I find it hard to care about every one of the 24 different Academy Award categories, so I'm just going to detail some of my thoughts on half of them. For each category, I'll list my personal order as well as mark with an asterisk the nominee I think will win on the night (i.e. my predicted winner). Oh, and there may be some commentary, too.

BEST PICTURE

1. Inception
2. Black Swan
3. The Fighter
4. The Kids Are All Right
5. The Social Network
6. 127 Hours
7. Toy Story 3
8. True Grit
9. The King's Speech *
10. Winter's Bone

How to Train Your Dragon was my favourite animated feature in part due to an absolutely killer final 20 minutes, but having two nominated would probably be an overkill, and I can understand why they went with Toy Story 3 as it was better paced and the tighter film. There were quite a few films that I enjoyed more than the artier The King's Speech and Winter's Bone, but apart from maybe The Town, they're not ones the Academy usually likes to recognise. Personally speaking, Winter's Bone was a little bit of a struggle to sit through. Great acting and a remarkable achievement given the measly budget, yes, but not really an enjoyable experience. And maybe it's because I don't give a shit about the monarchy, but I thought The King's Speech was overrated. That's not to say it wasn't a decent film, because it was alright - the interactions between Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush were actually fairly awesome. I just didn't care for the background politics or the time period.

Having said that, I wouldn't mind any of my top six winning the coveted prize. Of particular note, 127 Hours had the best ending. Excellently utilising Sigur Rós' "Festival", the build-up to and that euphoric moment so very, very nearly brought tears to my eyes. Danny Boyle's film was certainly the one that came closest to making me cry, and the 'victory' was way more satisfying than Bertie's final public address in The King's Speech. I remember exiting the cinema feeling incredibly happy. The Kids Are All Right and The Fighter had excellent ensembles and not a weak link among their casts. I heard mixed things about The Fighter from people I know - some saying Mark Wahlberg's character was too boring and overshadowed by Christian Bale's, others that it was too predictable - but I loved it. While Bale was immense, Micky Ward was far more relatable and I was fully invested in the journey he goes through. The highs of The Fighter, though, couldn't match that of Black Swan or Inception. Both of those films were similar in that the second half had my eyes completely glued to the screen. Black Swan absolutely nailed Nina's mental deterioration, which was no doubt boosted by Natalie Portman's surprisingly damn fine turn; and following Inception's five different realities while being treated to some brilliant set pieces proves that it's not impossible to make an intelligent action movie.

The King's Speech will most likely win. It's picked up the most nominations, I've been told Americans love British products, and it's got excellent post-Golden Globes momentum with a healthy batch of BAFTA nominations and notable wins at the DGAs and SAGs. I'd rather the other frontrunner, The Social Network, scoop the prize - not just because I prefer it as a film, but also because it's more topical and relevant in today's world.

BEST DIRECTOR

1. Darren Aronofsky - Black Swan
2. David Fincher - The Social Network *
3. David O. Russell - The Fighter
4. Joel Coen, Ethan Coen - True Grit
5. Tom Hooper - The King's Speech

Dude, no Nolan? Oh well. Tom Hooper will win as he also won the DGA award. I was more impressed with everyone else in this category, though, particularly Darren Aronofsky who actually made ballet appealing to watch. (Edit: I change my mind. David Fincher will win.)

BEST ACTOR

1. James Franco - 127 Hours
2. Colin Firth - The King's Speech *
3. Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network
4. Jeff Bridges - True Grit
N/A. Javier Bardem - Biutiful

James Franco has the responsibility of carrying an entire film, and he pulls it off exceptionally well. Colin Firth, while also superb, wouldn't have been as good if he didn't have Geoffrey Rush supporting him. But Firth will win, because it's a more conventional performance and because I imagine some Academy voters feel a bit sorry for him missing out last year for A Single Man. Mark Wahlberg gave a convincing yet underrated performance in The Fighter and in my mind should have been nominated, though I've not seen either Biutiful or Blue Valentine, so I'm not going to moan about his snub too much.

