This has been one heck of a year for movies. Some of the most impressive, entertaining, and enjoyable films have been put out this year. The only problem is that this makes the decisions for the Academy Awards judges more difficult than usual to assign the Oscars to the most deserving parties. Thankfully, I am here to make their choices easier.

Best Picture

I won’t bother listing all the nominations and giving each of their pros and cons first because there are 10 of them, and second because I haven’t even seen all of them.  And anyway, I don’t need to. All I need to say is “Avatar.” There has never been a movie more deserving of the Oscar for Best Picture as “Avatar.” It has everything: action, comedy, creativity, and to top it off, it is the most visually impressive movie ever made. Sure, the other movies are good choices too, and any other year they could all be solid choices for Best Picture, but not one of them can compare to the brilliance of “Avatar.”

My second choice would have to be “Up.” Yes, it’s an animated Disney film, but it nevertheless is enjoyable to absolutely all audiences. I watched this twice: once with friends and once with family. It’s hard to say which group enjoyed it more. It’s simultaneously a sweet feel-good movie and a side-splitting comedy guaranteed to make everyone laugh. Since I’m voting for “Avatar” for Best Picture, “Up” gets my vote for Best Animated Feature Film.

Best Actor in a Leading Role

There are some decent choices in this category, but no actor delivered the role of his life to deserve this Oscar hands-down. I would put my money on George Clooney in “Up in the Air” or Morgan Freeman in “Invictus” for the win here. America just can’t seem to get enough of them, and the judges’ decisions are often in following with the public’s. But Clooney and Freeman play the same roles they always play and do so in the same style they always have. I am just bored of them now, and I don’t care if they are consistently strong actors, I want an actor to win this that adds in a little originality to his movie. On that note, my vote goes out to Jeremy Renner for his role in “The Hurt Locker.” I haven’t seen Renner in any other movie, so I had no preconceived notions of him as an actor, but I was impressed by his acting here. His character was an emotionally detached, fearless war hero, and he made that seem genuine, unlike other actors in similar roles such as Channing Tatum or Jason Statham who rely on their reputations to convey the same effect.

Best Actress in a Leading Role

There’s only one choice in this category for me: Gabourey Sidibe, for her role in “Precious.” She did an amazing job of conveying the feelings and emotions that her character has. It can’t be easy to play the role of an abused, pregnant and overweight teenage girl, but Sidibe pulled it off masterfully. The other nominees for Best Actress are the usual suspects: Sandra Bullock, Meryl Streep, Carey Mulligan, and Helen Mirren.  Great actresses, but this time, they cannot compete with Sidibe’s acting.

Actor in a Supporting Role

Christoph Waltz for his role in “Inglorious Basterds.” Awesome movie, awesome character, awesome actor. He gets my vote for succeeding to play a creepy, messed-up Nazi. It was so easy to hate him, which is a testament to his success as an actor in this movie.

Actress in a Supporting Role

Mo’Nique for her role in “Precious.”  Quite similar to my reasons for picking Sidibe for Best Actress in a Lead Role, I vote for Mo’Nique because she managed to play a troubled angry woman in a genuine manner.

Sidebar: my ballot

Best Picture: “Avatar”

Best Actor: Jeremy Renner, “The Hurt Locker”

Best Actress: Gabourney Sibide, “Precious”

Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz, “Inglorious Basterds”

Best Supporting Actress: Mo’Nique, “Precious”

Best Animated Film: “Up”

Best Cinematography: “Avatar”

Bests Director: James Cameron, “Avatar”

Best Documentary: “Food, Inc.”

Best Film Editing: “District 9”

Best Visual Effects: “Avatar”

Best Adapted Screenplay: “District 9”

Best Original Screenplay: “Inglorious Basterds”