Oscar Day!

For movie fanatics today IS the Super Bowl. Regardless of how we feel about the nominees we gather around the TV and watch intently. "So what does Bob think?" you're wondering. I know that because after all you are looking at my blog. :)

Best Supporting Actor: Since I gave him the Bob Award, obviously I'm rooting for Casey Affleck for "The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford." But Javier Bardem is a lock, let's face it. Bardem is amazing as the understated personification of evil, but Affleck's performance is more impressive due to the subtle transformation of the character.

Supporting Actress: I'm guessing it will be Ruby Dee for "American Gangster." It's weird to think that the sentimental favorite is in a movie with "Gangster" in the title, but here we are. Of the five nominated actresses though, I think Saoirse Ronan for "Atonement" is the most deserving. Without her that movie would have little beneath the surface.

Actor: "I. Drink. Your. MILKSHAKE! I DRINK IT UP!" Daniel Day-Lewis will and should win for "There Will Be Blood." George Clooney is fine in "Michael Clayton," but he's hardly anything special. What did he do in this movie that he didn't in "Syriana" or "Good Night, and Good Luck"?

Actress: I lean slightly towards Julie Christie for "Away From Her." But if Marion Cotillard won for "La Vie en Rose" I would be happy too. Ellen Page is the one nomination for "Juno" that I actually agree with and she may pull of an upset, but I think Christie is more deserving and will win.

Adapted Screenplay: I'm rooting for Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" in this category. The power struggle between Day-Lewis and Paul Dano is written masterfully. But the Coens for "No Country For Old Men" would be a great choice too and I'm guessing that's what the voters will choose. Don't count out "Atonement" though. They'll probably want to give it something.

Original Screenplay: Despite having the lines, "honest to blog" and "Phuket, Thailand!" Diablo Cody's "Juno" is a lock to win this. It's a very good screenplay and a very good movie, but it definitely has some cringe-worthy moments, as noted above. I didn't even think it was the best pregnancy comedy this year. "Knocked Up" was better. Of the scripts nominated I feel that Brad Bird's "Ratatouille" was easily the best, but the Academy will give it Best Animated Film and say that's that.

Director: The Coens will walk away with this one. "No Country For Old Men" is filmmaking at its absolute finest. But if Paul Thomas Anderson took it home for "Blood" I'd be happy too. The other three nominees are merely rounding out the field.

Picture: "No Country" for my money, will and should win.

So there are my thoughts going into tonight. These thoughts don't necessarily reflect what I would choose without the limitations of the Academy's choices. As evidence of that, here's who I REALLY feel should win. In case you missed them, here again are the Bob Awards:

Here be the winners! You don't like it...start your own meaningless movie awards.

Bob Awards for the Movie Year, 2007

Best Art Direction: Ratatouille- Harley Jessup's imaginative take on Paris. There was no other movie whose world I wanted to visit more.

Cinematography: The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford- Roger Deakins is considered by many to be the best in the business. The genuinely magical Blue Cut train robbery scene shows why.

Costume Design: Blades of Glory- Julie Weiss's costumes went a long way towards making this very silly comedy work.

Film Editing: Hot Fuzz- I usually find frenetic editing to be empty flash but the work of Chris Dickens enhanced the comedy tremendously.

Makeup: La Vie en Rose- Covering the entire life of singer Edith Piaf made for a unique challenge which was more than lived up to.

Original Score: Assassination of Jesse James- No other score more effectively established a film's tone than the mournful music of Nick Cave and Warren Ellis.

Original Song: Music and Lyrics- "Pop Goes My Heart" by Andrew Blakemore and Alanna Vicente really could have been an infectious '80s pop song.

Sound: No Country For Old Men- The most tense moments on film in 2007 were silent as Brolin and Bardem listened for each other.

Visual Effects: Transformers- Ahhh this movie was fun.

Supporting Actor: Casey Affleck- Assassination of Jesse James- From wide-eyed child to killer, Affleck plays Robert Ford's transformation with nuance and subtlety.

Sup. Actress: Sigourney Weaver- The TV Set- Her hilarious work in this underrated film is all the more impressive because the character was originally written as a man. Not one line of dialogue changed.

Actor: Brad Pitt- Assassination of Jesse James- My favorite performance of the year. The audience doesn't know what Jesse James will do next any more than those on screen do.

Actress: Julie Christie- Away From Her- This is not simply "actor plays disease, actor wins awards." As a woman slipping away into Alzheimer's Christie is truly heartbreaking.

Monty Python Award for Best Ensemble Cast: Knocked Up- A prime example of true ensemble acting. Everyone contributes something special and -most importantly- funny.

