Happy Memorial Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

Have a great, safe day!

Happy belated Birthday to our very own John Foote!

Hopefully he had a great one!

Happy Mother's Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

Whether you're a mother yourself or just sprung from the loins of one, we're all sending well wishes to the fairer gender today!
-Enjoy the day Moms!

Happy Birthday to my grandfather!

He's 77, and the reason I do what I do here. For those of you who are curious, he spent the day watching Eyes Wide Shut on Blu-Ray and The Young Victoria on DVD.
-Happy birthday Pop!

Happy Earth Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

Do some recycling or take a walk to go see a movie today...the planet will thank you!

Happy Easter from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

And a belated well wishing for Passover from my fellow Jewish friends (I was busy with family obligations and it slipped my mind to post this earlier).
-Enjoy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

Be safe and have fun!

Live Blogging the 82nd Annual Academy Awards!

We'll be starting in force soon (Joey's note: We've now started), but I just wanted to point out that Vera Farmiga just accidentally admitted on the red carpet to voting for Kathryn Bigelow instead of her director Jason Reitman in Best Picture. Consider this the first post here at 6:30, but at 7 things will get underway big time here, so stay tuned!

And we're off:

6:50- Jeremy Renner brought his mom...1, 2, 3 "awwww". (Joey)

6:55- I appreciate that Tom Ford finally stopped a reporter from asking about what he's wearing tonight, insisting he's "just here for film". (Myles)

7:00- The Barbara Walters pre-show special is on. It's her last one ever, if anyone cares. (Joey)

7:03- Barbara is bringing up how disparrate Mo'Nique's performance in "Precious" is compared to her comedic roots. Also some light biography stuff. (Myles)

7:05- Woah, I guess not so light after all. Apparently she based her performance on her brother, who sexually abused her. I don't know what's more disturbing, her story, or how nonchalantly she's recalling it. (Myles)

7:10- Mo'Nique has remarkably open views about having sex outside of marriage. I have absolutely no idea how this relates to the Oscars, but there you go. Also, her views on not shaving her legs. What am I watching right now? (Myles)

7:14- I don't shave my legs either, so Mo'Nique and I have something in common...(Joey)

7:16- Barbara Walters on why this is her last Oscar Special: "I'm just sick of it." Say it like it is, Barbara. (Myles)

7:25- No offense to Barbara, but this is taking forever. (Joey)

7:27- Demi Moore teaching Walters to do a striptease. Could two more dissimilar women be doing the same motion at the same time? (Joey)

7:29- Over 10 minutes of Barbara looking back at all the Oscar specials she's done. You get the sense that she absolutely hated every minute of it. (Myles)

7:35- A brief shot of Nicolas Cage reminds us that no matter what he does with it, his hair will always look atrocious. (Myles)

7:37- George Clooney is apparently the man of her dreams. Good to know... (Joey)

7:40- "After getting a lapdance from Hugh Jackman, I had nothing left to prove." I wish all shows ended on such a flashy note. (Myles)

7:45- All this attention on Sandra Bullock tells me two things...one is that she's likely to win tonight, and two is that she is a very cool gal. I'd rather it be for a slightly better film, but it's all good. (Joey)

7:49- The show is getting closer, so sit tight everyone! (Joey)

7:52- It's interesting that Sandra Bullock keeps going on about how her work has improved literally the day after winning Worst Actress at the Razzies for "All About Steve". That's called accentuating the positive. (Myles)

7:54- Myles, I think they're mistaking box office with quality (The Blind Side and The Proposal), but hey, I liked The Blind Side just fine and gave it a good review here, so I shouldn't complain. (Joey)

7:58- The Barbara Walters Special is finally over, and we're ready to get started soon. Hold onto your hats. (Myles)

8:00- Nope, another half hour of the red carpet. At this point, I've almost forgotten what I'm supposed to be watching. (Joey)

8:01- Holy cow, Kathy Ireland? I completely forgot she existed. Should she even be allowed near this kind of ceremony? (Myles)

8:05- At this point, really all I can say is "25 minute warning". (Joey)

8:12- They've flashed us the 18 minute countdown. The generic red carpet interview brigade. Not much to really comment on here. (Myles)

8:20- The guys with the envelopes are walking the red carpet now, and oh my, to be them for a moment and know what they know now. (Joey)

8:25- 5 minute warning, finally. (Joey)

8:30- And we're off! And we have the Best Actor and Actress nominees taking the stage. This is already unusual. (Myles)

