And the Oscar Goes To....

In honor of the Oscars next weekend, here are my top 10 movies of 2007. It is worth noting that I have not seen all of the films I would like, so this list could change (have not seen Persepolis, Charlie Wilson's War, Cassandra's Dream, and 4 Months, Three Weeks, and 2 Days). As far as the Oscars go, No Country For Old Men will probably win Best Picture and Director. This is somewhat disappointing, for while it would be great to see the Cohen brothers win for both of these categories (they won for screenplay in 1996 for the utterly brilliant Fargo), PTA should win here. Lewis and Bardem are well-deserved locks in the acting categories. As is normally the case, I have seen very few of the films nominated in the actress categories, but Cate Blanchett playing Bob Dylan will probably win and Ellen Page will not win despite being a crowd favorite (Laura Linney's performance in The Savages is worth noting here). To me, the most important category is screenplay. Chances are, this will be the one category Juno wins and Diablo Cody will start writing every movie that comes out over the next 5 years. Adapted screenplay is a tough call with three strong nominees. While their film left something to be desired in the final act, the Cohen brothers provided a fantastic screenplay and, as is always the case, PTA exemplies brilliance in the art of screenwriting. Ron Hardwood's screenplay for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is worthy competition with these heavyweights. The Academy will probably disappoint like in 2002 (Gosford Park over The Royal Tennenbaums, Memento, and Amelie!!) and 2003 (The Pianist over Adaptation) and choose Atonement. And now for the list...
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1. There Will Be Blood
2. The Darjeeling Limited
3. The Counterfeuters

4. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

5. Control

6. No Country For Old Men

7. Juno
8. Paris, Je T'aime
9. Into the Wild

10. Margot at the Wedding