BEST ACTRESS

1. Natalie Portman - Black Swan *
2. Annette Bening - The Kids Are All Right
3. Jennifer Lawrence - Winter's Bone
N/A. Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole
N/A. Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine

Annette Bening was great and all but is she getting more attention than her co-star Julianne Moore only because of that one 'realisation' scene? Moore's snub bums me out quite a bit - it's not the first time she's notably missed out, either. It doesn't matter too much in the grand scheme of things, I guess, as it'd be criminal if Natalie Portman doesn't leave without the Oscar. Though, to be fair to the others, she had the best content to work with.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1. Christian Bale - The Fighter
2. Mark Ruffalo - The Kids Are All Right
3. Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech *
4. Jeremy Renner - The Town
5. John Hawkes - Winter's Bone

I tweeted that my highlight of the Oscar nominations announcement was Mark Ruffalo being recognised for his charming role on The Kids Are All Right, and I stand by that. I was worried he was going to be snubbed. A tough category, this. I can't quite decide who to root for; for me, it's a toss-up between Bale, Ruffalo, and Rush. I'll go with Christian Bale for now, as his performance in The Fighter was pretty amazing. The Academy will probably give the win to Geoffrey Rush. Bale may be drawing nearly all of the plaudits, but if it took this long for him to earn his first nomination, I predict an upset. Andrew Garfield missing out is notable. I guess I would've swapped him in for Winter Bone's John Hawkes, but only just.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1. Amy Adams - The Fighter
2. Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit
3. Melissa Leo - The Fighter
4. Helena Bonham Carter - The King's Speech *
N/A. Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom

I don't think there's too much between Amy Adams and Melissa Leo in The Fighter. However, between Leo's odd ad campaign (she seems to be emphasizing 'her' as a person rather than the terrific acting performance she gave) and this year being the hugely talented Adams' third time nominated, I'm really hoping Adams will finally be rewarded. In some way, it'll be a shame and unfair if Hailee Steinfeld wins, because let's face it - she absolutely does not belong here. She's great in True Grit, but she should be fighting with Portman and Bening in the lead category and let Mila Kunis deservedly take the fifth slot, who shouldn't have been snubbed. (Edit: I now have a gut feeling that Helena Bonham Carter will complete the trifecta of acting wins for The King's Speech.)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

1. The Social Network *
2. Toy Story 3
3. True Grit
4. 127 Hours
5. Winter's Bone

I'm not usually confident predicting winners, but I'd be gobsmacked if Aaron Sorkin doesn't win for The Social Network. It's been said many times, but a movie about Facebook sounds like utter tripe. Yet, Sorkin with his trademark dialogue style managed to turn it into a fascinating character study of (a slightly fictitious version of) Mark Zuckerberg. Despite paling in comparison, Toy Story 3 and True Grit were also very smartly written.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

1. The Kids Are All Right
2. The King's Speech *
3. The Fighter
4. Inception
N/A. Another Year

Some people have said Inception's weakest element was its screenplay. I disagree with that. Casually explaining all the rules and dream states and whatnot to someone else is pretty darn tough, yet almost everything made perfect sense in the film. However, that said, it's hard to argue against the viewpoint that the other nominees boasted tighter writing. I predict a win for The King's Speech in this category for two reasons: firstly, the relationship between Bertie and Lionel was expertly penned and very warming; and secondly, the two characters come from different backgrounds (see: 2005's Crash, which also won this very award) - in this case, we have someone of royalty and a commoner. Personally, The Kids Are All Right gets my vote, contributed by excellently written characters, convincing family dynamics, and the way Ruffalo's character was handled.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

1. How to Train Your Dragon
2. Toy Story 3 *
N/A. The Illusionist

How to Train Your Dragon edged Toy Story 3 for me on a more emotional level. It also had the better finale. Definitely my favourite DreamWorks animated feature to date. I will admit, however, that Toy Story 3 was way better than I was expecting it to be. I thought it was a silly idea for Pixar to resurrect a beloved franchise from more than a decade ago; I didn't want to relive 1999. But Pixar cleverly got around that by making the series move forward in time, too.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

1. Inception
2. The Social Network *
3. How to Train Your Dragon
4. 127 Hours
5. The King's Speech

Part of why How to Train Your Dragon's finale was that good was the epic score, so it's nice to see the film get recognised for that. I would love to see Inception win, but unfortunately, I predict The Social Network to be victorious as I fear the Academy might be put off by Inception's loud soundtrack.

