The great equalizer is a sense of humor.  We know these stars probably have a sense of humor, but it’s fun to see for ourselves.

Jimmy Kimmel has secured a Post-Oscar special the past few years and each year he creates a short film that incorporates a few A-listers behaving wacky.

This year he presents a true blockbuster. A fantastic array of stars…in what looks to be the disaster/love story/adventure we all need to see.

Today, we’ll stray from the norm…and see how we did.

Best Picture went to The Artist. This felt like a foregone conclusion, but the appeal of this movie is confounding. Perhaps the Academy wanted to celebrate the unique nature of the film and felt the need for a story to be secondary or not important at all.  This movie won at the Golden Globes, and that made more sense. We didn’t get this one.

The Best Actor award went to Jean Dujardin. We didn’t know who to expect, but aside from some excellent dancing and that’s just with his eye brows, it was hard to imagine this guy getting the big prize.  It was reasonable to expect that Clooney would have won so everyone in attendance could soak up a bit of his charm in what would have been a delightful acceptance speech. Not the case. Consider this another wrong pick.

The Best Actress award goes to Meryl Streep.   Viola Davis was clearly a sentimental favorite and was expected to win this one.  Streep however was given her third Best Actress award and it’s hard to cry foul. The movie, The Iron Lady, was unique in that it was particularly unflattering to it’s subject, but for an actress there was a good amount of material to work with. We got this one right.

The Best Supporting Actor award went to Christopher Plummer. This one seemed easy. The guy is only two years younger than the  Oscars themselves. He played against type (a man in his 70′s coming out of the closet), and the role was truly fantastic.  The movie was called, “Beginners” and it’s due to be out in DVD soon. It’s something you should be seeing.

The Best Supporting Actress award went to  Octavia Spencer, for “The Help”.  This proved to be the emotional victory that we expected for the Best Actress award. The acceptance speech was heartfelt and emotional which is certainly what the Academy likes to see here. We thought McTeer would get something for a very daring performance, but Ms Spencer was clearly a favorite and likely to enjoy some meaty roles over the next year. Roles that passed her by up until now.  Definitely got that one wrong.

Michel Hazanavicius won the Best Director award for his film, “The Artist”.  The victory here confirms what was pretty clear from the start…”The Artist” was a much more popular film than we thought. Though the film felt like a film student’s uninspired final project, it’s now part of motion picture history. It is worth noting that Hazanavicius won the Director’s Guild award as well and that tends to forecast the inevitable winner.  That being the case, look at who he beat. Woody Allen, Terrance Malick, Alexander Payne and Martin Scorsese.

The Best Animated Film was Rango. The best thing about this truly entertaining and visually stunning film is that it won’t likely have a sequel or turn up in a McDonalds Happy Meal. Got this right.

The Make Up award went to Iron Lady. Meryl’s favorite make up guy who’s been working on that face since Sophie’s Choice (’82),  not only got a statue but was given some props by the lady herself in her acceptance speech.As we mentioned in our forecast, the transformation of Streep to Thatcher was pivotal to the success of the performance.

The Best Original Score went to “The Artist”.   As the evening seemed to celebrate this film’s firm grasp of the mundane, it only makes sense that “The Artist” would win. Not our choice.

Best Cleavage for the evening is always a close race. This year the most buzz on decolletage concerned Jennifer Lopez and the hint of areola that made her one of the favorite presenters of the evening. Only Angelina’s right leg got more attention.

In the end, it was much ado about not much. If there was a shadow of anything…it was good old double sided tape.

Best Picture

The Artist  (We just don’t understand the appeal. Old story, boringly conveyed. )
The Descendants  (Clooney did better elsewhere)
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (Met anyone who liked this? We neither)
The Help (Possible surprise winner here)
Hugo ( Let Nickelodeon give it an award)
Midnight in Paris (Most entertaining of the bunch. Won’t win)
Moneyball (Any other year and it wouldn’t be here)
The Tree of Life (An Oscar goes to the person who understood this.)
War Horse (More schmaltz than in any ten butcher shops)

Actor in a Leading Role

Demian Bichir – A Better Life (Apparently he couldn’t believe he was nominated either!)
George Clooney – The Descendants (See above, then see Ides of March)
Jean Dujardin – The Artist (If there were an award for Best Use of Eyebrows)
Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Best in the crowd, won’t win)
Brad Pitt – Moneyball (Any other year, he wouldn’t be here)

Actress in a Leading Role 

Viola Davis – The Help (If it wasn’t for Meryl, this is your winner)
Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs (Not enough people saw this, plus the Meryl thing)
Rooney Mara – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Deserves some praise)
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady (Like watching a slugger during batting practice)
Michelle Williams – My Week with Marilyn (Deserves some praise, some will find it more compelling to impersonate Thatcher than Marilyn)

Actor in a Supporting Role

Kenneth Branagh – My Week With Marilyn (More like a cameo role)
Jonah Hill – Moneyball (Any other year he wouldn’t be here. Perhaps his last film at over 200 lbs)
Nick Nolte – Warrior (As in HBO’s Luck, it’s Nolte’s world-weary face that deserves some sort of award).
Christopher Plummer – Beginners  (This is one of the rare times the guy who should win…can).
Max von Sydow – Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close  (The folks in the silent movie, The Artist, had more lines. A great actor getting some props)

Actress in a Supporting Role 

Berenice Bejo – The Artist (Best use of a mole. Very pretty, can’t wait until she’s in something entertaining)
Jessica Chastain – The Help (Busiest actress in the world. Should get some attention but not for this)
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs (Outside chance to win due to late PR push. She was every bit as convincing as a man as Close, if not more so.)
Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids (She won’t win, but if she did, it would be fabulous. Whatever the case, she’s the breakout movie comedy star of the year)
Octavia Spencer – The Help (Will split votes with Chastain)

Directing 

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist (A win here sends the wrong message)
Alexander Payne – The Descendants (The Academy loves this guy for his smarts)
Martin Scorsese – Hugo (This would send the wrong message to Mr. Scorsese)
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris (This would be nice, but doubtful).
Terrence Malick – The Tree of Life (The fact that no one understood the movie should hurt. Got great performances out of Chastain and Pitt)

Animated Feature Film 

A Cat in Paris (not familiar)
Chico & Rita (not familiar)
Kung Fu Panda 2 (too familiar)
Puss in Boots  (Is this the only way we’re going to get Banderas? How much money do you suppose Mike Myers gets every time one of these things gets spit out?)
Rango (Best thing Johnny Depp has been involved with in a while. Great animation with a fair story. Of all the movies on this list, it’s the most likely to have any DVD shelf-life)

Make up  (Strong year for this! Note that the horrendous make up used on DiCaprio for J.Edger didn’t even warrant a nomination).

Albert Nobbs (Validates the “less is more” camp)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (consistently good)
The Iron Lady (The winner. Hard to deny the impact of the make up on the movie)

Music (Original Score)

The Adventures of Tintin (Should be part of the Indiana Jones collection)
The Artist (Nothing you couldn’t hear in an elevator)
Hugo  (Likely to win. Not as forgettable as Tin Tin or War Horse)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Unlikely to win anything but this is definitely a soundtrack you’ll want to buy. Lovely 60′s tunes)

Best Picture

“The Artist” (It’s hard to understand why this is so popular!)
“Bridesmaids”
“The Descendants”
“The Help”
“Hugo”
“Midnight in Paris” (Loved this!)
“Moneyball”
“War Horse” (This was a parody of Spielberg, by Spielberg)

This year the list of nominees could balloon to ten movies, but that doesn’t matter this year. “Ides of March” and “Drive” could also end up here but the winner is likely to be the unbelievably dull silent movie. In a perfect world, Brad Bird would get some recognition for raising the “Mission Impossible” franchise from the dead.

Best Actor
George Clooney, “The Descendants”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “J. Edgar”
Jean Dujardin, “The Artist”
Ryan Gosling, “The Ides of March”
Brad Pitt, “Moneybal”l

Anyone who saw “The Descendants” knows that Clooney phoned this one in. DiCaprio is burdened by bad make up despite the fact the Academy loves biographies. Moneyball was enjoyable, but Pitt is not going to win. Ryan Gosling could actually get a nomination for “Drive”, though he shows more range in “Ides”. Personally, we’d have prefer seeing Gary Oldman here from “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”.

