And the winner is..

Hello all..

I typically don't do this but because of my extensive research and overall knowledge of the business I am going to give my 79th annual Academy Award picks.

1) Best picture - "The Departed" - I know this is a long shot and I'm going out on a limb with this one...the Academy tells "Little Miss Sunshine" to "F@*k off", (all right maybe not that strong..but they get the message).
2) Best Director - Martin Scorsese - sentimental favorite, the voters make up for past crimes.
3) Original Screenplay - "Little Miss Sunshine" - safe pick over much stronger material.
4) Adapted Screenplay - "The Departed" - Academy will pick a script from a film no-one is talking about and or remembers.
5) Best Song - "I need to wake up" by Melissa Etheridge - I think this will shock some, especially those people who worked on the musical "Dreamgirls" and had about 15 songs nominated in this category..and they lose out to a song none of us remember. This will be followed by an irritating standing ovation matched only by the one given to the Hollywood power Brokers behind "An Inconvenient Truth". Al Gore will be thanked for existing and showing us that with enough famous people behind you, you can make a film that agrees with all the reports that came before it.
6) Best Actress - Helen Mirren for "The Queen" - I predict she will end her speech with an uncomfortable moment, probably asking the audience members to salute the Queen of England.
7) Best Actor - Forrest Whitaker - "Last King Of Scotland" this will round out the evening of proving the theory that if you play an actual person, you will get an Oscar. The formula has changed over the years. It used to be that if you played a mentally or physically handicapped person, you got an Oscar. Then it changed into playing a mentally or physically handicapped person who actually existed. Then they dropped the "mentally or physically handicapped" part and kept the "play an actual person, get an Oscar". This will eventually morph into "Play an actual person named Oscar and get an Oscar".

there you have it, my Oscar picks. Risky? Damn right they are.

s