We’ve gone to a more “weighted” points system this year, so that random choices on Live Short Film or Sound Editing don’t sway the results overmuch — Mom’s friend Sue had to bow out this year so it’s just the two of us. We’ve resolved to make this a bigger thing next year, but with my travel schedule and Mom being sick all this week, we’re happy that we got the snacks together.

Been watching the red carpet some this afternoon, so far Jennifer Lopez has the best dress – Sandra Bullocks looks very Oscar-worthy, too!

Ok, the picks, then I have to run back to the living room:

Best Picture: The Hurt Locker
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges
Best Actress: Sandra Bullock
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz
Best Supporting Actress: Mo’Nique
Best Original Screenplay: The Hurt Locker
Best Adapted Screenplay: Precious

That’s not my whole ballot, but those are our highest weighted categories

Hope you’re watching and enjoying the show! Good Luck Kathryn Bigelow!

The Hurt Locker is an intense film. Set in Iraq in the middle of the war, it follows a 3-man team of bomb squad technicians. After a mission that results in the death of their leader,  the team is taken over by Sergeant Will James (Jeremy Renner), and his seeming recklessness and disregard for protocol and procedure shocks Sergeant J.T. Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldrige (Brian Geraghty).

Kathryn Bigelow delivers a suspenseful look at this little-seen part of the war in Iraq, where Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) are responsible for many more casualties than combat. The opening quote: “The rush of battle is often a potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug,” is from a book by journalist Chris Hedges called War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning. Mark Boal (In The Valley of Elah) gives us a script, and a lead character, that exemplifies that quote. Renner’s Sgt. James at first comes off as cocky, a swaggering cowboy that only cares about the rush. He both bewilders and awes his teammates, who aren’t sure if they can make it through their final 38 days in rotation with this crazy man at the helm.

Renner is captivating as Will James. Bigelow and Boal never explicitly state why James is so driven to defuse bombs. You understand, though, that it’s just what he is good at, what he thinks he is on the earth to do. He isn’t interested in just making it through his rotation and going safely home to family, he is a man obsessed with understanding explosives and the people who build them. People who are often watching him as he defuses their bombs, a fact the movie makes clear at almost every point. Never has an insurgent populace been shown more vividly in film.

The movie is probably the best one of the 2009 batch. It tells an honest story without taking a political stance. It’s not about whether the war is right or wrong — plenty of other movies have tackled that question — it is about the motivations of the men who fight, about what they do every day in order to get up and face another day in the desert. Bigelow has earned whatever honors the Academy bestows upon her next month.

Avatar vs. The Hurt Locker – These two movies both have 9 nominations total, and are the front-runners for Best Picture. I don’t really like the playing up of the James Cameron-Kathryn Bigelow competition that looks to be the lead for every Oscar story today. First of all, they were married a LONG time ago, for not all that long (1989-1991) and have remained friends. Cameron has publicly said that he thinks The Hurt Locker is a great film, notably when he accepted his Golden Globe for best director and said he thought Bigelow should have won. He’s called it his favorite film this year. Can we just let the movies stand on their own? Avatar was a breakthrough in terms of the CGI and the 3D, but it’s nothing special story-wise. I’m fine with it being included in the nominations. It’s groundbreaking, and I’m not being sarcastic. I saw Avatar in IMAX 3D last week. After hearing both that the special effects were jaw-dropping and that the story was boring (in some cases from the same person), I wasn’t expecting much from the movie itself, but I figured I should see it on as big a screen as possible to really enjoy the 3D. It didn’t disappoint in that regard, and the story was inoffensive. It reminded me of a kid’s movie, with heavy-handed themes and symbolism, and mostly simple caricatures rather than complex characters. But it wasn’t BAD. It’s just not, once you strip away the special effects, as good as The Hurt Locker.

Increasing the Best Picture field to 10 movies doesn’t seem to have affected the overall picture that much. Hopefully the inclusion of popular movies like The Blind Side, District 9 and Up will have little effect other than to boost viewers. I suppose, if nothing else, the inclusion of District 9 helps The Hurt Locker, as sci-fi fans among the voters may go there instead of Avatar when casting their vote. The apartheid-allegory should also benefit from it’s nomination when it comes to deciding who takes home the award for Adapted Screenplay. The Blind Side‘s inclusion boosts Sandra Bullock‘s chances in Best Actress, and Up should certainly not go home empty-handed, with 4 other nominations, one of which being Best Animated Feature.

There were some notable exceptions, in my opinion, in most categories. I would have liked to see Best Picture include Crazy Heart. The acting nominations were pretty solid, though I was sorry not to see Julianne Moore in Supporting Actress for A Single Man. Where the Wild Things Are was completely snubbed, and that suprised me. While it wasn’t narratively the best film, the wild things alone should have garnered some kind of art or visual effects award.

All in all, I’m looking forward to the show! We’re adding a trophy to the mix this year, it’s apparently my assignment to find something appropriate.

Click to visit the film’s website

… a review of a movie you probably have never heard of, unless, like Filmista, you are a fan of the TV show Greek (Monday night, 10 pm/9 central, ABC Family). Specifically, you would probably need to be a somewhat-rabid fan of one of the stars of said show, Scott Michael Foster.

The movie is Teenage Dirtbag, and I downloaded it from iTunes recently. It deserves a little bit of love

This is the first film from writer/director Regina Crosby, who also plays a small part in the movie. Based on “true events,” the story is set in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and told in flashbacks by Amber, a young, pretty, pregnant woman. The story is about a boy she knew in high school named Thayer Mangeres. She hears some disturbing news, and we learn her history with him as she reflects on their relationship.

Amber is a popular girl, a cheerleader, and while it is never explicitly stated, it is easy to assume privileged — she plays tennis, her family owns at least one boat. Thayer is a troubled kid, and he seems to delight in tormenting Amber. Their names are alphabetically close, and so they are often seated next to each other in class. You get the impression that this has gone on forever, and it is not until they are in the same creative writing class that they each begin to see beyond the other’s walls and get to know each other through poetry and notes exchanged in study hall. We learn that Amber may not have everything as together as she appears to, and Thayer may not be quite the dirtbag everyone assumes.

Strong performances from both the leads, especially Scott Michael Foster, really make this glimpse into the brutal hierarchy of high school ring true. Foster’s Thayer will break your heart with all the things he isn’t saying. Noa Hegesh is perfectly restrained as Amber. making those moments when she is engaged and animated with Thayer all the more meaningful. Those glimpses into her personality hint at depth beyond her cheerleader mask.

The creative writing teacher, played by Michael Bradley,  creates an environment where the students drop their defenses and really are themselves. They feel safe enough to express painful truths. “Russko” is the teacher every struggling teenager wishes they had, yet it’s clear he worries that he isn’t able to do enough to help them.

This is a movie that claws its way into your brain and isn’t easily shed. It’s not a perfect film, and one shouldn’t expect that on Crosby’s first produced script, but she has delivered a remarkable portrait of high school – all of the drama is intact without feeling trivial. We are shown, with the perspective of adulthood, that an impulsive action can have consequences that can’t be apologized away, especially in the pressure cooker of a high school classroom.

Teenage Dirtbag is available on DVD and for download through iTunes.

In the interest of moving right along to discussing the nominations, I’ll spare you the review-babble and just give you the list.

11) Young Victoria

12) A Single Man

13) Nine

14) (500) Days of Summer

15) Avatar

16) It’s Complicated

17) Julie & Julia

18 ) The Blind Side

19) The Lovely Bones

20) The Road

21) Where the Wild Things Are

Moving on!

7) Inglourious Basterds – Quentin Tarantino gives World War II his own particular kind of treatment with this alternate-history style revenge story starring Brad Pitt. It’s about a group of Jewish-American soldiers (The Basterds) in Nazi-occupied France. 10 Critic’s Choice nominations, 4 Golden Globe nominations. The ensemble is nominated for a SAG award, as are Diane Kruger and Christoph Waltz, in supporting roles. The movie was released this summer and is no longer in first-run, but may make an awards-season appearance in your local theater. The DVD came out this week.

