Well, it’s that time of year again. In a year where movies have been filled with political messages, vengeful jedi, and Ang Lee’s cowboys, the Oscars are sure to be interesting… or maybe the most boring yet since thus far the other awards shows have proven to be painfully predictable. Still, we’ll all be tuned in, if for no other reason then to see how newcomer John Stewart takes on the duties of host. Enough about that for now though, let’s give you what you really want.

The Nominees Are...

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Philip Seymour Hoffman - Capote
Terrence Howard - Hustle & Flow
Heath Ledger - Brokeback Mountain
Joaquin Phoenix - Walk the Line
David Strathairn - Good Night and Good Luck

Rafe says: No love for Eric Bana or Russell Crowe, who go unthanked this year. I guess that’s just as well. Did anyone at the Oscars really want to deal with another Crowe phone joke?

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
George Clooney - Syriana
Matt Dillon - Crash
Paul Giamatti - Cinderella Man
Jake Gyllenhaal - Brokeback Mountain
William Hurt - A History of Violence

Rafe says: Sadly Matt Dillon takes the lone Crash nomination. Really it’s just as well. Having been passed over too many times, this is most likely Giamatti’s year to shine. Besides, if anyone from Crash deserved a nomination it was Dillon, especially with Howard nominated for Hustle & Flow.

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Judy Dench - Mrs. Henderson Presents
Felicity Huffman - Transamerica
Kiera Knightly - Pride & Prejudice
Charlize Theron - North Country
Reece Witherspoon - Walk the Line

Rafe says: Although all the critics were predicting it, I’m still a bit surprised to see Kiera Knightly’s name up here. Jane Austin fans everywhere should give a great cheer, although I’d rather Knightly was the one nominated for a role with nudity above Dame Judy Dench.

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Amy Adams - Junebug
Catherine Keener - Capote
Francis McDormand - North Country
Rachel Weisz - The Constant Gardener
Michelle Williams - Brokeback Mountain

Rafe says: I always have trouble figuring out who is going to fit into this category. It seems Hollywood always has one clear winner (in this case Williams) with a bunch of other names tossed in so there’s an actual category. Why is there always a shortage of notable supporting actresses?

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Howl’s Moving Castle
Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride
Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit

Rafe says: Dreamworks’s Madagascar gets passed over and Pixar didn’t release a film this year so it’s anybody’s game really. It would be nice to see Wallace & Gromit take the award, especially in light of the studio’s rebuilding process after the fire last year. An Oscar would make a nice centerpiece for their new meeting rooms.

DIRECTING
George Clooney - Good Night and Good Luck
Paul Haggis - Crash
Bennett Miller - Capote
Ang Lee - Brokeback Mountain
Steven Spielberg - Munich

Rafe says: The inclusion of Miller is a bit of a surprise. Although Capote has gotten much acclaim, Miller himself hasn’t been quite as recognized. He steals the slot that was predicted to go to James Mangold or Ron Howard – although both of those were extreme long shots.

BEST PICTURE
Brokeback Mountain
Crash
Capote
Good Night, and Good Luck
Munich

Rafe says: Sadly, no real surprises. Brokeback’s nomination here gives them the top place with eight nominations and, given the film’s treatment by other awards ceremonites, you can expect to see it take top honors of the night.

And then there are the categories that are just as important, but I’m not going to comment individually on. In interests of time and space I haven’t listed each individual person, just the film involved, but those people’s families know who they are. Here are the rest of the Oscar Categories...

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
The Constant Gardener
A History of Violence
Munich

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck
Match Point
The Squid and the Whale
Syriana

MUSIC (SCORE)
Brokeback Mountain
The Constant Gardener
Memoirs of a Geisha
Munich
Pride & Prejudice

MUSIC (SONG)
"In the Deep" - Crash
"It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp" - Hustle & Flow
"Travelin’ Thru" - Transamerica

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Darwin’s Nightmare
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
March of the Penguins
Murderball
Street Fight

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club
God Sleeps in Rwanda
The Mushroom Club
A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
Badgered
The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation
The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello
9
One Man Band

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)
Ausreisser (The Runaway)
Cashback
The Last Farm
Our Time is Up
Six Shooter

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Don’t Tell
Joyeux Noel
Paradise Now
Sophie Scholl – The Final Days
Tsotsi

ART DIRECTION
Good Night, and Good Luck
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha
Pride & Prejudice

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Batman Begins
Brokeback Mountain
Good Night, and Good Luck
Memoirs of a Geisha
The New World

COSTUME DESIGN
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Memoirs of a Geisha
Mrs. Henerson Presents
Pride & Prejudice
Walk the Line

FILM EDITING
Cinderella Man
The Constant Gardener
Crash
Munich
Walk the Line

MAKEUP
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Cinderella Man
Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith

SOUND EDITING
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha
War of the Worlds

SOUND MIXING
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha
Walk the Line
War of the Worlds

VISUAL EFFECTS
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
King Kong
War of the Worlds

The 78th Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, March 5th on ABC Television at 5pm PST/8pm EST. Don’t forget to join us for Oscar Chat 5, where we’ll no doubt make fun of the winners, losers, and sum up everything everyone will be talking about at the water cooler the next day.