The Oscar Buzz

by Bill Dunn


Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s time to start your Oscar engines, or should I say pools. Remember gambling is illegal so no wagering. Well at least don’t get caught by the pool police. They were out in full force during the Super Bowl and were rounding up little old ladies in Orange County and throwing them in the slammer. So if you do bet, bet responsibly. 

This week I am in too good of a mood for my usual ranting and raving. Oscar Night, next to my birthday and Christmas Day, is my favorite day of the year. So in my efforts to help you share in my jubilation I am providing you with an Oscar ballot so you too can make your picks for the best of the best of last year’s movie pantheon. 

Even if you haven’t seen all of the movies, with a little studying you too can be a contender. So do a little reading and listening and mark your ballots. Good Luck and may the force be with you! 

2007 Oscar Ballot (Top 24 Categories)

Name__________________________ Number Correct________


BEST PICTURE
[ ] Babel 
[ ] The Departed 
[ ] Letters from Iwo Jima 
[ ] Little Miss Sunshine 
[ ] The Queen

DIRECTOR 
[ ] Alejandro González Iñárritu, Babel 
[ ] Martin Scorsese, The Departed
[ ] Clint Eastwood, Letters from Iwo Jima
[ ] Stephen Frears, The Queen
[ ] Paul Greengrass, United 93

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
[ ] Babel
[ ] Letters from Iwo Jima
[ ] Little Miss Sunshine
[ ] Pan's Labyrinth
[ ] The Queen 

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
[ ] Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
[ ] Children of Men
[ ] The Departed
[ ] Little Children
[ ] Notes on a Scandal 

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
[ ] Leonardo DiCaprio, Blood Diamond 
[ ] Ryan Gosling, Half Nelson 
[ ] Peter O'Toole, Venus 
[ ] Will Smith, The Pursuit of Happyness 
[ ] Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE 
[ ] Penélope Cruz, Volver 
[ ] Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal
[ ] Helen Mirren, The Queen
[ ] Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada
[ ] Kate Winslet, Little Children

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
[ ] Alan Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine
[ ] Jackie Earle Haley, Little Children
[ ] Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond
[ ] Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
[ ] Mark Wahlberg, The Departed 

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
[ ] Adriana Barraza, Babel
[ ] Cate Blanchett, Notes on a Scandal
[ ] Abigail Breslin, Little Miss Sunshine
[ ] Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
[ ] Rinko Kikuchi, Babel 

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM 
[ ] After the Wedding (Denmark) 
[ ] Days of Glory / Indigènes (Algeria)
[ ] The Lives of Others (Germany)
[ ] Pan's Labyrinth, Mexico
[ ] Water, Canada

ANIMATED FEATURE
[ ] Cars
[ ] Happy Feet
[ ] Monster House

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
[ ] Deliver Us from Evil
[ ] An Inconvenient Truth
[ ] Iraq in Fragments
[ ] Jesus Camp

SHORT FILM - ANIMATED
[ ] The Danish Poet 
[ ] Lifted 
[ ] The Little Matchgirl 
[ ] Maestro 
[ ] No Time for Nuts

SHORT FILM - LIVE ACTION 
[ ] Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea) 
[ ] Éramos Pocos (One Too Many)
[ ] Helmer & Son
[ ] The Saviour
[ ] West Bank Story

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
[ ] The Blood of Yingzhou District
[ ] Recycled Life
[ ] Rehearsing a Dream
[ ] Two Hands

ORIGINAL SCORE
[ ] Babel 
[ ] The Good German 
[ ] Notes on a Scandal 
[ ] Pan's Labyrinth 
[ ] The Queen

ORIGINAL SONG 
[ ] "I Need to Wake Up" - An Inconvenient Truth 
[ ] "Listen" - Dreamgirls
[ ] "Love You I Do" - Dreamgirls
[ ] "Our Town" - Cars
[ ] "Patience" - Dreamgirls

ART DIRECTION
[ ] Dreamgirls
[ ] The Good Shepherd
[ ] Pan's Labyrinth
[ ] Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
[ ] The Prestige 

CINEMATOGRAPHY
[ ] The Black Dahlia
[ ] Children of Men
[ ] The Illusionist
[ ] Pan's Labyrinth
[ ] The Prestige 

COSTUME DESIGN
[ ] Curse of the Golden Flower 
[ ] The Devil Wears Prada 
[ ] Dreamgirls 
[ ] Marie Antoinette 
[ ] The Queen

MAKEUP 
[ ] Apocalypto 
[ ] Click
[ ] Pan's Labyrinth

SOUND MIXING
[ ] Apocalypto
[ ] Blood Diamond
[ ] Dreamgirls
[ ] Flags of Our Fathers
[ ] Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest 

SOUND EDITING
[ ] Apocalypto
[ ] Blood Diamond
[ ] Flags of Our Fathers
[ ] Letters from Iwo Jima
[ ] Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest 

VISUAL EFFECTS 
[ ] Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
[ ] Poseidon
[ ] Superman Returns

FILM EDITING
[ ] Babel
[ ] Blood Diamond
[ ] Children of Men
[ ] The Departed
[ ] United 93 


Bill Dunn can be contacted here
Some of his previous articles can be found here.