The "Casual" Oscars

Also announced, The Independent Spirit Award nominations are out. The show airs on IFC the Saturday before the Oscars (that's 2/26) and is always a lot of fun and kooky. This years host, Joe McHale, should prove the same.

BEST FEATURE:
127 Hours
Black Swan
Greenberg
The Kids Are All Right
Winter's Bone

It could go almost any way here... This is the best bet for Black Swan, though The Kids Are All Right could also take it.

BEST DIERCTOR:
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
Danny Boyle, 127 Hours
Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right
Debra Granik, Winter's Bone
John Cameron Mitchell, Rabbit Hole

Another tough call. This is why I love the Spirit Awards! I would love to see Aronofsky take it here.

BEST FIRST FEATURE:
Everything Strange and New

Get Low

The Last Exorcism
Night Catches Us
Tiny Furniture

More great nominees. I like Get Low for this, but I also think it could be Tiny Furniture. That movie got a lot of really good press and is very much in keeping with the vein of the awards- low budget, no names, character driven. Wouldn't it be hilarious if The Last Exorcism won?

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD:
Daddy Longlegs

The Exploding Girl

LBS.
Lovers of Hate
Obselidia

I like The Exploding Girl or Daddy Longlegs. The Cassavetes Award goes to a film with a budget of less than $500,000. This award is always exciting as it represents the true face of Independent cinema.

BEST SCREENPLAY:

The Kids are All Right, Lisa Cholodenko, Stuart Blumberg

Winter's Bone, Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini

Please Give, Nicole Holofcener

Rabbit Hole, David Lindsay-Abaire

Life During Wartime, Todd Solondz

The Kids Are All Right hands down. Look for Please Give to upset.

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY:
Obselidia, Diane Bell
Tiny Furniture, Lena Dunham
Lovely, Still, Nik Fackler
Jack Goes Boating, Robert Glaudini
Monogamy, Dana Adam Shapiro, Evan M. Wiener

I haven't seen all of these, but I like the idea behind Tiny Furniture best.

BEST FEMALE LEAD:
Annette Bening, The Kids are All Right
Greta Gerwig, Greenberg
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawerence, Winter's Bone
Natalie Portman, Blac Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

With 6 nominees in this category, it is going to be a close call. Portman could sweep every award show, but this is the format for Williams or Lawerence to upset. I love that Greta Gerwig was nominated, she is amazing in that movie; I just hated that movie.

BEST MALE LEAD:
Ronald Bronstein, Daddy Longlegs
Aaron Eckhart, Rabbit Hole
James Franco, 127 Hours
John C. Reilly, Cyrus
Ben Stiller, Greenberg

Here is where Franco could win something but he's up against strong indie favorites Eckhart and Reilly. Stiller could steal it in his un-characteristic turn as a malcontent asshole.

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE:
Ashley Bell, The Last Exorcism
Dale Dickey, Winter's Bone
Allison Janney, Life During Wartime
Daphne Rubin-Vega, Jack Goes Boating
Naomi Watts, Mother and Child

Only the Globes have love for Mila Kunis. It's just as well, she wouldn't stand a chance here either. Ashley Bell is brilliant in Exorcism, simply the best thing about that movie. I would love to see some love for Dickey. She seems to have been in everything and is a talented character actor. Watts will probably get it though.

BEST SUPPORTING MALE:
Bill Murray, Get Low
John Hawkes, Winter's Bone
Samuel L. Jackson, Mother and Child
John Ortiz, Jack Goes Boating
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right

This one is tough. I always want Bill Murray to win everything so I'll probably put my money there. I will be super stoked if Hawkes wins it as I love him, or Ruffalo. He did an amazing job straddling the line between like and disgust from the audience.

BEST FOREIGN FILM:
The King's Speech
Kisses
Mademoiselle Chambon

Of Gods and Men

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives

The King's Speech may lose out due to its heavy Oscar nominations.

BEST DOCUMENTARY:
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Marwencol

Restrepo

Sweetgrass

Thunder Soul

Here's where Exit Through the Gift Shop could walk away with it. Finger's crossed!

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:

Black Swan

Never Let Me Go

Tiny Furniture

Winter's Bone

Greenberg

I think I'm one of few people who loved Never Let Me Go. That being said, regardless of how you felt about the movie as a whole; the cinematography was brilliant. Black Swan could win as well.

