OSCAR, OSCAR

A few quick Oscar impressions on the day the nominations came out:

Biggest surprises: That DREAMGIRLS wasn't a Best Picture nominee, that Leo was nominated for BLOOD DIAMOND instead of THE DEPARTED (personally, I think that's the right call), that the Academy apparently hates nominating directing teams (Dayton & Faris) no matter how deserving, that PAN'S LABRYNTH did so well (I need to put that movie on my "must see" list) and that this year's acting nominees are such a racially diverse bunch.

Worst oversight: At first glance, nothing really has me in a snit, which is amazing in itself, but I do find it a bit odd that the Academy could find a nomination for Mark Wahlberg in THE DEPARTED, but none for Jack Nicholson, DiCaprio or Matt Damon, who did some of his best work in that movie.

Best "Outside of the Box" Nominations: Djimon Hounsou for Best Supporting Actor in BLOOD DIAMOND; Ryan Gosling for Best Actor in HALF NELSON. Neither has a shot to win, but I didn't think they'd even get nominated.

Who will win Best Picture?: As of today, my money is on BABEL, because comedies never win and interlocking, socially relevant ensemble dramas are the Academy's current faves. But any of the nominated dramas for best picture could win and it wouldn't be shocking.

For a complete list of nominees from the AP and Yahoo, click here.

Al-Qaeda's Big Yucks

Apparently al-Qaeda has circulated a videotape that mocks President Bush. I haven't viewed it yet, but I'm intrigued. Who knew that al-Qaeda came armed with the Weapons of Satire? Can a Second City Afghanistan be far behind?

The State of the Union

I will be watching President Bush's State of the Union address tonight, at least as much of it as I can stomach, but the main thing that will be interesting is to see how well Bush stands up to a Congress that, for the first time in his tenure, isn't tilted in his favor. I wonder if he'll get that sweaty upper lip thing going when he reiterates his support of ramping up troops numbers in Iraq and half the Congress is silent or actively booing him.

That's all for now...eyes are watching. Feel free to email me your thoughts...

Peace.