The Countdown

The Oscars are tomorrow night. And there will be a party. Oh, yes.

Since it is less than a day away, and I doubt many of the locals will read this before then, I hereby bestow my predictions upon you. Surprised? Here they are - the major ones, anyway. If I told you who I thought would win best Makeup, would either of us care?

BEST PICTURE No Country For Old Men It's been the leader of the pack since the beginning. Barring a major upset (beware Juno), this category is a done deal.

BEST DIRECTOR Ethan and Joel Coen for No Country For Old Men Ditto. They won the DGA, and that's almost always a precursor to who wins best director. Don't bet against them.

BEST ACTOR Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood Also a near-lock since the beginning. Some prognosticators are picking George Clooney, but anyone who has seen There Will Be Blood knows even Clooney can't fix this race.

BEST ACTRESS Julie Christie in Away From Her She has been the strongest contender since her movie was released last April. But she's not a lock like Day-Lewis - she is vulnerable, partly because she is somewhat anti-Hollywood. Also against her: she's won before, her movie was a tiny independent film, and there's been a late surge for both Marion Cotillard and Ellen Page.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Javier Bardem in No Country For Old Men Besides the fact that he's been the ultimate leader in this category, here's a bit of trivia: Oscar voters like bestowing the Best Picture winner (presumably No Country) with an acting Oscar - and this is their only chance.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Cate Blanchett in I'm Not There This is by far the hardest race to call. Really, I could see any one of them easily winning it except for (poor) Saoirse Ronan in Atonement. Amy Ryan was the critical darling; everyone loves Cate Blanchett, and she won the Golden Globe; Ruby Dee won the SAG for what amounts to a tiny performance; and there's been a late surge for Tilda Swinton. I just watched Michael Clayton again, and I must say, her performance is haunting.

Let's check back after the Oscars. I'll have pictures and tidbits for you.