Best Actress
Glenn Close, “Albert Nobbs”
Viola Davis, “The Help”
Meryl Streep,” The Iron Lady” (Even if Ms Streep didn’t have a movie out, you would still have to expect her to garner a nomination)
Charlize Theron, “Young Adult”
Michelle Williams, “My Week with Marilyn”

Glen Close has been working at getting this movie made for more than ten years. That guarantees a nomination. Michelle Williams is very hot these days and so she could be considered a lock for a nomination and a wild-card among winners. The DailyHelping would love to see Charlize Theron nominated for her incredibly unpleasant character in “Young Adult”. Her performance was pitch perfect and nasty enough that she may actually turn off voters. That’s saying something for a woman who actually won an Oscar for portraying a monstrous serial killer a good number of years ago.

Best Supporting Actor

Kenneth Branagh, “My Week with Marilyn”
Albert Brooks, “Drive” (It’s great to see this!)
Patton Oswald, “Young Adult”
Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”
Viggo Mortensen, “A Dangerous Method” (A DailyHelping favorite!)

Christopher Plummer is a slam dunk to win this category. Jonah Hill may slip in here as a nominee for “Moneyball” and Viggo makes our list because he was the best part of a dreary film. Patton Oswald deserves to be nominated for a heartfelt performance that has not gotten the acclaim that it was due.

Best Supporting Actress

Berenice Bejo, “The Artist”
Jessica Chastain, “The Help”
Melissa McCarthy, “Bridesmaids”
Janet McTeer, “Albert Nobbs”
Octavia Spencer, “The Help”

This is the same list of nominees that you saw at the Golden Globe.
Berenice Bejo could make a case for getting a Best Actress nomination, but DailyHelping believes she belongs here. “The Help” will suck the air out of the room and Octavia Spencer is a slam dunk winner.

Best Director

Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris”
David Fincher, “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
Michel Hazanavicius, “The Artist “(He’ll be there, and probably win if his movie doesn’t take best picture).
Alexander Payne, “The Descendants” (The Academy loves this guy!)
Martin Scorsese, “Hugo” (Don’t reward the man for making a 3D movie)

Terrance Malick could get a nomination for “Tree of Life” but the fact no one  understand what his movie was about, may prove his undoing. Clooney could get a nomination for “Ides of March” and DailyHelping favorite, Woody Allen is a dark horse but more likely to get the screenplay award.

Best Screenplay, Adapted

Alexander Payne, Jim Rash, Nat Faxon – “The Descendants”
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon – “The Ides of March”
Aaron Sorkin, Steven Zaillian – “Moneyball” (DailyHelping loves Aaron Sorkin!)
Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan – “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
(A smarter script you will not find)

The Tinker Tailor script challenged some viewers, but hopefully that won’t be a problem. There are other nominees for this category, but we can’t imagine what they’ll be.

Best Screenplay, Original

Michel Hazanavicius – “The Artist” (This nomination should be a joke, but it isn’t).
Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig – “Bridesmaids” (Wouldn’t you love to see Wiig up there getting an Oscar?)
Woody Allen – “Midnight in Paris”
Thomas McCarthy – “Win Win”
Diablo Cody – “Young Adult”

About 20 people saw “Win Win” and that’s a crime. It was wonderful and hopefully it sneaks a win here. Woody or Diablo (sounds like a pair of wranglers, doesn’t it?) both deserve some recognition for two of the smartest scripts on screen all year.

“Up in the Air” had the most nominations this year,  followed by the musical “Nine,” with five, including top musical or comedy.  The recently released science-fiction epic “Avatar” and director Quentin Tarantino‘s  “Inglourious Basterds” were nominated for four awards, including best drama.

The Hurt Locker looks like Best Drama

Other film nominees for Golden Globes were the Iraq war movie “The Hurt Locker“ and the urban tear-jerker “Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire.”  Others in the category for best movie musical or comedy was Meryl Streep’s  cooking movie “Julie & Julia, this years comedic breakout hit “The Hangover” and the independent darling, “(500) Days of Summer.”

