Oscar Predictions and My Personal Top 10 of the Year

Below are my predictions for the 2012 Academy Award nominees in several categories (I'm no expert so I won't be guessing categories like Best Live Short or Best Animated Short). At this stage, I am only predicting the nominees. After the official nominations, I will start to predict winners. As I've said before the list will be familiar and similar to the others out there. After the SAG, the Golden Globes and all the critic picks, it is almost certain that some pictures or actors are locks in the race.

Best Picture:
1. The Artist - lock
2. The Help - lock
3. Hugo - lock
4. The Tree of Life
5. The Descendants - lock
6. Midnight in Paris
7. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
8. War Horse

Best Actor in a Leading Role:
1. George Clooney (The Descendants) - lock
2. Brad Pitt (Moneyball) - lock
3. Jean Dujardin (The Artist) - lock
4. Michael Fassbender (Shame)
5. Leonardo DiCaprio (J. Edgar)


Best Actress in a Leading Role:
1. Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady) - lock
2. Viola Davis (The Help) - lock
3. Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn)
4. Charlize Theron (Young Adult)
5. Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk About Kevin)


Best Actor in a Supporting Role:
1. Brad Pitt (The Tree of Life)
2. Christopher Plummer (Beginners) - lock
3.Max von Sydow (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close)
4. Ben Kingsley (Hugo)
5. Albert Brooks (Drive) - lock

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
1. Carey Mulligan (Shame)
2. Jessica Chastain (The Help) - lock
3. Octavia Spencer (The Help) - lock
4. Shailene Woodley (The Descendants)
5. Bérénice Bejo (The Artist)

Best Director:
1. Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist) - lock
2. Steven Spielberg (War Horse)
3. Martin Scorsese (Hugo) - lock
4. Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris) - lock
5. Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life) - lock

Best Original Screenplay:
1. Midnight in Paris - lock
2. The Artist - lock
3. Bridesmaids
4. Young Adult
5. Win Win

Best Adapted Screenplay:
1. The Descendants - lock
2. Hugo
3. Moneyball
4. The Help - lock
5. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Best Animated:
1. The Adventures of Tintin
2. Arthur Christmas
3. Puss in Boots
4. Rio
5. Rango


Best Visual Effects:
1. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 2
2. Rise of the Planet of Apes
3. Hugo
4. Transformers: Dark of the Moon
5. Super 8

Best Sound Editing:
1. Hugo
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
3. Super 8
4. Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Best Sound Mixing:
1. Hugo
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
3. Super 8
4. Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Best Costume Design:
1. War Horse
2. Hugo
3. The Artist
4. The Help
5. My Week with Marilyn

Best Makeup:
1. The Iron Lady
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
3. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Best Cinematography:
1. War Horse
2. The Artist
3. Hugo
4. The Tree of Life
5. Drive

Best Film Editing:
1. War Horse
2. Hugo
3. The Artist
4. The Tree of Life
5. Drive

Best Score:
1. Hugo
2. War Horse
3. The Artist
4. Drive
5. The Tree of Life

That's the list. Comments?

The Academy Awards is an honor every movie wants to obtain, but after all it is still a preference of the Academy voters. Everybody can have their own choices. That said, below are my personal top ten movies of the year.

I fell in love with these:
1. The Help
2. Hugo
3. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
4. Super 8

These are very good too:
5. Crazy, Stupid, Love
6. The Tree of Life
7. Real Steel
8. Drive

And finally:
9. Win Win
10. That's What I Am