Scoresheet: 17 out of 24 (and pretty damn bored)

AFter getting of to a rocky start, I ended up doing better than I ever have before -- 17 out of 24 (70.8%). Does that mean I have to make an effort again next year? 


The show was awfully boring, even with Franco as a bonus. But Anne's dresses were divine (except that last one) and, well, if I didn't have my Facebook friends to snark with (and my mom in real life), I would be even grumpier. But at least it's over!


Best Picture
Winner: "The King's Speech"
My pick: "The King's Speech"

Best Director
Winner: Tom Hooper, "The King's Speech"
My pick: David Fincher, "The Social Network"

Best Actor
Winner: Colin Firth, "The King's Speech" 
My pick: Colin Firth, "The King's Speech"

Best Actress
Winner: Natalie Portman, "Black Swan" My pick: Natalie Portman, "The Black Swan"

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Christian Bale, "The Fighter"
My pick: Christian Bale, "The  Fighter"

Best Supporting Actress
Winner:Melissa Leo, "The Fighter" 
My pick: Hailee Steinfeld, "True Grit"

Best Adapted Screenplay
Winner: "The Social Network," Aaron Sorkin
My pick: "The Social Network," Aaron Sorkin

Best Original Screenplay
Winner: "The King's Speech," David Seidler
My pick: "The King's Speech," David Seidler

Best Animated Feature Film
Winner: "Toy Story 3"
My pick: "Toy Story 3"

Best Foreign Film
Winner: Nominees:  "In a Better World" (Denmark)
My pick: "In a Better World" (Denmark)

Best Art Direction
Winner: "Alice in Wonderland"
My pick: "Inception"

Best Costume Design
Winner: "Alice in Wonderland," Colleen Atwood
My pick: "Alice in Wonderland," Colleen Atwood

Best Documentary
Winner: "Inside Job" 
My pick: "Exit Through the Gift Shop"

Best Film Editing
Winner: "The Social Network"
My Pick: "The Social Network"

Best Cinematography:
Winner: "Inception"
My pick: Roger Deakins, "True Grit"  

Best Makeup
Winner: "The Wolfman"
My pick: "The Wolfman"

Best Sound Editing
Winner: "Inception" 
My pick: "Inception" 

Best Sound Mixing
Winner: "Inception"
My Pick: "Inception"

Best Visual Effects
Winner: "Inception"
My pick: "Inception"

Best Documentary (Short Subject)
Winner: "Strangers No More"
My pick: "Strangers No More"


Best Original Score - somehow this got left off my list of picks (along with Original song). But I swear I got it right BEFORE they announced it.
Winner: "The Social Network"
Meant to pick: "The Social Network"


Original Song - Oops (see above)
Winner: "We Belong Together," Toy Story 3
My pick (BEFORE the announcement): "If I Rise," 127 Hours

Best Visual Short Film (Animated)
Winner: "The Lost Thing"
My pick: "Madascar, carnet de voyage (Madascar, a Journey Diary)"

Best Short Film (Live Action)
Winner: "God of Love"
My pick: "God of Love"

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My Oscar Ballot: I can't believe I voted on the whole thing

After much procrastination, here's my complete list of Oscar predictions. I've already elaborated on my "no-brainer," "educated guess" and "head-scratcher" reasoning in the major categories here and, if I can muster up any rationalizations for the remainder, I've included them below. Even though I regret it practically every year, I couldn't help but throw in a few votes that are more wishful thinking than the cold and likely truth. But, when it comes down to it, your heart is more valuable than your accuracy (at least when it comes to Oscar ballots).


Best Picture
Nominees: "Black Swan," "The Fighter," "Inception," "The Kids Are All Right," "The King's Speech," "127 Hours," "The Social Network," "Toy Story 3," "True Grit," "Winter's Bone"
No-brainer: "The King's Speech"


Best Director
Nominees: Darren Aronofsky, "Black Swan;" Davis O. Russell, "The Fighter;" Tom Hooper, "The King's Speech;" David Fincher, "The Social Network;" Joel and Ethan Coen, "True Grit"
Head-scratcher: David Fincher, "The Social Network"


Best Actor
Nominees: Javier Bardem, "Biutiful;" Jeff Bridges, "True Grit;" Jesse Eisenberg, "The Social Network;" Colin Firth, "The King's Speech;" James Franco, "127 Hours"
No-brainer: Colin Firth, "The King's Speech"


Best Actress
Nominees: Annette Bening, "The Kids Are All Right;" Nicole Kidman, "Rabbit Hole;" Jennifer Lawrence, "Winter's Bone;" Natalie Portman, "Black Swan;" Michelle Williams, "Blue Valentine"
Educated Guess: Natalie Portman, "The Black Swan"


Best Supporting Actor
Nominees: Christian Bale, "The Fighter;" John Hawkes, "Winter's Bone;" Jeremy Renner, "The Town;" Mark Ruffalo, "The Kids Are All Right;" Geoffrey Rush, "The King's Speech"
Educated Guess: Christian Bale, "The  Fighter"


