Brian Kess's final predictions

Hi everybody, my name is Brian Kess. This is my first entry on the blog, and how appropriate that it will be my final Oscar nominee predictions. Let's get cracking, shall we?

I'm also going to include a "Surprise Nominee" in the Big 8 categories - an unlikely pick that could surprise us all with a nomination.

BEST PICTURE
Dreamgirls
Babel
The Departed
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen

Surprise Nominee: Bobby

BEST DIRECTOR
Bill Condon/ DREAMGIRLS
Alejandro Gonzalez I/ BABEL
Martin Scorsese/ THE DEPARTED
Clint Eastwood/ LETTERS FRMO IWO JIMA
Paul Greengrass/ UNITED 93

Suprise Nominee: Robert Altman/ A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Peter O'Toole/ VENUS
Will Smith/ THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS
Forest Whitaker/ THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND
Leonardo DiCaprio/ THE DEPARTED
Ryan Gosling/ HALF NELSON

Surprise Nominee: Ken Watanabe/ LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Kate Winslet/ LITTLE CHILDREN
Helen Mirren/ THE QUEEN
Judi Dench/ NOTES ON A SCANDAL
Meryl Streep/ THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
Penelope Cruz/ VOLVER

Surprise Nominee: Sienna Miller/ FACTORY GIRL

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Jackie E. Haley/ LITTLE CHILDREN
Eddie Murphy/ DREAMGIRLS
Michael Sheen/ THE QUEEN
Jack Nicholson/ THE DEPARTED
Brad Pitt/ BABEL

Surprise Nominee: Adam Beach/ FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Cate Blanchet/ NOTES ON A SCANDAL
Rinko Kikuchi/ BABEL
Adrianna Barraza/ BABEL
Jennifer Hudson/ DREAMGIRLS
Abigail Breslin/ LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE

Surprise Nominee: Sharon Stone/ BOBBY and Anika Noni Rose/ DREAMGIRLS

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Babel
The Queen
Little Miss Sunshine
Stranger than Fiction
United 93

Surprise Nominee: Pan's Labyrinth

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Departed
Dreamgirls
Little Children
The Devil Wears Prada
Thank You For Smoking

Surprise Nominee: A Prairie Home Companion

BEST EDITING
United 93
Dreamgirls
The Departed
The Queen
Letters from Iwo Jima

BEST ART DIRECTION
Dreamgirls
The Good German
Marie Antoinette
Pan's Labyrinth
Letters from Iwo Jima

BEST COSTUMES
Bobby
Marie Antoinette
Dreamgirls
The Curse of the Golden Flower
The Good German

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Apocalypto
Dreamgirls
Chilren of Men
The Departed
Curse of the Golden Flower

BEST MAKEUP
Pan's Labyrinth
Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest
Apocalypto

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Painted Veil
The Fountain
Babel
The Departed
The Da Vinci Code

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Listen" - Dreamgirls
"A Father's Way" - The Pursuit of Happyness
"The Song of the Heart" - Happy Feet
"Never Gonna Break My Faith" - Bobby
"You Know My Name" - Casino Royale

BEST SOUND MIXING
Dreamgirls
Superman Returns
Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest
Letters from Iwo Jima
A Prairie Home Companion

BEST SOUND EDITING
Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest
Dreamgirls
United 93
Superman Returns
The Departed

BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS
Superman Returns
X-Men: The Last Stand
Charlotte's Web

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Iraq in Fragments
An Inconvenient Truth
Jesus Camp
Shut Up & Sing
The War Tapes

BEST ANIMATED FILM
Cars
Happy Feet
Monster House

BEST FOREIGN FILM
Volver, Spain
Pan's Labyrinth, Mexico
Black Book, Netherlands
The Curse of the Golden Flower, China
The Lives of Others, Germany


There you have them... Could be spot on, could be way off. It's an interesting year, where some categories are completely sure (Best Actress) and some categories are entirely up in the air (Supporting Actor). Well - I guess all will be settled in a few days.

Until next time...