being that i am, in fact, a girlie girl, i am naturally a big fan of red carpet events — of which the Oscars shines forth as the pinnacle extravaganza. this is the magical night when dreams come true, history is made, and gazillions of dollars are lavishly expended on after parties and after after parties and whatever else celebrities deem ostentatiously necessary for this crowning event.

i, of course, am only interested in one thing: the fashion. let’s narrow that even more: the women’s fashion.

(no, i’m not on there. but if i were, i’d be wearing Mila’s dress. she can do no wrong.)

give me hours worth of skinny women in elaborate gowns, absolutely dripping with diamonds and tottering in unbelievable heels it’d take me a year’s salary to obtain (and even then, i’d probably only be able to afford one shoe), and i’m a happy girl. throw in a little champagne and a girlfriend or two, and it’s almost like Christmas.

yet i rarely see any of the movies nominated, so i miss out on the whole talent part of things. this year, however, for the first time, i happen to have someone stumbled into seeing 5 of the 10 films nominated for Best Picture. that’s unreal. i’m pretty sure entire years have gone by when i haven’t even watched 5 new movies, let alone half of the ones up for Best Picture.

let’s start with the most memorable, be it good or bad:

Black Swan

yes, this picture makes me nervous, too.
i’m still not quite sure what to think about this movie. intriguing? yes. ridiculously cool directing and absurdly amazing, psychologically-disturbing storyline? absolutely. glad i saw it? totally. still considering intense therapy and quaking in fear every time a waif-like ballerina passes me on the street? you bet.
definitely a cool film, especially if you like ballet.
or psychotic craziness.

True Grit

surprisingly funny and entertaining. i heard “Western” and immediately crinkled my nose…then heard “Matt Damon” and had one foot out the door, buckled into the backseat before the rest of my family had finished Christmas dinner. (i know what makes a movie Oscar-worthy, and his initials are MD.) plus, you can’t really go wrong with the Coen brothers, and Jeff Bridges delivers a hilarious performance.
*addendum: tough movie to watch if English isn’t your first language. lots of mumbling, possibly a tongue catastrophe, who knows. but def a good flick.

Inception

did you not love everything about this movie? if you didn’t, don’t tell me. i won’t listen.
i saw it twice in the theater, at my brother’s insistence. i think the last time i pulled something that crazy, i was seeing my favorite movie in the entire world.
i love this movie. i’d pick it for best picture, but i’m sure it won’t win. maybe because too many people are like my father, who left the movie in a disembodied fog of utter befuddlement and couldn’t remember what state he lived in, let alone the names of a single character in the movie. i think that was the day he gave up dreaming forever.

The Social Network

i’m addicted, you’re addicted, let’s make a movie out of our society’s prefered form of crack social media and toss in a lil JT to boot. decently good movie, even if i did have to stop it to go to bed and pick back up with it the following night. i “liked” it. picture of the year? na, not in my opinion. but it was well-done, and had some strong points.
like Eduardo.

The King’s Speech

amazing movie. fabulous acting. will probably win best picture, and Colin Firth should totally win best actor. my mom cried. my dad almost cried, from laughing so hard at Geoffrey Rush’s character. and it had an undeniably well-placed usage of the “eff” word — probably the best i’ve ever heard.
loved it.

so if you’re looking for me this Sunday night, i’ll be curled up with Erin in my Oscar’s duds gray sweats, living vicariously through the red carpet fashionistas and exclaiming over who looked fab (i’m pulling for you, Mila) and who totally flopped (Scarlett, try your best). oh, and i’m interested in seeing which movie wins this year, too.
kinda.