Oscar Predictions

BEST PICTURE
Who Should Win: Milk. As much as I enjoyed "Benjamin Button", in the two and a half plus hours, I had quite a few cons that balanced out the many pros. With Milk on the other hand, I can't think about a single change I would've made to the film.
Who Will Win: Slumdog. Of course. Listen, I think this is a fine film and very impressive, but I didn't walk out of that movie head over heels in love with it like everyone else. I won't be made when it wins because it is a pretty good movie, just not Best Picture.
Who Got Snubbed: I would have definitely changed this around by taking out Frost/Nixon, Slumdog Millionaire and (possibly) The Reader and put in Wall-E, Rachel Getting Married and The Wrestler, all of which are are worthy of getting the little golden guy.

BEST ACTOR
Who Should Win: This is a really neck-and-neck category, but I'm going to say Mickey Rourke has a slight edge over Penn. The raw brutality and honesty he shows is devastating and heartbreaking. It's a close one, though...
Who Will Win: Penn. He's just so fucking good and how he didn't get it a decade ago for "Dead Man Walking" is just unbelievable. The Academy loves him and the role screams Oscar gold.
Who Got Snubbed: No one. I'm pretty satisfied with the nominees this year, and I almost want to say that Leo should have gotten a nom, but in all honesty I think it was Winslet that made him look so good in "Revolutionary Road".

BEST ACTRESS
Who Should Win: I don't think I could be disappointed with anyone (except Angelina) winning. Melissa Leo and Hathaway gave the two best performances, with Winslet close behind and Streep trailing not to far away. If it were up to me, it would be a three-way tie between Leo, Hathaway and Winslet.
Who Will Win: What a bloodbath. This is a close one, but I think it'll go to Winslet, for five reasons.
Who Got Snubbed: Boy, this is an endless list, starting with Sally Hawkins at the top, who's nom got stolen by the latter half (and in way, both) of Bradgelina. Also: Kirsten Scott Thomas in I've Loved You So Long, Kate Winslet in Revolutionary Road, Michelle Williams......... it just goes on and on and on.......

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Who Should Win: Ledger. Michael Shannon is the closest runner up, but Ledger all the way...
Who Will Win: Ledger.
Who Got Snubbed: Bill Irwin in Rachel Getting Married. But really, since the absurd Tom Cruise-Golden Globe fiasco didn't repeat itself, I can't complain.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Who Should Win: Another close category -- Penelope Cruz's performance has still stuck with me after eight months, and I think that's whats making me say... yeah, I'm going with Cruz.
Who Will Win: I have a feeling Viola Davis will actually take this, but it won't be a surprise to see Cruz or Tomei up on the stage Sunday night. Even Amy Adams has a chance.
Who Got Snubbed: It's a crime that Rosemarie DeWitt wasn't nominated for Rachel Getting Married. She would be my pick to win if she were here. Evan Rachel Wood was brilliant in The Wrestler and completely made me forget about Evan Rachel Wood in Across The Universe, and reminded me of Evan Rachel Wood in Thirteen.

Review #9: In Theatres - Coraline

NOTE: There Are SPOILERS Below

Here is a quick summary of the film before I get started -->

Coraline is a precocious young girl who moves to a new house in the middle of nowhere with her distant parents. While exploring the eerie house, she stumbles upon a door into another dimension where parents are attentive and the dull mansion grounds are lively. Everything seems perfect right up until Coraline learns that in order to stay in this "Other World", there's just one little she has to do.....

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I'm going to try something new and fairly simple-- just do a pro/con list:

GOOD THINGS:
- Voice Acting by every single person in the movie is perfect and I don't think I would have replaced a single person
- Its visually beautiful, especially when Coraline tours the garden her Other Father made for her and when she goes to see her Other Neighbors's show
- I love the Black Cat that helps Coraline -- that character works perfectly - The Other Mother's slow decomposition into the real monster she also worked well
- They added a new character named Wybie -- Wyborn -- as an offbeat kid that has a grandma with a past the ties into Coraline's present predicament

BAD THINGS:
- The Other Father sings the 'They Might Be Giants' song and then kind of melts (literary and metaphorically) away in a sudden and has a... pointblank disturbing transformation into a vegetable-state drone
- It began to be somewhat "video-gamey" when Coraline had to find the the other kids' souls - The theatrical sisters that live downstairs have dialogue that's just a little too eccentric for their characters, which themselves are too eccentric
- As good of the introduction of Wybie and his grandma were, I wish they had delved into his grandma's past even further