Shootin' the breeze with Jerry Lewis

"How’re ya doin’, kid?"

The voice is unmistakably Jerry Lewis. The thought of how many famous people (not me) Lewis has greeted like that is thrilling. Fifteen minutes later when he suddenly exclaims: "Steve, I'm through with you, I gotta go" it is one of the coolest brushoffs I've ever received.

Lewis is appearing Saturday at Ruth Eckerd Hall, making up a date postponed in February so he could accept the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Oscars. Lewis' thoughts on that honor are elsewhere on tampabay.com and in the Times. But I had so much good material left from talking to this supremely confident, occasionally profane comedy legend that I have to post more here.

Enjoy Lewis' thoughts on:

Today's coarser comedians -- "I don’t believe in four-letter words for an audience. I don’t believe someone that has the ability to make an audience laugh needs to go that way. Lenny Bruce was already an intellectual when he started cursing onstage. If Lenny had continued on, maybe (comedy) would’ve picked up on an intellectual level, or a level of some brain matter.

"I’m talking about the guy who opens a nightclub act with: ‘How the f--- are you?’ Whether they think that’s cute or hip, or whatever they think it is, they all do the same thing. The shock value is going away because we have so much of that in life.

"The comedy creative process is battling everything that’s happening in the world. You can’t tiptoe with kitten paws when you just had a g-- d--- Bengal tiger do the joke. If you indeed stay with what you believe is funny without examining the culture, you’ll get killed and your work will suffer."

Who makes him laugh -- "You can’t discuss George Carlin without putting him at the top of the list. Robin Williams can destroy me anytime, and he does. Nathan Lane can do anything, and is brilliant when he does it. We’ve got wonderful people out there who are like that, coming in the business or who have been in it for a while. We need it desperately. Because in lieu of that we’re getting what’s available, and that’s rough."

Waiting so long for the academy to show him respect -- "I worked very hard to be recognized and they recognized me. A lot of people thought it should’ve been sooner. But if it never happened, nobody would’ve thought anything."

Why his 1971 book, The Total Film-Maker, is still vital in a digital world -- "It’s mandatory reading (in some film schools) in Europe because it deals with basics that never change. There is such a speed at which the technology is moving, that wonderful things are being missed, taken for granted. But this is the same thing that happened when we went from silent (movies) to sound. Same thing."

On the Bernie Madoff scandal-- "It’s a tragedy but it’s pretty funny. If that son of a b---- took down enough people to pick up $50 billion, that’s pretty funny. The people who got burned deserved it. We all got hurt by it. I couldn’t believe when I saw the list of foundations that shut down, that were dealing with children. I just wish (Madoff’s) last name was “Schweinan,” anything but Jewish. He took us back 4,000 years, which is a shame."

His favorite part of his stage act -- "I do a Q&A with the audience that runs about 20 or 30 minutes that gets f------ hysterical, absolutely hysterical. I’m very proud of it because it’s off the top of my head. It’s all then and there, depending on who you’re talking to. Great fun, and never the same, of course.

"It starts to get long sometimes because the ham in me comes out and I realize I’m on for two hours, twenty. The only complaint comes from my lungs: ‘Hey, schmuck, get off the stage.' ''

Waltz with Bashir: A first in my book

Animated movies fill eyes, documentaries fill heads and foreign films show emotions are alike even when subtitled. Two of those impressions in one movie often comes along, from the foreign doc Triumph of the Will to the personal politics of Persepolis.

Combine all three -- smarts, heart and visual splendor -- and you have Waltz with Bashir, the movie robbed blindest at the recent Academy Awards.

Ari Folman's self-analysis of Lebanon War nightmares could have been nominated as best of three Oscar categories: foreign language film (which it was, losing to Japan's even more obscure Departures), documentary feature or, with blazing originality, animated feature. I've never seen an animated documentary in any language. The next one has a tough act to follow.

Folman is a Israeli army veteran of the 1982 war with Lebanon, plagued by nightmares jumbled with images that include snarling dogs, a beachfront battle and encountering an erotic sea nymph while laying injured on a ship's deck. When awake, Folman doesn't remember his wartime experiences, except they involve mass tragedy and deep guilt. He worked out his dreams and mental blocks by visiting former army buddies, and an amusingly straightforward psychologist friend.

