Oscar Picks

My Oscar Picks (What I think will win, not what I would vote for if I was voting)

Picture-The King's Speech
Actor-Colin Firth The King's Speech
Actress-Natalie Portman Black Swan
Sup Actor-Christian Bale The Fighter
Sup Actress- Melissa Leo The Fighter
Director-David Fincher The Social Network
Original Screenplay-The King's Speech
Adapted Screenplay-The Social Network
Foreign Film- Dogtooth Greece
Animated Feature- Toy Story 3
Cinematography-True Grit
Film Editing- The Kng's Speech
Art Direction- Inception
Sound Editing-Inception
Sound Mixing-Inception
Visual FX-Inception
Documentary Feature-Restrepo
Costumes- The King's Speech
Orig. Score- The Social Network
Song-We Belong Together Toy Story 3
Make-up Wolfman
Documentary Short-Killing In The Name
Live Action short-The Crush
Animated Short-Night and Day

Barney's Version

Paul Giamatti plays a Jewish curmudgeon with a self-destructive streak, especially when it comes to the woman in his life in an adaptation of the Mordecai Richler (The Aprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz) novel,"Barney's Version". Giamatti won the Golden Globe for best Lead Performance by an Actor in a Comedy. I have no problem with that. He gives an excellent performance but if the Foreign Press Association thinks that this film is a comedy they're taking more powerful hallucinogens than I originally suspected. This movie is in no way, shape or form a comedy. In fact it's even less of a comedy than the eventual winner in the Golden Globes Best Comedy category "The Kids Are Alright" (also not a comedy). Really, the foreign press is either high or corrupt. I lean toward the second.
But that doesn't mean the movie isn't good. It is. This is a character study wrapped in a Jewish love story. It takes Giamatti through Barney's youthful idealism and two failed marriages, to his discovery of the love of his life. It shows Barney with all his raw flaws and weaknesses, some of which sabotage his happiness. The film takes him all the way to an early grave, which might just break your heart. But by that time the richness of a life lived fully, if not perfectly, has made the cinematic journey worth taking. And that's due in no small part to a smartly adapted script, a beautifully nuanced supporting turn by Rosamund Pike and Giamatti's layered performance. He deserves to have an award on his mantle for "Barney's Version". Just not one that says "Comedy" on it.