Let Oscar Season Begin

It is now 30 minutes before the announcement of this year's Oscar nominations.

Time to get back to living.... back to blogging...back to moviegoing.....  and back to adding my small bit to this art form (and hobby) we call film criticism....

First, though,I want to thank all of you for your understanding, and for your kind words and support, during my sabbatical and period of reflection as I worked through of a mountain of difficult tasks during the last month.  It is not over...but the light is starting to emerge....

Just a brief note before Oscar season kicks off in earnest:

Despite my disappointment with the state of filmmaking over the long Spring and Summer, the movie year has shaped up to be overall one of the most interesting in years.  All of the high-profile Oscar hopefuls, based on the precedents of Critic's Awards, Golden Globes, and word-of-mouth, are movies that I have enjoyed and appreciated on many levels.

This year's potential Oscar nominees are also a decidedly lighthearted bunch, filled with nostalgia for the great literature and art and filmmaking of days gone by; and proving, by their audacious appearance on big screens in 2012, that we can still be entertained, stimulated, and aesthetically pleased by classic movie subjects and techniques that are in danger of being obliterated by studios in their search for big audiences.

Look for more---much more--about this idea in subsequent posts.....

Meanwhile, I will be cheering for the following favorites, should they be announced in the next 20 minutes:
"The Artist"..  Meryl Streeep..."Midnight in Paris"... Michael Fassbender... Viola Davis...  "Hugo"....  Ludovic Bource..... "The Descendants".......Michelle Williams.... Martin Scorsese...  Joseph Gordon-Levitt... Christopher Plummer...  "Moneyball".... Jessica Chastain.... Emmanuel Luzbecki... Octavia Spencer.... Jean Dujardin.... Michael Hazavanicius... "The Help"....George Clooney....Corey Stoll...  WOODY... TERRENCE...."TREE OF LIFE!"  (and a little groan if I hear the words Edgar, Bridesmaids, or Tattoo)...

And a special shout-out to the Best Supporting Actors of the Year who will not be nominated...Uggie and Cosmo.

Here's to a fun, artistic, and enlightening Oscar contest....