The animation technique -- think A Scanner Darkly people and Watchmen mindscapes -- enlivens the nightmares better than a conventional documentary would, while talking heads become interest to watch when listening. Current events make Folman's crises of conscience 27 years ago seem topical today, regardless of nationality. Waltz with Bashir astonishes by combining three genres into a movie people will remember long after that Japanese flick. Grade: A.

Waltz with Bashir opens Friday, only at AMC Veterans 24 in Tampa and Burns Court Cinemas in Sarasota.   

Slumdog Millionaire wins best picture Oscar

Oscar's final answer Sunday night was the one nearly everyone expected, no life lines necessary.

Slumdog Millionaire concluded its Cinderella rise from obscurity to Hollywood history, winning the best picture Oscar at the 81st annual Academy Awards. Two months ago, the feat seemed as improbable as the film's plot, with an poverty-stricken Mumbai orphan going for a fortune on India's version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

Once expected to head straight to DVD, Slumdog Millionaire danced away with eight Academy Awards including best director (Danny Boyle), adapted screenplay and a sweep of the academy's two music categories.

The trek to the Kodak Theater stage was described by producer Christian Colson as "an extraordinary journey." Colson was surrounded onstage by cast members including child actors plucked from the streets of Mumbai, beaming with pride in well-tailored formalwear.

"We had no stars, no power or muscle, not enough money, really, to do what we wanted to do," Colson said. "But what we had was a script that inspired mad love in everyone who read it, and a genius as a director. We had a cast and crew that were unwavering in their commitment and these talents are all up on the screen for you to see."

With the victory for Slumdog Millionaire, a new standard in Oscars frustration was established. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button became the most nominated film ever (13 nods) to leave without the best picture statuette, surpasssing The Color Purple and The Turning Point with 11 each.

SHARP-EDGED PENN -- Sean Penn claimed the second best actor Oscar of his career, playing slain gay activist Harvey Milk in Milk, and immediately poked fun at his image as a political gadfly.

"You Commie, homo-loving sons of guns," Penn began, alluding to the image of Hollywood that Penn's conservative detractors hold. "I did not expect this. And I want it too be very clear that I do know how hard I make it to appreciate me, often. But I am touched by this appreciation."

KATE FINALLY WINS ONE -- Winslet avoided becoming a dubious piece of Oscars trivia by winning the best actress award for The Reader, her first win after six nominations. If she'had lost again, Winslet would''ve tied Thelma Ritter (Pillow Talk, All About Eve, Birdman of Alcatraz, Pick Up on South Street, The Mating Season and With a Song in My Heart) for the most nominations for an actress without winning.

"I'd be lying if I said I hadn't made this speech before, in the bathroom in front of the mirror," Winslet said in her acceptance speech. "And this (holding up the Oscar) would have been a shampoo bottle. Well, it's not a shampoo bottle now."

More composed than her recent acceptance speeches at the Godlen Globes and Screen Actors Guild, Winslet thanked the usual suspects, including her father sitting somewhere out there, beyond the spotlights.

"Dad, whistle something so I know where you are," Winslet said. A sharp tweet from the gallery let her know.

CURATIN CALL -- Heath Ledger's final stride toward Hollywood immortality was taken Sunday night, when the late actor became only the second actor ever to win an Academy Award posthumously.

Ledger's brilliantly disturbing portrayal of the arch villain Joker in The Dark Knight earned the best supporting actor prize. That's the 21st major award Ledger's performance has earned, one of the most dominant awards season displays in history.

Ledger died at age 28 in January, 2008 of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs, six months before The Dark Knight was released.

The only actor who previously won an Oscar after death was Peter Finch, a best actor selection in 1977 for his portrayal of a mad TV anchorman in Network.

The Oscar was accepted by the late actor's father Kim Ledger, mother Sally Bell and sister Kate, whose remarks were bookended by standing ovations.

"First of all, I have to say this is ever so humbling, just being among such wonderful people in such a wonderful industry," said Kim Ledger. "We'd like to thank the academy for recognizing our son's amazing work (and) Warner Bros, and (director) Christopher Nolan in particular for allowing Heath the creative license to explore this crazy Joker character.

"This award tonight would have humbly validated Heath quiet determination to be truly accepted by you all here, his peers within an industry he so loved."

