Everybody's got their something when it comes to making a friendly wager. And while March Madness is a couple weeks away, I'm getting the jump early with my annual bid to score some bucks on the side: the office Oscar pool. Now when it comes to predicting the winners, I can afford to toot my own horn for a change since I remain undefeated for the past 4 years. This time around, there's the obvious frontrunners in the lead acting categories... but sorting out who will reign triumphant has been perplexing me all week long. AMPAS could go misty-eyed, opting for Peter O'Toole and leave Forest Whitaker fumbling towards incoherance. Abigail Breslin could turn J-Hud's Cinderella carriage into a pumpkin, or Clint Eastwood may send Martin Scorsese home empty handed again after all. Do I sip from the spiked Kool-Aid surrounding the feel good indie that could, Little Miss Sunshine or does box office muscle give The Departed an inside edge? I've decided to go with my gut and hope my instincts don't fail me down the homestretch. Consider me on pins and needles wondering whether I'll be a few thou richer by night's end. My ballot looks a bit like such:



Best Picture:

Should win: Babel
Will win: The Departed

Best Actor:

Should win: Forest Whitaker, The Last King Of Scotland
Will win: Forest Whitaker, The Last King Of Scotland

Best Actress:

Should win: Helen Mirren, The Queen
Will win: Helen Mirren, The Queen

Best Supporting Actor:

Should win: Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
Will win: Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls

Best Supporting Actress:

Should win: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
Will win: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls

Best Director:

Should win: Clint Eastwood, Letters From Iwo Jima
Will win: Martin Scorsese, The Departed

Best Original Screenplay:

Should win: Babel
Will win: Little Miss Sunshine

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Should win: Borat
Will win: The Departed

Best Animated Feature:

Should win: Happy Feet
Will win: Happy Feet

Best Documentary Feature:

Should win: An Inconvenient Truth
Will win: An Inconvenient Truth

Foreign Language Film:

Should win: Pan's Labyrinth
Will win: The Lives Of Others

Best Costume Design:

Should win: The Devil Wears Prada
Will win: Marie Antoinette

Best Original Song:

Should win: I Need To Wake Up from An Inconvenient Truth
Will win: Listen from Dreamgirls

Labels: award shows, nominations, Oscars