Adapted Screenplay: Zodiac- James Vanderbilt- A great film about obsession and time, it takes us through the history of the legendary case while giving us fantastic, authentic dialogue.

Original Screenplay: Hot Fuzz- Simon Pegg & Edgar Wright- Very clever and well-constructed comedy with great dialogue and real character development.

Director: (tie) Edgar Wright- Hot Fuzz; Joel & Ethan Coen- No Country For Old Men; Paul Thomas Anderson- There Will Be Blood- I couldn't pick just one. Wright blends comedy and action perfectly, the Coens are as sharp as they've ever been, and Anderson's cinematic eye is second to none.

Best Picture: Hot Fuzz- Comedy and action, it's like the anti-awards film. I choose it as my number one film of 2007 because it manages to brilliantly satirize cop and action films while also working as a cop and action film. The story structure would work in a serious drama just as well. That it's an extraordinarily witty comedy makes it even better. Besides, I hadn't enjoyed watching a movie that much in a long time.

And now for the fun stuff…

Funniest and Most Entertaining Movie: Hot Fuzz

Funniest Performance: Michael Cera- Superbad

Favorite Quote: "I am Stanley Kubrick, and I have shaved off my beard off!"- Color Me Kubrick

Funniest Scene and Best Action Sequence: Sandford Shootout- Hot Fuzz

Best Dramatic Scene- The Assassination Scene- Assassination of Jesse James

Best New Word: "Mind-bottling"- Blades of Glory

"Withnail and I" Award for Best Friendship: Michael Cera and Jonah Hill- Superbad

Best Villain: Billy Mitchell- The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

Best Animated and Family Film: Ratatouille

Best Foreign Language Film: The Lives of Others

Best Documentary: The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

Best Couple: Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore- Music and Lyrics

Best Mustache: Paddy Considine- Hot Fuzz

Worst Male Performance: Robert De Niro- Stardust (How did he come to this?)

Worst Female Performance: Lisa K. Wyatt- Southland Tales

Worst Villain: Danny Glover- Shooter

Worst Screenplay and Director: Richard Kelly- Southland Tales

Worst Picture: License to Wed

Most Pretentious Movie: Southland Tales

Worst Cameo: Bono- Across the Universe

Best Cameo: Paul Rudd (John), Jack Black (Paul), Justin Long (George), and Jason Schwartzman (Ringo)- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

Don't Worry, It's Not Your Fault: The Rock- Southland Tales; Ricky Gervais- Stardust

Actors to Remember: Elizabeth Reaser- Puccini For Beginners; Fran Kranz- The TV Set; Thomas Turgoose- This Is England; Saoirse Ronan- Atonement; Sam Riley- Control; Paul Schneider- Assassination of Jesse James, Lars and the Real Girl

Filmmakers to Remember: Andrew Dominik (Writer/Director)- Assassination of Jesse James; Michael Davis (Writer/Director)- Shoot 'Em Up; Douglas Coupland (Writer)- Everything's Gone Green; Sarah Polley (Writer/Director)- Away From Her

"Unforgiven" Award for Most Badass Movie: Hot Fuzz

Clint Eastwood Award for Most Badass Performance: Simon Pegg- Hot Fuzz

"XXX" Award for Best Over the Top Action Movie: Shoot 'Em Up

"Idiocracy" Award for Movie Most Inexplicably Mistreated By Its Studio: The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford (Warner Bros.)

Best Internet Short: Always Crashing In the Same Car (Re-uniting the leads of my favorite movie, "Withnail and I," Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann)

Best Trailer: Control

Worst Trailer: Alvin and the Chipmunks

Trailer So Pretentious I Almost Puked: I'm Not There

Best Movies You Probably Missed: "Fido," "Color Me Kubrick," "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters," "The TV Set," "Waiter," "Everything's Gone Green."

Best Car Chase: (tie) New York City- The Bourne Ultimatum; The End of "Death Proof"- Grindhouse

Best Sequel: The Bourne Ultimatum

"Hoosiers" Award for Inspirational Movie That's Genuinely Inspirational: Amazing Grace

Movie with the Most Positive Message: Lars and the Real Girl

Best Soundtrack: Walk Hard

Best Monologue: Ego's review- Ratatouille

Best Use of a Classic Rock Song: Zodiac- "Hurdy Gurdy Man" by Donovan

Movies That Wisely Used the Kinks- Hot Fuzz; The Darjeeling Limited; Juno; The Savages

Performer of the Year: Michael Cera- Superbad; Juno

Filmmaker of the Year: Judd Apatow- The TV Set (Producer), Knocked Up (Writer/Director), Superbad (Producer), Walk Hard (Co-Writer/Producer)

Best Ending: No Country For Old Men