March madness - and I don't mean hoops

I'm not a big fan of college basketball, so March doesn't have any special sporting meaning for me. No, the reason I'm mad about March (this year anyway) is the Academy Awards. I'm not as fanatical about them as I used to be. For years in a row I watched them diligently, making snide or adoring comments about dresses and actors. One year, my spring break fell just before the Oscars, so I spent the week seeing nominated movies to make sure I was well-informed about who should win. It was fun, but watching Monster followed immediately by 21 Grams will do something to a person. Something that ain't good.

Last year, however, I may not even have watched them. I can't remember. I might've just chilled with Josh instead. I remember having the thought: "I'm not even that interested in watching them. Who I am? What have I done with the real Joobie?" But then I probably went back to snuggling.

At any rate, this year, I've fallen somewhere in the middle. I've seen a fair number of the nominees, and I'd like to watch the show, but it simply isn't as fun when you a)aren't a teenage girl and b)don't have any of your girlfriends to watch it with (so you can feel like a teenage girl). Maybe some year in the future I'll be the type of woman who hosts Oscar parties with canapes and fake ballots, but this ain't the year.

Still, I'm sure you're just dying to know what I think of the nominees, so here we go (if it's italicized, I've seen it):

BEST PICTURE
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck
Munich

Only two of the nominees? Shameful! That said, I'd probably have to pick Brokeback Mountain, because Crash was a little heavy-handed with the themes, and Brokeback Mountain was just so durn purdy.

BEST ACTOR
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Capote
Terrence Howard, Hustle & Flow
Heath Ledger, Brokeback Mountain
Joaquin Phoenix, Walk the Line
David Strathairn, Good Night, and Good Luck

Here, I've got to pick Heath, and not just because I liked watching him mack on Jake Gyllenhaal. Nope, it was because he completely disappeared into the performance. I never got the sense of him acting. I believed it completely.

BEST ACTRESS
Judi Dench, Mrs. Henderson Presents
Felicity Huffman, Transamerica
Keira Knightley, Pride & Prejudice
Charlize Theron, North Country
Reese Witherspoon, Walk the Line

Again, only two. I'm sorry! I really meant to go see Transamerica, but it just didn't happen. Based on the two I did see, I have to pick Reese. I love how she says one thing in dialogue but something else entirely with her eyes. She could win it purely on the "baby, baby, baby, baby" line, in my opinion.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
George Clooney, Syriana
Matt Dillon, Crash
Paul Giamatti, Cinderella Man
Jake Gyllenhaal, Brokeback Mountain
William Hurt, A History of Violence

Only two. What a shock! But I've been buuuuusy. Here, I really don't care, as long as it isn't William Hurt. Don't ask why, 'cause I don't know.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams, Junebug
Catherine Keener, Capote
Frances McDormand, North Country
Rachel Weisz, The Constant Gardener
Michelle Williams, Brokeback Mountain

Man, Amy Adams and Michelle Williams are both so so so good. It's incredibly hard to pick here, but I'd have to go with Amy. Michelle perfected a look, a reaction, that was so honest and full of emotion, but Any sustained a performance for almost an entire film, a role filled with such exuberance and energy it must have been exhausting to keep up with.

And those are my two cents. What do you think? Who do you really want to win? What should I absolutely see that I haven't had the time for yet? Should I really try to get over Philip Seymour Hoffman's insane squirrelly creepiness and watch Capote?