"Hot Tub Time Machine": it delivers exactly what it promises

There was a hot tub.

...it was a time machine.

TOO MUCH: Jism jokes.

COULD HAVE USED MORE: Chevy Chase, explanation of the bear costume guy, Thomas Lennon, a reference to Karate Kid involving the words "body bag," "get him," and "yeah."

FILM SNOB NOTE: Scene-stealer Crispin Glover was in a movie about time travel! John Cusack did a movie where he sat on a counter with a girl! Clark Duke is kind of a tub himself!

IHYFM RATING: THREE AND A HALF out of FIVE MEHS. It delivers what it promises, there's some great laughs throughout, especially throw-away lines underscoring the ridiculousness of the premise and the time-travel logic. It loses a little steam in the third act though, and for every clever bit to be found there's a few obvious dick/poop jokes. You know me. I like my dick/poop jokes high-minded. If you liked the trailer (which I did), you'll enjoy the movie (which I did).

IF YOU SAID THIS WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE, I'D THINK: I'll go skiing with you, but please don't make any sports bets that involve my johnson.

Friday Film Snob Focus: Craig Robinson

There is little I love more in comedy than a quality deadpan.

For years, one of the go-to men in Hollywood for that special moment of awkward, frank silence needed for the absurdity of a situation to really sink in has been Craig Robinson, one of the stars of Hot Tub Time Machine opening today.

What does a quality deadpan look like, you ask? It looks like Craig Robinson breaking the fourth wall after he drops the titular line of the movie in its own trailer.

Robinson, a Chicago native, cut his teeth at Second City before touring with Def Comedy Jam.

I first saw him in TV's "Arrested Development" as a security guard up for the same role as Tobias (the role was for a confidence man - knowing he was up against the security guard gave Tobias some needed confidence).

Robinson's major break came when the American adaptation of "The Office" was picked up for a second season. Robinson's Darryl, the no-nonsense warehouse manager that had a decent share of screen time in the first season, had even more time to try to ignore and deflate the absurd pursuits of Steve Carell's Michael Scott.

What makes Robinson so much fun to watch in "The Office" is the way he telegraphs his seeing the whole picture, how small the players are, and how ultimately insignificant the problem at hand really is. He's the quintessential straight talker, which makes for great comedy when Carell is co-opting the warehouse for a men's afternoon or in desperate need of relationship advice.

Can't put a finger on what I'm describing? Think about Robinson's cameo in Knocked Up as the self-actualized bouncer:

"I know... you're right. I'm so sorry, I fuckin' hate this job. I don't want to be the one to pass judgement, decide who gets in. Shit makes me sick to my stomach. I get runs from the stress. It's not 'cause you're not hot, I would love to tap that ass. I would tear that ass up. I can't let you in 'cause you're old as fuck. For this club, you know, not for the earth. ...You old, she pregnant. Can't have a bunch of old pregnant bitches running around, that's crazy. I'm only allowed to let in five percent black people. He said that. That means if there's twenty-five people here I get to let in one and a quarter black people. So I gotta hope there's a black midget in the crowd."

If you've seen the movie, or have a passing familiarity with Robinson, I'll bet you couldn't help but read that passage in his deep almost-monotone cadence.

It's that cadence and straight face that make him so much fun to watch, whether he's realizing he's dealing with a hot tub time machine in Hot Tub Time Machine, introducing an adult performer aptly named Bubbles in Zach and Miri Make A Porno, or as the newest occupant of a corner office in "The Office".

I suppose that's why I get giddy every time Robinson pops into something when I haven't expected him - because on some level he's going to let you in on his perspective of what is really going on.

I'll leave you with a clip from his days touring with Def Comedy Jam. By the way, before he was a successful comedian, he was a music teacher. Don't worry. He's not one of those types of comics that beats you over the head with musical talent.

Hot Tub Time Machine opens today - and judging from the Metacritic rating, it's worth the trip if the trailer was your cup of tea.

Places you may have seen Craig Robinson dead pan:

- "Arrested Development" as a security guard in the episode "Switch Hitter"

- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story as Bobby Shad, the lounge performer who's thunder gets stolen by Dewey

- Zach and Miri Make a Porno as Delaney, the executive producer/financier

- "Eastbound and Down" as Reg Mackworthy, the hitter to end Kenny Powers' career

- "Reno 911!" as Levon French, a local commercial producer in the vein of the real-life Sammy Stephens, in the season six episode "Deputy Dance"

- Pineapple Express as Matheson, the thug with feelings who can hear everything you're saying

"Old Dogs": cheaper than taking LSD, but far more damaging to your central nervous system

"It was one of the craziest movies I've ever seen... it's a world where jet packs exist and no one blinks an eye... it's a world where the zoo is closed at three in the afternoon... not only is it closed, but they're having a birthday party on an island in the middle of it that you can't get to because all the boats are broken. You have to see it. It is amazing."

- Scott Aukerman on Doug Benson's "I Love Movies" podcast

Cinematically speaking, it has been a long couple of weeks for your favorite grumpy internet movie reviewer. The Oscar season coming and going necessitated a lot of review of, and reflection on, some of the heavier films of the year (make your own Gabourey Sidibie joke because I simply refuse). This past weekend, when I wasn't inhaling Guinness and celebrating my fraction of Irish heritage, I sat through the "Red Riding" trilogy, which has the same emotional impact as accidentally setting fire to a box full of sick kittens.

I needed something simple and light, a break from all the draining fare I'd subjected myself to for weeks on end.

Due to the aforementioned comments of comedian Scott Aukerman on an episode of Doug Benson's "I Love Movies" podcast, I settled on Old Dogs.

I will not eviscerate the movie for being bad, which it is. Most of the jokes fall flat, and I suspect I wouldn't have liked it too much even when I was young enough to be in the target audience. The fact that it is not terribly good is far from the most interesting thing about Old Dogs, and to merely point out the obvious here would be trite.

Rather, what strikes me about this film is the surprisingly deep cast of talented actors and comedians, and that without aiming for non-sequitur humor, it manages to be one of the strangest comedies I have ever seen.

Close friends of mine know that despite claiming to have a refined palate for film and comedy, I do enjoy some of the stranger corners of the humor world. I am a regular viewer of Adult Swim staple "Aqua Teen Hunger Force," and am probably one of the only people in the world to own the spinoff film on DVD. I also am a regular viewer of "Metalocalypse," and the bizarre "Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!," and will argue the merits of any spin off of "The State," such as the short-lived "Stella" series, "Reno 911!," or Wet Hot American Summer any day of the week. My video collection is filled with less extreme bizarre and whimsical comedies as well, such as the stand up of Zach Galifianakis, "Arrested Development," and "Flight of the Conchords."

The key difference between those movies and series is that the bizarre is often a means to an end, usually to point out how inane and predictable typical fare can be in the world of comedy.

Old Dogs is at times just as, if not more, bizarre than your strangest late-night comedy; the difference is that it is aiming for pure slapstick and repeatedly coming up woefully short.

Robin Williams and John Travolta are life-long friends who run a boutique sports marketing firm with Seth Green as their young go-to man and Travolta's dog that can't stand up without micturating. As they're on the verge of sealing a major deal with a Japanese firm (because Japanese people are silly gooses!), Williams learns that a one-night stand from the night his divorce finalized is back in town. And she's got their twin children in tow. Williams must learn how to be a good family man even if it's at the expense of his career.

That simple synopsis seems to have all the makings of a decent family comedy, does it not? It sure does! So why, then, have I done nothing so far but describe how awful and bizarre this film turned out to be?

Old Dogs, bless its heart, really swings for the fences at every opportunity, but takes place in a world of logic seemingly lifted from the surreal work of David Lynch. Can you imagine the lame comedic stylings of Charlie Chaplin (the poor man's Buster Keaton) combined with the insane horror of Blue Velvet? That, my friends, is Old Dogs in a nutshell.

The world looks like ours, but it does not operate like ours. Did you turn deep orange because of a spray-tanning mishap? No problem - the mother of your children knows "a few family secrets" that can get rid of it before you leave the restaurant you're in! Do people frequently mistake you for a grandparent? Watch out, because the staff of a breakfast joint will break out into song for you! Do you not know how to play tea party with your daughter? Don't worry, because your friend knows a puppeteer that can put an electrode in your pants that will make you dance to Wilson Pickett!

The world of Old Dogs is a world where being there for your family means attending a birthday party. The world of Old Dogs is a world where you don't bother to wipe bear shit off your face after you've been informed you smeared bear shit on your face. The world of Old Dogs is a world where a grown man doesn't think it's weird to stand in the stall and watch a boy try to take a dump.

The world of Old Dogs, even more bewilderingly, is populated with talented and funny people. Seth Green's Adult Swim show "Robot Chicken" is strange but often amusing, and here he even gets off a decent line when asking the children if they'll add popping bubble wrap to their resumes, but is in the film primarily to be coddled by a gorilla. The late Bernie Mac plays puppeteer extroadinaire Jimmy Lunchbox. Amy Sedaris has a brief role as a tenant at Williams' singles-only condo building. Matt Dillon, the Alec Baldwin to Kevin Dillon's Daniel, is a scout leader made of steel. Rita Wilson is a cross-eyed hand model. Ann-Margret is a grief counselor. Lori Loughlin trades in her wife-to-Uncle-Jesse boots for a pair of Japanese interpreter/hardly-present love interest pumps.

That's the cast that are actually listed. Not credited:

- Mac in the Mac/PC ads, as well as the best part of Zach and Miri Make A Porno, Justin Long, as a haggard spurned lover

- "Punk'd" regular Dax Shepard and Steven Soderbergh's go-to comic relief Luis Guzman as mindless safety technicians

- Vulgar comic Bill Burr as the guy with the jet pack, and, I think, also as a dad on a camping trip

The moral we're meant to take is that being there for your family is the entire battle. Presence. That's all. It doesn't matter if you're there only long enough to crash your jet pack into a lake and be wheeled off to the hospital, that's enough to show your kin you really care.

Oh, I forgot to mention: Kelly Preston, the mother of Williams' children, comes back into his life because she's going to jail for two weeks and has no-one else to really take care of the kids. So, there's that.

This film is bizarre. Hauntingly so.

I beg of you, internet denizens: take my word for it.

TOO MUCH: Uninspired songs on the soundtrack. "Let My Love Open The Door"? Really?

COULD HAVE USED MORE: Justin Long. His one scene was the most bearable of the entire picture.

FILM SNOB NOTE: Helmer Walt Becker cut his teeth on the vastly overrated Van Wilder, and the oddly successful Wild Hogs. The release of Old Dogs was delayed three times - first because of Bernie Mac's death, then because of the passing of Travolta and Preston's son Jett, and finally because of a health scare for Williams. Un Chien Andalou is a more concise and enduring nightmare on film.

IHYFM RATING: This really doesn't seem fair. Pass.

IF YOU SAID THIS WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE, I'D THINK: Either a) you work PR for Disney, b) you're addicted Ritalin and flashing lights, or c) you're legally brain dead.

"The Hurt Locker": the best picture (and Best Picture) of 2009

I am pleased to report that last night, the Academy got it right.

Kathryn Bigelow became the first female director to be awarded Best Director. The smallest-grossing Oscar-nominated film of all time beat the highest-grossing juggernaut in movie history for the prize of Best Picture.

I've been a vocal supporter of this movie since seeing it in theaters last summer and multiple times these past few months. It's gratifying to see my snobbery, at least once, was paralleled in the sentiments of the Academy.

Is the film perfect? No. It has its share of Hollywood implausibilities, and it's almost an anti-plot movie.

Is the film, in the words of Richard Corliss' spoiler-addled review, "near-perfect"? Absolutely.

The premise is simple. With hardly a month left in their rotation, bomb-squad members Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Eldridge (Brian Geraghty) are put under the command of William James (Jeremy Renner). James is an adrenaline junkie who plays by his own rules, and Sanborn and Eldridge begin to wonder if they'll make it home alive.

