Academy Awards 2008: If I Picked the Winners...

I don't like this year in the Oscars. It has already happened. Critics (minus Ebert, thank God!) rave on the greatness of Benjamin Button, but the movie is fatally an hour too long. Three hour movies require them to be without question the best movie of the year and one for the ages. If it is three hours long, it must be Braveheart, Titanic, Saving Private Ryan, and if it had been longer, The Dark Knight. Heat was three hours long, but it wasn't going for an Academy Award. What it was going for, it succeeded, and there are loyal fans who happily sit through those three hours.

The Dark Knight didn't get a nomination. Neither did The Wrestler, where I felt two acting nominations were merited. I'd like to see two wins for Wrestler. They're the deserving underdogs.

After having done so well with giving No Country for Old Men everything it deserves, the Academy fails this year to acknowledge the best movie of the year. SHAME! The Academy needs to redeem itself back to the mainstream. If you've watched two of the movies on the nominations list, good for you. They were on a very limited release and none of them blockbusters.

Some winners are obvious - cough, Heath Ledger - and rightfully so. Here are my picks, with explanation, if I feel they are needed.

Best Picture
Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire - Most Likely
Pick - not nominated, but The Dark Knight.

Best Actor
Richard Jenkins in The Visitor
Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn in Milk - Most Likely
Brad Pitt in Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler - Pick

Best Actress
Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie in Changling
Marissa Leo in Frozen River
Meryl Streep in Doubt - Pick and Most Likely
Kate Winslet in The Reader

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Josh Brolin in Milk
Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder - Honorable Mention
Philip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt
Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight - Pick and Most Likely
Michael Shannon in Revolutionary Road

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams in Doubt
Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis in Doubt - Most Likely
Taraji P. Henson in Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marissa Tomei in The Wrestler - Pick

Best Directing
Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire - Pick and Most Likely
Stephen Dardry for The Reader
David Fincher for Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard for Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant for Milk

Best Original Screenplay
Frozen River
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Milk - Most Likely
WALL·E - Pick

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt - Pick
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire - Most Likely

Best Achievement in Cinematography
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire - Pick and Most Likely

Best Achievement in Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight - Pick
Frost/Nixon - Most Likely
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire