Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Left to right: Asa Butterfield plays Hugo Cabret and Chloe Grace Moretz plays Isabelle in Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo.”

Best Costume Design
“Anonymous”
“The Artist”
“Hugo”
“Jane Eyre”
“W.E.”
The always-unpredictable costume branch of the Academy chose to bestow Oscar-nominated status on such film travesties as “Anonymous” and “W.E.” Its pre-1950 period bias and/or belief that Best Costume Design is equivalent to Most Costume Design continues to frustrate pundits and viewers alike. With that in mind, any of the other three nominees could win. Sandy Powell won just two years ago for “The Young Victoria,” and an Oscar for “Hugo” would be her fourth. Mark Bridges (“The Artist”) just received his first nomination, and it is rare for first-time nominees to win. However, fellow nominee Michael O’Connor (“Jane Eyre”) did just that. For now, I’ll lean towards “Hugo,” but I think “Jane Eyre” could surprise.
Favorite: “Hugo”
Spoiler: “Jane Eyre”
Should have been here: “The Help,” “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”

Best Makeup
“Albert Nobbs”
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2”
“The Iron Lady”
This is almost too easy. “Albert Nobbs” is definitely not a threat to win anything, and this is the first nomination for the “Harry Potter” series in this category. However, the only two good things about “The Iron Lady” are Meryl Streep and the makeup job on Meryl Streep. Much like Marion Cotillard and “La Vie en Rose” in 2007, expect “The Iron Lady” to walk away with the Oscar.
Favorite: “The Iron Lady”
Spoiler: “Harry Potter”
Should have been here: Uh… the hair in “The Help” was sort of fantastic?

Best Original Screenplay
“The Artist”
“Bridesmaids”
“Margin Call”
“Midnight in Paris”
“A Separation”
The only thing that stands between Woody Allen and a record third Best Writing (Original Screenplay) win is “The Artist.” In Woody’s favor he has name recognition, respect for the actual movie, and the (slightly ignorant) view that a screenplay’s dialogue makes or breaks this category—“The Artist” had no dialogue. I thus expect Woody to set the record. It’s his 15th nomination ever in this category. Good to see the Academy recognize a non-English screenplay in “A Separation” as well. The only regrettable thing is that “Bridesmaids” stands no shot at winning. Imagine Kristen Wiig’s acceptance speech.
Favorite: “Midnight in Paris”
Spoiler: “The Artist”
Should have been here: “Young Adult”

Best Adapted Screenplay
“The Descendants”
“Hugo”
“The Ides of March”
“Moneyball”
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
Don’t expect those who go home empty-handed in this category to feel sad for themselves. For “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” and “Ides of March,” the nomination itself is the reward. And Alexander Payne (“The Descendants”), Aaron Sorkin and Steve Zaillian (“Moneyball”) already have Oscars. John Logan (“Hugo”) has a Tony and he was hired to write the next James Bond movie, so he’s doing pretty well. I expect the razor-sharp dialogue in “Moneyball” will be too hard for the Academy to resist, and it will upset “The Descendants,” which seems well-positioned for the win.
Favorite: “Moneyball”
Spoiler: “The Descendants”
Should have been here: “Drive”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Bullhead” (Belgium)
“Footnote” (Israel)
“In Darkness” (Poland)
“Monsieur Lazhar” (Canada)
“A Separation” (Iran)
“A Separation” got an original screenplay nomination, making it the first foreign-language film to do so since “Pan’s Labyrinth” in 2006. This makes it the favorite, but “In Darkness,” which deals with the Academy’s favorite topic, the Holocaust, could upset. The Best Foreign Language Film category requires its voters to have seen all five movies to vote, however, so truly anything is possible. “A Separation” has dominated the season, winning the Golden Globe and almost every critics’ award out there.
Favorite: “A Separation”
Spoiler: “In Darkness”
Should have been here: “The Skin I Live In”

Best Documentary
“Hell and Back Again”
“If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front”
“Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory”
“Pina”
“Undefeated”
Most Oscar pundits consider this to be one of the hardest categories to predict, as neither of the two front-runners, “Senna” and “Project Nim,” was nominated. Critics’ favorite “Cave of Forgotten Dreams” was ignored as well. “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory” is about the West Memphis 3; “Hell and Back Again” about an injured soldier; “Pina,” a 3-D dance documentary; “If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front” is about an environmental terrorist group; and “Undefeated” is an inspirational football documentary. The Weinstein Company is behind “Undefeated” and they seem to be planning a rollout of the movie post-Oscars. Since nobody messes with Harvey, I’ll predict it for the win.
Favorite: “Undefeated”
Spoiler: “Paradise Lost 3”
Should have been here: “Senna”

Best Art Direction
“The Artist”
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2”
“Hugo”
“Midnight in Paris”
“War Horse”
Another category, another duel between “The Artist” and “Hugo.” Dante Ferretti is an art direction legend, and the set of his “Hugo,” an elaborate train station, certainly boasts a technical aspect that the set of “The Artist” doesn’t. Maybe sentiment can carry Stuart Craig and “Harry Potter” to the finish line, but the series has largely been ignored, both during this awards season and at the Oscars in general. I certainly wish that “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” or “The Help” or even the 1950s stylings of “The Tree of Life” had made it into the category.
Favorite: “Hugo”
Spoiler: “The Artist”
Should have been here: “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”