Jim Broadbent who starred in both Moulin Rouge and Iris (for which he is nominated) has already lined up some awards in the pre-Oscar award shows, with three in total (The Golden Globes, Los Angeles Film Critics Association and National Board of Review of Motion Pictures). His performance in Iris must be superb to seemingly outshine that of legendary actress, Judi Dench, and it seems that he might just walk away with the Supporting Actor Oscar in doing so. I myself haven't even seen the movie, but from the way that other critics have talked about the performance, it sounds pretty good. It also helps that he wasn't up for Best Actor instead.

Ben Kingsley is probably most remembered for playing the role of Gandhi in 1983 for which he won Best Actor. So wouldn't it be ironic if he won his second Oscar for playing a violent gangster? Kingsley has already won two awards this year for his role in Sexy Beast (Boston Society of Film Critics and Broadcast Film Critics Association) and both Ebert and Roeper really liked his performance as well. So, could Kingsley finally win his second Oscar almost twenty years after receiving his first? Well, his chances are pretty good I would say.

Ehtan Hawke has chosen many independent type movies throughout his career. That's where actors usually turn to so they can get noticed by the Academy. So it turns out to be kind of ironic that he gets nominated in a mainstream movie such as Training Day. It is also strange that he received the nomination after other actors like Steve Buscemi have received awards for roles already this year, and he hasn't. In fact, this is only his second nomination for the role.  Most academy members will most likely look at how young he is and decide that he will be better fit to win the award sometime in the future.

Ian McKellen is my choice all the way. Just like Hawke, this is only his second nomination for the year but in what most observers must find astonishing, he walked away with the Screen Actors Guild Award. So, naturally, his stock must have risen due to this unexpected award. I have long talked about how great he was in LOTR and that I want him to be nominated for an Oscar, but as all the awards took place early in the year, he was nowhere to be found. Then all of the sudden he gets nominated in two of the biggest award shows, and he wins one. And if LOTR walks away with many awards on Oscar night, McKellen could be one of them. I certainly hope so, since he brought a presence to the screen that somehow stood above the other performances, the effects and the story. And another thing that counts for him is that he is a veteran that has been nominated before.

Jon Voight is an outstanding actor, there's no doubt about that. Some of the transformations he's made in recent movies are mesmerizing. I still don't believe that it is him in Ali, but unfortunately the movie did way below expectations and that is what will count against him come Oscar night. But I believe that he will some day win again (he won once for Lead Actor for Coming Home in 1979). This is just not his year.

Deserved to Be Nominated But Was Left Out:
-Steve Buscemi (Ghost World)
-Edward Norton (The Score)
-Tim Roth (Planet of the Apes)

Who I Want to Win:
-Ian McKellen

And the Award Goes to:
-Ben Kingsley (I think?)