As promised, I’m back to disclose the results, for better or worse, of my Oscar predictions.

In the end, I got 15 out of 24 right, or about 62%. Not the most amazing percentage ever, but not too shiteous, either.

I lost it in the ever-exciting documentary categories, as well as with the short films. I think it’s fair to consider losses in the ’short’ categories as less significant. This will be my official stance on the subject.

I did triumph in Best Picture & Director, as well as all the acting categories, though. Not horrible!

Check out my final ballot below, marked with my predictions, as well as the eventual winners.

Hello again, friends!

As promised, here’s a look at The Lamp Post Blog’s Oscar Ballot. I’ll tally up my results and report on the damage after the show.

In a nutshell, I’m going for Hurt Locker, Bridges, Bullock, Waltz, Monique, Bigelow, Up in the Air (adapted screenplay) and Inglourious Basterds (original screenplay).

Let the fun begin!

Ok friends, we’re back! Time for my five favorite films of 2009! Ahem…

5. Food, Inc.

As scary as Paranormal Activity is, this movie was, for me, the hardest to stomach. There’s nothing funny at all to say here, but of all the films on this list, this one is the most important to see. I thought I had some idea of how bad certain segments of the food industry were, but this film completely opened my eyes and has made me think twice about a lot of the foods I eat on a regular basis. It aint pretty, but it’s important. Rent it!

4. District 9

This is where things get tough. I have very strong feelings for and about all four of these last films, and assigning a ranking to each of them was tough. But I did it, anyway.

Everything about District 9 is awesome. The aliens are the coolest looking of most any alien flick to date, the social commentary is apparent and expertly examined and the lead actor gives one of the most underrated performances of the year. The dude is in almost every scene of the movie, and he goes through the most ridiculous transformation (literally and figuratively) of any character in any movie this year. There are some parts of this movie that will make you feel like lunch is coming up fo sho, but the payout is worth it. Prawns are where it’s at, yo.

3. Avatar

So number three is where Avatar lands on my personal list. Avatar was actually #1 on my list for a while, because I didn’t see the movies that eventually overtook Avatar until they were out on DVD. More on those later…

This movie delivered on everything it promised. That, in a nutshell, is why it worked so well. It did go on to become the highest-grossing film ever, after all. You have to respect an achievement like that.

And James Cameron truly took film-making to a new level here, just like he did with Titanic. On more than one occasion, I found myself staring at parts of the screen where no real action was even taking place. Characters would be talking on the screen, and I would be staring at blades of grass, swaying in the breeze. It’s truly bonkers in the most amazing way. Is the story basically a re-telling of Fern Gully meets Last of the Mohicans meets Pocahontas? Yes, it is. That’s why it’s #3. But it’s still really good.

2. Inglourious Basterds

This was so close to being my #1 movie of the year. So very, very close. But it’s not.

I love me some Quentin Tarantino, and I love me some Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction, but I think this is his best film yet. The concept alone, to rewrite history and the telling of the WWII story, is the boldest and most badass of this year and most any year. And the telling of the story, in multiple languages through the eyes of so many different people, was truly brilliant.

Christoph Waltz gave what I think is the performance of the year in this movie. A classic performance that will be remembered for years to come. Be warned, though. This film possesses that same bit of classic Tarantino gore, including a scalping bonanza that had me squirming like woah.

1. The Hurt Locker

Finally, we’ve made it to #1! The Hurt Locker is my favorite movie of 2009!

Why? Because it is the thinking man’s war movie. And maybe that is because it was directed by a woman? I don’t know if there has ever been a war film that gets inside the mind of a soldier quite like this one. Not that I’m claiming to know what goes on inside their minds. I’m not – and I don’t care to ever find out. This was close enough.

My palms were sweaty from about minute two, and they stayed that way for the remainder of the film. Two hours of watching dudes de-activate, and sometimes get blown up by, IEDs truly redefines edge-of-your seat. I expect this film (and it’s director) to walk away with Mr. Oscar before the night is through…

There you have it! My favorite 11 flicks of 2009. Obviously my list doesn’t exactly coincide with the Academy’s, but there is plenty of crossover. Check back just before the show (8PM EST on ABC!) for a peak at my official (not really) Oscar ballot!

It’s like Christmas here at The Lamp Post Blog. I will be ODing on all things Oscar®, today, including a finale event with lots of wine and lots of raucous cheering and jeering.

