2010 Academy Award Predictions

Ten Movies vie for the one Oscar© for Best Picture Sunday, March 7 at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards (Oscar.com)

This Sunday marks a historic night for the Oscars. For the first time in nearly half a century, 10 movies will vie for Best Picture at the 82nd annual Academy Awards. Now as I said in a earlier blog, there are two groups of nominees for Best Picture: Top 5 and Bottom 5. The Top 5 Films are Avatar, The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, Up in the Air and Up. The Bottom 5 Films are District 9, The Blind Side, Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Saphire, An Education and A Serious Man. Who will win Oscar Gold? The Actor races are set but Director and Picture are anyones guess. Here's a look at my predictions:

Best Picture
* Avatar
* The Blind Side
* District 9
* An Education
* The Hurt Locker
* Inglorious Basterds
* Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
* A Serious Man
* Up
* Up in the Air

Prediction:
This category is interesting. I totally agree with the Oscars expanding the category to 10. If that was done 2 years ago, "The Dark Knight" would have easily won Best Picture. But the first year of this expansion shows that after 6 or 7 films, it was tough to fill in the rest. "A Serious Man" is the longest shot but got the nod because the Academy loves the Cohen Brothers. The two films that have a legitimate shot are "Avatar" and "The Hurt Locker." With all the controversy and negative press for "Locker," I'm going to have to give the edge to "Avatar." A film of historic preportions (both fiscally and visually) and the biggest movie of all time deserves to be recognized. Bigalow will get the Oscar for Director while Cameron will win his 2nd Best Picture Oscar and cement his name in Hollywood lore.

Best Director
* James Cameron "Avatar"
* Kathryn Bigalow "The Hurt Locker"
* Quentin Tarantino "Inglorious Basterds"
* Lee Daniels "Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
* Jason Reitman "Up in the Air"

Thoughts: What a powerful group of Directors. All worthy of this award, Bigalow has the edge in this category. She would be the first female director to ever win and her film would be recognized. I think this will be their recognition as Best Picture will go to the well-deserved "Avatar."

Best Actor in a Leading Role
* Jeff Bridges "Crazy Heart"
* George Clooney "Up in the Air"
* Colin Firth "A Single Man"
* Morgan Freeman "Invictus"
* Jeremy Renner "The Hurt Locker"

Thoughts:
This race has been done for a while. Jeff Bridges role of a lifetime (with a story almost like "The Wrestler" only with a County Music legend in the lead role) will win the Oscar for Best Actor. Sure, Colin Firth won the BAFTA (he is British afterall) but Bridges picked up the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild trophy. The only actor that could come close is George Clooney but that would take a Roberto Benigini type upset.

Best Actress in a Leading Role
* Sandra Bullock "The Blind Side"
* Helen Miren "The Last Station"
* Carey Mulligan "An Education"
* Gabourey Sidibe "Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
* Meryl Streep "Julie and Julia"

Thoughts:
Like Best Actor, this category has been locked up for a while. Bullock won the Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild and a slew of critic awards for her role in "The Blind Side." Get your speech ready Sandra!

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
* Matt Damon "Invictus"
* Woody Harrelson "The Messenger"
* Christopher Plummer "The Last Station"
* Stanley Tucci "The Lovely Bones"
* Christoph Waltz "Inglorious Basterds"

Thoughts:
Am I sounding like a broken record? Yet another category locked up with Waltz's stellar performance as a Nazi in "Inglorious Basterds." Tucci is the only other competition but the nomination is all he can hope for on Oscar night.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
* Penelope Cruz "Nine"
* Vera Farmiga "Up in the Air"
* Maggie Gyllenhaal "Crazy Heart"
* Anna Kendrick "Up in the Air"
* Mo'Nique "Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire"

Thoughts: Another category that is already decided. Mo'Nique has dominated winning the BAFTA, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Gulld and many critic awards for her protrayal of a gritty, abusive mother. All the other ladies are definitely worthy of this award but Cruz won for Woody Allen's film "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," Farmiga and Kendrick will cancel each other out and Gyllenhaal should just enjoy the nomination. Her time will come but this year it's Mo'Nique!

Here's hoping the Oscars are not a ratings disaster (1989 is deemed the worst Oscar telecast in history.) With Baldwin and Martin, we'll see. As long as one doesn't try to upstage the other it should be a funny show.

So who will walk away victorious? Watch ABC Sunday night at 8pm!