Oscar Predictions

I have been away for some time, I apologize.

Many critics have called this year's crop of OSCAR nominee's one of the most competitive groups "in recent memory" (what a ballsey call). Despite such daring superlatives, the field is not as tough to handicap as one might think. Most categories have only two "favorites".

I will offer a list of "Will Win(ers)". And to inform the public of my own preferences I shall also include a notation for who/what "Should've Won".

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Don Cheadle - HOTEL RWANDA *****SHOULD WIN
Johnny Depp - FINDING NEVERLAND
Leonardo DiCaprio - THE AVIATOR
Clint Eastwood - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Jamie Foxx - RAY - *****WILL WIN

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Alan Alda - THE AVIATOR
Thomas Haden Church - SIDEWAYS
Jamie Foxx - COLLATERAL
Morgan Freeman - MILLION DOLLAR BABY *****WILL WIN , ***** SHOULD WIN
Clive Owen - CLOSER

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Annette Bening - BEING JULIA
Catalina Sandino Moreno - MARIA FULL OF GRACE
Imelda Staunton - VERA DRAKE
Hilary Swank - MILLION DOLLAR BABY ***** WILL WIN, ***** SHOULD WIN
Kate Winslet - ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Cate Blanchett - THE AVIATOR ***** WILL WIN
Laura Linney - KINSEY
Virginia Madsen - SIDEWAYS ***** SHOULD WIN
Sophie Okonedo - HOTEL RWANDA
Natalie Portman - CLOSER

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

THE INCREDIBLES * ONLY SAW THE INCREIBLES, cool film
SHARK TALE
SHREK 2

ART DIRECTION

THE AVIATOR *****WILL WIN, *****SHOULD WIN
FINDING NEVERLAND
LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT

CINEMATOGRAPHY

THE AVIATOR ***** WILL WIN
HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT ***** SHOULD WIN


DIRECTING

THE AVIATOR ***** WILL WIN, ***** SHOULD WIN ("It's Marty's year", as they say)
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY
SIDEWAYS
VERA DRAKE

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

BORN INTO BROTHELS *****SHOULD WIN
THE STORY OF THE WEEPING CAMEL
SUPER SIZE ME ***** WILL WIN
TUPAC: RESURRECTION
TWIST OF FAITH


FILM EDITING

THE AVIATOR ***** WILL WIN
COLLATERAL *****SHOULD WIN
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

AS IT IS IN HEAVEN *****SADLY, really shamefully, I have seen none of these
THE CHORUS
DOWNFALL
THE SEA INSIDE
YESTERDAY


BEST PICTURE

THE AVIATOR *****WILL WIN, *****SHOULD WIN
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY
SIDEWAYS


WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)

BEFORE SUNSET ***** SHOULD WIN
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES
SIDEWAYS ***** WILL WIN

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)

THE AVIATOR ***** WILL WIN
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND ***** SHOULD WIN
HOTEL RWANDA
THE INCREDIBLES
VERA DRAKE

Red Iguana: Holy Mole

In 1847, Brigham Young led a team of pioneers from Illinois on a westward path to what later became the territory of Utah. Upon seeing the Great Salt Lake, Young, known to his faithful to be inspired by the prophecies of Mormon godfather Joseph Smith, declared "[i]t is enough, this is the right place, drive on."

Last week Counterpoise contributor Alternacat and I made our own pilgrimage to Salt Lake City, but while Brigham sought the freedom for his peeps to worship Latter-Day Saints and bed a harem of Mor-women, we pursued a different goal: deep, white, untracked Wasatch powder to rip into like Tony Montana's last stand.

While we did find our cocaine snow stashed at Brighton, The Canyons, and Snowbird, we also discovered some delectable Mexican food at Red Iguana, a place that boasts serving "killer" cocina, and it delivers as well. Red Iguana's specialty is mole, a pungent blend of spices used to create a rich, often nut-based sauce for meats. During an impressionable mental state a few years ago, I had seen a fascinating documentary on the making of mole in the traditional style, a rustic ritual that transcended many outdoor hours of cooking dried guajillo chiles, cocoa, and cinnamon, and because my romantic conception of the dish had been since disappointed by the bitter chocolate flavors that predominated the shortcut mole I had tried, I was initially skeptical of the Iguana's hubris.

