The 81st Annual Academy Awards will air on Sunday night in a particularly strong year for film, especially the Best Actor category.  Of course, everyone has an actor, actress, or movie in mind that they think should win an award, and we at Unreality aren’t any different.  Sub-Zero and I have discussed the nominees in the major categories and who we think should win for each.  He’ll be posting his picks a bit later, but after the jump, take a look at who I think should win for each of the major Oscar categories.  Remember, these aren’t predictions, just simply who I think deserves to win:

Best Supporting Actor - Heath Ledger

Ledger is just about a lock to win this award, and deservedly so.  Every moment he’s on the screen in The Dark Knight, you can’t take your eyes off of him.  Ledger created an incredibly psychotic and memorable character that had not even of semblance inside of him.

I don’t think any of the other nominees were even close to Ledger.

Best Supporting Actress - Taraji P. Henson

I thought Brad Pitt was kind of static in Benjamin Button, and it was the women that really carried the movie, including Henson.  The only other role I have seen Henson in is as Yvette in Baby Boy, and her role in Ben Button couldn’t be more opposite.  She played it perfectly and should be recognized for doing so.

All that said, I don’t know that she has a very good shot at winning.  We’ll see; Winslet is just a juggernaut.

Best Actor - Frank Langella

I want Mickey Rourke to win, and I think it’s between him and Sean Penn, but Frank Langella gave the best performance of the year in Frost/Nixon.  His Nixon is perfect, right down to the hunched shoulders, and Langella succeeded in giving audiences a Nixon that was driven, confident, and vulnerable.

As great as Mickey Rourke was - he was phenomenal - I feel as though his role wasn’t TOO much of a stretch for him, as the character he played suffered similar career ups and downs.  Langella had to become someone much different than himself, and for that he should get the nod over Rourke.

Best Actress - Anne Hathaway

I’m pretty sure Winslet is going to win here, but I thought the normally smiley, good girl Hathaway was brilliant as the screwed up, ex-junkie with a mean streak in Rachel Getting Married.  The performance definitely reminded me of some girls I have known, adding a sense of realism to the role.  I don’t think this will be the last time we see Anne Hathaway nominated in this category.

Best Director - David Fincher

Even though Benjamin Button is very loosely based on the short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald, it takes a hell of a director to put that together into something watchable - let alone moving - on the big screen.  I will admit I am very biased, as Fincher is one of my favorite directors, and I still think he got snubbed by not being nominated for his work on Zodiac.

Danny Boyle did an awesome job on Slumdog Millionaire, particularly in the film’s structure, but some of the cinematography felt a bit out of place.  Fincher’s work, on the other hand, was almost like a painting; you could just marvel at the asthetics for hours on end.

Best Movie - Slumdog Millionaire

When I had first heard about Slumdog Millionaire, I thought for sure it would be the lame, cliched type of movie that I would hate.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  The presentation of the story, the story itself, the characters, and the settings contribute to making Slumdog Millionaire the best movie of the past year.

As I wrote in a past review, the love in Benjamin Button is too convenient and feels a bit empty, and the other nominees in this category are just a level below Slumdog Millionaire.  As much as I liked Frost/Nixon, Langella carries the movie and without him, it’s not nearly as good.  I think Slumdog Millionaire is an easy choice here, and I’d be shocked if it didn’t receive the Oscar.

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