What makes the film so distinct from all other recent war movies, Iraq-based or otherwise, is Bigelow's careful handling of our central characters. Most war movies have your archetypes: the gutsy leader, the scrawny kid that delivers in the end, the cocky loud-mouth who's the first casualty.

The Hurt Locker avoids these cliches. James is an anti-hero who takes things too far, but he is not a villain. Sanborn is a by-the-books soldier, but he's not uncomplicated or foolish. Eldridge is young, but not a coward or brash. These characters feel like real people, so they are perhaps not easy to understand, but easy to care about.

The other major cliche not to found in The Hurt Locker is editorializing on combat. We're not given any lectures on what war is or the politics behind our involvement in Iraq; the only thing coming close is a very brief reflection by one of our soldiers on how uncertain their day-to-day job is.

The Hurt Locker doesn't tell us what we should think about everything occurring on screen. It presents the action for what it is, and gives us the credit of being intelligent enough to form our own opinions. This is perhaps best exemplified in a scene where Eldridge sees James with his shirt off and sees what looks like frag scars on his side. James says it's damage from when his mother dropped him when he was a baby. It is dismissed immediately, and never again referred to, but we're given an extra dimension of who James is with, literally, six seconds of screen time.

The film is visceral to the point of being exhausting. In every action set-piece, from bomb dismantlings to a desert shootout, there are dozens of red-herrings and unresolved interactions with locals who may or may not be combatants. When other critics have referred to this movie as realistic, that is what they are speaking to - the constant stress of urban combat where you don't know what to expect and danger can come from any source. Despite the inaccuracies, such as the soldiers' uniforms, or implausibilities, such as the aforementioned desert shootout, The Hurt Locker finds a higher truth through its fiction: that combat is unrelentingly dangerous and unpredictable, but for some, it is the only in the constant face of death that they know how to really live. It does this better than any other war film I have personally seen.

The craftsmanship behind The Hurt Locker, from Bigelow's directing, to the cast's performances, to the cinematography, is all superb. It's a challenging film, but thankfully, it gained some well-deserved recognition last evening.

The Hurt Locker was the best-made film of 2009. Oddly, on Hollywood's biggest night, it was recognized as such.

Don't take my word for it.

TOO MUCH: The side plot with the boy, and the ending of the scene in the desert, could have each been trimmed by a half-minute.

COULD HAVE USED MORE: Cameos from great actors.

FILM SNOB NOTE: The film was shot in Jordan, right next to Iraq, and on multiple occasions during filming the crew was fired upon.

IHYFM RATING: FIVE out of FIVE MEHS. The film is, in every aspect of its execution, excellent.

IF YOU SAID THIS WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE, I'D THINK: You're the first person I'd want to see a movie with, and the last I'd want to help defuse a bomb.

Enjoy the Oscars, everybody

Well, here we are: the biggest night of the year for movies is upon us. The 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

As you spend your last few hours frantically adjusting your Oscar pool picks, please feel free to browse all of my almost-certainly misleading Academy Awards commentary; also, take a look at The Junior Varsity's modest proposals for improving the awards.

Oscar may shine on any number of films tonight, some deserving, and some, in the eyes of this critic, not. Regardless of who is awarded the hardware, enjoy viewing tonight's ceremony.

I probably won't be.

I Hate The Oscars: Best Director Nods

This man obviously owes nothing to the Jewish Hollywood Elite

Someone take away my keyboard! I can't stop this insanity!

Here's a list of four directors that made movies and a fifth that likes computers!

Lee Daniels, Precious

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: He successfully makes a story of a KFC-spewing AIDS-afflicted teenage mother uplifting.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Very good. See above.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I'm so ashamed to write, for the fourth time, that I haven't seen it. I'm going to make it my beeswax to see it soon.

WILL HE WIN?: My gut says 'no', but if the votes for the other four nominees get split, Daniels could have a very good evening.

Jason Reitman, Up In The Air

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: His third feature, like the previous two, is intelligently and precisely crafted. It's a very, very well-made movie.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Excellent. That is, before the backlash saying it was overrated. Also, after the backlash to the backlash that said it was overrated.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I enjoyed it. It's a smart and timely drama that doesn't dumb itself down for the audience (cough, cough, Avatar).

WILL HE WIN?: Possibly, but he'll probably end up as Academy carnage left from the Bigelow-Cameron showdown.

Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: He made audiences remember Mike Meyers is, on occasion, fun to watch.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Pretty decent. Not everyone loved it, but it is undeniably well-crafted.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I really liked this movie. It's grown on me quite a bit since initially seeing it, and I love how Tarantino uses the film to ridicule our notion of what a war movie is supposed to be.

WILL HE WIN?: Only if the vote is split between the last two nominees on this list.

Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

WHY SHE'S NOMINATED: Contrary to Tarantino's war movie, she directed basically the only Iraq war movie that comes close to capturing the uncertainty and tension of what a day in Baghdad might hold for American soldiers.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Excellent. It's one hell of a movie.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I've said it more than once around here, but in my humble (and generally correct) opinion, this is undoubtedly one of the best movies of 2009.

WILL SHE WIN?: I certainly hope so.

James Cameron, Avatar

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: Who doesn't love lolcats in space?

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Sadly, really good. Style won over substance for most critics.

IHYFM RESPONSE: One of my friends said it very simply: "I love how much you despise Avatar." Sure, the graphics are good, but so far as the story goes, there's not a whole lot there.

WILL HE WIN?: If he does, it's because of pretty pictures. If he does, the Academy, in my opinion, will put the last nail in its coffin of meaninglessness.

MISSING FROM THE LIST?

- Robert Siegel, Big Fan

- Peter Docter, Up

- Joel and Ethan Coen, A Serious Man

I Hate The Oscars: Best Actor Nods

Oscar-winner (really!) Nic Cage as Oscar, via the superlative Nic Cage As Everyone

The Olympics are over! We need something else to watch on Sunday night instead of Al Michaels reminding us he was at Lake Placid in 1980! Why not the Oscars?

What else are you going to do? Watch The Cleveland Show? SHUT UP AND GET READY TO ENJOY THE ACADEMY AWARDS.

Here we go: mostly-familiar faces who were in motion pictures since last February!

Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: Jeff Bridges lives in the skin of what you'd get if you crossed The Dude with Travis Tritt with grampa during the holidays.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Pretty good. Critics agreed that even if it's not the most compelling story, Bridges makes it very watchable.

IHYFM RESPONSE: So-so. I saw it a few weeks ago and thought it was okay, although I'd agree Bridges is in top form.

WILL HE WIN?: He's been cleaning up everywhere else, so he's the favorite for Oscar night.

George Clooney, Up In The Air

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: George plays a 'management consultant' that you would have out-and-out despised were he played by anyone else.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Very good. Every element of the film received high marks from critics, from the screenplay to the directing to the performances of the entire cast.

IHYFM RESPONSE: Very good as well. I thought it was a very intelligently told tale, par for the course from nominated-director Jason Reitman. I thought the core cast, all of whom are curiously nominated for acting awards, were top-notch. I think one of the highest compliments came from comedian and former Simpsons writer Dana Gould on a recent edition of Doug Benson's "I Love Movies" podcast, namely, Up In The Air never treats you like an idiot.

WILL HE WIN?: Unlikely. Bridges is the favorite, and there is more overall steam for The Hurt Locker, which gives an edge to Clooney's competitor Jeremy Renner.

Morgan Freeman, Invictus

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: Not only is he Morgan Freeman, he's playing Nelson Mandela. Even if he was terrible in the movie he would've been nominated.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Good. Another movie that makes up for its dramatic elements with excellent performances.

IHYFM RESPONSE: Still haven't seen this flick. I realize this puts my ass at a severe risk of being kicked by Clint Eastwood.

WILL HE WIN?: That's a big maybe - don't be surprised if the Academy awards him this statue as a career-recognition award.

Colin Firth, A Single Man

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: The Academy has an unrequited crush left over from Bridget Jones's Diary.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Pretty good. Firth's performance is said to be stunning.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I haven't seen it - I found the trailer about as compelling as pushing a grandfather clock down a flight of stairs.