Red Iguana is owned by the Cardenas family, which first opened a Mexican restaurant in Salt Lake in 1965, relying heavily on recipes Mrs. Cardenas had developed as a caterer in Chihuahua. Today, the Iguana offers seven different moles, including a Oaxacan mole verde, incorporating pumpkin seeds and green vegetables with turkey, and a mole poblano, with chocolate, peanuts, walnuts and almonds. Our crew tried the mole amarillo, a fiery concoction of almond with chiles guajillo and habernero (reputed to be world's hottest pepper). One friend related a story of being paid $10 to eat whole one of these incendiary fruits, only to suffer 4 hours of agony. The yellow mixture we sampled did provide the heat, but the milder nut and spice flavors created a pleasant balance. We also had the mole colaradito, a rather oily amalgamation of pine nuts and pasilla chiles served over grilled pork loins. It was somewhat greasy, but imparted a smoky aroma that was superb when wrapped inside the house-made tortillas served along with it. The highlight of the mole menu was the lomo de puerco en mole de almendras. This consisted of pork chops stuffed with dried fruits and bathed in a creamy mole of almonds, guajillos and poblanos. Dope.

Although the moles are featured here, the Iguana also makes excellent work of salsa ranchera, beans, and the other requisite Mexican accoutrements. A good selection of cerveza mexicana is served, without reduced alcohol levels as indicated on the bottle by a government sticker that prohibits selling them outside the premises. Apparently the Utah legislature has created an agency that regulates the amount of alcohol allowed in various locales, as it has commanded that no buildings within the city limits rise higher than the spires of the Morman Temple. Full-strength margaritas and mojitos slip through the red tape as well.

If there comes a day in which you find yourself entranced by a vision of the Prophet calling you to the Land of Mormon, make sure to come through Red Iguana on the way to enlightenment.
706 W North Temple, Salt Lake City, UT 84116; (801) 322-1478

Suckas of the Week

The White House yesterday released figures estimating the cost of the Medicare drug benefit package passed in late 2003 at $720 billion for the 10 year period 2006-1015. At the time it was passed, the Congression Budget Office estimated 10 years of benefits would not exceed $400 billion. While Dr. Mark B. McClellan, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, insists that the original cheaper estimate did not include the years 2014 and 2015, others eschew this attempt at re-framing the expense period. "Since it was sold as a $400 billion program, that's what we should keep it at," said the new chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Judd Gregg, Republican of New Hampshire. Suckas? Those 220 members of the House that passed the bill (as opposed to those 215 that voted against it). The legislation, which actually prevents the government from bargaining with drug companies for better drug prices, is a model of using the false pretense of lasseiz-faire and conservative free-market ideology to subsidize private industry with taxpayer money. As the Wall Street Journal, hardly a bastion of editorial support for "big government", reported in November 2003: "[c]orporate lobbying groups are emerging as winners, having pushed hard for a bill in order to shift some of their costs to the government...companies can opt in, taking the proposed tax-free federal subsidy and shifting some costs to the government, or opt out and possibly cut or eliminate their own coverage altogether, a trend that is already under way."

For the weeks of Jan. 31 and Feb. 7

Rula of the Week

Turning our attention to our peers, Counterpoise was impressed by the work of the contributors to Boing Boing, nominated for a 2005 "Bloggie" award for weblog of the year. The incredidbly eclectic blog contains an impossible number of esoterica each day, ranging from the arcane, such as clips of assorted home movies taken in Disneyland during the 1960's and depicting now-defunct attractions, to the currently relevant, like an insider's lead on the Canadian legislature's efforts to legalize same-sex marriage. According to the blog, it has existed for five years, and it appears to be quite established; many items are indentified as being referred by its readers. Boing Boing can be seen here.