Oscar Noms Reaction An Essay by Dr. Daniel Hey Voters! It's Me Again!     All right, folks, the day is here! The big guns have gotten together and voted for their own, and the announcements have been made. The Oscar nominations are out! And, as always, I am pleased about some, mystified about some others, and downright p.o.'ed about a few. I guess we ought to talk about it, though, so you can see what path the Good Doctor is going to lead you down next.     You ready for the rant, ladies and gentlemen? I certainly hope so.     Let's start with the obvious. Titanic got fourteen nominations. For all you jerks that were screaming about how out of control Cameron was, let me repeat something. Fourteen nominations. Ten plus four. All you doomsayers are now dismissed. Shut up.     I was absolutely ecstatic at the Best Actor nominations, but, at the same time, I cannot figure out exactly how Leonardo DiCaprio got left out of the mix here. Titanic is a love story, right? How do you not nominate the most passionate character in the entire movie? DiCaprio's Jack drives the entire movie. His passion for this newfound love, his passion for living, his passion for survival in the face of disaster. DiCaprio has made believers out of moviegoers, yet Academy voters feel no need to recognize a performance of that caliber? I can only hope that the voting was so heated for the ones that did get nominated that DiCaprio simply didn't get enough votes to make the Final Five. I do, however, question Hoffman's role as a lead. An argument could be made that Hoffman's Stanley Motss was a supporting role, but I refuse to debate this at this point. Prediction? Sentiment begs me pull for Peter Fonda, if only to hear his speech, but I believe Matt Damon is going to get a huge wave of support. In a head to head race with Robert Duvall, I gotta go with Damon.     Best Actress, on the other hand, almost made me choke on my Cocoa Krispies. I'll grant you Helen Hunt and Kate Winslet. Both were great, can't deny that. Helena Bonham Carter was very good in The Wings of The Dove. Judi Dench's performance in Mrs. Brown also was a portrait to behold. But, folks, hey, Julie Christie? For Afterglow? What in the wide world of sports is that all about? Shades of the undeserved nomination Diane Keaton got last year? Why is it necessary to dig through the mess and find one fading angel and nominate her for whatever she did, just to get a name the public knows in the list? If she wins this thing, the walls of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion may just collapse in shock. Voters, you are correct that Christie was the only thing worth watching in Afterglow, but there was no need for this travesty. You ought to be ashamed. Forget about Jodie Foster, did you? Or either of Sigourney Weaver's performances? Prediction? Helen Hunt, if we're lucky. She certainly deserves it, but deserving ain't winning, now, is it?     Best Supporting Actor is the same story. Very excited about Kinnear, I wasn't sure you'd be willing to overlook the TV past. Burt Reynolds ought to get the Travolta Award for returning to glory with a bang, and, personally, I hope he gobbles it all up. Seeing Robin Williams' name up there only proves again that he's one of the most versatile actors in the business. He's a clown that can also make us think and cry. Anthony Hopkins' work in Amistad was brilliant. But, lemme tell you, I loved Robert Forster in Jackie Brown. But his performance was nowhere near as important as Rupert Everett's in My Best Friend's Wedding. Everett showed exactly what a supporting actor was supposed to do, and he did it better than anyone else this year. Ignoring such fine work as this is completely unforgivable, no matter who, no matter what. It only shows the ignorance. Prediction? Burt Reynolds. There is no substitute now that Everett is out of the race.     Now, are you ready for a surprise? Voters, you picked perfect for the Best Supporting Actress category. Basinger and Driver were wonderful. Joan Cusack finally gets the recognition she has earned time and time again. Julianne Moore was incredible in Boogie Nights, giving the heart and soul to a heartless and soulless business. And, My God, Gloria Stuart. The voice of the Titanic, telling us the lyrical dreams of a long ago love. You could read every emotion in her face, her body language, her smile, while her voice spun the story. Bravo, voters. Prediction? I'd love to see the lovely Julianne Moore take this one, but, my heart wants Gloria Stuart to win the gold for her triumphant return to the big screen. Hers would be a win for all time.     Best Director. What a crime. Happy for Paul Thomas Anderson. He made the movie no one else wanted to touch in Boogie Nights. Cameron was a lock, if you were in any way honest with yourself. Same goes for Curtis Hanson, who invited us all back to film noir with L.A. Confidential. Atom Egoyan might confuse some people, but, if you see The Sweet Hereafter, you won't wonder any longer. Where you voters screwed the pooch was nodding at Peter Cattaneo. I agree that The Full Monty deserves all the recognition it can get, but, to get here, with this one, you ignored James L. Brooks and his work on As Good As It Gets. Let me get this straight, you nimrods. Everyone in the cast gets nominated for acting awards, the movie gets a Best Picture nod, the screenplay he wrote gets a nod, yet he doesn't get a look for Best Director? Why don't you stew on that while you pray that no one in the cast wins a statue, because, if they do, they will bring up the same theory I just did, and you get to hear the reactions of the gathered group, and the rest of the moviegoing world. Prediction? Are you kidding me? Cameron. And, for the Best Picture of the year. As Good As It Gets was just that. The Full Monty was fantastic, a victory for the small-scale overseas independent. Good Will Hunting was one of the most incredible experiences I've ever had in a theatre, thanks to the perseverance of two young men with a vision beyond their years. L.A. Confidential? A jewel that too few people saw. Maybe now they will learn what they missed. And Titanic. The colossal risk, pushed to breaking by the drive of one man, to make perfection out of tragedy and tell a story like it had never been told before. Prediction? Titanic. Finally, the word can mean "unsinkable."     And, folks, that's it for now. In a couple of days, I'll let you know about the ones that Oscar let get away. The losses are many, in a year where great performances came and went as the weekends passed. Get reel soon, Dr. V. B. "Doc" Daniel