comment #1

actionman says ...

Good. Holbrook should be a lock. He was awesome.

comment #2

Hopscotch says ...

Holbrook over Javier Bardem. Ain't seeing it. Especially if Into the Wild doesn't get too many nominations. I liked Holbrook's performance. But everyone loves Bardem in that movie.

Cotillard is and should be a lock, it's wonderful to watch her.

comment #3

snoop says ...

With Bardem winning all the awards how can Holbrock be a lock at this stage of the game? I know they love giving this award to older actors, but Del Toro won for Traffic, so why can't Bardem win now?

He's fantastic in the role.

comment #4

Arran says ...

Holbrook quite probably deserves it, especially since this is likely his last shot, but to call him a lock now is ridiculous.

comment #5

Craig Kennedy says ...

I'll be the first to admit that the opinion of 'a working DGA member' carries a lot more water than my own, but the opinion of a retarded monkey that has just been brained by a snow shovel probably also fits that description.

Forgive me if I'm not ready to start etching names on trophies just because one guild member says so.

comment #6

Aguirre says ...

yeah, i dunno who this DGA fellow is, but can't imagine for a second that Holbrook is a lock, particularly because Into the Wild as a whole is being ignored left and right by every right-thinking group this side of the gotham awards. he'd have a much better chance of No Country (and Bardem by association) didn't have so much building steam.

comment #7

actionman says ...

I momentarily forgot about Bardem, and he will probably win (and in many, many respects deserves too), but Holbrook made me cry, and he was so touching in his performance that I hope he wins.

The performance by Mathieu Amalric in The Diving Bell and The Butterfly was beyond compare; why isn't he getting any recognition or buzz?

comment #8

Aguirre says ...

actionman, i agree with you wholeheartedly about amalric (and certainly disagree re: holbrook), but i think diving bell is being considered primarily as a director's showcase. amalric is fantastic, but his acting is almost TOO believable - you forget that the man playing bauby isn't ACTUALLY locked-in.

comment #9

Zimmergirl says ...

Nice to hear all the way around. But a DGA guy wouldn't squat about the acting categories. Would love Holbrook to win.

comment #10

Chicago48 says ...

It's disappointing that already prognosticators are giving the awards out. I don't think Bardem is a lock nor Holbrook. The Academy is going to surprise a lot of people. Just watch the Golden Globes for a clue as to who wins what.
And here's something to think about -- no Ruby Dee nom for American Gangster. What little time she had was absolutely astounding!
No Keri Russell for Waitress...purse delight and she carried the movie!
and lastly -- there is no "color" to these awards...yes my friend, no Asians, no Latinos (except Bardem), no Blacks. I guess last year was unique.

comment #11

Matthew Lucas says ...

I loved Holbrook in "Into the Wild" and he definitely has my vote.

However, I wouldn't call him a lock. For a nomination, certainly. But for the big win he's going to have some stiff competition from Bardem. Maybe even from Tom Wilkinson. Best Supporting Actor is a very strong category this year.

comment #12

dcc77 says ...

Hal Holbrook has had a great career but it's unlikely that he'll garner enough votes to win an Alan Arkin-like, career achievement Oscar. Arkin won becaused a) he knocked it out of the park and b) because a vote for him was a vote against Eddie Murphy -- as undeserving a nominee as we've seen in years. His loss was payback for twenty years of being an asshole, at least from what my reliable sources told me.

Chigurh is the best character in the year's best reviewed film and Bardem has created probably the most memorable screen villain since Hannibal Lecter. Bet against him at your own risk.

comment #13

dcc77 says ...

To clarify, Murphy's perfomance was solid but his prima donna behavior over the years has been deplorable. Should this matter to voters? No, but who said the Oscars aren't a popularity contest?

comment #14

rickyroma says ...

The Oscar will be decided on a coin flip, and if Holbrook wins, Bardem will just cattlegun him and take the statue, live on stage. Who needs award show writers?

comment #15

christian says ...

Like I said, Halbrook.

comment #16

christian says ...

Or Holbrook.

comment #17

LeeJ says ...

I can't believe that Marion Cotillard seems "nearly as certain" to have a lock on an Oscar win. Sure, she was pretty good in "La Vie en Rose." But--come on. There have been other French actors and actresses who are far better than her and have never won the Oscar, such as Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Adjani, Gerard Depardieu and my favorite French actor right now: Daniel Auteuil. If Cotillard win the Oscar, it'll be a slap in the face of these great French actors and actresses.

comment #18

jeffmcm says ...

It wouldn't be a 'slap in the face'. The slap happened when they were ignored the first time around. Rewarding Cotillard now would be the right thing to do.

comment #19

VedaPierce says ...

The Academy has always been reluctant to reward actors in foreign films--the one exception being Sophia Loren who was already a Hollywood superstar at the time. I don't see how Cotillard is a lock. She was great and certainly worthy, but don't you think there might a bit of biopic fatigue among the Academy, especially since La Vie En Rose doesn't transcend the genre.

comment #20

VedaPierce says ...

oops -- forgot about Roberto Begnini!

comment #21

insidah says ...

Bardem was, dare I say it, one note. Hal or bust.

comment #22

lazarus says ...

That logic makes no sense. We've passed over superior English-speaking actors in favor of others (Hillary Swank=2, Kate WInslet=0), how are the foreign actors any more disgraced?

And it's also possible that none of those names you mentioned had as powerful a performance in a fairly well-promoted film as Cotillard.

comment #23

christian says ...

Bardem was simply awesome in NCFOM and he'll have other Oscar worthy roles. He's just getting warmed up. So the award goes to Holbrook. I'm just sayin'.

comment #24

ZayTonday says ...

Before The Devil's CRAPPY cinematography resulting in the worst looking movie I've ever seen shot on the Panavision Genesis will eliminate Lumet's Best Director chances. The look of the movie is just so amateur.

comment #25

ZayTonday says ...

How is Roger Deaking NOT a lock for Best Cinematography this year?

comment #26

ZayTonday says ...

I meant Deakins.