Best Supporting Actress
Nominees: Amy Adams, "The Fighter;" Helena Bonham Carter, "The King's Speech;" Melissa Leo, "The Fighter;" Hailee Steinfeld, "True Grit;" Jacki Weaver, "Animal Kingdom"
Head-scratcher: Hailee Steinfeld, "True Grit"


Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominees: "127 Hours," "The Social Network," 'Toy Story 3," "True Grit," "Winter's Bone"
No-brainer: "The Social Network," Aaron Sorkin


Best Original Screenplay
Nominees: "Another Year," "The Fighter," "Inception," "The Kids Are All Right," "The King's Speech"
Educated guess: "The King's Speech," David Seidler


Best Animated Feature Film
Nominees: "How to Train Your Dragon," "Illusionist," "Toy Story 3"
No-brainer: "Toy Story 3"


Best Foreign Film
Nominees: "Biutiful" (Mexico), "Dogtooth" (Greece), "In a Better World" (Denmark), "Incendies" (Canada), "Outside the Law" (Algeria)
Head-scratcher: "In a Better World" (Denmark)
It's hard to take a category seriously that doesn't include "I Am Love" (Italy), "Carlos" (France) or "Of Gods and Men" (France), so I don't feel all that terrible that I've only seen two of the five nominees --"Dogtooth" and "Biutiful," the former an occasionally riveting but mostly disappointing excuse to get pervy on screen, and the latter an indulgent mopefest (with a good actor suffering through). So I'm going with the Danes--and most Oscar prognosticators--with my pick here.


Best Art Direction
Nominees: "Alice in Wonderland," "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1," "Inception," "The King's Speech," "True Grit"
Head-scratcher: "Inception"
If voters got lazy and just started checking "The King's Speech" for everything, I'm screwed in this category--if not many others. "Alice" could be a winner here as well but I'm hoping voters will recognize "Inception" for its visual appeal, which I found dazzling- and unexpectedly architectural.


Best Costume Design
Nominees: "Alice in Wonderland," "I Am Love," The King's Speech," "The Tempest," "True Grit"
Educated Guess: "Alice in Wonderland"
Colleen Atwood's designs rescued Tim Burton's film from total madcap drudgery.


Best Documentary
Nominees: "Exit Through the Gift Shop," "Gasland," "Inside Job," "Restrepo," "Waste Land"
Educated Guess: "Exit Through the Gift Shop"
Because I really want to see what happens when Banksy's name is called (plus the film is fantastic and, I believe, true).


Best Film Editing
Nominees: "Black Swan," "The Fighter," "The King's Speech," "127 Hours," "The Social Network"
Head-scratcher: "The Social Network"
A pretty impressive category indeed, but I'm guessing voters will want to bump up "Social Network's" Oscar count, and this category is as justifiable as any.


Best Cinematography:
Nominees: "Black Swan," "Inception," "The King's Speech," "The Social Network," "True Grit"
Educated Guess: Roger Deakins, "True Grit"  
After nine nominations, Deakins deserves an Oscar already. And the film is simply gorgeous.


Best Makeup
Nominees: "Barney's Version," "The Way Back," "The Wolfman"
Educated Guess: "The Wolfman"
Most boring list of nominees ever and I hate that I even have to think about this crappy movie again, let alone pick it as a winner for something.


Best Sound Editing
Nominees: "Inception," "Toy Story 3," "TRON: Legacy," "True Grit," "Unstoppable"
Educated Guess: "Inception" 
I suspect voters will dump a lot of these technical awards on "Inception" and leave it out of most everything else. Appropriate, I think (except for leaving Nolan out of the director category). But it would be really fun if "Unstoppable" took home the statue.


Best Sound Mixing
Nominees: "Inception," "The King's Speech," "Salt," "The Social Network," "True Grit"
Educated Guess: "Inception"
Ditto above, with "Salt" as the most entertaining spoiler.


Best Visual Effects
Nominees: "Alice in Wonderland," "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1," "Hereafter," "Inception," "Iron Man 2"
No-brainer: "Inception"
I just refuse to believe that they'll snub Nolan here, especially with competition like "Hereafter" for God's sake.


Best Documentary (Short Subject)
Nominees: "Killing in the Name," "Poster Girl," "Strangers No More," "Sun Comes Up," "The Warriors of Qiugang"
Head-scratcher: "Strangers No More"
Since I've seen nothing in this category, I'm going with the one that sounds most uplifting, in this case Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon's film about an Israeli school for refugee children from around the world.


Best Visual Short Film (Animated)
Nominees: "Day & Night," "The Gruffalo," "Let's Pollute," "The Lost Thing," "Madascar, carnet de voyage (Madascar, a Journey Diary)"
Head-scratcher: "Madascar, carnet de voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)"
Wouldn't it be nice if the Academy took a pass on Pixar this year (for "Day & Night," which I did enjoy) and gave some gold to an artist, Bastien Dubois, who transfixed us with his animated travel scrapbook? I think so.