Sally Bell described her son as "such a compassionate and generous soul who added so much excitement and inspiration to our lives. We have been truly overwhelmed by the honor and respect being bestowed upon him with this award. Tonight we are choosing to celebrate and be happy for what he has achieved."

Speaking last, Kate spoke to the heavens, to her brother, while TV cameras captured several celebrities - Brad Pitt, Anne Hathaway and Adrien Brody among them - with tears in their eyes.

"Heath, we both knew what you had created in the Joker was extraordinarily special, and even talked about being here on this very day," Kate said. "We really wish you were but we proudly accept this award on behalf of your beautiful (daughter) Matilda."

NOW YOU CAN RELAX --Penelope Cruz won the best supporting actress Oscar for playing a manic depressive sexpot in Woody Allen's Vicky Christina Barcelona. She appeared as surprised as everyone else when hers was the first Oscar presented.

"Has anybody ever fainted here?" Cruz asked when she reached the stage, barely 17 minutes into the telecast. "I might be the first one."

Cruz tearfully recalled her childhood in Spain and nights spent watching the Oscars telecast.

"Always on the night of the Academy Awards I (would) stay up and watch the show. I always felt this ceremony was an act of unity for the world because art in any form is, has been and always will be our universal language. And we should do everything we can, everything we can to protect its survival."

BEAT THE CLOCK -- As usual, the Oscars telecast ran behind schedule, with the goal of a 3-hour running time passing during Sophia Loren's introduction of Kate Winslet as a best actress nominee, with three more Oscar presentations still to come. The show eventually clocked in at 3 hours, 30 minutes.

The only Oscar broadcast to ever finish ahead of schedule was in 1959, when Gigi picked up the best picture Oscar with 20 minutes of scheduled airtime remaining. The show's co-hosts - Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, Laurence Olivier, David Niven, Tony Randall and satirist Mort Sahl improvised to fill time until NBC mercifully cut to a short film about target shooting.

NOW THAT'S A MUSICAL NUMBER - We can erase those bad memories Rob Lowe singing to Snow White and Three Six Mafia pimpin' out the Oscars. The medley of Sunday's three original song nominees bathed the Kodak Theater's stage - reconfigured for a more intimate, Vegas lounge feel - was one of the best in years.

O, Saya and the eventual winner, Jai Ho from Slumdog Millionaire inspired enthusiastic arrangements including the Soweto Gospel Choir from South Africa and a multinational corps of drummers, with nominated composer A.R. Rahman sharing in the vocals. The third nominee, Down to Earth from WALL-E was sung in slightly jazzed-up, abbreviated form by Grammy winner John Legend, after co-composer Peter Gabriel dropped out in protest of the arrangement.

WHAT ABOUT EEYORE? -- "My kids are too old to remember this now but when they were much younger I swore to them that if this miracle ever happened I would received it in the spirit of Tigger from Winnie the Pooh. That's what that was." -- Best director winner Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire), who bounced three times before beginning his acceptance speech.

BIGGEST SHOCKER - Well, that's overstating it. Not much about the balloting went against conventional wisdom. Only the best foreign language film category provided an oh-my-God moment when Departures, a Japanese film about a cellist who becomes a mortician claimed the Oscar over the Cannes prize winner The Class (France) and the aninated documentary Waltz with Bashir from Israel.

JERRY LEWIS HONORED - Never nominated for an Oscar over a 60-year movie career, Jerry Lewis took home one of the academy's highest honors, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, for his half-century of service to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Slightly hunched but looking healthy after years of health issues, the 82-year-old actor-filmmaker-humanitarian displayed Labor Day telethon grace rather than Nutty Professor wackiness.

"For most of my life I thought that doing good for someone wouldn't mean you'd receive commendation for that act of kindness, at least until now, " Lewis said in his acceptance speech. "This award touches my heart and the very depth of my soul because of who the award is from, and those who will benefit. The humility is staggering, and I know it will stay with me for the rest of my life."

Lewis was booked at Ruth Eckerd Hall on Saturday night but postponed the show, rather than fly back home cross-country to accept the academy's honor. The concert at Ruth Eckerd Hall is rescheduled for April.

NICE TOUCH - The academy's attempt to create a narrative line through the telecast didn't do much to streamline the proceedings. Mostly they added more talking by presenters before and after montages of nominees in technical categories such as costumes, art direction and sound.

