The Reel's 2012 Oscar Predictions

Here are my picks for the "Big 10" categories at 85th Annual Academy Awards, airing THIS SUNDAY, February 24th on ABC.

BEST PICTURE– ARGO 

It’s been sweeping every “Best Picture” accolade for the last month. No other film this year delivers Argo's level of nerve-shredding suspense punctuated by top-notch acting performances. Simply the year’s finest drama.

BEST ACTOR – DANIEL DAY-LEWIS, Lincoln 

Day-Lewis embodies his role on a level far above any other actor this year. After he wins, I’m calling the U.S. Mint. I want a Day-Lewis $5 bill.

BEST ACTRESS –JESSICA CHASTAIN, Zero Dark Thirty 

She gave me the feeling that there was a storm of emotions brewing underneath that steely exterior, and I never felt like I knew what she would be doing next. That kind of unpredictability is refreshing for such a familiar, fact-based drama.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN, The Master 

I wish Samuel L. Jackson had been nominated for his scene-stealing turn in Django, but Hoffman’s been garnering lots of accolades for his captivating performance in The Master, including the Critics’ Choice Award and a Golden Globe nomination.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – ANNE HATHAWAY, Les Misérables 

One of the finest, stirringly emotional performances I've ever seen. Her rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” moved me to tears.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE –WRECK-IT RALPH 

Loads of fun with colorful animation and classic video-game characters. A nostalgia trip with something for the kid in all of us.

BEST DIRECTOR – ANG LEE, Life of Pi

Lee was confronted with the most daunting task any director faced this year: giving cinematic life to Yann Martel's "unfilmable" novel. For his efforts in pioneering state-of-the-art 3D technology, selecting stunning cinematography, and garnering A-list performances from a cast of relative unknowns, Ang Lee should take the top prize for pulling off what many said was impossible. 

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM – AMOUR 

It’s also nominated for Best Picture. ‘Nuff said.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY – TONY KUSHNER, Lincoln 

Kushner is the man responsible for crafting the foundation for Daniel Day-Lewis’s bone-deep performance. Lincoln wouldn't be the consistently engaging period piece that it is without Kushner’s fine interpretation of Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY – QUENTIN TARANTINO, Django Unchained 

With the Critics’ Choice, BAFTA, and Golden Globe under his belt, Tarantino should have no trouble snatching the Oscar for his sharp, wildly imaginative screenplay.