BEST SOUND MIXING

1. Inception
2. The Social Network *
3. True Grit
4. The King's Speech
N/A. Salt

Black Swan's soundtrack is heavily inspired by Tchaikovsky, thus ruling itself out of the 'Original Score' category. However, the music in that film was excellent, and I was hoping the Academy would at least recognise it under this category, especially as it was also wonderfully mixed in with everything else - the noises, sound effects, speech, and so forth - to make the latter half so chilling and awesome to watch. But no dice. I'll be rooting for Inception instead, but again, I think The Social Network has the upper hand.

BEST EDITING

1. The Social Network *
2. Black Swan
3. The King's Speech
4. The Fighter
5. 127 Hours

That Inception ends up being coherent, exhilarating, and a treat to watch all at once is almost a miracle, and its snub in this category is baffling. And despite an amazing finale to 127 Hours, I felt the flashbacks and hallucinations could've been handled a bit better. Ultimately, The Social Network should win with the way it excellently handles bouncing around three different points in time while also making it pretty damn compelling.

PREDICTED WINNERS FROM THE REMAINING CATEGORIES

I've not seen any of the foreign, documentary, or short nominees. But hey, Killing in the Name and Let's Pollute sound like they tackle some serious issues. That means they're probably going to win, right? Right?! (Edit: Both of those predicted winners have since been changed.)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: In a Better World
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: Inside Job *
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: Strangers No More **
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT: God of Love
BEST ANIMATED SHORT: The Gruffalo ***
BEST ORIGINAL SONG: "If I Rise" - 127 Hours
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: True Grit
BEST SOUND EDITING: Toy Story 3
BEST ART DIRECTION: Alice in Wonderland
BEST MAKEUP: The Way Back
BEST COSTUME DESIGN: True Grit
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: Inception

* Edit: Now Inside Job instead of Restrepo, because I don't know? But I recently found out that Matt Damon narrates, so yeah.

** Edit: Not Killing in the Name anymore. According to Wikipedia: "Strangers No More is a short documentary film about a school in Tel Aviv where children from forty-eight different countries and diverse backgrounds come together to learn." That sounds like something the Academy would swoon over.

*** Edit: Changed this from Let's Pollute to The Gruffalo on the basis that I've heard it's the only decent one in the category that also doesn't carry an Important Message.

Tuesday, 16 November 2010 – The Gaslight Anthem (with Sharks and Chuck Ragan)
Rock City, Nottingham

There've been quite a few gigs that I've been to where the crowd was disappointing despite a decent performance from the band. The night with The Gaslight Anthem was the opposite. I felt that the band was far too static and had merely average stage presence. The only member who actually demanded attention from the attendees was Brian Fallon, lead singer. However, the crowd - being Rock City - was still great; a surprising number sang along to several of the songs and there were a few fairly decent moshes. They weren't as fanatic or enthusiastic as they were when I saw The Subways or Passion Pit, where they were louder and moshes encompassed most of the floor, but that was to be expected when the band did little to invoke a reaction or encourage rowdiness from us. That said, Fallon visibly appeared to enjoy the crowd, broadly grinning and such from time to time, which was a nice touch.

The setlist was pretty lame on the whole. The first four of the six songs played came from their latest album American Slang, which I'm not a huge fan of. They ended up playing 90% of it. The rest of the setlist consisted of a fair few from The '59 Sound and a disappointingly low number from their debut (and best) album Sink or Swim, as well as a Senor and the Queen EP track and a couple of forgettable and rather pointless covers. I definitely would've preferred hearing something like "Boomboxes and Dictionaries" over a seemingly random track by Wilson Pickett. It wasn't until the final two main songs, "Great Expectations" and "The '59 Sound", where I got properly invested in the gig. Before then, I was still nodding my head, singing out the odd lines that I knew, just trying to enjoy myself as much as I could while I was here, but the one-two punch from The '59 Sound was genuinely an awesome seven minutes or so. And the encore wasn't that bad, either - if a bit unspectacular and lacklustre when compared to other encores I've experienced in the past. "1930" was great, as was "The Backseat", though the latter as the closer didn't have a prolonged impact as I would've wanted from the finale.

