My Oscar Nomination Wishlist

With Academy Awards nominations being announced next Tuesday (Jan. 22) it got me thinking about what I really want to get nominated. I hate it when the same films are nominated for everything and I hate it when the Academy nominates the same actors year after year, without acknowledging new talent. However, I am also a biased individual with my own favorites, who knows that the Oscars are rarely fair, and that the most deserving candidate does not always win. So here is my wishlist, generally trying to nominate the best applicants, but also trying to include a diverse set of nominees (because in the face of such a great film season, there should be nominees from a lot of different films).

BEST PICTURE:
- "Michael Clayton"
- "Atonement"
- "Once"
- "Juno"
- "No Country for Old Men"

BEST DIRECTOR:
- Sean Pean, "Into the Wild"
- Tim Burton, "Sweeney Todd"
- Ethan and Joel Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
- Julian Schnabel, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
- Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood"

The truth is, there are about 15 films that could all get a Best Picture nomination and deserve it. In certain drafts of my list, both Into the Wild and Sweeney Todd were nominated, and I know There Will Be Blood is likely to get the nod in real life. But I really felt like Once was a worthy candidate (and the kind of film that rarely gets the kind of credit is deserves) and Juno is a fresh comedy, full of flawless performances. So instead, I nominated certain films in the Best Director category, where I felt the vision of the director had the most impact on the film's success - Sean Penn, Julian Schnabel, Paul Thomas Anderson, Tim Burton - although all their work would be justified in the Best Picture race as well. Even though I snubbed them here, Joe Wright (Atonement), Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton), Sidney Lumet (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead) and David Cronenburg (Eastern Promises) would all be great choices in the directing category as well.

BEST ACTOR:
- Viggo Mortenson, "Eastern Promises"
- George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"
- Tommy Lee Jones, "In the Valley of Elah"
- James McAvoy, "Atonement"
- Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood"

The Best Actor category was definitely the hardest. I included veteran actors I felt really deserved the nomination, but also wanted to include some new faces, like Viggo Mortenson and James McAvoy. In reality, the list of deserved nominees could also include: Russell Crowe for 3:10 to Yuma, Philip Seymour Hoffman for The Savages or Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Denzel Washington for The Great Debaters or American Gangster, Ryan Gosling for Lars and the Real Girl, Christian Bale for Rescue Dawn, Frank Langella for Starting Out in the Evening, Johnny Depp for Sweeney Todd, Josh Brolin for No Country for Old Men, and Emile Hirsch for Into the Wild. As you can see, quite the hefty and talented list and I really don't know exactly how its gonna pan out. They may not all be the Best Actor of the year, but they do all deserve recognition as nominees and it's just not possible.

BEST ACTRESS:
- Julie Christie, "Away From Her"
- Ellen Page, "Juno"
- Laura Linney, "The Savages"
- Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose"
- Keri Russell, "Waitress"

Best Actress was, as usual, the weakest acting category. I included award-favorites Julie Christie and Marion Cotillard. But my other three nominees are all from comedies, doing superior work in a genre that the Academy rarely recognizes in the lead acting categories. Laura Linney is always dependable, and much has been said about the fine balancing act of Ellen Page in Juno. But Keri Russell has been overlooked by all of the other awards shows and her work in Waitress really deserves a second look - she hits notes I didn't know she was capable of.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
- Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
- Hal Holbrook, "Into the Wild"
- Casey Affleck, "The Assassination of Jesse James..."
- Tom Wilkinson, "Michael Clayton"
- Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Charlie Wilson's War"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
- Cate Blanchett, "I'm Not There"
- Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
- Tilda Swinton, "Michael Clayton"
- Saoirse Ronan, "Atonement"
- Kelly MacDonald, "No Country for Old Men"

The Supporting Actor nominees were the easiest because they have been the most talked about supporting performances all awards season and each actor is doing some of the best work of his career. In Supporting Actress, I included category front-runners Cate Blanchett, Amy Ryan and Tilda Swinton, but added Saoirse Ronan and Kelly MacDonald, who have been largely overlooked thus far.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
- Diablo Cody, "Juno"
- Kelly Masterson, "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"
- Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"
- Nancy Oliver, "Lars and the Real Girl"
- Todd Haynes, "I'm Not There"

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
- James Vanderbilt, "Zodiac"
- Joel and Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
- Christopher Hampton, "Atonement"
- Ronald Harwood, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
- Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood"

In the Screenplay races, I tried to include scripts that were truly unique or had adapted particularly difficult work (Juno, Atonement, There Will Be Blood, and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) as well as standouts No Country for Old Men and Michael Clayton. But I included worthy films that weren't nominated in many, or any, other categories, such as Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Lars and the Real Girl, I'm Not There, and Zodiac.

I gave the most nods to No Country for Old Men and Michael Clayton because those films really deserved each and every nomination, and probably more. I tried to include the most deserving candidates in the acting categories, but did let my personal preferences remain (James McAvoy and Keri Russell). However, I feel like my list gives a little recognition to almost every great film that came out this season (sorry American Gangster and 3:10 to Yuma - I hope you get nods in other categories). There are some great articles about the nominations from Entertainment Weekly here if you want to read more. Otherwise I'll be back here to discuss my reaction to the nominations on January 22nd!