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD:

Please Give

And The Nominee Is...

The Academy announced it's list of Oscar nominations early this morning. I wait all year for the Oscars. It's been a family tradition to sit around, nosh on nibbly bits, and yell in shock and excitement as they name the winners. Needless to say, it's been on my calendar for months! Below are all the nominees (best of luck to all!) as well as my predictions. Who do you think will win? Any major snubs?

BEST PICTURE:

Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech
127 Hours
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

No real surprises here. True Grit missed out on the Globes, but everyone agreed it would make the list here. I'm going to have to pick The Social Network to win. As much as I hate to think it, there doesn't seem to be any other logical choice. I'll hold final judgement for when the Producers and Directors Guild's name their winners. I'm still crossing my fingers for Inception! I also have to say, this year should have been the debut of the 10 nomination list. Look at all these really great films!


DIRECTING:
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
David O. Russell, The Fighter
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
David Fincher, The Social Network
Joel and Ethan Coen, True Grit

This was going to be a tough race for a nomination and I'm surprised Christopher Nolan missed the ticket until I remember he always misses. The best bet here is David Fincher and it's well deserved for a great film and equally distinguished career. The upset may be Aronofsky, but the Academy still skews older so it's unlikely.


ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:
Javier Bardem, Biutiful
Jeff Bridges, True Grit
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours

Julia Roberts campaigning paid off and Javier Bardem won a nomination. Good for him. I haven't seen the picture yet, but I hear he is amazing. For me, it's between Colin Firth (already one up with the Globe) and Jeff Bridges (although he won last year, and the Academy doesn't award back to back that often). The surprise upset could be Franco who was superb and was on screen for the duration of his one man show.


ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE:
Anette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

This is Portman's to lose really, and she certainly deserves to win it!

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:
Christian Bale, The Fighter
John Hawks, Winter’s Bone
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right

A few surprises here. What's up John Hawks! I just loved him in Deadwood and You, Me, and Everyone We Know. He must have pushed out Andrew Garfield which is really too bad but he's young and has the opportunity to be back on this list in the future. My vote, and yours if you're smart, is for Bale.


ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
Jackie Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Newcomer Hailee Steinfeld edged out Mila Kunis in one of the best decisions the Academy made this year. If you haven't seen True Grit go now! She is a knockout. Logic says Leo to win and I agree with that, though Steinfeld or Bonham Carter could upset.


ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
127 Hours (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy
The Social Network (Sony Pictures Releasing), Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin
Toy Story 3 (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Michael Arndt. Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich
True Grit (Paramount), Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
Winter’s Bone (Roadside Attractions), Adapted for the screen by Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini

If Aaron Sorkin doesn't win, something is wrong.


ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Another Year (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Mike Leigh
The Fighter (Paramount), Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson. Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson
Inception (Warner Bros.), Written by Christopher Nolan
The Kids Are All Right (Focus Features), Written by Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg
The King’s Speech (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Seidler

This is always a tough category to call.... I'd love to see Inception win, but I fear I will become a broken record. That script is just so genius! This may be where The Kids Are All Right gets some love though.


FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
Biutiful
Dogtooth
In a Better World
Incendies
Outside the Law

In a Better World won the Globe so I pick it here as well. I'd love to see Biutiful win as well.


ANIMATED FEATURE FILM:
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Toy Story 3

Toy Story 3 or bust.

CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Black Swan (Fox Searchlight) Matthew Libatique
Inception (Warner Bros.) Wally Pfister
The King’s Speech (The Weinstein Company) Danny Cohen
The Social Network (Sony Pictures Releasing) Jeff Cronenweth
True Grit (Paramount) Roger Deakins

It's hard to think that Inception won't sweep the technical awards, and this is their first chance. So many of the effects where done in camera and the composition of shots is almost as important as the script or the acting for the film to have worked so well. Deakins is a legend and could upset, but I cross my fingers that is not the case.


FILM EDITING:
Black Swan (Fox Searchlight) Andrew Weisblum
The Fighter (Paramount( Pamela Martin
The King’s Speech (The Weinstein Company) Tariq Anwar
127 Hours (Fox Searchlight) Jon Harris
The Social Network (Sony Pictures Releasing) Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter

I'm kind of surprised Inception was not named here, but what are you gonna do? I vote for The Social Network to win. Really, as long as 127 Hours doesn't I really don't care. The cuts in that movie were distracting!


