and the nominees weren't...

Oh Oscar, how you vex me so.

The nominations for the 80th Academy Awards are out and once again I am befuddled and excited. My fingers are still crossed in hopes of the ceremony not being canceled due to the writers' strike because the major categories are actually recognizing some of the best and anti-studio films of the year, however the Academy did make some mistakes. Jason Reitman, really? Johny Greenwood getting the shaft because of a technicality for his mind-bending score for "There Will Be Blood"? Only two non-white acting nominees? "Transformers" and "Norbit" racking up a few nominations in the technical categories? Did they forget about Sidney Lumet? Instead of commenting in a lengthy rant on the actual nominees (although snaps to "There Will Be Blood" for its eight nominations), here is my list of nominees that were overlooked and should have been:

BEST PICTURE
"Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"
A grand familial tragedy in the vein of Shakespere or even Greek drama, Sidney Lumet's "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" showcases a master filmmaker at his best in ages. A bank robbery gone wrong is the simple text but beneath lies a greater quest to explore the ugliness and rage within us all. How far would you go to achieve the fantasy you've always wanted to be your life? Lumet shows us and what we see is something destructive and unforgettable.

BEST DIRECTOR
Andrew Dominik, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
Although it's his second feature, Andrew Dominik's "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" confidently mixes nostalgia with the contemporary. A sly rumination on celebrity, iconography, and the Old West coalesce into a visceral world Dominik orchestrates with superb execution.

BEST ACTOR
Gordon Pinsent, "Away from Her"
It's almost a given at award shows when an actor plays a character with a debilitating disease. Julie Christie can add another Oscar to her mantle for her work in Sarah Polley's "Away From Her", but I found Gordon Pinsent's performance much more complex and interesting. As the husband dealing with his own regrets and sins as his wife slips away into Alzheimer's, he must cope with the idea that as time goes by the memory of their relationship fades away. It's a performance full of private pain, anguish, and heartbreak.

BEST ACTRESS
Marina Hands, "Lady Chatterly"
Very rarely is an actor capable of demonstrating an arc in a character without it feeling episodic or cheap. Marina Hands' Lady Chatterly's frolic in the forest with the gamekeeper (an equally impressive Jean-Louis Coullo'ch) is tense to watch but one of the most sensual and natural performances I've seen in a while. As Lady Chatterly discovers herself and her sexuality, we discover a capable and enigmatic actress at her finest.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Robert Downey Jr., "Zodiac"
Crushed by obsession and spit out by consumption, Robert Downey Jr.'s sad and entertaining portrayal of journalist Paul Avery is perfectly eccentric but tuned in to our culture's fetish with maniacal media darlings.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Catherine Keener, "Into the Wild"
As an aging maternal hippie Catherine Keener exudes warmth and a gravitas she has yet to display in her usual menagerie of icy and ennui-laden characters.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Julie Delpy, "2 Days in Paris"
Funny, biting, and at times painful, Julie Delpy has confidently and pointedly marked her debut as a writer and director to watch with her first feature. A battle of the sexes abroad has never been as fresh, witty, and insightful.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Tony Gilroy, Scott Z. Burns, and George Nolfi, "The Bourne Ultimatum"
An action thriller that is brooding, subtle, and full of snappy dialogue? It is possible for this writing team who made "The Bourne Ultimatum" the best blockbuster of the summer devoid of irony or idiocy.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Harris Savides, "Zodiac"
Drained of its vibrance but fully of murky colors like dishwater gray, mustard, and oxblood, David Fincher's "Zodiac" was one of the most unique looking films of 2007. We've known Fincher to be a rigorous stylist but he goes one step further with the expert camera work of Harris Savides and gives us original and memorable shots such as the breathtaking aerial shot of a taxi cab winding through the streets of San Francisco with a very dangerous passenger in tow. Undoubtedly the most cinematic looking HD film ever shot.

Click here for the full list of actual nominees.