The five Best Supporting Actor nominees are Christopher Plummer (The Last Station), Woody Harrelson (The Messenger), Matt Damon (Invictus), Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones) and Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds). Damon? He was okay as South African rugby player Francois Peinaar, but no one in my circle did cartwheels over his performance. Where did this fervor come from? Find me one review in which a critic said Damon had scored in a truly exceptional way.

Tucci gets nominated for speaking in a flavorful accent, playing down the creepiness and wearing a blond wig and rimmed glasses? If you ask me Harrelson was juicier and tastier in Zombieland. Plummer? Whatever.

The following performances were much, much better than any of the above, with the exception of Christoph Waltz: James Gandolfini (In The Loop); Stephen Lang (Avatar, Public Enemies); Alfred Molina (An Education); Peter Capaldi (In the Loop); Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker); Brian Geraghty (The Hurt Locker); and Peter Sarsgaard (An Education).