'Avatar' (Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones)
'District 9' (Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken)
'Star Trek' (Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton)


Best Cinematography
'Avatar'
'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'
'The Hurt Locker'
'Inglorious Basterds'
'The White Ribbon'


Best Film Editing
'Avatar'
'District 9'
'The Hurt Locker'
'Inglorious Basterds'
'Precious'


Best Original Song
'Almost There' from 'The Princess and the Frog' (Music and Lyric by Randy Newman) (This was really hard. I really did love the 'Crazy Heart' theme, and I know it will win, but I can't betray my Disney).
'Down in New Orleans from 'The Princess and the Frog' (Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman)
'Loin de Paname' from 'Paris 36' (Music by Reinhardt Wagner, Lyric by Frank Thomas)
'Take it All' from 'Nine' (Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston)
'The Weary Knd (Theme from Crazy Heart)' from 'Crazy Heart'
Music and Lyric by Ryan Bigham and T Bone Burnett


Best Original Score
'Avatar'
'Fantastic Mr. Fox'
'The Hurt Locker'
'Sherlock Holmes'
'Up'



Best Adapted Screenplay
Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell ('District 9')
Nick Hornby ('An Education') (Nick Hornby, who I talk about here, winning an Oscar would make things so, so right).
Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche ('In the Loop')
Geoffrey Fletcher ('Precious')
Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner ('Up in the Air')


Best Original Screenplay
Mark Boal ('The Hurt Locker')
Quentin Tarantino ('Inglorious Basterds') (Duhr.)
Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman ('The Messenger')
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen ('A Serious Man')
Peter Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy ('Up')


Best Animated Feature Film
'Coraline'
'Fantastic Mr. Fox'
'The Princess and the Frog'
'The Secret of Kells'
'Up'


Best Supporting Actress
Penelope Cruz ('Nine')
Vera Farmiga ('Up in the Air')
Maggie Gyllenhaal ('Crazy Heart')
Anna Kendrick ('Up in the Air')
Mo'nique ('Precious') (Any other year I would have said Maggie, because she's a beam of fantastic humble sunshine. But Mo'nique was out of this world.)


Best Supporting Actor
Matt Damon ('Invictus')
Woody Harrelson ('The Messenger')
Christopher Plummer ('The Last Station')
Stanley Tucci ('The Lovely Bones')
Christoph Waltz ('Inglorious Basterds')


Best Actress
Sandra Bullock ('The Blind Side')
Helen Mirren ('The Last Station')
Carey Mulligan ('An Education') (In a perfect world!!!!)
Gabourey Sidibe ('Precious')
Meryl Streep ('Julie and Julia')


Best Actor
Jeff Bridges ('Crazy Heart')
George Clooney ('Up in the Air')
Colin Firth ('A Single Man') (You will notice here I bolded two actors. Because either can win, and one will coughJeffBridgescough. But if anyone is competition for him, it's Colin Firth. He was really really fantastic in an overlooked movie. But all the hype about Jeff Bridges is totally true. So, I would be satisfied.)
Morgan Freeman ('Invictus')
Jeremy Renner ('The Hurt Locker')


Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow ('The Hurt Locker') (Girl power.)
James Cameron ('Avatar')
Lee Daniels ('Precious')
Jason Reitman ('Up in the Air')
Quentin Tarantino ('Inglorious Basterds')


Best Picture
'Avatar'
'The Blind Side'
'District 9'
'An Education'
'The Hurt Locker' (Wow, these ten nominees really make this easier. It's not like I'm overwhelmed with choices or anything. It's not like the voting is going to be more spread out now... this makes sense. Sense. (I'm being SARCASTIC.))
'Inglorious Basterds'
'Precious'
'A Serious Man'
'Up'
'Up in the Air'



*K


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