Best Short Film (Live Action)
Nominees: "The Confession," "The Crush," "God of Love," "Na Wewe," "Wish 143"
No-brainer: "God of Love"
Probably my most cynical pick sine I really disliked writer/director/star Luke Matheny's goofy Woody Allen rip-off. But the competition is weak and Matheny has been quite savvy promoting himself around Hollywood.


There you have it. And please keep in mind I take no responsibility for how my selections harm or help your attempt to win the Oscar pool. 

Enjoy the show!

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Oh, Oscar.....

Could it possibly be almost over? --oops.. I mean, almost here? I'm talking about the Oscars of course and, well, I've been sick of them since early November. Not that I haven't enjoyed the stacks of screeners that appeared in Fed Ex packages on my doorstep every afternoon or the....well, that's pretty much all I've enjoyed.

But as someone that actually gets paid to write about movies (a rarity these days), I mustered up some enthusiasm and spouted and speculated along with the rest of 'em, as you'll see in my expanded "No Brainer," "Educated Guess," and "Head-Scratcher" picks from today's paper. (Here's hoping I get my predictions for all of the categories posted before the ceremony starts on Sunday evening!)

It wasn't always this way. In fact, I was obsessed with everything Hollywood all the way into my mid 20s when I actually lived there and became a part of it--albeit a miniscule part that had me making reservations for power lunches instead of actually attending them.

The thrill of celebrity lasted for a year or two but, when I got a job as a junior publicist, I finally discovered that the emperor had no clothes. In my mind, those glossy magazines with movie stars on the cover became nothing but negotiations. All those awards shows were just pageants designed to sell movie tickets and toothpaste during commercials. And everyone was in on it. The magic was gone.

In the dozen or so years since this disillusionment, I've been able to find a middle ground. A place where I can love film, follow industry trends and manage to keep my dignity. But I still have a problem with the whole concept of picking one film as a "winner" over another. How can something as subjective as art "beat" another piece of art in a contest, let alone one with as many arbitrary rules, restrictions and barriers to entry as the Academy Awards? And yes, film is art (or it should aspire to be at least).

As a critic I find the whole thing ridiculous.

As a woman with a borderline disturbing celebrity crush on James Franco, Sunday night is gonna be awesome.

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An Appetizer of Oscar Picks

While the bulk of my "big category" Oscar picks will appear in tomorrow's Union-Tribune, AOL City's Best asked me -- along with San Diego City Beat Film Editor Anders Wright and KPBS Film Critic Beth Accomando--for my opinion on Best Picture, Actor, Actress and Original Screenplay winners.

The three of us are nothing if not entirely consistent in our opinions. Could this mean I might actually have a good showing on my Oscar ballot? Well, I couldn't do any worse than last year! (Thankfully those predictions are lost in the ether, but let's just say I was all about "Avatar.")

Here's the City's Best story by Jennifer Kester.

I'll post my expanded U-T picks tomorrow and, hopefully, a comprehensive list of my predictions (guesses?) in all categories before the Sunday ceremonies. Go Franco!

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Review: Unknown (2 1/2 stars); Cedar Rapids (3 stars)

Maybe it's the February doldrums at the cineplex, or maybe I just have a soft spot for Liam Neeson, but I found "Unknown" to be entirely satisfactory. Believe me, that exceeded my expectations. If you've seen all the Best Picture nominations and are sick of staying home to watch Netflix streaming (you don't still have cable do you?), then it could be worth checking out for some popcorn-munching fun. At the very least, you'll finally know whether or not January Jones can act in a role besides that of spoiled brat Betty Draper. Or you can just find out by reading my full review.

I also caught "Cedar Rapids" last night, a film starring Ed Helms ("The Hangover," NBC's "The Office") as a naive, small-town insurance agent on his first trip to the "big city" for a convention. The film received mixed reviews at Sundance this year and, for the first half of the film, I could see why. Helms is adorably pathetic in a way that makes you shake your head and smile (if in a condescending, "big city" way), but the well-worn stereotype doesn't exactly make you laugh out loud.

But the movie's sweet-with-a-coating-of-vulgarity sensibility starts to gel by the time Helms settles in to Cedar Rapids and gets a rhythm going with his fellow conventioneers, played by an outrageous sad-sacky John C. Reilly (always good), a straight arrow Isiah Whitlock Jr. (known primarily for his "sheeeeeettt"-spewing corrupt state senator from HBO's "The Wire," a source for several jokes in the film), and an unexpected, red-headed Anne Heche in a role that hopefully means a comeback. As the group romps around the hotel on scavenger hunts, late-night swims in the indoor pool, and trips to the hotel bar,  Helm's shiny-happy view of the world gets stripped away and takes him to some dark places. Sad for him, but mostly enjoyable for us. And his crisis creates a bond between his new-found friends that makes for some aww-shucks sweetness, if not some genuine ruminations on the nature of true friendship.

As my friend said upon exiting the theater last night, that movie was NTS--Not Too Shabby. Yes, she stole that from the movie, but it's all too appropriate.

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