WILL HE WIN?: Probably not - the release was too limited for Firth to gain a lot of buzz.

Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

WHY HE'S NOMINATED: He was a great actor in a solid movie.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Excellent. The Hurt Locker was almost unilaterally referred to as one of the best movies of the year, thanks in part to the work of the cast.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I thought this was among the best movies of 2009, and Renner's performance as an adrenaline junkie that doesn't know when or how to quit, was very compelling.

WILL HE WIN?: For the sake of The Hurt Locker's chances at Best Picture, I really hope so. Logic says this will be Bridges' night, though.

MISSING FROM THE LIST?

- Michael Stuhlbarg, the sucker-punched physicist in A Serious Man

- Ed Asner, the grumpy aviator in Up

- Peter Capaldi, the obscenity-spewing director of communications in the satire In The Loop

- Patton Oswalt, the Giants fanatic in Big Fan

- Matt Damon, the pudgy corn executive in The Informant!

- Sam Rockwell, the lonely astronaut in Moon

I Hate The Oscars: Best Actress Nods

Basically, tragic characters are smiled upon on Oscar night, be they transgender murder victims or paralyzed tomboys.

Can you feel it? That numb tingling in the back of your brain? You're not practicing auto-erotic asphyxiation, you're just getting a bad case of Oscar fever!

Here we go: women who excelled in acting this past year who may or may not be Meryl Streep!

Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

WHY SHE'S NOMINATED: She's Meryl Streep. It's the Oscars. The two go hand-in-hand, like peas and carrots, burgers and fries, or alcohol and making an ass of yourself.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Pretty good. It's based on a true story and features strong performances from Streep, Amy Adams, and Stanley Tucci.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I haven't seen it. My parents liked it though.

WILL SHE WIN?: With Gabourey Sidibe in the mix, Streep stands a good chance of an upset but will probably go home empty handed, with nothing but her mountains of other awards and Oscars to comfort her.

Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

WHY SHE'S NOMINATED: She traveled outside her acting comfort zone, ie, romantic comedies with Hugh Grant, and displayed some chops in a more dramatic role.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Decent. Yet another true story, the critical community admired Bullock's performance but panned the drama as a little too easy.

IHYFM RESPONSE: Unreviewed. I do like football and brunettes, though, so I guess I'd like it at least a little bit.

WILL SHE WIN?: Unlikely. Precious has a lot more momentum. Bullock winning would be akin to Marissa Tomei's My Cousin Vinny upset.

Carey Mulligan, An Education

WHY SHE'S NOMINATED: She's young and delivered a hell of a performance.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Excellent, thanks in no small part to Mulligan's acting.

IHYFM RESPONSE: Wait for it... I haven't seen this yet. My buddy saw it on a plane to Europe and thought it was pretty good. He does have a man-crush on Peter Sarsgaard, though (NOTE: that may or may not be true).

WILL SHE WIN?: As a newcomer, she may stand the best overall chance of upsetting the Precious powerhouse.

Helen Mirren, The Last Station

WHY SHE'S NOMINATED: Celebrated actresses playing figures from history usually fare pretty well.

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Very good. Mirren, Christopher Plummer, and Jimmy McAvoy are all supposed to be at their very best on screen.

IHYFM RESPONSE: Why break a perfect streak? I haven't seen this either.

WILL SHE WIN?: Clearly, I don't have much of a frame of reference, but I'm going to say 'nay'.

Gabourey Sidibe, Precious

WHY SHE'S NOMINATED: Who doesn't love watching poverty-stricken girls vomit force-fed KFC?

CRITICAL RESPONSE: Very good. The story is sufficiently depressing and ultimately uplifting, and the cast is, I've heard, good at acting.

IHYFM RESPONSE: I. Still. Have. Not. Seen. This. Movie.

WILL SHE WIN?: For argument's sake, let's just say yes.

MISSING FROM THE LIST?

When I haven't seen one of the performances actually nominated, I feel this section is perhaps a bit moot. I did like Alison Lohman in Drag Me To Hell, but that's not really Academy fare.