DOCUMENTARY:
Exit through the Gift Shop (Producers Distribution Agency) Banksy and Jaimie D’Cruz A Paranoid Pictures Production
Gasland Josh Fox and Trish Adlesic A Gasland Production
Inside Job (Sony Pictures Classics) Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs A Representational Pictures Production
Restrepo (National Geographic Entertainment) Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger An Outpost Films Production
Waste Land Lucy Walker and Angus Aynsley (Arthouse Films) An Almega Projects Production

Tough call.... How awesome would it be if Exit Through the Gift Shop won? Otherwise, I vote Restrepo.


ORIGINAL SCORE:
How to Train Your Dragon (Paramount) John Powell
Inception (Warner Bros.) Hans Zimmer
The King’s Speech (The Weinstein Company) Alexandre Desplat
127 Hours (Fox Searchlight) A.R. Rahman
The Social Network (Sony Pictures Releasing) Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

Hans Zimmer made a haunting score for Inception, but I'm a bit surprised to see it nominated. While almost unrecognizable, he was very open about his use of pre-recorded music (namely Edith Piaf) that we wove into the score, altered, slowed down, or sampled. The Academy has looked down on this sort of thing in the past and are likely to do so again. Still, the 16 year old in me is freaking out at the thought that Trent Reznor could win an Oscar!

ORIGINAL SONG:
"Coming Home" from Country Strong (Sony Pictures Releasing (Screen Gems)) Music and Lyric by Tom Douglas, Troy Verges and Hillary Lindsey
"I See the Light" from Tangled (Walt Disney) Music by Alan Menken Lyric by Glenn Slater
"If I Rise" from 127 Hours (Fox Searchlight) Music by A.R. Rahman Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong
"We Belong Together" from Toy Story 3 (Walt Disney) Music and Lyric by Randy Newman

I think I've the only person without a hard on for A.R. Rahman. Thank god he won last year so I'm not so worried. I will, however, be taking a bathroom break during the performance of this song. What does Indian/Bollywood music have to do with being stuck in a crevice, except that I would rather die there then have to listen to any more of it out of context? Globe winner Burlesque wasn't even nominated, so the field is wide open. I vote Randy Newman. Can you believe he's only won one Oscar?

VISUAL EFFECTS:
Alice in Wonderland (Walt Disney) Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (Warner Bros.) Tim Burke, John Richardson, Christian Manz and Nicolas Aithadi
Hereafter (Warner Bros.) Michael Owens, Bryan Grill, Stephan Trojanski and Joe Farrell
Inception (Warner Bros.) Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb
Iron Man 2 (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment, Distributed by Paramount) Janek Sirrs, Ben Snow, Ged Wright and Daniel Sudick

Hmmmm..... How high brow will the Academy be? I think it's between Inception and Harry Potter. Alice could have made it, but anything in 3D automatically loses in my book.


ART DIRECTION:
Alice in Wonderland (Walt Disney), Robert Stromberg (Production Design), Karen O’Hara (Set Decoration)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (Warner Bros.), Stuart Craig (Production Design), Stephenie McMillan (Set Decoration)
Inception (Warner Bros.), Guy Hendrix Dyas (Production Design), Larry Dias and Doug Mowat (Set Decoration)/span>
The King’s Speech (Paramount), Eve Stewart (Production Design), Judy Farr (Set Decoration)
True Grit (Paramount), Jess Gonchor (Production Design), Nancy Haigh (Set Decoration)

This is a tough one. The Academy tends to award this prize to period pieces, so The King's Speech and True Grit are the forerunners here. It would be neat to see Inception win this as well (am I beginning to sound like a broken record yet?). Again, those sets where just fantastic!


COSTUME DESIGN:
Alice in Wonderland (Walt Disney) Colleen Atwood
I Am Love (Magnolia Pictures) Antonella Cannarozzi
The King’s Speech (The Weinstein Company) Jenny Beavan
The Tempest (Miramax) Sandy Powell
True Grit (Paramount) Mary Zophres

Lot's of good nominees here and past winners. I love Colleen Atwood always, and Sandy Powell is pretty spectacular as well. She just won a year ago, so this may be too soon for her to win again. Alice in Wonderland was ALL about the costumes though, so I hope it's Atwood. Look for Beavan to upset.
 
