Unless you’ve been hiding under a very ungeeky rock, you know that the Academy Award nominations were announced today. For film lovers, the Oscars represent the best and worst of the cinema industry. Celebrating great movies and filmmakers and actors? Yes, please. Celebrating them by recognizing non-daring, inoffensive, middle-of-the-road pretentious works in a self-congratulatory ceremony that’s galling to all but the most nimble celebritaphiles? No, thanks.
In other words, the awards mean nothing to the actual worth of the film. So why does it feel so lousy when a personal favorite doesn’t win or, worse — gasp! — isn’t even nominated?
Ostensibly still smarting from leaving out 2008’s critically lauded box-office champ The Dark Knight in last year’s Oscar nominations, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decided to never let THAT happen again. So this year you know (unless you’ve been living under a very well-adjusted rock) that the Academy has expanded its slate of Best Picture nominees from five to 10.
Here at SING ALL KINDS we’ve been trying to suss out who would wind up with those diluted-but-still-desirable Best Pic nominations. And now we know. As of January 7th, I conjectured Avatar, The Blind Side, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Invictus, Julie & Julia, Precious, Up, and Up in the Air. Close but no cigar. Scratch a couple and add a couple different. Shake and uncork and you conclusively have, in an easy-to-read list form replete with links to the Flyer‘s coverage of the films:
2010 Best Picture Nominees:
Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air
Of note to locals is the nominations garnered by The Blind Side.