The Golden Globes are given out in January by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and are seen as a key indicator of which movies will compete for the world’s top film honors, the Oscars, in March. The Golden Globes will be presented mid January, 2010.

The best actor nominees were Clooney, Jeff Bridges who plays a down-and-out country singer in “Crazy Heart,” Colin Firth as a gay man suddenly alone in “A Single Man,” Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela in “Invictus” and Tobey Maguire for “Brothers”, another wartime drama.

Nominations for best actress in a drama went to Sandra Bullock for the surprisingly popular football film “The Blind Side,” Helen Mirren for “The Last Station,” Emily Blunt in “The Young Victoria,” Carey Mulligan with “An Education” and  Gabourey Sidibe in the title role,  “Precious: Based on the Novel Push By Sapphire.”

A great way to know you’re looking at the Golden Globes and not the Academy Awards is that you can have Sandra Bullock nominated twice in an evening. This time it’s for best actress in a musical or comedy in  “The Proposal.”  She’s joined by Marion Cotillard in “Nine,” Julia Roberts in “Duplicity” ( really intelligent and fun movie!) and Meryl Streep once again, pulling a Sandra Bullock for “It’s Complicated” and a second for “Julie & Julia.”

The Coen Brothers have a serious claim for the Golden Globe

Nominees for best actor in a movie musical or comedy were Daniel Day-Lewis for “Nine,” Matt Damon in the black comedy, “The Informant!,” Robert Downey Jr. for the unbearably hyped “Sherlock Holmes,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt in “(500) Days of Summer” and Michael Stuhlberg for the Coen Brother’s wonderful fable, “A Serious Man.”

Lastly, the foreign language film nominees are the Italian movie “Baaria,” Spanish director Pedro Almodovar‘s “Broken Embraces“, the fabulous Chilean movie “The Maid,”  “A Prophet” from France and Germany’s “The White Ribbon.”

It’s worth noting that one film in particular seems to be on every critic’s top ten list for the year.  It’s Kathryn Bigelow‘s tense Iraq drama,” The Hurt Locker”.  Though it’s still quite early and there are many films to still see, it’s the Daily Helping’s opinion that Ms Bigelow could have a Best Picture on her hands.  This is all the more interesting since she’s James (Avatar) Cameron’s ex-wife.

Oscar hits the red carpet with unidentified "close" friend.

1. Best Picture: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Frost/Nixon,” “Milk,” “The Reader,” “Slumdog Millionaire.”

Will win: Slumdog Millionaire   Should win: Slumdog Millionaire.

3. Actress: Anne Hathaway, “Rachel Getting Married”; Angelina Jolie, “Changeling”; Melissa Leo, “Frozen River”; Meryl Streep, “Doubt”; Kate Winslet, “The Reader.”

Will win: Kate Winslet    Should win: Anne Hathaway

4. Supporting Actor: Josh Brolin, “Milk”; Robert Downey Jr., “Tropic Thunder”; Philip Seymour Hoffman, “Doubt”; Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”; Michael Shannon, “Revolutionary Road.”

Will win: Heath Ledger    Should win: Heath Ledger

5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, “Doubt”; Penélope Cruz, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”; Viola Davis, “Doubt”; Taraji P. Henson, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”; Marisa Tomei, “The Wrestler.”

Will win: Penelope Cruz    Should win: Marisa Tomei or Viola Davis

6. Director: David Fincher, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”; Ron Howard, “Frost/Nixon”; Gus Van Sant, “Milk”; Stephen Daldry, “The Reader”; Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire.”

Will win: Danny Boyle       Should win: Danny Boyle

7. Foreign Film: “The Baader Meinhof Complex,” Germany; “The Class,” France; “Departures,” Japan; “Revanche,” Austria; “Waltz With Bashir,” Israel.

Will win: Waltz With Bashir     Should win: Waltz With Bashir

8. Adapted Screenplay: Eric Roth and Robin Swicord, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”; John Patrick Shanley, “Doubt”; Peter Morgan, “Frost/Nixon”; David Hare, “The Reader”; Simon Beaufoy, “Slumdog Millionaire.”