8:31- It's like a wedding procession. (Joey)

8:32- Neil Patrick Harris is leading a musical number while wearing a frankly irresponsible amount of glitter on his jacket. (Myles)

8:34- Apparently nobody took notice when the general consensus at last year's awards was that all the musical numbers were an absolutely terrible idea. The hosts are out. (Myles)

8:36- Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin are off to a decent enough start. (Joey)

8:37- Well, they started off alright. They appear to be getting worse and worse with each joke. It's starting to get sort of painful. (Myles)

8:38- They also used the 10 Best Picture nominees to begin discussing "Invictus" and "The Last Station", neither of which were nominated. Fail. (Myles)

8:40- Wood sprites, really? (Joey)

8:42- That being said, I'm laughing much more than I should at their opening bit. It's not classy, but then again, neither am I. (Joey)

8:43- The hosts proceed to tell Zac Efron and Taylor Lautner that this will be them in a few years. I deeply appreciate that. (Myles)

8:45- Best Supporting Actor is the first award of the night. We all know Christoph Waltz is winning this, but hey, let's pretend it's a race. (Joey)
And the winner is...Christoph Waltz!

8:50- Great speech by Waltz. It was an obvious win, but very much deserved. (Myles)

8:51- The Blind Side is the first Best Picture nominee to get the full presentation treatment. (Joey)

8:55- An interesting bit where the stars of the Best Animated Features talk about being nominated. Even the other nominees have never heard of "Secret of Kells". (Myles)

8:58- Best Animated Feature is up. It's almost definitely "Up", as well. (Myles)

And the winner is...Up!

9:00- No surprises so far, but it's early. (Joey)

9:02- We come now to Best Original Song. This should be a slam dunk for 'The Weary Kind' from Crazy Heart, but this is a tricky category. (Joey)
And the winner is...'The Weary Kind' from Crazy Heart!

9:04- Congrats on "The Weary Kind" winning. Ryan Bingham and T-Bone Burnett are hilariously disproportionate when it comes to height. (Myles)

9:06- "District 9" is the next film to get the highlight reel. (Myles)

9:09- It's almost as if they're getting the least competitive categories out of the way first on purpose. Then again, it could just be wishful thinking on my part. (Joey)

9:12- Best Original Screenplay time. It's between "Hurt Locker" and "Inglourious Basterds". Who's it gonna be? (Myles)

And the winner is...The Hurt Locker!

9:15- This win for Mark Boal leads me to think that Inglourious Basterds is not winning Best Picture and step 1 for The Hurt Locker winning has been completed. We'll see if the tech categories boost it more. (Joey)

9:18- Now is a special tribute to John Hughes. This should be quite touching. (Joey)

9:21- Excellent tribute to John Hughes. I'd forgotten just how many movies he did. They've also managed to dig up all the actors that used to work with him but who you haven't seen in anything else since. (Myles)

9:24- "Up" gets the presentation now, perplexingly offered by one Samuel L. Jackson. (Myles)

9:28- The short film categories are up now. We start with Best Animated Short, and Wallace and Gromit's latest should be locked, but who knows? (Joey)
And the winner is...Logorama!

9:32- Wow, didn't see that one coming. Hopefully we get a few more surprises, eh? (Myles)

9:33- Best Documentary Short now. It's anyone's guess. (Joey)
And the winner is...Music by Prudence!

9:35- We finish this category with Best Live Action Short. Again, guess away. (Joey)
And the winner is...The New Tenants!

9:38- Ben Stiller is doing some sort of "Avatar" skit. His makeup is absolutely terrifying. So naturally, he's presenting Best Makeup. I'm guessing "Star Trek". (Myles)

And the winner is...Star Trek!

9:42- If anyone cares, it's a close race to see who on the staff does the best prediction-wise. (Joey)

9:44- A Serious Man gets the classy treatment now. (Joey)

9:47- Best Adapted Screenplay is on deck. Up in the Air looks like a lock. (Myles)

And the winner is...Precious!

9:51- So much for Up in the Air winning anything tonight... (Joey)

9:53- The Governor's Awards are now being shown. (Joey)

9:54- A nice hand for Lauren Bacall and Roger Corman, who are actually in attendance. (Joey)

9:57- Best Supporting Actress is up now. We can all pretend Mo'Nique isn't 100% winning this, but she still is a lock. (Joey)
And the winner is...Mo'Nique!