8 ) A Serious Man – This is a black comedy written and directed by the Coen Brothers. It stars Tony Award nominee Michael Stuhlbarg as Larry Gopnik, a physics professor whose life starts falling apart when his wife decides to leave him because his brother won’t move out. Two Critic’s Choice nominations (Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay), a Golden Globe nomination for Stuhlbarg, and the NBR award for original screenplay. 87% fresh on RT. Wish me luck in finding this film playing anywhere; it had a limited U.S. release back in October, and isn’t currently in any Dallas theaters. No DVD release date set at this time.

9) Invictus – You want a recipe for Oscar bait? Have Clint Eastwood direct Morgan Freeman playing Nelson Mandela. The movies chronicles Mandela’s quest to bring apartheid-torn South Africa together with the love of sport – in this case, Rugby. It’s a true story set in Mandela’s first term as President in 1995. Critic’s Choice nominations for the film include Best Picture, Best Actor for Freeman, Best Director for Eastwood, and a supporting actor nomination for Matt Damon as the team captain. Three Golden Globe nominations, an NBR award for Freeman (with George Clooney for Up in the Air) and Eastwood, SAG award nominations for Freeman and Damon. 77% fresh on RT. Wide release began on December 11th.

10) The Last Station – Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer star in this historical drama about Russian author Leo Tolstoy. Mirren plays his wife Sofya, and the film depicts a period late in their marriage. Both actors are nominated for Golden Globes and SAG awards. It would be shocking not to see Mirren nominated for an Academy Award. 67% fresh on RT (though it’s 83% if you select RT’s top critics tab). Limited release now, wide release on January 15th.

Traveling tomorrow, will post the remainder of the list later this week!

The thing is this; I haven’t seen most of these films, either because I was too broke when they were in the theater (earlier in the year when I was unemployed), because they haven’t come out yet, or have just been released.

First, how my list is formed. It’s not rocket science, you don’t need a calculator or anything. I do use Excel, though, tee hee.

Steph’s Scheme For Oscar Movie Prep

1) Make list of all movies nominated for (in no particular order) the Golden Globes, SAG Awards, Critic’s Choice, Independent Spirit, Gotham Awards, and any other awards season list I can get my grubby hands on.

2) Score them. It’s not that there’s any specific mathematical formula, but Golden Globe and Critic’s Choice nominees get extra weight, as do SAG awards. Check which movies have been nominated for the Annies (sort of like the animated movies Oscars) and mush together nods for Independent Spirit and Gotham.

3) National Board of Review is useful as sort of a tiebreaker.

4) See which movies have the most nominations/awards/recognitions. I don’t count song/score awards as a rule (yes, I know, music is important, but there are a lot of BAD movies with good music. If the movie is good, and the song is nominated, yay – it’ll be on my list somewhere else), or most “breakthrough” or “young actor” awards, unless the film is already on my list for something else. Visual effects awards sort of fall into that category too, though with the expanded Best Picture category that might require some rethinking.

5) Visit Rotten Tomatoes to get an idea of how really GOOD the movies are that only reviewers have seen yet, since sometimes movies (cough cough, Nine) have a lot of buzz for no really good reason. That doesn’t necessarily exclude them (cough cough, Nine) from my list, though

6) I usually try to prioritize them by which ones I want to see most, not necessarily who I think will win, since I haven’t seen most of them yet. Funny how that works So at this point it’s purely preference. For example, I tend to not enjoy animated movies all THAT much, as a rule. So you won’t find Up on my list. Or Coraline, though I might go rent it anyway because I love Neil Gaiman.

So, with no further jibber-jabber:

1) The Hurt Locker – This movie, about an American bomb disposal team in 2004 Iraq, has gotten nothing but praise since its release earlier this year (98% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). I had planned to go see it when it was in theaters, but something came up and I never made it. It’s nominated for 8 Critic’s Choice awards (the categories pretty closely parallel Oscar) 3 Golden Globes, and 2 SAG awards (ensemble and lead actor). It comes out on DVD January 12th.

