Watching Oscar Potential For "Watchmen"

Before we begin folks I want to say that yes, this is a long shot. The chance of "Watchmen" getting Oscar nominations outside of the technical categories seems like a bit of a stretch at this point. It may even be too early to call that, seeing that the critics mostly disliked the film. But then, didn't the critics dislike "The Reader" as well? Oh yeah, forgot, it's that whole holocaust/sex thing. Buy hey, it's a new year, and considering this is the year the Writers Strike really effects then that gives "Watchmen" a bit of an advantage. "The Dark Knight" snub could either enforce the snub or work to the films advantage of a nomination. The Academy's reputation for being out of touch with the public still stings, so this film could get nominated on principle alone. But it's not just this years nominations I feel "Watchmen" has a decent shot at a nomination: It's really good.

Masterful even. This is a movie that has the same scope of "Gladiator" but with all the heart and brains that film was missing. Plus it's promising to be a huge blockbuster, it has great acting, some of the top critics are calling it a masterpiece...really folks, it might have a shot. That said I'm not going to jump all over the bandwagon just yet. It IS early in the year, and during the first four months of the year any movie can be great so long as it doesn't outright suck. Still, I feel somewhere inside that "Watchmen" is something to watch. "The Dark Knight" came so close to the top prize, and so people will be holding this film over the Academy's head all year round. A nomination will likely be in the cards. A win is another thing all together.