It's a testament to how apathetic I was about the night when I say that one of the highlights was the occasional chat from Fallon between songs, including talking up Bruce Springsteen (the band's from New Jersey), having a amusing dig at Bon Jovi, and comparing opening act Chuck Ragan to Chuck Norris. Speaking of opening acts, they were sub-par. Sharks were tolerable but ended one song early when the drummer broke his drum pedal, while I wasn't a fan of Ragan's material at all and grew bored extremely quickly, counting down the time until he left the stage. On a more positive note, my low opinion of the gig hasn't had much negative effect on my enjoyment of The Gaslight Anthem's first two albums. They're still excellent.

Setlist:

The Spirit of Jazz
Boxer
Casanova, Baby!
The Diamond Church Street Choir
Old White Lincoln
Old Haunts
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
We Came to Dance
Orphans
Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis?
Wooderson
Blue Jeans & White T-Shirts
The Queen of Lower Chelsea
Bring It On
In the Midnight Hour (Wilson Pickett cover)
Stay Lucky
Last Kiss (Wayne Cochran cover)
Great Expectations
The '59 Sound
---
American Slang
1930
Miles Davis and the Cool
The Backseat

It's been a problem for a long time now. Where I'm currently living, if I play on Xbox Live and someone else is using the Internet, I get absolutely terrible lag. It happened again last night: I played a few FIFA 11 matches with EmP, and he complained of "bullet time" lag, which I also experienced. (More importantly, I'm better at FIFA than him. /brag) Whether it's someone downloading something, on YouTube, or loading up Farmville on Facebook, it's almost impossible to enjoy a smooth connection unless I'm the only one using the Internet.

Some games seem to deal with this problem better than others. One reason why I haven't bought Black Ops yet is because, although I spent a dumb amount of time on Modern Warfare 2, it was unplayable at its worst and played out like a slideshow. And I would've clocked more hours into Super Street Fighter IV online if I could play lag-free, guaranteed. (It's always amusing when people send me hate mail, adamantly blaming the lag for their loss when it's exactly the same at my end.) On the other hand, I've barely had a problem playing any of the Rock Band games or Borderlands online.

That's beside the point, really. I'm wondering if there's any way I could make sure the 360 gets Internet priority. At the moment, I'm on Broadband and using an Ethernet cable. Would a router or a wireless network adapter help? My Xbox Live subscription ends next month, and I'm seriously considering not renewing at this rate, which would be a huge shame.

Predicted winners:

Leroux
Venter
WQ

(Team Leroux wins)

Disclaimer: I have no significant bias towards any Premier League club.

1. Manchester United
2. Chelsea
3. Liverpool
4. Manchester City
5. Arsenal
6. Everton
7. Tottenham Hotspur
8. Aston Villa
9. Fulham
10. Sunderland
11. Blackburn Rovers
12. Birmingham City
13. Bolton Wanderers
14. Stoke City
15. Wolverhampton Wanderers
16. Newcastle United
17. West Ham United
18. Wigan Athletic
19. West Bromwich Albion
20. Blackpool

Top Scorer:
Fernando Torres (Liverpool)

Golden Gloves:
Pepe Reina (Liverpool)

First Managerial Departure:
Chris Hughton (Newcastle United)

Champions League:
Real Madrid

Domestic Cups:
Chelsea
Liverpool

Promoted:
Nottingham Forest *
Queens Park Rangers
Hull City

Predictions subject to change before Saturday.

* Possible delusional bias in effect.

