Did you watch the Oscars?  I turned it off during the opening bit after I realized I had seen too few of the movies to understand host Billy Crystal's jokes, nor did I really care who won.  From everything I've read, it seems everyone "knows" who the big winners are going to be.

The three of the nine Best Picture nominated films I did see are "The Descendants," "Midnight in Paris," and "The Help." I liked all three for different reasons: "Midnight in Paris" the most clever and funny; "The Help" the most poignant and emotional; "The Descendants" well-written and acted.  The fact that it was set in Hawai'i is a plus.

Besides those I've seen a few other movies that were quite good, thanks to the library: "50/50" starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a young man battling cancer was funny, dramatic, and compelling.  "Drive," starring Ryan Gosling as a Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights as a driver for petty criminals, was quite excellent.  It was suspenseful, well-acted, and surprising.  "Julia's Eyes" was a Spanish horror film directed by Guillermo del Toro, the man behind "Pan's Labyrinth." It was truly scary, gripping me from frame one.

This morning I spoke about the Oscar awards with my grandma.  She said she doesn't go to see movies anymore because she can't hear what they're saying.  I suggested "The Artist," because it's silent (she laughed).  Anyway, I keep checking back on the Oscars to see if anything surprising happens.  But if everything goes as expected, "The Artist" will win Best Picture.