MAKEUP:
Barney's Version
The Way Back
The Wolfman

Off the top of my head, it seems like FX make-up rarely wins this award. Maybe I'm senile. So, I pick Barney's Vision to win. Any make-up that convinces us that Paul Giamatti could get wit Minnie Driver, Rachel LeFevre, and Rosamund Pike deserves to win.

SOUND EDITING:
Inception
Toy Story 3
Tron: Legacy
True Grit
Unstoppable

These next two categories always seem to confuse people. Basically, Sound Editing is all about getting the final mix of sound, dialogue, foley (FX), etc, ready for the final mix. This includes recording additional dialogue (ADR) and background. Tron: Legacy and Inception are my front runners. Both had multiple tracks of music, dialogue, and FX to master.

SOUND MIXING:
Inception
The King's Speech
Salt
The Social Network
True Grit

Sound Mixing involves the process by which multiple tracks (for example, several parts of dialogue recorded both during the shoot and after, i.e. ADR) into one track. The levels must be made perfect so there is no discrepancy. This is the final result of all the sounds layered to create what we hear in the theatre. Again, I pick Inception though True Grit could also win here.

For the nominees in the short film and documentary categories, please seethe Academy Awards official site here.

Golden Globe Nominations

The nominations have been announced and as with every year there are some surprises and some snubs. Below is the complete list with my opinions on who will and/or should win. Of course, we'll have to wait until January 16th to find out for sure!

Best Motion Picture- Drama
- "Black Swan"
- "The Fighter"
- "Inception"
- "The King's Speech"
- "The Social Network"

Personally, I would love to see "Inception" win here. This is a movie that continues to twist audiences brains and illicit deep conversation. "Black Swan" is an amazing film, and if it is going to win any of the major awards in the U.S., the Golden Globe is it. Voted on by the Hollywood Foreign Press (HFP), this movie has done very well over seas and has a very European feel to it.

Best Performance by an Actress- Drama
- Halle Berry ("Frankie and Alice")
- Nicole Kidman ("Rabit Hole")
- Jennifer Lawrence ("Winter's Bone")
- Natalie Portman ("Black Swan")
- Michelle Williams ("Blue Valentine")

This is Portman's to lose. I've heard amazing things about Williams but am with holding judgement until I see "Blue Valentine". Berry and Kidman play other versions of past winners and Lawrence should just be excited for the nomination.

Best Performance by an Actor- Drama
- Jesse Eisenberg ("The Social Network")
- Colin Firth ("The King's Speech")
- James Franco ("127 Hours")
- Ryan Gosling ("Blue Valentine")
- Mark Wahlberg ("The Fighter")

This is going to be a tough race. I would put my money on Franco and his extremely honest performance, but we may be surprised by Firth or Eisenberg. Wahlberg does a wonderful job in "The Fighter" (my full review will be posted later today), but the star of that show is really Christian Bale.

Best Motion Picture- Comedy or Musical
- "Alice in Wonderland"
- "Burlesque"
- "The Kids Are All Right"
- "Red"
- "The Tourist"

These are some weird nominees. Recently, it seems like the HFP is just grabbing at straws for enough films to fill this category. That being said, I think "The Kids Are All Right" is the clear winner. "Alice" was all style, no substance. "Burlesque" hasn't won raves for anything. "Red" may be a surprise here, but I didn't like it. And, why is "The Tourist" in this category? Is it funny? If so, maybe I misjudged it but I think others will be confused as well.

Best Performance by an Actress- Comedy or Musical
- Annette Bening ("The Kids Are All Right")
- Anne Hathaway ("Love and Other Drugs")
- Angelina Jolie ("The Tourist")
- Julianne Moore ("The Kids Are All Right")
- Emma Stone ("Easy A")

Holy f-ing Batman, Batman! Stone is nominated for "Easy A"? I'm tickled pink over this even though I don't think she will win. What a coup for her and "R" rated comedy though. My monies on Bening.

