My 2010 Oscar Picks

The nominees for the 2010 Academy Awards were announced today and I’m ecstatic. It’s an awesome lineup this year, largely in part to the Academy’s decision to double the Best Picture category from 5 to 10 nominees to create diversity. It’s definitely a diverse category now with a little something represented from each of the the major categories.

One of the more interesting stories this year involves my favorite movie of last year, Avatar, and it’s impressive contender The Hurt Locker; both up for 9 nominations, including Best Picture and (more importantly) Best Director. Why is this such a big deal? Kathryn Bigelow, director of The Hurt Locker, just happens to also be the ex-wife of Avatar director James Cameron. Fortunately, they are on very good terms and are probably both cheering for each other (while secretly casting the ballot for themselves).

Now, I’m not going to make any predictions. I suck at that but I have an opinion so I’m going to lay out my picks for the nominees I think should win. I’m also only going to cover the categories I’m really interested in. I’m not a sound junkie or costume fanatic, so I’ll stick to what matters to me. Read the rest of this entry »