Kinematoscope

Dave fills out his imaginary Oscar Ballot.

Best Sound Mixing

Black Swan
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
The Social Network
Tron: Legacy

I stick to films that I have seen...

Best Sound Editing

Black Swan
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
Toy Story 3
Tron: Legacy

Best Special Effects

Hereafter
Inception
Iron Man 2
The Social Network
Tron: Legacy

More...

Best Costume Design

Black Swan
Shutter Island
The Fighter
Tron: Legacy
True Grit

Best Art Direction

Black Swan
Inception
Shutter Island
Tron: Legacy
True Grit

Best Make Up

Black Swan
Piranha 3-d
Shutter Island

How did Black Swan not secure a nomination when the black and white make up on Portman has become part of the film’s identity? Shutter Island gets in mostly for Jackie Earle Haley’s make up, while Piranha’s gore is accurate and over the top.

Best Animated Feature Film

How to Train Your Dragon
Tangled
Toy Story 3

Best Song

“If I Rise” – Dido and A. R. Rahman – 127 Hours
“Sticks and Stones” – Jonsi – How to Train Your Dragon
“Black Sheep” – Metric – Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

While I did not see 127 Hours, I have heard the song and it is pretty good.

Best Score

Black Swan
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
The Social Network
Tron: Legacy

Dear Academy – Change your eligibility rules.

Best Cinematography

Black Swan
Inception
A Prophet
The Social Network
True Grit

Black Swan, Inception, The Social Network, and True Grit are obvious choices. I like the difficulty of lighting (or not lighting) the prison, the Rivera work, and the shoot-out at the end of A Prophet enough to merit a nomination.

Best Editing

Black Swan
The Ghost Writer
Inception
The Social Network
The Town

All of these films are tautly edited, even though not all of them are in the “suspense” genre.

Best Original Screenplay

Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
Mother
A Prophet

I am always slightly befuddled as to how the true story of someone’s life (see Milk) can be deemed “original.” It just seems a little odd because the writer, unless they knew the person/situation firsthand, would have to adapt it. This is why I am confounded about The Fighter this year.

Best Adapted Screenplay

The Ghost Writer
How to Train Your Dragon
The Social Network
The Town
True Grit

Solid grouping right here.

Supporting Actress

Amy Adams – The Fighter
Barbara Hershey – Black Swan
Mila Kunis – Black Swan
Melissa Leo – The Fighter
Olivia Williams – The Ghost Writer
Last Actress Out: Winona Ryder – Black Swan

While there were not many memorable lead female performances, there were boatloads of great supporting roles. The Fighter and Black Swan were so stocked; it was absurd amount of talent.

I would have given Winona Ryder a nomination, but her role was not nearly as meaty as the other contenders here.

Best Supporting Actor

Christian Bale – The Fighter
Pierce Brosnan – The Ghost Writer
Vincent Cassel – Black Swan
Matt Damon – True Grit
Jeremy Renner – The Town
Last Actor Out: Dieter Laser – The Human Centipede

Bale’s mesmerizing performance will earn him this year’s award. Brosnan’s Tony Blair-impression was spot-on. Matt Damon was amusing, while Renner was crazy. Vincent Cassel asked the most quintessential question in cinema this year: (Looking for a Link Where Cassel Asks, “Would You Fuck Dis Gurl?”)

As for Laser, yeah, I went there.

Best Actress

Hye-ja Kim – Mother
Jennifer Lawrence – Winter's Bone
Natalie Portman – Black Swan
Hailee Steinfeld – True Grit
Michelle Williams – Blue Valentine
Last Actress Out: Elisabeth Shue – Piranha 3-d.

When I first made this list I had three nominees (Kim, Portman, and Steinfeld receiving the Winslet Jump®). Unfortunately, I did not see many memorable lead female performances this year.

Best Actor

Jeff Bridges – True Grit
Leonardo Di Caprio – Shutter Island
Jesse Eisenberg – The Social Network
Tahar Rahim – A Prophet
Mark Wahlberg – The Fighter
Last Actor Out: Ewan McGregor – The Ghost Writer

Eisenberg and Bridges are obvious choices. I feel that had I seen The King’s Speech, Firth would be here as well. Tahar Rahim’s wide-eyed criminal who blurs boundaries is an engaging view. Di Caprio’s performance in Shutter Island stands out more to me than Inception because he has more depth to work with. Lastly, Wahlberg’s subdued performance maybe did not earn him as much attention as it should have, but his silent struggles speak volumes.

Best Director

Ben Affleck – The Town
Darren Aronofsky – Black Swan
David Fincher – The Social Network
Christopher Nolan – Inception
Roman Polanski – The Ghost Writer
Last Director Out: Joon-ho Bong – Mother

You have the new kid on the block (Affleck), the auteur (Aronofsky), the greatest of the hour (Fincher), the visionary (Nolan), and the wily veteran (Polanski). I feel that Affleck got the most out of his cast (after all, Blake Lively appeared to be acting), while Aronofsky was able to push his stars. Fincher, the consummate professional, honed a story to meet up, and ultimately exceed, any and all expectations. Nolan is probably the most original filmmaker we have going right now. Polanski’s thriller already earned him the Berlin Film Festival Award.

Best Picture

Black Swan
The Fighter
The Ghost Writer
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
Mother
A Prophet
The Social Network
The Town
True Grit
Last Movie Out: A Tale of Two Escobars

Before I hear cries of “But Mother and A Prophet are from 2009, not 2010!” … Hold on… Take a big breath… A Prophet did not show up in Milwaukee until the end of January, and Mother came in March. Plus, Mother is actually still getting awards from various critics groups this year, so I am not entirely wacky.

These nominees would probably constitute most (if not all) of my top ten list of the year too. While the Academy acknowledged many of these films in this category, I feel that the omission of The Ghost Writer and The Town bother me, but only slightly.

As for A Tale of Two Escobars, I cannot remember the last time a documentary was so compelling and suspenseful. Sure, it played in one theatre in Los Angeles, and was seen by most on ESPN’s 30 for 30 series. However, it hooks you and enlightens you, which is what you demand from a documentary.

Nomination Totals:
Black Swan – 15 nominations
Inception – 10 nominations
The Social Network – 9 nominations
True Grit – 8 nominations
The Fighter – 7 nominations
How to Train Your Dragon – 7 nominations
The Ghost Writer – 6 nominations
Tron: Legacy – 6 nominations
The Town – 5 nominations
A Prophet – 4 nominations
Shutter Island – 4 nominations
Mother – 3 nominations
Toy Story 3 – 2 nominations
Blue Valentine – 1 nomination
Piranha 3-d: 1 nomination
Tangled – 1 nomination
Winter's Bone – 1 nomination
Hereafter- 1 nomination
Iron Man 2- 1 nomination
127 Hours- 1 nomination
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World- 1 nomination