2) Crazy Heart – This one isn’t top of my list in number of nominations, but pretty much every awarding body has Jeff Bridges on its list for his portrayal of Bad Blake, a “broken down, hard-living country music singer” according to the official Fox Searchlight plot synopsis (how can I get THAT job?). Music people will be happy to note that it has a Golden Globe-nominated song, “The Weary Kind”, which you can hear on the movie’s website or download from iTunes See, I don’t discriminate! Anyway, Bridges has been nominated for 4 Oscars but has never won. His last nomination was in 2000 for The Contender. I think it very likely he’ll be on the list again this year. 96% fresh on RT. Limited release began December 16th, coming Christmas Day to the Angelika Dallas.

3) An Education – With nominations for Carey Mulligan from SAG, the Golden Globes, Independent Spirit and Critic’s Choice, along with a nod from the National Board of Review, she’s pretty much a shoe-in for an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of 16-year old Jenny Mellor, a London teen who becomes involved with a man twice her age (Peter Sarsgaard). The ensemble is also nominated for a SAG, which is the highest honor that body bestows. 94% fresh on RT. Released October 8th, still playing at the Angelika in Dallas… hopefully it will stick around after Christmas so I can get to see it! Maybe I’ll drag Mom, if it’s playing in San Antonio… hmmm, Huebner Oaks! Looks like a win.

4) Precious – So I’ve gotten over the fact that Oprah is involved (she’s one of the producers, in case you’ve been living under a rock), and in the face of the excellent reviews, I’ve decided I must see this. It’s nominated for… everything, pretty much. Hooray for fellow fat chick Gabourey Sidibe, and I bet she will look fabulous on the Oscar red carpet Also look for honors for Mo’Nique, playing Precious’s abusive mother. 91% fresh on RT, limited release began November 6th, now in wide release.

5) The Messenger – Another Iraq movie, sort of. This one stars Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson (many supporting actor nominations already for this role, and he won the NBR award) as Army officers assigned to the Casualty Notification service. Complications ensue when Foster’s Will Montgomery becomes involved with Samantha Morton’s recently widowed Olivia. Harrelson’s only previous Oscar nomination was in 1996 for The People vs. Larry Flynt, though he did snag an MTV ”Best Kiss” (with Wesley Snipes) award for White Men Can’t Jump in 1993 90% fresh on RT, limited release began November 13th. No word yet on when (if?) it will come to Dallas >.<

My eyes are crossing. 6-10 to come on Saturday!

Not because it’s Christmas and my Birthday time, but because it’s movie awards time.

I haven’t been very good this year -at all- but I’m going to make a real effort to get myself caught up. Banking on that gift card to the Angelika that my sister-in-law has gotten me the last year or two and also on the fact that a lot of things are about to hit the dollar screens.

I’m sort of dreading the new Best Picture format. Hoping that there will be a lot of overlap with Best Acting awards, etc.

Anyway… for your preparatory pleasure:

The complete list of the Golden Globe 2010 nominees are:

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
AVATAR
THE HURT LOCKER
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
UP IN THE AIR

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
EMILY BLUNT THE YOUNG VICTORIA
SANDRA BULLOCK THE BLIND SIDE
HELEN MIRREN THE LAST STATION
CAREY MULLIGAN AN EDUCATION
GABOUREY SIDIBE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
JEFF BRIDGES CRAZY HEART
GEORGE CLOONEY UP IN THE AIR
COLIN FIRTH A SINGLE MAN
MORGAN FREEMAN INVICTUS
TOBEY MAGUIRE BROTHERS

BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
THE HANGOVER
IT’S COMPLICATED
JULIE & JULIA
NINE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
SANDRA BULLOCK THE PROPOSAL
MARION COTILLARD NINE
JULIA ROBERTS DUPLICITY
MERYL STREEP IT’S COMPLICATED
MERYL STREEP JULIE & JULIA

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
MATT DAMON THE INFORMANT!
DANIEL DAY-LEWIS NINE
ROBERT DOWNEY JR. SHERLOCK HOLMES
JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT (500) DAYS OF SUMMER
MICHAEL STUHLBARG A SERIOUS MAN

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS
CORALINE
FANTASTIC MR. FOX
THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG
UP

