Best Actor: Jamie Foxx seems like a lock for Ray, but the Academy never likes to be told what to pick and they might use this opportunity to honor Clint’s acting because he’s never given a performance like this before with such a range of emotion. Paul Giamatti should have been nominated in place of Johnny Depp.
Best Actress: Hillary Swank is the only one who has any buzz, but I would welcome any other selection even though the only other performance I saw was by Kate Winslet. Actually, all five performances should receive an award in comparison to Julia Roberts who got one just for showing up in Erin Brockovich and revealing some cleavage. A stain on the Oscar that will never be washed away when they overlooked Ellen Burstyn’s brilliant performance in Requiem From A Dream.
Best Supporting Actor: Thomas Haden Church has been winning a lot of awards, but I would put money on Morgan Freeman. However, if Jamie Foxx wins for Collateral, Clint is a shoe-in for Best Actor. That will be the time for some mid-show wagering if you can find any takers looking for action.
Best Supporting Actress: There are still some people in the Academy who worked with Hepburn, so I’m giving this to Blanchett for her wonderful interpretation that captures Hepburn’s character without crossing over into a Martin Short, head-shaking parody.
Best Director: The Academy will get it wrong yet again and make the mistake of honoring Scorsese for one of his lesser efforts. This won’t make up for the fact that they blew it when Redford and Costner beat Marty out. Was there anyone clamoring for the release of Ordinary People on DVD to hear the commentary track? Marty should reject it if he wins. I would much rather be in the group of directors like Hitchcock, Kubrick and Hawks who have never won.
Article comments
1 - SteelR
I picked *Sideways* also, and would be curious to hear your reasons. The Pinot Noir book is cool (Hooray for U.C. Davis enology!)
2 - El Bicho
I'm rooting for Sideways as Best Picture because I found the film to be without any flaws, especially compared to the other five in this category. It's a hysterical romantic comedy that hid its true nature until the very end when Miles got into his car to drive north. Plus, I have been a big fan of all of Payne's films, which shouldn't count but does.
Glad you liked the book. I was hoping to link to an actual bottle of wine, but Amazon must not have a federal liquor license yet.