Predicted winners:

OD
True
Jason

(Team OD wins)

Suskie
Genj
Asherdeus

(Team WQ wins)

I don't have much faith in my predictions this week; I anticipate many of these match-ups will be extremely close. But if I'm right, it'll be a Team WQ against Team OD in the final. Asherdeus is now the last person I have a 100% record with, and Week 5 equalled Week 4 in terms of success. Here are the fancy Excel stats.

Predicted winners:

Genj
WQ
Suskie

(Team WQ wins)

Janus
OD
Zipp

(Team OD wins)

My prediction stats show two things of note: 1) as weeks pass, my predictions grow more accurate; 2) I have a 100% success rate so far with foreseeing the results of Genj and Asherdeus. What does this mean? It means my confidence this week will be completely unjustified once it's revealed that I couldn't have made worse predictions.

I also predict that the results will be released on Wednesday.

Predicted winners:

Jerec
Jason
Leroux

(Team Leroux wins)

Suskie
True
Genj

(Team WQ wins)

Don't worry if I got your team as losing. If that's the case, statistically speaking, that means you're more likely to win!

Predicted winners:

OD
Zipp
True

(Team OD wins)

Bluberry
Janus
WQ

(Team Janus wins)

Predicted winners:

Suskie
WQ
Venter

(Team WQ wins)

OD
Janus
Asherdeus

(Team Janus wins)

There have been plenty of games that critics have praised but I've thought were mediocre or worse. Red Dead Redemption is the most recent example, while I didn't even get to the halfway point of Gears of War before I stopped trying to force myself to like it. Ico was another I was unimpressed with, but oddly, Shadow of the Colossus was one of the PlayStation 2 highlights for me. Different strokes for different folks.

Nearly all of the time when my personal tastes clashed with the overall critics' opinion, it's because I had negative feelings over a game they love. Over time, I feel I've gotten better at interpreting a reviewer's words and more accurately coming to the conclusion on whether or not the game in question is suited for me. I've made less rash purchases, and my wallet appreciates it.

A couple of weeks ago, I read a lot about Alpha Protocol. Despite a sub-par metascore and critical attacks on its flaws, it sounded like the game was something I'd really enjoy, so I bought it on the cheap. I've played through the game 2.5 times now, and I just need to finish it from start to finish in Hard while acquiring the "vast majority" of intel to finish the full achievement collection. I've had way more fun than I did with Red Dead Redemption, when I probably had little right to do so. The flaws are large and notable, but I can look past that. I know others, like shooter fans, probably won't be able to.

It got me thinking if there were any other games that I've enjoyed but the critics didn't. Honestly, I think Alpha Protocol might be the first one. Perhaps it shows how narrow-minded I am. I think this is good for me. Too often, I've automatically closed a review because of a low score, but now I might think twice before doing so.

Anyway, this has got me a little curious. I'd like to know if anyone has had any 'guilty pleasures' in the past or slated games that you've liked.

Predicted winners:

Leroux
Janus
Jerec

(Team Leroux wins)

Suskie
WQ
Zipp

(Team WQ wins)

Friday, 7 May 2010 – She & Him (with The Chapin Sisters)
Koko, London

I made the long trip to London for She & Him's first ever UK show, and on the whole, I had an enjoyable time. She & Him is a duo consisting of lead singer Zooey Deschanel, better known as an actress, and guitarist M. Ward; to my knowledge, Deschanel writes the lyrics, while Ward does all the arrangements. On stage, they were backed by a guitarist, bassist, drummer, and two backing singers. There were a couple of things that struck me about this particular gig. Firstly, the band played a total of twenty-five songs, which is way more than any other show I'd been to (The Subways rocked out seventeen). Granted, She & Him's songs are generally pretty short, and they crammed everything into their ninety-minute set by rarely bantering with the crowd, but this was still extremely impressive. I felt like I definitely got my money's worth, hearing most of their discography. However, the set kind of dragged on during the middle segment. They started off with a few better known songs, including "I Was Made for You" and "Thieves", but then stuff like "Brand New Shoes" and an Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong cover, among others, just didn't have much of an impact for me. I don't think they had enough top-notch content for such a long set.