I’ll be back before tonight’s show with my official Oscar predictions, but first I’m sharing my personal list of the Top 11 movies of 2009. I hope you enjoyed Eric’s list – and corresponding visual aids. There will be no such visuals from me.

While I could have dazzled you with my stick figure stylings, I thought it best to stick to what I know, which are words…particularly of the snarky variety.

11. Star Trek

I’ve never been much of a Trekkie, myself. As a kid, my greatest exposure to the series was the string of Trek-related light-up Christmas ornaments that my mother hung on our tree. My mom is incredibly hip.

Still, I loved this updated installment of the Trek franchise. What really made it work, for me, was the very well-selected cast. Everyone sort of resembled their predecessor, while bringing something new to the table, as well. Always nice to see Winona Ryder getting work, too. Just don’t let her walk off with the costumes.

10. Paranormal Activity

The $19 movie that could – and did. Ok, so it was more than $19…it wasn’t much  more!

This movie scared the bejesus as out of me in the theater, as Eric alluded to yesterday. There are two times in my life when I uncontrollably channel the large black lady that lies dormant within me. Those times are a) on the dance floor after a few too many and b) in the movie theater while watching a horror film. I do a bit of talking directly at the characters on screen, but it’s mostly just a lot of random outbursts consisting of two or three words at a time, like “What the what,” “Aw, shit” and the most frequent, “oh heeeeell NO!”

When I saw this movie, the aforementioned phrases were a plenty. Luckily there was a sista next to me, so she and I got along just fine. This movie makes it my list more on its pop culture significance than on the merits of the movie itself. It’s a cool movie, and scary as shit, in my opinion, but it became a huge viral sensation, and was one of the first movies to capitalize on social media with the “demand it” stuff. Oh and if you get it on DVD, check out the alternate ending. Yiiiiikes!

10. Julie & Julia

That’s right. It’s on the list. I saw this movie with my mother this past summer, while I was recuperating in West Virginia after an obnoxious case of mono. It was a Wednesday matinee, and the average age in the theater was absolutely no younger than 65. It was amazing.

Even after all the big movies came out by year’s end, I still remembered this little movie. This character piece about women & food, based on the book that’s based on the blog that’s based on this (rather annoying) girl’s real life quest to cook her way through Julia Child’s cookbook. Meryl Streep is this movie, and the film’s biggest triumph is that you just have to see Streep play the role. It’s ridiculous how good she is. And the food in the film looks amazing. The only real downside is the Julie Powell character. Hella annoying!

8. Up

I dare you to watch the first 20 minutes of this movie and not either cry your eyes out or at least feel like you could cry your eyes out. Disney always has a way to rip your heart out in the beginning. Nemo’s mother, Bambi’s mother. Don’t think we ever even saw Belle’s mother…or Ariel’s…or Jasmine’s. What is it with Disney and mothers? At least Simba had his smooth-voiced mama lioness.

Anyhow, this movie is absolutely beautiful. Visually, it’s ridiculous and just nonstop color. But the story is just as beautiful, with classic and loveable characters spelling out super obvious, yet carefully directed messages about family and loyalty and so much more. After Wall-E (aka my favorite movie of the 2000s) and this, I’m convinced Pixar simply cannot fail.

7. 500 Days of Summer

I really, really liked this movie. I think part of the reason I liked it so much is because I thought it was going to get on my nerves based on previews I had seen. But it didn’t. I thought it was a brutally honest story about love and the different ways people view the concept of love. The way the story is told, with jumps forward and backward, was a cool effect that made the film move faster, too. And the line about ‘anal girl’ was one of my very favorites of the entire year.

6. Up in the Air

This movie worked for me because of the way I felt after it was over. The whole time I was sort of thinking “Yeah, this is a good enough movie.” But when it was over I really started thinking about it, and it dawned on me what a sad story it really is.

Of any film on this list, the story that Up in the Air tells is the timeliest. On the most superficial level, it’s about a guy whose job it is to fire other people’s employees. Being in a recession, that alone makes it current. But it’s the personal journey this guy (Clooney) goes on that is the real story of our time. It’s a story about how people relate to and connect with one another, but it’s also about discovering what’s really important in life.

No CGI effects or pulse-pounding action here, just a brilliantly told story.

I’ll be back before the first Oscar is handed out to reveal my Top 5, as well as my predictions in each award category. Ya know, because I know what it takes to win Achievement in Sound Mixing. I don’t, really.

