COMMENTS & CURIOSITIES:

Hooray for Hollywood, but we’re pretty cool too if you ask me.

Yes, Virginia, it is Oscar night, and we have winners and non-winners and films and actors and all sorts of stuff to sort out, which is exactly why you can thank your lucky stars that it is time yet again for the Annual Peter B. Holy-Cat-How-Does-He-Know-That Oscar Picks. The Oscars may be long but time is short.

The nominees for Best Supporting Actor are: Casey Affleck, “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”; Javier Bardem, “No Country for Old Men”; Philip Seymour Hoffman, “Charlie Wilson’s War”; Hal Holbrook, “Into the Wild”; Tom Wilkinson in “Michael Clayton.” This one is a lock for Javier Bardem, all bets are off, save your money, it’s over.

This is also the first of many categories in which the Coen brothers’ “No Country for Old Men” is supposed to squash the competition like a bug. It’s the first “serious” film for Ethan and Joel Coen (“Raising Arizona,” “Fargo,” “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?”) and the critics loved it, for very good reason. But the best reason was Bardem’s spooky scary hit man, who turns in the most evil characterization since Hannibal the Cannibal, despite the most inexplicable haircut since Tom Hanks in “The DaVinci Code.” And the winner is — Javier Bardem, “No Country for Old Men.”

The nominees for Best Supporting Actress are: Cate Blanchett, “I’m Not There”; Ruby Dee, “American Gangster”; Saoirse Ronan, “Atonement”; Amy Ryan, “Gone Baby Gone”; Tilda Swinton, “Michael Clayton.” When the discussion turns to Cate Blanchett, actors must feel like PGA golfers do whenever Tiger Woods is on the dance card. It’s so depressing. Blanchett turns in the usual jaw-dropping performance in “I’m Not There,” a quirky tribute to Bob Dylan in which various actors, including Blanchett, take turns portraying different aspects of the folk-rocker-poet’s life. And the winner is — Cate Blanchett, “I’m Not There.”

The nominees for Best Actor are: George Clooney, “Michael Clayton”; Daniel Day-Lewis, “There Will Be Blood”; Johnny Depp, “Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”; Tommy Lee Jones, “In the Valley of Elah”; Viggo Mortensen, “Eastern Promises.” Remember the Tiger Woods analogy? Double it for Daniel Day-Lewis, then double it again. It’s so unfair. “There Will Be Blood” is a stunning, epic film that is grand and powerful and disturbing, but as good as it is, Daniel Day-Lewis is even better. George Clooney would have been my pick for his searing performance in “Michael Clayton” — “Do I look like I’m negotiating?” — and my wife would have given it to Johnny Depp, but then, she would give anything to Johnny Depp. And the winner is — Daniel Day-Lewis, “There Will Be Blood.”

The nominees for Best Actress are: Cate Blanchett, “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”; Julie Christie, “Away from Her”; Marion Cotillard, “La Vie en Rose”; Laura Linney, “The Savages”; Ellen Page, “Juno.” Wow, tough race. If you plan to step on the field with these girls, you better have the acting equivalent of a 98 mph fastball with laser beam control. Laura Linney sizzled as always as the totally stressed daughter of the crankiest dying father in the world. Ellen Page absolutely blew the doors off as Juno; Marion Cotillard was electrifying as the legendary Edith Piaf in “La Vie en Rose” and Julie Christie burned right through the screen as the world’s best-looking and most tragic Alzheimer’s victim. Luckily for all of them, Cate Blanchett was stuck in “Elizabeth: The Golden Age” — a dreary period piece that six people saw and one of those was the projectionist. And the winner is — Julie Christie, “Away from Her.”

The nominees for Best Director are: Julian Schnabel, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”; Jason Reitman, “Juno”; Tony Gilroy, “Michael Clayton”; Joel and Ethan Coen, “No Country for Old Men”; Paul Thomas Anderson, “There Will Be Blood.” This is the kind of race that keeps predictors awake at night, and I have enough things doing that already. None of this crew can be eliminated based on a less-than-great film and they are all experienced, successful directors. If the critics had their way, Julian Schnabel would be a lock for “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” but again, you can fit everyone who saw it in a Toyota Corolla. You could teach a masters class in directing on Paul Thomas Andersen’s “There Will Be Blood” alone, but the buzz for the Brothers Coen is deafening. And the winner is — Joel and Ethan Coen, “No Country for Old Men.”

Your attention, please, the large enchilada has arrived. The nominees for Best Picture are: “Atonement”; “Juno”; “Michael Clayton”; “No Country for Old Men”; “There Will Be Blood.” Personally, I would love to see “Juno” take it all. Ellen Page’s Juno is one of the most refreshing characters in years. I was also bonkers for “Michael Clayton,” but this one is a clash of the titans. By the time “No Country” and “There Will Be Blood” are through with each other, I don’t know about blood, but there will be scraps of celluloid everywhere. And the winner is — “No Country for Old Men.”

By the way, if you like a little Guinness with your Oscars, head to Skosh Monahan’s in Costa Mesa 4 p.m. today for its 3rd Annual Red Carpet Oscar Party. Gary Monahan will greet you in a tux and explain how it’s leprechauns outside Killarney who decide the Oscars and then let Price Waterhouse know by cellphone. I had no idea.

There, it is done. Everything little thing you need to know about Hollywood, the winners, the non-winners, the films, the stars, the rehab facilities.

PETER BUFFA is a former Costa Mesa mayor. His column runs Sundays. He may be reached at ptrb4@aol.com.