Kinematoscope

Hey, Meryl Streep could still win this one, you guys! She won the, uh, the Golden Globe. You know, the separate one for Comedy or Musical. That means she's legit, right?


1. Sandra Bullock (0 for 0) for The Blind Side

"Whatever wonderful actress was going to play Leigh Anne Tuohy, it was going to be an inspirational story, a true life story- that we’re capable of so much more than we think we are, because we don’t really live in a world that supports the good that we can do, they all want us to do something bad that sells some papers or some news report." -cinemasource

Bullock of course, is actually going to win, not because her solid work in The Blind Side is anything to write home about, but because she co-opted the storyline from Streep a couple months back, and "Whould've Thunk It" as a narrative for a first-timer trumps "It's Been A Long Time Since My Second Oscar" every time.



2. Helen Mirren (1 for 3) for The Last Station

"I’m so not like Sofya. I wish I was more like Sofya. Instead, I get quiet and resentful and cry and angry and sulk. You know, Sofya does not do that. She lets it all out immediately. And I wish I had more of her characteristics." -darkhorizons

Not that I have one, but Mirren gets my vote this year for her scenery-chewing, wonderfully passionate performance in The Last Station. There's not much of a groundswell for her out there, though, which is what happens when you've just won a few years back.



3. Carey Mulligan (0 for 0) for An Education

"One of the things I admired most about Jenny as a character, and I admire this in people I know, is when people are passionate and learn things for themselves, who take an interest in things in their lives just because they're interested." -film.com

It took me all day to find an interview where Mulligan does anything but credit director Lone Scherfig and her costars for her success- such modesty. A breakout role for a breakout star, and a welcome-to-Hollywood Oscar nomination like a cherry on top.



4. Gabourey Sidibe (0 for 0) for Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

"She wants to hide within herself, she wants to be invisible. I did that even on the audition tape. I felt like I knew this girl. I’d seen parts of her in a lot of different people. In my family members. I knew her in myself when I was 15." -telegraph

With only a few parts in college theatre to her credit, its been quite the year for Sidibe, whose more nuanced performance of an abused teenager facing nothing but bleakness is arguably more impressive than Mo'Nique's turn as her mother.



5. Meryl Streep (2 for 15) for Julie & Julia

"When you talk about passion, Julia Child just didn’t have it for her husband or cooking; she had a passion for living. What was compelling about her was her joie de vivre and her unwillingness to be bogged down in negativity. She loved being alive and that’s inspirational in itself." -telegraph

Normally a spot-on imitation of a beloved public figure is an easy walk to the podium, but not so for Meryl. I have a theory that she'll never win an Oscar again: with 16 nominations, how can she ever need it more than the next woman? But maybe if this role had been a full biopic (instead of half lame rom-com) she'd prove me wrong.