It looks like the writers and the studios have finally got this love and harmony thing figured out which means all signs are "go" for an Oscar telecast. If you listen closely, you can hear the collective sigh from celebrities and fashion designers everywhere! This means we're right on schedule and just in time to predict this year's Oscar winners. Let's do this like Brutus.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Casey Affleck, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Javier Bardem, No Country For Old Men
Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Charlie Wilson's War
Hal Holbrook, Into the Wild
Tom Wilkinson, Michael Clayton

Who's going to win: Javier Bardem
Who should win: Javier Bardem

Javier Bardem has won somewhere in the vicinity of eight million awards for his role in No Country for Old Men. Casey Affleck has maybe snuck in one or two here and there, but this is pretty much an open-and-shut case. Chigurh is walking up to that podium on Oscar night and he's going to charm us with that Spanish accent for all it's worth. He will charm you and then he will snipe you. There is nothing you can do about it. He's unstoppable. Impregnable. Like Death itself. You can't stop what's coming ladies and gents. Neither you, Casey Affleck, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Woody Harrelson or Brad from The Goonies can do anything about it. If Chigurh was running against Obama, I don't know what I'd do with myself. Cry, sure. But what then?

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Ryan, Gone Baby Gone
Tilda Swinton, Michael Clayton
Ruby Dee, American Gangster
Cate Blanchett, I'm Not There
Saoirse Ronan, Atonement

Who's going to win: A toughie. But sticking with Amy Ryan
Who should win: Amy Ryan

Yeah, I'm not being very exciting with these picks. But give me points for consistency maybe? No? Okay, I'll take those lumps. And here's the not-so-good news: This was initially a two-woman race (between Ryan and Blanchett) but after that surprise Ruby Dee win at the SAGs, I'm wondering if the never-before-nominated Dee might be too sentimental a pick to pass up. In the end, the Academy is warm-hearted enough to nominate veteran actors but not so quick to actually hand them the gold bald guy. Remember Gloria Stuart (playing an old person in Titanic) getting stiffed in '98? Or Lauren Bacall (playing an old -- though admittedly fun -- Lauren Bacall-type in The Mirror Has Two Faces) in '97? I do. I never forget when old ladies get their throats stepped on.

That about wraps this entry up. We'll be taking a look at all the major categories but in the meantime ... start placing your bets.

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Dre writes three times a week for Film.com. Email him!

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