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Oscars 2007

Predictable and Yet Surprising

by SFS Staff on Feb 15, 2007
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This year's Academy Awards is a mixed bag. There are some predictable nominations and definitely some unexpected surprises, e.g. Abigail Breslin as Olive in Little Miss Sunshine and Paul Greengrass for Best Director for United 93. Raise your hand if you saw those two coming. But despite all the variances, there are still many similarities.

You have the political figures: Forest Whitaker as the Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland and Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen. You have the bad boys who do good things: Leonardo DiCaprio as Danny Archer in Blood Diamond, Alan Arkin as Grandpa in Little Miss Sunshine and Mark Wahlberg as Dignam in The Departed. And let's not forget the strong, slightly manipulative women: Judi Dench as a crazy, closeted schoolteacher in Notes on a Scandal, Meryl Streep as the boss from hell in The Devil Wears Prada and Rinko Kikuchi as a mute and deaf Japanese schoolgirl in Babel.

The 2007 Oscars also marks the eighth nomination for Martin Scorsese. Let's hope he makes it this time.

The List of Nominees: http://oscars.com/nominees/?pn=list

Here are our critics' picks:

Best Actor
Nominees: Leonardo DiCaprio, Blood Diamond; Ryan Golsing, Half Nelson; Peter O'Toole, Venus; Will Smith, The Pursuit of Happyness; Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
SHOULD WIN: Ryan Gosling, Half Nelson

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
SHOULD WIN: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
SHOULD WIN: Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland


Best Actress
Nominees: Penélope Cruz, Volver; Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal; Helen Mirren, The Queen; Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada; Kate Winslet, Little Children

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Helen Mirren, The Queen
SHOULD WIN: Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: Helen Mirren, The Queen
SHOULD WIN: Helen Mirren, The Queen

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Helen Mirren, The Queen
SHOULD WIN: Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal


Best Supporting Actor
Nominees: Alan Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine; Jackie Earle Haley, Little Children; Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond; Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls; Mark Wahlberg, The Departed

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
SHOULD WIN: Alan Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: Alan Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine
SHOULD WIN: Alan Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
SHOULD WIN: Jackie Earle Haley, Little Children or Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond


Best Supporting Actress
Nominees: Adriana Barraza, Babel; Cate Blanchett, Notes on a Scandal; Abigail Breslin, Little Miss Sunshine; Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls; Rinko Kikuchi, Babel

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
SHOULD WIN: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
SHOULD WIN: Cate Blanchett, Notes on a Scandal

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
SHOULD WIN: Rinko Kikuchi, Babel


Best Director
Nominees: Alejandro González Iñárritu, Babel; Martin Scorsese, The Departed; Clint Eastwood, Letters from Iwo Jima; Stephen Frears, The Queen; Paul Greengrass, United 93

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
SHOULD WIN: Clint Eastwood, Letters from Iwo Jima

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
SHOULD WIN: Martin Scorsese, The Departed

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
SHOULD WIN: Martin Scorsese, The Departed


Best Feature Film
Nominees: Babel; The Departed; Letters from Iwo Jima; Little Miss Sunshine; The Queen

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Babel
SHOULD WIN: Letters from Iwo Jima

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: The Departed
SHOULD WIN: Letters from Iwo Jima

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Babel
SHOULD WIN: Letters from Iwo Jima


Best Original Screenplay
Nominees: Babel; Letters from Iwo Jima; Little Miss Sunshine; Pan's Labyrinth; The Queen

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Little Miss Sunshine
SHOULD WIN: Pan's Labyrinth

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: Letters from Iwo Jima
SHOULD WIN: Pan's Labyrinth

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Little Miss Sunshine
SHOULD WIN: Pan's Labyrinth

Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominees: Borat: Cultural Learnings of America to Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan; Children of Men; The Departed; Little Children; Notes on a Scandal

Mel Valentin
WILL WIN: Little Children
SHOULD WIN: Children of Men

Rossiter Drake
WILL WIN: The Departed
SHOULD WIN: Notes on a Scandal

Anhoni Patel
WILL WIN: Borat
SHOULD WIN: Children of Men



by SFS Staff on Feb 15, 2007
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