adam's road to the Oscar's

Tomorrow night is the Oscar's. I rarely watch the awards show, mainly because I haven't seen most of the movies that are nominated. This year however, I seem to have seen more than my usual amount of Oscar nominated movies (including 4 of the 5 nominated for best picture). So, I decided to write my take on some of the Oscar nominated movies including my picks for some of the awards in which I've seen the majority of the movies. I will try not to give away much of the plot, but if it's a movie you'd rather see before hearing my opinions, don't read it. I'll start with the movies nominated for Best Picture:
BABEL - A good movie with moments of greatness. The overall movie was enjoyable and well done, but felt slow. This already lengthy movie seemed even longer. However, certain scenes definately made it worth it. Most of the story about the deaf/mute Japanese girl was brilliant. My personal favorite scene was with her in the nightclub. Wow. The movie reminded me of Crash in that it followed several people's stories and how they were all connected. Instead of dealing solely with race (like Crash), it dealt with communication among different races, cultures, and governments. My rating: 8.2 of 10.
THE DEPARTED - I saw this movie on the opening weekend of its release before I had heard any reviews or hype. This would be one, at least for me, where some idea of what to expect may have helped me enjoy it more. When I first saw it, I hated it. Most of the movie was great, but I so strongly disliked the ending that it left a bad impression on me overall. I would like to see it again and think I would enjoy it more the next time. My rating: 7.9 of 10
THE QUEEN - This was the big surprise of all Best Picture nominations for me personally. I had heard that it was an excellent movie and didn't doubt that, I just didn't think I would care for it too much since it was on a subject (the British royal family) that I don't know much about or care much about. However, I really enjoyed it. Helen Mirren was amazing and deserves the Best Actress Award (even though I haven't seen the movies with the other nominations). I found myself sucked in by this story that I had previously no interest in. My rating: 9.2.
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE - I didn't get around to seeing this in the theater, but got it for Christmas on DVD before I had seen it. I heard good things from people whose movie opinions I respect. I had no idea it would be my favorite movie of the year. It was hilarious and the characters were excellent. I would be surprised if it won for Best Picture, but I hope it does. My rating: 9.7.
I have not seen Letters from Iwo Jima. I want to, and it's finally in Walla Walla, but I'm not sure when I'll see it. Like I said, I hope Little Miss Sunshine wins, but I don't think that'll happen. I have a bad feeling that The Departed will win, but maybe it's one of those where the critics and the Academy don't see eye to eye. If that's the case, I think the Queen will win. That would be fine with me. Babel has a shot because of it's similarities to last years winner, but I don't think so.
Here's a few other movies nominated for other awards that I enjoyed and reccomend:
CHILDREN OF MEN - Very intense. The whole latter half of the movie put me on the edge of my seat. I loved the story. The action was very exciting. The acting was great. My rating: 9.3.
PAN'S LABYRINTH - Different than what I expected. I thought there would be more of a fantasy world created. Instead, there were just a few fantasy elements inserted into the life of the main girl (who did a fantastic job). Despite the expectation difference, I though it was a great story. My rating: 9.0.
DREAMGIRLS - Lot's of excellent performances. Enjoyable music. Good movie. My rating: 8.8.
I'll end this lengthy entry with a few other categories of which I've seen the majority of the nominations along with my pick:
Best Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin - Little Miss Sunshine
Best Supporting Actress: Rinko Kikuchi - Babel
Art Direction: Dreamgirls
Cinematography: Children of Men
Directing: The Departed
Film Editing: Babel
Makeup: Click (didn't care much for the movie, but they way they made the characters age was the best I've seen)
Original Screenplay: The Queen
That's all I got. Let me know what you think.

the issues of the nation

The War in Iraq and against Terror. The moral issues of the nation including the current stir of homosexuality in pro athletics. The threat of global warning. The effect of natural disasters in our country and the governments response. There are many issues that one could concern themselves with in this world and in this country. And yet, when I flip through the national news stations, one story overshadows them all. An issue of great importance and significance to our nation and to the world. An issue to which we should all give our attention. An issue that causes us to look deep into our souls and ask ourself, "What the F*** is wrong with this country!!!?" This issue is none other than Anna Nicole Smith. God help us all.

a few updates

Yesterday I met with a guy about starting a small business, specifically a chimney cleaning business. I now have a good idea as to what it will take to do this. The meeting confirmed my assumption that it will take a LOT of work. But I think I'm up for it. I need to do a little more research before I commit to it.
I got my grade back for the correspondance course I was taking. I read my grade for one of the bigger assignments first and saw that it sucked. I was sad. Then I saw the rest of the grades and they were much better. I ended up with a B. Not bad.