I did like the extra panache in presenting the acting awards, with five former winners in each category singling out nominees with well-crafted descriptions of their talent and performances.
Cruz's early presentation was the first hint of Oscars' makeover, introduced by Goldie Hawn, Tilda Swinton, Whoopi Goldberg, Eva Marie Saint and Anjelica Huston.

Christopher Walken, Kevin Kline, Joel Grey, Alan Arkin and Cuba Gooding, Jr. praised the supporting actor nominees (see Gooding's best line later in this post).

Sophia Loren, Shirley Maclaine, Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry and Marion Cotillard introduced the best actress finalists.

Best actor nominees were introduced by Ben Kingsley, Michael Douglas, Adrien Brody, Anthony Hopkins and Robert De Niro, who sneaked in a great line about Penn: "How did he do it? How, for so many years, did Sean Penn get all those jobs playing straight men?"

BACK OFF, JUNIOR - "I'll say it: Are you out of your mind? I can understand getting into your character for the art but that's enough of taking work away from black people, man. Brothers need to work. Congratulations on the completion of principal photography on your new film, Shaft." - Cuba Gooding, Jr., introducing best supporting actor nominee Robert Downey, Jr. (Tropic Thunder), who played an Australian actor playing an African-American in blackface.

IT'S FUNNY BECAUSE IT'S TRUE - Seth Rogen and James Franco reprised their stoned-out Pineapple Express characters, plowing through DVDs of Oscar contenders in appropriately fuzzy fashion: laughing at The Reader and Doubt, wondering why Step Brothers wasn't nominated for anything, confusing Razzies winner The Love Guru with Slumdog Millionaire, and feeling uncomfortable when guys kiss in Milk. The Wrestler with its violence and nudity was much more their speed.

Who says the academy is out of touch with mainstream movie tastes?

STRONGEST POLITICAL STATEMENT - Original screenplay winner Dustin Lance Black earned two applause breaks while accepting his award for Milk, the biography of Harvey Milk, a slain San Francisco politician and gay activist whose tale Black called: 'a lifesaving story."

"When I was 13 years old, my beautiful mother and my father moved me from a conservative Mormon home in San Antonio, Texas to California and I heard the story of Harvey Milk," Black said. "And it gave me hope. It gave me the hope to live my life. The hope to one day I could live my life openly as who I am and maybe I could fall in love and one day get married.

"If Harvey had not been taken from us 30 years ago, I think he'd want me to say to all the gay and lesbian kids out there tonight who have been told that they are less than by their churches or by the government or by their family, that you are beautiful, wonderful creatures of value. And that no matter what anyone tells you, God does love you and that very soon I promise you you will have equal rights, federally across this great nation of ours."

Many members of the Oscars audience could be spotted wearing white ribbons, in support of an upcoming appeal of California's Proposition 8 vote that repealed gay marriage rights.

MARK ONE OFF THE LIST - "There are certain places in the universe that you never imagine standing: the moon, the South Pole, the Miss World podium and here." - Simon Beaufoy, adapted screenplay  winner for Slumdog Millionaire, from the Kodak Theater stage.

HOST WITH THE MOST - Hugh Jackman's "homemade" musical number that opened the show immediately ranked with Billy Crystal's insert-cinema as the most entertaining intro ever.

Noting that tough times caused downsizing even in Hollywood, Jackman said the show's producers cut the opening musical number. Undeterred, he claimed to concoct one at home, kicking off an eight-minute tribute utilizing Jackman's song-and-dance skills, that won him a Tony for Broadway's The Boy from Oz.

Jackman toasted and gently roasted 2008's best picture nominees, starting with Slumdog Millionaire, on a set resembling the film's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire subplot, cobbled from pizza boxes, air conditioning tubes and lawn chairs. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button got a plywood wall with dummies of various ages and holes for Jackman to poke his head through, as he sang about the character's reverse chronology.

Nominee Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) acted shocked when Jackman carried her onstage for a Frost/Nixon spoof that bloomed into a swooning confession song. Better than the snarky monologues Jon Stewart and Chris Rock crashed and burned with in recent years.

Jackman's second musical number, a tribute to musicals near the 90-minute mark, was a return to Oscar's needless puffery, produced by director Baz Lurhmann (Moulin Rouge, Australia) about going over the top. Adding the High School Musical duo after their fans' bedtimes is just cruel. Good to see Beyonce's gams again, though.

