Ashleyverse Oscar Special

Tonight is Oscar night. Accordingly, I will discuss the nominees as well as offer my opinions as to who I think will win in the major award categories (best picture, best actor, best actress, best supporting actor, and best supporting actress). In addition, I will list and provide commentary about what I believe are the greatest best-picture Academy Award winners of my lifetime (1980-Present). Tomorrow, I will review one of my fave winners, The Deer Hunter (1978).
Okay, the Best Picture nominees are as follows:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
My pick: Dang, this is a tough one! While I think all the nominees are great this year, I think the buzz surrounding Slumdog Millionaire will cause that film to trump the competition. Personally, I hope Frost/Nixon takes the trophy.
Secondly, the Best Actor contenders are:
Richard Jenkins (The Visitor)
Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon)
Sean Penn (Milk)
Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)
My pick: Again, this is going to be tough. Honestly, though, I think it's a dead heat between Penn and comeback kid Rourke.
Best Actress:
Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married)
Angelina Jolie (Changeling)
Melissa Leo (Frozen River)
Meryl Streep (Doubt)
Kate Winslet (The Reader)
My pick: Pure torture! I say this is a three-way toss-up. Jolie has the buzz right now. Streep is the perennial fave. Winslet, however, deserves to win.
Best Supporting Actor:
Josh Brolin (Milk)
Robert Downey Jr. (Tropic Thunder)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt)
Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)
Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road)
My pick: Why do y'all do this to me, Academy? All these actors are phenomenal, but I predict that the award will posthumously go to Ledger.
Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams (Doubt)
Penelope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Viola Davis (Doubt)
Taraji P. Henson (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)
Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler)
My pick: This one's actually easy. Henson will win for Benjamin Button.
Alright, now comes the fun part. Here is a list of some of my fave Best Picture award recipients, followed by some commentary:
1) Gandhi (1982)-- Columbia: Ben Kingsley did an amazing job playing one of my heroes.
2) Amadeus (1984)-- Orion: Tom Hulce's unforgettable portrayal of the mad musical genius proves that Mozart is still cool after all these years.
3) Dances with Wolves (1990)-- Orion: Kevin Costner was smokin' hot back in the day.
4) Schindler's List (1993)-- Universal: The most beautifully harrowing piece of cinema ever.
5) Forrest Gump (1994)-- Paramount: I can't say enough good things about this movie.