Will win: Peter Morgan    Should win: John Patrick Shanley

9. Original Screenplay: Courtney Hunt, “Frozen River”; Mike Leigh, “Happy-Go-Lucky”; Martin McDonagh, “In Bruges”; Dustin Lance Black, “Milk”; Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon and Pete Docter, “WALL-E.”

Will win: Dustin Lance Black for Milk        Should win: Martin McDonagh for In Bruges

10. Animated Feature Film: “Bolt”; “Kung Fu Panda”; “WALL-E.”

Will and Should Win: Wall-E    And by the way, the people who feel Wall-E should have been up for Best Picture are annoying.

11. Art Direction: “Changeling,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “The Dark Knight,” “The Duchess,” “Revolutionary Road.”

Will and Should Win is The Dark Knight.

12. Cinematography: “Changeling,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “The Dark Knight,” “The Reader,” “Slumdog Millionaire.”

Will win and Should win is Slumdog Millionaire.  The cinematography was in many ways the star of this movie.

13. Original Song: “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E,” Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire,” A.R. Rahman and Gulzar; “O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire,” A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam.

Don’t know…don’t care.    Should win (but wasn’t even nominated) was The Wrestler, by Bruce Springsteen. It was a song written for his friend, Mickey Rourke. Music played a big part in this powerful film and it’s hard to understand how this song was overlooked.

Let’s see how we do, come Sunday night.

I won’t bore you with reviews of the nominees but I do want to go on the record with my choices for some of the major awards.  If you have any opinions to the contrary, or agree…you’re certainly welcome to share your thoughts.

Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made for Television

A Raisin in the Sun
Bernard and Doris
Cranford
John Adams
Recount

I’ve seen only two of these, but I feel pretty comfortable that John Adams is going to take this one. If you haven’t seen this HBO historical drama, then get ye to the video store.

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series – Musical Or Comedy

Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Steve Carell, The Office
Kevin Connolly, Entourage
David Duchovny, Californication
Tony Shalhoub, Monk

Alec Baldwin for 30 Rock. This is going to be a big year for 30 Rock and Baldwin is a huge reason why viewers are finally tuning in to what may be television’s funniest show.

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series – Musical Or Comedy

Christina Applegate, Samantha Who?
America Ferrera, Ugly Betty
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Debra Messing, The Starter Wife
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds

This has been an amazing year for Tina Fey and a Golden Globe is going to be just one more well-deserved accolade.

TELEVISION SERIES, COMEDY OR MUSICAL

30 Rock
Californication
Entourage
The Office
Weeds

The Office and Entourage are viable,  but the night is going to belong to 30 Rock.

ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA
Gabriel Byrne, In Treatment
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Hugh Laurie, House
Jonathan Rhys Meyers, The Tudors

I will admit not to being a fan of Mad Men. I was tempted when I heard the creator and lead writers were from the Sopranos, but I just couldn’t get attached.  Dexter is getting some publicity but when all is said and done, this is the foriegn press voting here and they love Hugh Laurie. It’s not that he doesn’t deserve his award, but I think Dexter has the buzz, just not enough to win here.

ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

Sally Field, Brothers & Sisters
Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
January Jones, Mad Men
Anna Paquin, True Blood
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer

I know little about any of these shows. My pick is purely out of the blue based on a hunch. Go with the Closer’s Kyra Sedgwich here. Anna Paquin is a wild card here because True Blood is quickly developing some fans.

TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

Dexter
House
In Treatment
Mad Men
True Blood

I don’t know that the rest of the world is excited by Mad Men. Maybe I’m underestimating the global appetite, but I think blood is going to be the deciding factor. Vampires or serial killer; I’m going to give the edge to True Blood.  HBO could use the boost.

DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road

Boyle worked with a co-director (Indian director), Loveleen Tanden, to help with an all-Indian cast. Even with the help, there’s no denying the accomplishment here.  I’ll acknowledge that I was disappointed with Benjamin Button and a big part of that is I’m huge fan of David Fincher. This was just not a good story for someone with his abilities.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams, Doubt
Penélope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Want a real sleeper here? Viola Davis. She had less than ten minutes in a movie starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Meryl Streep and Amy Adams.  In a film filled with dramatic flourish, Ms Davis provided the most powerful performance.  Marisa Tomei is who I’d like to win.  She’s part of The Wrestler’s underdog popularity and I don’t know anyone who wasn’t impressed with that body.

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Tom Cruise, Tropic Thunder
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Ralph Fiennes, The Duchess
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight

Heath Ledger will win this and will probably win the Oscar, come Spring.  Sentiment aside, this is the kind of role that defines a career and it’s a shame he couldn’t follow up with something more worthwhile than Terry Gilliams, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.  As for Tom Cruise, I will admit it was a great cameo but I don’t think he belongs in this category. I don’t see Hoffman’s role as a supporting role either, but it won’t matter anyway.

ACTRESS, COMEDY OR MUSICAL
Rebecca Hall, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky
Frances McDormand, Burn After Reading
Meryl Streep, Mamma Mia!
Emma Thompson, Last Chance Harvey

I haven’t seen Last Chance Harvey but I think I’d have heard some scuttlebutt about Thompson’s performance if there was a chance here.  Sally Hawkins drove people crazy with her perkiness, McDormand was pretty dreary and Meryl Streep sings ABBA.  That leaves Rebecca Hall. She was actually terrific in a very good Woody Allen movie. That would usually do it but again, this is the foriegn press doing the judging.  How can you compete with ABBA?  I think Meryl’s going to dance away with this one.

ACTOR, COMEDY OR Musical
Javier Bardem, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Colin Farrell, In Bruges
James Franco, Pineapple Express
Brendan Gleeson, In Bruges
Dustin Hoffman, Last Chance Harvey

Not a lot of people saw In Bruges. It was a very original movie with more violence than you would expect. It also took place in Europe and this was a pretty popular movie overseas where here it qualified for art house distribution.  With all that said, everone like Bardem and he carries the movie. I think this is going to be the one award that Vicky Cristina Barcelona wins all evening.

BEST MOTION PICTURE, COMEDY
Burn After Reading
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Mamma Mia!
Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Mamma Mia has sold a lot of DVD’s overseas. It was a critical hit over there, where over here people were being warned that Pierce Brosnan would be singing.  I really liked Vicky Cristina Barcelona and it was primarily a foriegn film save for the director and his muse,  Scarlett Johansson.  One of the big differences between the Golden Globes and the Oscars is that Mamma Mia coud win this.

ACTRESS, DRAMA
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kristin Scott Thomas, I’ve Loved You So Long
Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

These are all very good nominees but I think you have to go with Anne Hathaway here.  I also think that if she wins here, she will draw more attention to Rachel Getting Married, and that will enhance her chances for a big Oscar night.  The foriegn press loves Angelina Jolie and this was a great role for her, but her bright red lips stole the movie and I think that Hathaway has the buzz.

ACTOR, DRAMA
Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

This is all about Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke.  I also think it will boil down to these two come Oscar-time as well.  Since this is the Hollywood Forigen Press, I’m going to say Mickey Rourke is going to not only win, but get one of those sentimental, standing ovations.  He’s a come back story that everyone likes to hear about…despite the fact that he was his own worst enemy for many years and primarily the reason he disappeared in the first place. He’s also been talking smack to anyone who will listen about Sean Penn’s performance as Harvey Milk.  This guy needs to just shut up and accept the awards that are coming his way, deservedly so. If you haven’t seen The Wrestler, you should do so soon.  It’s a brutal look at Professional wrestling, but it’s also as gritty a performance as anyone is going to see in a very long time.  (More on this movie in an upcoming post).

BEST MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog will win this.  If you haven’t seen this movie, do so soon.  Also, don’t be so quick to leave the theatre. The closing credits are pure Bollywood, and it’s fantastic.  My sense is that this is going to be the big award for Slumdog Millionaire.  The Oscars are going to boil down to Milk and The Wrestler and maybe even Batman, but the Golden Globes are all about entertainment and that’s what Slumdog delivers.