10:00- Congrats to Mo'Nique, and Precious in general. It's doing better than expected tonight. Could we perhaps be seeing an upset? (Myles)

10:01- It's time for "An Education" to get the presentational treatment. (Myles)

10:04- It hasn't been a real predictable show yet. Now I'm really anxious to see what happens with the tech categories, namely Cinematography and Film Editing. (Joey)

10:06- Best Art Direction time. Avatar, or something less predictable? (Myles)

And the winner is...Avatar!

10:09- Now it's time for Best Costume Design. This one's a bit open. Who will take it? (Myles)

And the winner is...The Young Victoria!

10:12- Precious, the surprise juggernaut of the night so far (will it last?) gets the presentation treatment now. (Joey)

10:15- Anyone else now second guessing themselves a lot? (Joey)

10:17- A send-up of Paranormal Activities, now that's something Oscar needs to do. (Joey)

10:18- We come now to a tribute to the horror genre. Very cool, in my eyes. (Joey)

10:22- It's official...Morgan Freeman narrates everything. (Joey)

10:24- The awards for Sound come now, and it's going to be interesting to see if Avatar can sweep this or not. First up is Best Sound Editing. It's between Avatar and The Hurt Locker in my eyes. (Joey)
And the winner is...The Hurt Locker!

10:26- Now is Best Sound Mixing. Will there be a split or will The Hurt Locker surprisingly sweep? (Joey)
And the winner is...The Hurt Locker!

10:28- I'm still reeling from Twilight's inclusion in the best of Horror. But congratulations on The Hurt Locker for taking both Sound categories. It's doing well so far tonight. (Myles)

10:29- Wow, did they give the sci/tech awards the shaft this year. (Joey)

10:30- Inglourious Basterds just got the big montage treatment. (Joey)

10:34- Best Cinematography time. This will be the first real test for Avatar vs. Hurt Locker. Who's it gonna be? (Myles)

And the winner is...Avatar!

10:38- Get out the hankies, it's time for the tribute to those who've passed this year. And what a remarkable many there were. So many wonderful artists, who gave us so much. (Myles)

10:41- That was pretty classy. (Joey)

10:43- Way to miss out on Farrah Fawcett, guys. (Myles)

10:44- Indeed. Tisk, tisk. (Joey)

10:46- Next up is Best Original Score, which is being honored through...dance? Now I've seen everything. Up is in the driver's seat for this one, but hey, with how this night has gone, I'm sure of nothing anymore. (Joey)
And the winner is...Up!

10:53- I'm not entirely sure the dance choreography works for this category (especially half these nominees), but congrats to Up. (Myles)

10:55- Now it's time for Best Visual Effects. Don't pretend anything other than Avatar will win this.

And the winner is...Avatar!

10:57- Up in the Air is now the one getting the big presentation treatment, though Jason Reitman is still likely stinging from his loss earlier, so he's probably not beaming as much as you'd expect. (Joey)

11:01- A lot of writer jokes tonight... (Joey)

11:02- Best Documentary Feature is up now. I'd think this is The Cove's, but you never know. (Joey)
And the winner is...The Cove!

11:05- Best Film Editing is up now. Avatar vs. Hurt Locker. Who's it gonna be? (Myles)

And the winner is...The Hurt Locker!

11:09- Right after getting a nice boost in its Best Picture hopes, The Hurt Locker gets its tribute played. (Joey)

11:11- Anyone want to pretend that they're sure they know how the rest of the night will go? (Joey)

11:14- Best Foreign Language Film up now. There are 3 or 4 ways this award could go, so let's just sit back and see who wins it. (Joey)
And the winner is...The Secret in Their Eyes!

11:18- Bit of an upset there. I suppose we should have paid more attention to the spectacular round of applause it got on nomination morning. (Myles)

11:20- Avatar gets presented. By Kathy Bates. I swear, they're pulling these presenters out of a hat. (Myles)

11:22- Not to brag, but I've only gotten 4 wrong so far, and hit on a couple of upsets. Go me...until I next screw up! (Joey)

11:24- It's time for one of the big ones, Best Actor. They're doing the thing they did last year where previous nominees discuss each nominee in depth. This is obviously Bridges' to lose. (Myles)

And the winner is...Jeff Bridges!

11:33- I love the enthusiasm that The Dude has. (Joey)

11:38- The Actress nominees will now get the same treatment as the boys just did. (Joey)

11:44- We finally now will find out who wins the award for Best Actress. Is it still Bullock versus Streep, or is an upset coming, perhaps from Carey Mulligan or Gabourey Sidibe? (Joey)
And the winner is...Sandra Bullock!