Howdy blogosphere! Artist-in-residence Eric Losh here, switching hats today to writer  for The Lamp Post. Ol’ Lampy has the day off to prepare his ballot for The Academy, but he’ll be back tomorrow with his Oscar predictions before the show. So for today, here are my Top 11 Movies of 2009. I didn’t get a chance to see all of the movies nominated this year, but these are my favs of the films I caught. And of course, I couldn’t resist making a pretty picture for the occasion.

11. FUNNY PEOPLE

My wildcard #11 spot was a toss up between this one and the just so-so latest Harry Potter installment. But Funny People won this duel out of the sheer fact that it wasn’t a book I’ve read or a movie that I’ve seen five previous times. Funny People’s people were funny indeed (Adam Sandler, Jason Schwartzman, Aziz Ansari), however, I thought that the final Potter might hit theaters before Funny People ended. Loooooong story, but this movie contained enough laughs to secure a spot in the Apatow favorites collection.

10. STAR TREK

Like most people, I didn’t think I was nerdy enough to enjoy this film (I’m cool—I like Star Wars), but you had me at J.J. Abrams. I saw it with a Trekkie my dad, so he was able to translate: Dilithuim crystals, anyone? Full of exploding stars, Trek was very exciting. And flarey.

9. DISTRICT 9

Nine, nine, nine. Many fine 9’s in 2009, but I didn’t see Nine or 9 yet. However, this one about the district in South Africa was just too cool (and bloody)! I could ramble on about the smart historical similarities to Apartheid or WWII ghettos, but I’ll simplify– I just love alien movies.

8. (500) DAYS OF SUMMER

This “not a love story” was surprisingly fresh and funny—with plenty of relationshipy awkwardness! The orphan from Angels in the Outfield played miserably-in-love splendidly, and Zooey Deschanel did an adorable as always job playing Zooey Deschanel. Points for the Hall & Oates muscial number.

7. UP

It turns out this was just a media hoax. Er, wait… this wasn’t the story about Falcon, but it did have a giant bird. Disney/Pixar have done it again with Up, the story about an old man and helium addiction. And by done it, I mean make grown men cry with a children’s animated movie. Thumbs Up.

6. FANTASTIC MR. FOX

Wes Anderson takes on stop motion in this chicken-chasing, banjo-picking, tunnel-digging tail tale about a fox family and their furry friends. Of course, it still retained Wes’ winning elements: compulsive detail to dialogue, sets, suits, fathers, fonts, and the Rolling Stones. Unfortunately, a slow motion walking scene would have taken about three more years to animate.

5. THE HANGOVER

This mom-approved, dude comedy of the year secured wins, jager shots, and a cheer for Bradley Cooper (his jeer this year), Justin Bartha, nerdy hillbilly Ed Helms & comedian Zach Gelafi-naka-kana-nanis. A true wolfpack. And a cameo by the champ Mike Tyson convinced me to take another 2009 knockout.

4. PARANORMAL ACTIVITY

Scary. Scary. Almost as scary as this movie. How scary was Paranormal Activity? Let’s just say I still have grip marks on my arm from the LampPoster himself when he sat next to me in the theater. If New York apartments had spare closets, I’d be checking them nightly for demons.

3. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

This film was so intense, the baseball bat-smashing and bullet-pumping gore scenes weren’t even the most heart-pounding moments of the film. Great action, yet greater dialogue and suspense. Could Brad Pitt win an Oscar for Best Mustache? It was glorious.

2. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Worth the wait… and wait. I saw a teaser reel from Spike Jonze years ago, and I’ve been rumpus-ing for this one to wrap up production and hit theaters ever since. It got mixed reviews from families and test audiences, but whatever kids… adults need muppets, too. And ol’ Maurice loved the adaptation of his own book, so that matters most (though I may also have a vested interest in the franchise).

1. James Cameron’s AVATAR 3D-HD IMAX Experience®

I loved Avatar when I was a kid. Of course, back then it was called Fern Gully and it had Robin Williams. It was just as colorful, but sadly, you could only watch it in two dimensions. It was also a good dance movie with Kevin Costner featuring some wolves. And some star wars. Ok, ok, the comparisons are many, but it had the classic themes that moviegoers crave: exploitation, colonialism, environmentalism, capitalism, corporate greed, racism, genocide, war, and oppression. Going to the movies can be such a wonderful escape from boring old real life, huh? $500M and irony aside, this was a new masterpiece to close the decade. If you haven’t seen it yet, you’re from another planet.