Best Performance by an Actor- Comedy or Musical
- Johnny Depp ("Allice in Wonderland")
- Johnny Depp ("The Tourist")
- Paul Giamatti ("Barney's Version")
- Jake Gyllenhaal ("Love and Other Drugs")
- Kevin Spacey ("Casino Jack")

Hmmm.... I'm not in love with any of these. Depp may cancel himself out, though I did like his performance in "Alice". Giamatti is an award show favorite but not enough people have seen his movie. I didn't even know it was out yet, though it does look good. Gyllenhaal has been overshadowed by Hathaway and Spacey has been off the radar for too long and no one saw that movie. It's a coin flip.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
- Amy Adams ("The Fighter")
- Helena Bonham Carter ("The King's Speech")
- Mila Kunis ("Black Swan")
- Melissa Leo ("The Fighter")
- Jackie Weaver ("Animal Kingdom")

I have heard amazing things about "Animal Kingdom" but it's not out in my market yet. Melissa Leo (Oscar nominated in 2009) should win this hands down. Her turn as a deluded mother/manager in "The Fighter" was brilliant.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
- Christian Bale ("The Fighter")
- Michael Douglas ("Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps")
- Andrew Garfield ("The Social Network")
- Jeremy Renner ("The Town")
- Geoffrey Rush ("The King's Speech")

I feel bad for everyone not named Christian Bale this year. He was mesmerizing. It takes a lot for us to forget we're watching Batman, but he is able to do it.

Best Animated Feature
- "Despicable Me"
- "How to Train Your Dragon"
- "The Illusionist"
- "Tangled"
- "Toy Story 3"

I don't watch a lot of modern animated movies. For me, everything after "The Secret of Nihm" is lost to me. So, I will defer to my friends who said "Despicable Me" was amazing.

Best Foreign Language Film
- "Biutiful" (Mexico, Spain)
- "The Concert" (France)
- "The Edge" (Russia)
- "I Am Love" (Italy)
- "In a Better World" (Denmark)

I have to vote for "I Am Love" simply because I cannot deny my platonic love for Tilda Swinton. She can do no wrong! Close second for Javier Bardem"Biutiful" and "In a Better World".

Best Director- Motion Picture
- Darren Aronofsky ("Black Swan")
- David Fincher ("The Social Network")
- Tom Hooper ("The King's Speech")
- Christopher Nolan ("Inception")
- David O. Russell ("The Fighter")

Another race I'm glad to not be a part of. Who the heck is going to win?! I'm betting on Aronofsky. He is a true auteur and made an exceptionally beautiful and haunting film. Nolan seems destined to be the bridesmaid again this year, but I might but a little action on him. Russell and Hooper are out. The only person who could upset this is Fincher.

Best Screenplay- Motion Picture
- "127 Hours" (Simon Beaufoy, Danny Boyle)
- "Inception" (Christopher Nolan)
- "The Kids Are All Right" (Stuart Blumberf, Lisa Cholodenko)
- "The King's Speech" (David Seidler)
- "The Social Network" (Aaron Sorkin)

I really want this to be "Inception". What a marvelous piece of writing. His ability to keep it all straight in his head should be reason enough to reward Nolan. Sorkin however is also a good bet, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Best Score- Motion Picture
-"The King's Speech" (Alexandre Desplat)
- "Alice in Wonderland" (Danny Elfman)
- "127 Hours" (A. R. Rahman)
- "The Social Network" (Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross)
- "Inception" (Hans Zimmer)

Who wouldn't love to see Trent Reznor on stage accepting a Golden Globe. I'm pretty sure it's the 2nd sign of the apocalypse and fraking cool! Elfman has never won and I think is hardly going to with this effort. Rahman won last year for "Slumdog" and this However, I think the award goes to Zimmer. He made something simply amazing and my sister's boyfriend (and budding Zimmer himself) says he is the man. I agree.

Best Original Song- Motion Picture
- "Bound to You" ("Burlesque")
- "Coming Home" ("Country Strong")
- "I See The Light" ("Tangled")
- "There's a Place for Us" ("Chronicles of Narnia")
- "You Haven't Seen The Last of Me" ("Burlesque")

I have no idea... "Burlesque"?