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
BAARIA (ITALY)
BROKEN EMBRACES (SPAIN)
THE MAID (CHILE)
A PROPHET (FRANCE)
THE WHITE RIBBON (GERMANY)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
PENÉLOPE CRUZ NINE
VERA FARMIGA UP IN THE AIR
ANNA KENDRICK UP IN THE AIR
MO’NIQUE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
JULIANNE MOORE A SINGLE MAN

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
MATT DAMON INVICTUS
WOODY HARRELSON THE MESSENGER
CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER THE LAST STATION
STANLEY TUCCI THE LOVELY BONES
CHRISTOPH WALTZ INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE
KATHRYN BIGELOW THE HURT LOCKER
JAMES CAMERON AVATAR
CLINT EASTWOOD INVICTUS
JASON REITMAN UP IN THE AIR
QUENTIN TARANTINO INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE
NEILL BLOMKAMP, DISTRICT 9
TERRI TATCHELL
MARK BOAL THE HURT LOCKER
NANCY MEYERS IT’S COMPLICATED
JASON REITMAN, UP IN THE AIR
SHELDON TURNER
QUENTIN TARANTINO INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTURE
MICHAEL GIACCHINO UP
MARVIN HAMLISCH THE INFORMANT!
JAMES HORNER AVATAR
ABEL KORZENIOWSKI A SINGLE MAN
KAREN O,
CARTER BURWELL WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTURE
“CINEMA ITALIANO” — NINE
Music & Lyrics by: Maury Yeston
“I WANT TO COME HOME” — EVERYBODY’S FINE
Music & Lyrics by: Paul McCartney
“I WILL SEE YOU” — AVATAR
Music by: James Horner, Simon Franglen
Lyrics by: James Horner, Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell
“THE WEARY KIND (THEME FROM CRAZY HEART)” — CRAZY HEART
Music & Lyrics by: Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett
“WINTER” — BROTHERS
Music by: U2
Lyrics by: Bono

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
BIG LOVE (HBO)
DEXTER (SHOWTIME)
HOUSE (FOX)
MAD MEN (AMC)
TRUE BLOOD (HBO)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
GLENN CLOSE DAMAGES
JANUARY JONES MAD MEN
JULIANNA MARGULIES THE GOOD WIFE
ANNA PAQUIN TRUE BLOOD
KYRA SEDGWICK THE CLOSER

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
SIMON BAKER THE MENTALIST
MICHAEL C. HALL DEXTER
JON HAMM MAD MEN
HUGH LAURIE HOUSE
BILL PAXTON BIG LOVE

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
30 ROCK (NBC)
ENTOURAGE (HBO)
GLEE (FOX)
MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
THE OFFICE (NBC)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
TONI COLLETTE UNITED STATES OF TARA
COURTNEY COX COUGAR TOWN
EDIE FALCO NURSE JACKIE
TINA FEY 30 ROCK
LEA MICHELE GLEE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
ALEC BALDWIN 30 ROCK
STEVE CARELL THE OFFICE
DAVID DUCHOVNY CALIFORNICATION
THOMAS JANE HUNG
MATTHEW MORRISON GLEE

BEST MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
GEORGIA O’KEEFFE (LIFETIME TELEVISION)
GREY GARDENS (HBO)
INTO THE STORM (HBO)
LITTLE DORRIT (PBS)
TAKING CHANCE (HBO)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
JOAN ALLEN GEORGIA O’KEEFFE
DREW BARRYMORE GREY GARDENS
JESSICA LANGE GREY GARDENS
ANNA PAQUIN THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA SENDLER
SIGOURNEY WEAVER PRAYERS FOR BOBBY

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
KEVIN BACON TAKING CHANCE
KENNETH BRANAGH WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND
CHIWETEL EJIOFOR ENDGAME
BRENDAN GLEESON INTO THE STORM
JEREMY IRONS GEORGIA O’KEEFFE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
JANE ADAMS HUNG
ROSE BYRNE DAMAGES
JANE LYNCH GLEE
JANET McTEER INTO THE STORM
CHLOË SEVIGNY BIG LOVE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
MICHAEL EMERSON LOST
NEIL PATRICK HARRIS HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
WILLIAM HURT DAMAGES
JOHN LITHGOW DEXTER
JEREMY PIVEN ENTOURAGE

I know, I know. You don’t CARE about the TV awards. I don’t really, either, but there are some good shows on this list, so I’ll give em a mention. It’s something to download on your iPod and watch between screenings!

