Blockbusters rich in special effects have a place in Hollywood, but how refreshing to find most of 2004's Oscar-nominated movies so human-scaled and the performances so commendably subtle. Which only makes choosing what and who deserves to win gold statues at the 77th Academy Awards (Feb. 27 on ABC, 8 p.m. ET) that much harder. But no one ever said being a movie critic was easy, so here are my picks.
Best Picture
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY [STAR]
RAY
SIDEWAYS
Watching Million Dollar Baby, you know it's special. The next day, the full weight of the movie's meaning and complexity hit you like a Mack truck. A powerful meditation on the meaning of faith, love and charity, the drama tells the story of the growing friendship between a veteran boxing coach (Clint Eastwood) and a would-be pugilist (Hilary Swank). To call it a boxing film is to label a Rolls-Royce merely a car.
The other nominees each have their merits: The Aviator is lushly entertaining. Finding Neverland movingly reveals the roots of artistic inspiration. Ray gets your toes tapping and your tear ducts working. And Sideways, my runner-up choice, is warm and winning. Not one, though, stays with you the way Baby does. Like all great art, it lingers in your thoughts—and your heart.
Best Actor
Don Cheadle, Hotel Rwanda
Johnny Depp, Finding Neverland
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Aviator
Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby
Jamie Foxx, Ray
Foxx sure didn't hide behind Ray Charles's trademark shades. In a searing performance as the legendary music man, he went far beyond simply zeroing in on Charles's distinctive voice and physical mannerisms. Foxx dug into the man's pain and flaws, showing how each contributed to the triumph of his music. Runner-up: Cheadle could have showboated while saving lives in Rwanda but instead gave a carefully calibrated turn as a man of conscience doing what he must.
Best Actress
Annette Bening, Being Julia
Catalina Sandino Moreno, Maria Full of Grace
Imelda Staunton, Vera Drake
Hilary Swank, Million Dollar Baby
Give Swank the right role and she packs a wallop. Mirroring her breakout part as a yearning outsider in 1999's Boys Don't Cry, Swank was radiant in Baby as a dirt-poor waitress determined to girl-fight her way to self-respect. With acting as sinewy as her physique, Swank didn't waste a line or a look, making her performance all the more striking for its lack of vanity or excess. Runner-up: Staunton, who brought a touchingly tragic dimension to a housecleaner's downfall.
Best Supporting Actor
Alan Alda, The Aviator
Thomas Haden Church, Sideways
Jamie Foxx, Colleteral
Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar Baby
Clive Owen, Closer
Supporting nods often go to the very young or the elderly. At 67, Freeman qualifies as a veteran if not a codger and respect is due. He has already gone home Oscar-less three times (with nominations for Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy and The Shawshank Redemption) and it would be a crying shame if he didn't win this year for his spare, pitch-perfect performance as a retired boxer in Baby. Runner-up: Church, for nailing both the comedy and pathos in his role as a once-golden boy growing old.
Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchett, The Aviator
Laura Linney, Kinsey
Virginia Madsen, Sideways
Sophie Okonedo, Hotel Rwanda
Natalie Portman, Closer
Every time Blanchett, leading with her jaw, briskly strode onto the screen as Katharine Hepburn in Aviator, she lifted the movie. Sure, she had Hepburn's starchy New England accent and angularity down pat, but her performance was more than an impression: It was a considered, witty interpretation of the fabled star. Runner-up: Madsen, who, with little more than a warm, knowing smile, turned her Sideways character into a woman obviously wise in experience.
Hitch
An uneven romantic comedy that's no match for its talented cast. Will Smith, Eva Mendes and Kevin James star. (PG-13)
Pooh's Heffalump Movie
A heaping helping of Roo and his Hundred Acre Wood buddies in a tame tale perfect for tykes. (G)
Imaginary Heroes
Sigourney Weaver's glorious turn as an unhappy but groovy mom is almost reason enough to see this bloated coming-of-age story. (R)