Best TV Series- Drama
- "Boardwalk Empire"
- "Dexter"
- "The Good Wife"
- "Mad Men"
- "The Walking Dead"

Finally, competition for "Mad Men". I would really love to see "Boardwalk" take this one home (though the safe money is still on "Mad Men"). As much as I love zombies, I don't think the voters will.

Best Performance by an Actress- TV Drama
- Julianna Margulies ("The Good Wife")
- Elisabeth Moss ("Mad Men")
- Piper Perabo ("Covert Affairs")
- Katey Sagal ("Sons of Anarchy")
- Kyra Sedgwick ("The Closer")

I'm thinking about making "Gemma for President" shirts so I can show my support of the fantastic Katey Sagal. It's about time she gets some recognition! PS- I totally watch "Covert Affairs" and cannot believe it was nominated. It's like "Alias" but kind of funny.

Best Performance by an Actor- TV Drama
- Steve Buscemi ("Boardwalk Empire")
- Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad")
- Michael C. hall ("Dexter")
- Jon Hamm ("Mad Men")
- Hugh Laurie ("House")

Someone bring Cranston down! There should be a rule that the same person cannot win "x" years in a row. I'm sending all my good juju to Buscemi and his brilliantly sympathetic and frightful "Nucky" Thompson.

Best TV Series- Comedy or Musical
- "30 Rock"
- "The Big Bang Theory"
- "The Big C"
- "Glee"
- "Modern Family"
- "Nurse Jackie"

All hail "Modern Family"!

Best Performance by an Actress- TV Comedy
- Ton Collette ("United States of Tara")
- Edie Falco ("Nurse Jackie")
- Tina Fey ("30 Rock")
- Laura Linney ("The Big C")
- Lea Michele ("Glee")

I love Laura Linney and hope she gets it. Her show makes me a bit crazy, but she does a great job on it. Otherwise, it's a fight to the death between Collette and Falco.

Best Performance by an Actor- TV Comedy
- Alec Baldwin (30 Rock")
- Steve Carell ("The Office")
- Thomas Jane ("Hung")
- Matthew Morrison ("Glee")
- Jim Parsons ("The Big Bang Theory")

It's Parsons for the win, but who wants to make side bets on whether or not Jane shows up with shoes on or not?

Best Mini-Series or Made for TV Movie
- "Carlos"
- "The Pacific"
- "Pillars of Earth"
- "Temple Grandin"
- "You Don't Know Jack"

While I would like to see "The Pacific" win, I think it will go to Emmy-winning "Temple Grandin"

Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series
- Hayley Atwell ("Pillars of Earth")
- Claire Danes ("Temple Grandin")
- Judi Dench ("Return to Cranford")
- Romola Garai ("Emma")
- Jennifer Love Hewitt ("The Client List")

Big money again on Danes, though I am pleased to see the inclusion of Garai. She is an actress I have liked for a long time and am glad to see her get some due.

Best Performance by and Actor in a Mini-Series
- Idris Elba ("Luther")
- Ian McShane ("Pillars of Earth")
- Al Pacino ("You Don't Know Jack")
- Dennis Quaid ("The Special Relationship")
- Edgar Ramirez ("Carlos")

Another tough race. I hope Elba wins. He was amazing in "Luther" on BBC America. Really, any of them could win and I'd be happy.

Best Performance by a Supporting Actress- TV
- Hope Davis ("The Special relationship")
- Jane Lynch ("Glee")
- Kelly MacDonald ("Boardwalk Empire")
- Julia Stiles ("Dexter")
- Sofia Vergara ("Modern Family")

Please be Lynch, please be Lynch, please be Lynch. She is the best (and possibly only) reason to watch "Glee". maybe there can be a tie between her and MacDonald!

Best Performance by a Supporting Actor- TV
- Scott Caan ("Hawaii Five-O")
- Chris Colfer ("Glee")
- Chris Noth ("The Good Wife")
- Eric Stonestreet ("Modern Family")
- David Strathairn ("Temple Grandin")

Make that two reasons to watch "Glee". Colfer is amazing, but I think it's more about the writing. Caan is the best thing about his show too, but it's too new. Money on Stonestreet with a possible upset by Strathairn. I just love him, although I always think he might smell a bit. Can't explain it.

There you go! Who would you vote for?