11:50- Congrats to Sandra Bullock for her incredible modesty, despite being the obvious winner since the nominations were announced. (Myles)

11:52- Random bit of trivia...all 4 acting awards went to first timers...same for both writing awards. (Joey)

11:54- Time for perhaps the most important race of the night, Best Director. Will Kathryn Bigelow make history? (Myles)

And the winner is...Kathryn Bigelow!

11:56- Congrats to Kathryn Bigelow for breaking the glass ceiling for female directors! (Joey)

11:58- The Hurt Locker wins Best Picture! (Joey)

12:00- Congratulations to The Hurt Locker for a wonderful night, and to all the winners! And so this season finally comes to an end. I'd like to thank my co-writer Joey Magidson for LiveBlogging with me, our fearless leader Clayton David, our fellow writers Keith Lucas, John Foote, and Jackson Truax, and all our devote readers for making this website as popular as it has become. Thanks to everyone for the spectacular season, and here's looking forward to the next one!

Cheers,

-Myles

12:05- I couldn't have said it better myself, so we'll wrap up now. Thanks for reading! (Joey)

-Thoughts on the big event?

Any last guesses for what the surprises of the night will be?

Will there be a big upset in Best Picture (Precious or Up perhaps?), Best Actor (Jeremy Renner?), or any other category?
-Now's your chance to let loose with them before the show!

Happy Valentine's Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

In honor of the day:

-Hopefully you and your loved one has a great day!

We're just hours away from the OSCAR NOMINATIONS!!!

Can you feel the excitement? Just to do a sort of pre-show, the poll here on the blog revealed that 71% of voters feel that Avatar will lead the field in terms of nominations (Inglourious Basterds came in 2nd with 11%, then The Hurt Locker with 8%, and Up in the Air with 5%). It's also worth nothing that the supposedly "leaked nominations" are a hoax, so DON'T BELIEVE IT. Right now we're just counting down the hours, so use this as an open space for anything related to the Oscar nominations, which are imminent...

P.S.- ACCA Voting is open, so kill time till the nominations by casting your vote here. Make your voice heard!

Happy New Year!!!

From all of us at The Awards Circuit, we wish you a happy and a healthy next 365 days!
-Fingers crossed for some great movies in 2010!

We at The Awards Circuit prepare to put a bow on 2009...

...while we look towards some exciting changes in 2010! Have a fun (and safe) night and we'll see you next year (or next decade, if you prefer).
-Happy New Year in advance from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

From all of us at The Awards Circuit, have a Happy Holiday season!

Whatever you celebrate (or don't celebrate, for that matter), we all hope you have a good rest of the year and get to see lots of movies!
-From all of us, be well!

Since it's Christmas Eve and all...

...I figured I'd ask what everyone's favorite holiday themed movie was. If it's from this year, all the better, but consider it open forum on all things film and holiday related.
-Enjoy your holiday from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

Happy Turkey Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

The entire staff wants to wish everyone a happy, healthy, and safe Thanksgiving. Whether you go see a movie, gather with the family, or just watch the Lions lose, remember to enjoy.
-Don't eat too much turkey folks!

The obligatory Halloween related video...this one on the 16 greatest Horror Movie quotes!

It's certainly debatable if these are the best, but they're certainly good ones:

-My favorite of these is "They're coming to get you Barbara"...what are yours?

What are the scariest non-horror movies around?

An interesting list, to say the least (since it's Halloween today and all), but I came across this and had to post it. The entire article is here, but these are supposedly the 10 scariest films that can't be classified as "horror" films:

• Requiem for a Dream (2000)
• Mulholland Drive (2001)
• Open Water (2003)
• Hard Candy (2005)
• Lake of Fire (2006)
• Apocalypto (2006)
• United 93 (2006)
• Funny Games (2008)
• Standard Operating Procedure (2008)
• Antichrist (2009)

-Thoughts?

Happy Halloween from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

Be safe, of course, but have fun!
-And because I can't resist...what's your favorite scary movie?

Celebrate the 4th with some movies!

And use my article on July 4th films as a starting point! Comment here or on the article's page, which is on the MAIN PAGE, and let me know what you think.
-What movies do you feel are appropriate July 4th movies?

P.S. Happy 4th of July once more from all of us here at The Awards Circuit. We love you all!