The Oscar Grouch's 2005 Academy Award Predictions

Best Picture
Will Win: The Aviator
Potential Spoiler: Million Dollar Baby
Dark Horse: Sideways
Who I’m Rooting For: Uh, I guess Sideways. Or Million Dollar Baby. Or The Aviator.

Best Directing
Will Win: Martin Scorsese, The Aviator
Potential Spoiler: Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby
Dark Horse: Alexander Payne, Sideways
Who I’m Rooting For: Martin Scorsese, The Aviator

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Will Win: Jamie Foxx, Ray
Potential Spoiler: Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby
Dark Horse: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Aviator
Who I’m Rooting For: Johnny Depp, Finding Neverland

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Will Win: Hilary Swank, Million Dollar Baby
Potential Spoiler: Annette Bening, Being Julia
Dark Horse: Imelda Staunton, Vera Drake
Who I’m Rooting For: Kate Winslet, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Will Win: Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar Baby
Potential Spoiler: Clive Owen, Closer
Dark Horse: Thomas Haden Church, Sideways
Who I’m Rooting For: Clive Owen, Closer

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Will Win: Cate Blanchett, The Aviator
Potential Spoiler: Virginia Madsen, Sideways
Dark Horse: Natalie Portman, Closer
Who I’m Rooting For: Cate Blanchett, The Aviator

Best Adapted Screenplay
Will Win: Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor, Sideways
Potential Spoiler: Paul Haggis, Million Dollar Baby
Dark Horse: David Magee, Finding Neverland
Who I’m Rooting For: Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor, Sideways

Best Original Screenplay
Will Win: Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry & Pierre Bismuth, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Potential Spoiler: Mike Leigh, Vera Drake
Dark Horse: Keir Pearson & Terry George, Hotel Rwanda
Who I’m Rooting For: Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry & Pierre Bismuth, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Best Animated Feature
Will Win: The Incredibles
Potential Spoiler: Shrek 2
Dark Horse: A write-in win for The Polar Express
Who I’m Rooting For: Shrek 2

Best Foreign Language Film
Will Win: The Sea Inside
Potential Spoiler: Downfall
Dark Horse: The Chorus
Who I’m Rooting For: The Sea Inside (of the two I’ve seen)

Best Documentary Feature
Will Win: Born into Brothels
Potential Spoiler: Super Size Me
Dark Horse: Twist of Faith
Who I’m Rooting For: Born into Brothels (of the two I’ve seen)

Best Art Direction
Will Win: Rick Heinrichs (art direction) and Cheryl Carasik (set decoration), Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
Potential Spoiler: Dante Ferretti (art) and Francesca Lo Schiavo (set), The Aviator
Dark Horse: Aline Bonetto, A Very Long Engagement
Who I’m Rooting For: Aline Bonetto, A Very Long Engagement

Best Cinematography
Will Win: Robert Richardson, The Aviator
Potential Spoiler: Caleb Deschanel, The Passion of The Christ
Dark Horse: Bruno Delbonnel, A Very Long Engagement
Who I’m Rooting For: Bruno Delbonnel, A Very Long Engagement

Best Costume Design
Will Win: Sandy Powell, The Aviator
Potential Spoiler: Bob Ringwood, Troy
Dark Horse: Colleen Atwood, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
Who I’m Rooting For: Colleen Atwood, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events

Best Editing
Will Win: Thelma Schoonmaker, The Aviator
Potential Spoiler: Joel Cox, Million Dollar Baby
Dark Horse: Paul Hirsch, Ray
Who I’m Rooting For: Jim Miller and Paul Rubell, Collateral

Best Makeup
Will Win: Valli O’Reilly and Bill Corso, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
Potential Spoiler: Keith Vanderlaan and Christien Tinsley, The Passion of The Christ
Dark Horse: Jo Allen and Manuel Garcia, The Sea Inside
Who I’m Rooting For: Valli O’Reilly and Bill Corso, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events

Best Original Score
Will Win: Jan A.P. Kaczmarek, Finding Neverland
Potential Spoiler: John Debney, The Passion of The Christ
Dark Horse: John Williams, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Who I’m Rooting For: John Williams, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Best Original Song
Will Win: “Believe” from The Polar Express, Music and Lyric by Glen Ballard and Alan Silvestri
Potential Spoiler: “Learn To Be Lonely” from The Phantom of the Opera, Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lyric by Charles Hart
Dark Horse: “Look to Your Path” from The Chorus, Music by Bruno Coulais, Lyric by Christophe Barratier
Who I’m Rooting For: Write-in votes for anything from Team America: World Police

Best Sound
Will Win: Kevin O’Connell, Greg P. Russell, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Joseph Geisinger, Spider-Man 2
Potential Spoiler: Tom Fleischman and Petur Hliddal, The Aviator
Dark Horse: Scott Millan, Greg Orloff, Bob Beemer and Steve Cantamessa, Ray
Who I’m Rooting For: Randy Thom, Tom Johnson, Dennis Sands and William B. Kaplan, The Polar Express

Best Sound Editing
Will Win: Paul N.J. Ottosson, Spider-Man 2
Potential Spoiler: Michael Silvers and Randy Thom, The Incredibles
Dark Horse: Randy Thom and Dennis Leonard, The Polar Express
Who I’m Rooting For: Randy Thom and Dennis Leonard, The Polar Express

Best Visual Effects
Will Win: John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara and John Frazier, Spider-Man 2
Potential Spoiler: John Nelson, Andrew R. Jones, Erik Nash and Joe Letteri, I, Robot
Dark Horse: Roger Guyett, Tim Burke, John Richardson and Bill George, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Who I’m Rooting For: John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara and John Frazier, Spider-Man 2

Best Animated Short Film
Will Win: Ryan
Potential Spoiler: Gopher Broke
Dark Horse: Lorenzo
Who I’m Rooting For: Ryan (of the three I’ve seen)

Best Live Action Short Film
Will Win: Little Terrorist
Potential Spoiler: Everything in This Country Must
Dark Horse: 7:35 in the Morning
Who I’m Rooting For: 7:35 in the Morning

Best Documentary Short Subject
Will Win: Autism Is a World
Potential Spoiler: Sister Rose’s Passion
Dark Horse: The Children of Leningradsky
Who I’m Rooting For: Haven’t seen any of these