OSCAR WATCH: Oscar Nominations

Whoa, that was shocking. I'm sure a lot of people were "blindsided" with those nominations. Who saw "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" coming? Almost all the categories had major surprises. I was pleasantly surprised and thrilled for Demian Bichir, Margin Call (Original Screenplay) and A Separation (Original Screenplay!!) though. The Original Song category is an embarrassing mess (only 2 nominees). Here is the full list of nominees:

Best Picture
The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Best Director
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life

Best Actor
Demian Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Best Actress
Viola Davis, The Help
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn

Best Supporting Actor
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Best Supporting Actress
Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Descendants
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Best Original Screenplay
The Artist
Bridesmaids
Margin Call
Midnight in Paris
A Separation

Best Art Direction
The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
War Horse

Best Cinematography
The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Best Costume Design
Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.

Best Film Editing
The Artist
The Descendants
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball

Best Makeup
Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
The Iron Lady

Best Original Score
The Adventures of Tintin
The Artist
Hugo
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
War Horse

Best Original Song
"Man or Muppet", The Muppets
"Real in Rio", Rio

Best Sound Editing
Drive
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse

Best Sound Mixing
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse

Best Visual Effects
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Best Foreign Language Film
Bullhead
Monsieur Lazhar
A Separation
Footnote
In Darkness

Best Animated Feature Film
A Cat in Paris
Chico and Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

Best Documentary Feature
Hell and Back Again
If a Tree Falls: The Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated

Best Documentary Short
The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God is the Bigger Elvis
Incident in New Baghdad
Saving Face
The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

Best Animated Short
Dimanche/Sunday
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life

Best Short Film
Pentecost
Raju
The Shore
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic

Major Snubs:
- Tilda Swinton for Lead Actress
- Tintin and Arthur Christmas for Animated Feature
- The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo for Original Score
- Drive for Editing
- Harry Potter in the Sound categories
- My Week With Marilyn for Costume Design