The band pulled it back, though, starting with single "In the Sun", and following it up with several strong performances before closing the main setlist with my two favourite tracks of theirs, "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?" and "Sweet Darlin'". "Sweet Darlin'" was the best of the night for me. From the refreshingly different arrangements to Deschanel and Ward closing with an awesome piano duet, it was superior to the studio version. The crowd clapping along with Ward's encouragement made for a fantastic atmosphere, and the duo left the stage to a loud roar while the rest of the band finished off the song. This seemed to get the crowd pumped up even more, and when the band came back out for the first encore to perform a couple of covers, the audience were much louder than they were during the entire first hour of the gig. Another major highlight came in the form of the second(!) encore. Deschanel and Ward came out without the rest of the band to play a beautiful cover of "I Put a Spell on You", which if not anything else, really showcased Deschanel's voice. I wasn't the only one who appreciated how exceptional she sounded--the crowd cheered several times throughout the final song, impressed whenever she hit those big notes.

Despite weak links in the setlist, both Deschanel and Ward were superb--they had excellent stage chemistry and gelled together really well. Unsurprisingly, Deschanel was the more popular of the two (there were quite a few "I love you, Zooey!" screams from men and women alike over the course of the night), and while she was great and looked amazing, Ward was just as good but very much underrated. As well as being solid on the guitar, Ward's live arrangements were for the most part impressive and deserved more acclaim. Finally, the venue itself was not like any other I've been to. Inside appeared rather old-fashioned, with multiple tiers of balconies above the floor. I hope the people right at the top weren't afraid of heights, because the topmost tier looked ridiculously high off the ground. Even Deschanel and Ward commented on it at one point. Anyway, the night was great overall. It doesn't rank as one of the best I've been to, but it's still one that I don't regret going to.

Setlist:

I Was Made for You
Thieves
Black Hole
Me and You
Lingering Still
Sing
Home
Change Is Hard
I Thought I Saw Your Face Today
Brand New Shoes
You Really Got a Hold on Me
Would You Like to Take a Walk? (Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong cover)
Magic Trick (M. Ward cover)
Gonna Get Along Without You Now
In the Sun
Take It Back
Don't Look Back
Over It Over Again
This Is Not a Test
Ridin' in My Car
Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
Sweet Darlin'
---
Fools Rush In (Frank Sinatra & Tommy Dorsey cover)
Roll Over Beethoven (Chuck Berry cover)
---
I Put a Spell on You (Screamin' Jay Hawkins cover)


Video -- Sweet Darlin' (not taken by me):

Final Fantasy IV is pretty awesome so far. I'm at the Tower of Zot, and I'm liking this way more than Final Fantasy XIII. The story is really compelling, helped by a cast of likeable characters. Cagnazzo was an absolute pain in the butt to take down, but other than that, I've had no problems so far.

I already intend to check out Final Fantasy VI when I'm done with IV, but I'm wondering what other Final Fantasy games are worth checking out. I've played X (loved it), XII (average), XIII (below average), and ten hours of VII (got bored).

Twelve days ago saw the release of indie puzzle platformer VVVVVV, and has garnered favourable comments from sites like Kotaku. In a nutshell, the gimmick is the character's ability to 'flip', which basically reverses the gravitational pull. There is no jump button. If you want to climb over a wall, you have to flip and walk along the ceiling - that's obviously one of the most basic examples. Your character's task is to pretty much explore the overworld and navigate through puzzle rooms to rescue your five crew members.

I'm lazy to go into more detail, but it's a neat game. It can be frustrating at times especially with the slightly finicky controls (I was told that I died 46 times in the room '...Not as I Do'), but checkpoints are extremely plentiful. However, it is overpriced at $15. I finished the game and got 13 out of the 20 collectible trinkets in a little under two hours (which included 599 deaths and exactly 3,000 flips), and though there are a few other game modes, I don't have much desire to play through them. At best, I might go back and try to attain the remaining trinkets.

There's no harm in trying out the Flash demo, though. This, I recommend.