OSCAR.com - 81st Annual Academy Awards - Nominees

OSCAR.com - 81st Annual Academy Awards - Nominees

The big surprise in Best Picture: The Dark Knight was not nominated. The underdog was Weinstein's The Reader, which had only 60% positive reviews. I just saw The Reader yesterday, and I agree with its inclusion in the top five, but not to replace The Dark Knight. I would toss either Benjamin Button or Frost/Nixon. (I have seen all five nominees, as well as The Dark Knight and many of the other contenders.)

For the record, my personal top five would be The Dark Knight, Wall-E, The Reader, In Bruges, and Slumdog Millionaire. There is no doubt in my mind that Slumdog Millionaire was the best picture of the year and Danny Boyle the best director. It is absolutely dazzling, and I'm not easily dazzled. I don't know if any film has dazzled me since the long version of Once Upon a Time in America. Slumdog is just brilliant in every way: cinematography, score, storyline ... and manages to be a highly entertaining crowd-pleaser in the process.