BEST HAIR - Ben Stiller's faux facial growth, either ridiculing Joaquin Phoenix's new look, or enabling the actor's retirement-to-rap hoax to continue.

GIVE SOMEBODY ELSE A CHANCE - As expected, WALL-E awarded the best animated feature Oscar. Disney/Pixar has now claimed four awards in this category in eight years since the category was created.

BEST FASHION STATEMENT - Best actor nominee Mickey Rourke is wearing a pendant with a photo of his chihuahua Loki, who died six days ago in his arms at age 16. Rourke quit an acting job in the 1990's because the director wouldn't let him to hold Loki in a scene. Rourke told a red carpet interviewer that he had a tuxedo tailed for Loki before he died, and he's carrying it tonight. 

YEAH, AND DEWEY BEAT TRUMAN - Time magazine must know something the rest of us don't. This week's issue, on newsstands Monday, features nominee Kate Winslet on the cover, with the headline "Best actress." Winslet looked stunned when Ryan Seacrest showed it to her on the red carpet. "What am I doing on Time?" she said. Later, the cover was confirmed.

BRAD PITT OR PIT STOPS? - Ratings for ABC's Oscars telecast will be released Monday, and awaited with Pepcid-bated breath since last year's numbers hit an all-time low (32-million viewers). Complicating matters Sunday night was head-to-head competition with NASCAR's Auto Club 500 race. The Oscars began at the race's midpoint. Different audiences but any competition for viewers -- especially from the nation's No. 1 spectator sport -- won't help.

WHO WANTS TO BE A 100-MILLIONAIRE? - Weekend box office estimates released Sunday pushed Slumdog Millionaire to $98-million in North American ticket sales. It's a lock to break the coveted $100-million mark on Monday, after Sunday's free publicity and Oscar windfall.

NSFW: Why the academy won't give Mickey Rourke an Oscar

In case you missed Mickey Rourke's hilariously profane acceptance speech at yesterday's Film Independent Spirit Awards show, here it is, in all of its unedited glory thanks to YouTube.

Definitely not safe for work, or anywhere else in public except the Spirit awards show, which you'll likely see rerun on IFC channel.

Rourke's raucous remarks are exactly what some of the academy's uptight members had in mind when they didn't mark Rourke's name on their ballots. The guy manning the seven-second delay button for ABC wouldn't be able to keep up.

Enjoy, but send the kiddies out of the room.

LIVE blogging during the Oscars

I believe Hugh Jackman is the only person singing at tonight's Academy Awards, so that's bad news if you're into picking on voices. Dude can flex the golden pipes.

But you may see a few Tatiana-style meltdowns, if Mickey Rourke goes medieval on Angelina Jolie or something. Naw, the Oscars are classier than that, which is why they're becoming obsolete.

Sad, when you think about it.

But we'll leave the melancholy to Heath Ledger's ovation tonight when his name is read by an Oscar presenter onstage. It's easy to be cynical about a lot of show biz. Every once in a while something comes along that makes you think there's something real under the artifice. Rare, but it usually happens at the Academy Awards.

We're here tonight, a few minutes before the 8:30 p.m. start on TV. Stop by after the Deal Divas get finished shredding the red carpet fashions. A few regular readers have RSVP'd.

Welcome to Cat and Marissa and Michael and anyone else the Daly-Spears cartel has steered my way. I've always depended upon the kindness of those stranger than me. Welcome all. I figure I'll make a few friends and as many enemies, who in true Godfather fashion I keep closer. Poke around the archives and you'll catch on.

Princess Di will be the right side of my brain (as always) and a second set of hands (not as often) for this excursion. If you don't know Princess Di yet, she's the beacon at the end of my tunnel, the wind beneath my wings, the reason cavemen started drawing on walls. Mail order gets it right sometimes.

Post your thoughts, I'll be on my PC blogging for the professional stuff. M'lady will be on the laptop (stop snickering, Daly) for the real show, adding whatever wit I can toss over my shoulder on deadline. At least that's the plan George Peppard gave me. Can't always trust those 80's guys.

Oscar picks, Vol. 16: Jai Ho, you know!

If you've been following this series (which lasted just slightly longer than the average Oscars telecast), you can guess what my pick for best picture of 2008 will be:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Riiiiight.