If you think I might have given too much away in that first paragraph, I really haven’t. The movie isn’t a plot-driven thing. The events that Wendy must live through are incidental and really kind of predictable. There isn’t any event in the film that doesn’t ring true – no “gotcha” moments with quirky surprising characters. It’s in that realism that Michelle Williams surprises you. She does a fantastic job with not a lot of material. What is remarkable about her performance is that she doesn’t even spend a lot of time interacting with the other characters in the film, with the exception of a security guard who busts her for sleeping in a Walgreens parking lot. He becomes the closest thing to a friend Wendy has, and is the only person in the movie to show much compassion for her situation, allowing her to use his cell phone for her “Lost Dog” flyers and generally trying to give her helpful advice and information. Most of Williams’s performance is solo work and silent, accomplished with her expressive face.  You will believe wholeheartedly that she is this wandering girl who loves her dog, her only real family.

This is a small indie movie with a lot to say in very few words. Director Kelly Reichardt delivers some amazing scenes, most notable to me was the scene one night when Wendy is sleeping in a park, and she is awakened by a homeless man going through her belongings. Reichardt shoots the scene in almost complete darkness. You only get glimpses of the ranting, half-crazy man, who initially goes through Wendy’s things, then when she wakes up, sharply instructs her not to look at him. Most of the rest of the scene focuses on Wendy. She has a blanket pulled up over her nose, so all you see in the mostly darkness are Williams’s eyes. Except for one small squeak of fear, she is silent, but conveys total terror with just her eyes.

Reichardt and Williams are perfect partners on this small story with a ton of heart. See Wendy & Lucy if you can.

Tonight is Oscar Night! The Red Carpet starts at 7pm CST.

I have been derelict of late.

In my defense, my job hunt has gotten super urgent, and my dog died. But there we go.

Anyway. Today is Oscar Sunday, and I actually managed to finish most of my movies, and I’m ready to make my predictions. Whew. And then I have to go help my mom finish our snacky foods.

BEST PICTURE: I’m going to go with the flow here, and predict Slumdog Millionaire. It was the only nominated film to approach “feel-good” status, it has a large, talented, cast of unknowns, and a dance number at the end. I loved it, honestly, and I want it to win this, and best score.  I think its only other competition is Milk and Benjamin Button, both of which I also liked, but Slumdog is such a different kind of movie that I think it takes home the trophy.

BEST ACTOR: Speaking of Milk. I think Sean Penn gets this one. Mickey Rourke is a great story, and may win in a sentimental vote, but Penn’s performance in Milk is amazing. This is probably the strongest category this year, with great performances all-around. The Visitor‘s Richard Jenkins turned in a very strong, understated performance, and I also sincerely enjoyed Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon, but I think it goes to Sean Penn.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Heath Ledger will, of course, win this, though I need to applaud wholeheartedly the performance of both Josh Brolin in Milk and Michael Shannon, who was the best thing imho about Revolutionary Road. It’s not that I think The Dark Knight was a bad film, in fact I enjoyed it quite a bit and found Ledger terrifying, and funny, and sad, all at once… but I don’t think that’s what this award will be for. I think the Academy didn’t give him the Oscar for Brokeback Mountain because they assumed there would be lots more magnificent performances from this talented actor to honor, and it’s sad for all of us that they were wrong.

BEST ACTRESS: I think Kate Winslet will cap an incredible year with the award. I just saw The Reader this morning, actually, and it will be well-deserved. I also need to scream praise for Melissa Leo, in Frozen River. I hope she gets some big parts, and I hope she gets to look glamorous at the show.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: I sort of find this the hardest category to call, this year. What a strong group of perormances! I think in the end the award will go to Penelope Cruz for Vicky Christina Barcelona, but if I were handing it out I think it would go to Marisa Tomei for her work on The Wrestler.