Final Oscar Predictions in All Categories

For the very first time in a long time I'm not passionately invested in any of the nominees this year. With exception of 2; Viola Davis in Best Actress because of her eloquence so far at acceptance speeches and TV appearances. But mostly because of her emotionally piercing performance that elevated a movie that had no right being this good.

The other nominee is A Separation, the best movie of 2011 bar none. Hopefully it will win Foreign Language and my day would be great if it rightfully wins Best Screenplay. I believe that screenplay is the most brilliant in bringing in new narrative structure since Pulp Fiction 17 years ago.

The best films of the year, in my opinion, were Drive, Shame, Weekend and of course A Separation. Of course the Academy ignored almost all of them. I'll be watching hoping for some funny moments and great speeches but apart from the 2 I mention above I don't care who wins.

Finally here are my predictions in all categories. I plan to win that pool this year!

Picture : The Artist
Director : Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist
Actor : Jean Dujardin - The Artist
Actress : Viola Davis - The Help
Supp Actor : Christopher Plummer - Beginners
Supp actress : Octavia Spencer - The Help
Org Screenplay : Midnight in Paris
Adapted Screenplay : The Descendants
Foreign Language Film : A Separation
Animated Feature : Rango
Original Score : The Artist
Original Song : Man or Muppet
Art Direction : Hugo
Cinematography : The Tree of Life
Costume Design : The Artist
Makeup : The Iron Lady
Documentary Feature : Paradise Lost
Sound Mixing : Hugo
Sound Editing : Hugo
Visual Effects : Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Editing : The Artist
Animated Short : The Fantastic Flying Books
Live Action Short : Tuba Atlantic
Doc Short : Saving Face

RIP Whitney

It's not right and it's not OK. There are just no words. Whitney and her songs have been a part of my life always. It is such a sad sad day. I don't think another celebrity death has ever hit me so hard.

Meryl Streep - Villian

Meryl Streep is in a neck to neck race with Viola Davis for best actress this year. I'm on Viola's side all the way. While both movies are not great, The Help was moving entertainment that I enjoyed. The Iron Lady was a terrible movie with Meryl being its only redeeming factor. I call it "Too Much Old Lady". Why chose to spend so much time with a totally fictionalized period of Thatcher's life when there is so much more to choose from? Meryl please better movie next time.

I'd like Streep to play a totally unsympathetic character. She went there slightly with Plenty, A Cry in THe Dark and She-Devil. Here is my fantasy : an aging former mob moll who is now a vicious contract killer out to kill her former boss. Get Martin McDonagh to write and direct, Morgan Freeman to play the mob boss and Joel Edgerton & Dominic Cooper to play his henchmen who are chasing her. Joseph Gordon Levitt to play her long lost son. She gets to curse and swear &kill mercilessly in long elaborate action scenes. I even have a title "Killing Sophie".

Would you see this?