Oscar Picks - A Contest

I love the Oscars. I love movies. I never get to see movies anymore, but I still love them and I still love the Oscars. Really, I think its the clothes, but who cares. Let's pretend its the movies.

I decided to make a little contest with two of my buddies to see who could make better Oscar picks. Now, I haven't seen a single Best Movie picture, and neither have they so really its a crap shoot as to who is coming out on top. So, in the interest of keeping it fair, I am posting our picks here (no change-oes, no cheating).

Let me introduce you to the people involved and the pathology used:

Me! Movie expert (if you consider knowing every line to The Devil Wears Prada and Pretty Woman an expert). Haven't seen hardly anything nominated, so using media 411 to make my picks.

Will! Not so much a movie buff, unless we're talking Mighty Machines or more recently Jay Jay the Jet Plane. He typically pays attention to roughly the first 32 seconds of a film (unless its Nemo where he gets totally freaked out by the fish attack at the beginning and therefore runs at the first shot). He picked his choices based on... well... toddler logic.

Bentley! Again, not a movie watcher. But, willing to sniff anything on the ground. Picks based on names on a sheet of paper and which paper he sniffs first. Basically similar odds to me trusting movie reviewers and media predictions.

Here we go!

Best Actor:

Me: Mickey Rourke The Wrestler. I hear its a long shot, but his dog just died so let's throw him a bone (so to speak).

Will: Frank Langella Frost/Nixon. He just kept repeating Langella and laughing. Apparently if the voting was done by toddlers, the name that's the most fun to say takes it.

Bentley: Brad Pitt The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I think Bent is voting on looks.

Best Supporting Actor:

Me: Heath Ledger The Dark Knight. Will said his photo was too scary, so I don't think he's going to round out the category for us. But, I've loved the guy since 10 Thing I Hate About You, and I still love him even after he died.

Will: Josh Brolin Milk. Will's logic. "I want some milk, Mama!"

Bentley: Josh Brolin Milk. Bentley is a big milk fan, too. Probably his thought process is similar to Will's.

Best Actress:

Me: Meryl Streep Doubt. My dad loves her, so I am just picking her for him. Personally I believe after her performance in Mama Mia, they should strip her of all awards previously won and any pending or future awards, until she provides a written apology to each and every person who watched that film.

Will: Angelina Jolie The Changeling. Again, see Langella theory. "Jolie, jolie, jolie...." lather, rinse, repeat 4,000 times.

Bentley - Melissa Leo Frozen River. Never heard of her. Never heard of it. No clue why Bentley went there... although he likes the underdog. Hey, too bad that movie wasn't nominated!

Best Supporting Actress:

Me: Marissa Tomei The Wrestler. I have always been a fan of My Cousin Vinny. I loved her in that, even if its comedy and comedy gets a bad rap from "The Academy." I'd like to justify that Oscar with a second one.

Will: Amy Adams Doubt. He saw her picture and somehow linked her to Ni Hao Kai Lan. Not sure why this blond haired, blue eyed nun photo evoked the imagine of Chinese Kai Lan, but we're going with it.

Bentley: Viola Davis Doubt. That Bentley... I think he's just being ornery. God forbid he agree with Will on anything.

Best Director:

Me: Slumdog Millionaire. This is the only movie of the bunch I actually want to see (but have three children and probably never will), so I better support it where I can.

Will: Milk. Again "Milk, Mama!!! Chocolate!"

Bentley: The Reader. Don't worry, Bentley was not allowed to see this provocative and risque film. He is only 7 years old, after all. In dog years that is 49, but I hear that still isn't old enough for some of the scenes in this movie!

Best Picture:

Me: Slumdog Millionaire. Who wouldn't vote for Bollywood dancing?

Will: The Reader. Again, clearly not a film he's seen, so don't comment about my bad parenting. Well, you can, but this wouldn't be a great reason. He just wants me to read him a book now. Apparently its Clifford time!

Bentley: Frost/Nixon. I think he's a bit of a history buff.

Want to play with us? Let's make it a contest. A $15 Amazon gift card (hey, I am a stay home mom... that's as much as I've got) to the person who does the best picks. A tie will be broken by scientific random name pulling out of a hatting. For complete list of nominees (only in these categories listed above... no extra credit if you pick in categories we didn't list) go to www.oscar.com/nominees. Good luck! Winner announced on Monday! Entries close (for obvious reasons) before the Oscars start on Sunday.