No, I'm going with Slumdog Millionaire, as I have since I first saw it. It should dance away with this evening's top Oscar. Relive a bit of the Mumbai magic in the embedded clip above. (BTW: If you haven't read Sean Daly's superb review of the Slumdog soundtrack, you really should.)

For the record, my predictions over the past two weeks come out with a final tally showing Slumdog Millionaire leaving with six Oscars, followed by Benjamin Button (4), The Dark Knight, Milk and WALL-E (2 each), with Iron Man, The Reader and Vicky Christina Barcelona each winning one Academy Award. That sounds about right.

While you're waiting for tonight's show, check out my suggestions to the academy for improving the telecast (including clothing optional acceptance speeches). Don't forget to eavesdrop on the Deal Divas' red carpet snarkfest, then return here for LIVE blogging during the show. 

Make your pick for Best Picture

The Academy Awards are tonight. How do you see the major awards playing out. Here's today's poll.

 

Best picture
What is your pick for Best Picture?
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon

Oscar picks, Vol. 15: Winslet = Winner

Let me say right off the bat that I have a huge crush on Kate Winslet, so perhaps my gut feeling that she'll finally win an Academy Award at Sunday's soiree comes from a place a bit lower than my gut.

The sixth time should be the charm, as a few of nominations 1 through 5 should've been. At 33, she's the youngest actor ever to earm six Oscar nods. Winslet has never been better than playing The Reader's Hanna Schmitz, a former Auschwitz prison guard whose past catches up to her. The movie is equal parts Last Tango in Paris, Summer of '42 and Judgment at Nuremburg, with Winslet astonishingly erotic, emotionally barricaded and tragic to match the diverse themes.

You can make a good case case for any of the other four nominees: Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) was my pick until The Reader came to my attention in late December, Melissa Leo (Frozen River) would be a great longshot prediction, if her movie had been seen by more people, Angelina Jolie has the kind of meaty role in Changeling that the academy loves, and Meryl Streep (Doubt) is... well, she's Meryl Streep.

But Winslet is also Winslet, one of the finest actors of her generation and a terrific wit (she'll have her acceptance speech ready this time), as part 2 of the CBS Sunday Morning interview I've included here proves. If you're pressed for time, fast-forward to the 4:15 mark when a clip from her hilarious appearance on Ricky Gervais' Extras shows. Then stick around for the final seconds when she offers a bit of life philosophy that sealed my lifelong affection for her.

Wrapping up Sunday: best picture (if you're paying attention, you should know).

 

Make your pick for Best Actress

The Academy Awards come Sunday night. How do you see the major awards playing out. Here's today's poll.

 

Best actress
Who is your pick for Best Actress?
Meryl Streep in "Doubt"
Kate Winslet in "The Reader"
Angelina Jolie in "Changeling"
Melissa Leo in "Frozen River"
Anne Hathaway in "Rachel Getting Married"

Oscar picks, Vol. 14: Penn again

I know Sean Penn rubs a lot of people the wrong way. It's probably the only thing we have in common (except for that Madonna thing that I'll tell you about sometime). But the haters are just going to have to keep on hating because Penn is walking off with the best actor Oscar at Sunday's gala.

Or maybe that's "gay-la," since Penn played the slain gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk.

It's a remarkable transformation, from a surly guy with a chip (or maybe a 2x4) on his shoulder to a gentle soul with the same kind of righteous intensity. Some actors are praised for "growing into a role" but Penn actually shrinks into his. His voice and mannerisms constantly detect the point at which they could become parodies of homosexuality, always stopping just short of stereotype.

Sure, Penn won this Oscar before, for Mystic River, and that's viewed by some observers as hurtful to his chances Sunday night - maybe the academy doesn't want to place him in the esteemed company of dual winners. But when you think back to the macho rage and shame that Penn portrayed in Mystic River, and compare it to Milk, you see a range that few actors possess.

I loved Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler, and wouldn't mind at all if I missed this pick. But I'm guessing that the academy worries that he'll be flashback-in-the-pan, poised to resume his eccentric ways and roles at any time. He's the comeback of the year but not far enough.

Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) doesn't belong in this crowd, his performance is so introverted, merely reflecting the awe that other characters express at his supernatural condition. Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) and Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon) are old pros for whom the phrase "it's an honor to be nominated" will have to do.

Sunday night, they'll all be crying over spilled Milk.

Coming tomorrow: best actress.