Best Actress

THE FIVE NOMINEES

1/23/07

HELEN
MIRREN

MERYL
STREEP

JUDI
DENCH

PENELOPE
CRUZ

VOLVER

THE QUEEN

NOTES ON A
SCANDAL

FOR HER

The
competition is
light this year,
so Meryl's
midsummer hit
perf now
seems safe for
a nod. Who
woulda thunk
it?

It doesn't get
any more
surefire than a
past loser who
"deserved" to
win, excellent
reviews, and a
British
pedigree. All
signs say yes.

I give in. The
reviews and
precursor
attention are
too hard to
ignore. Many
are calling it
her best turn
since "Mrs.
Brown."

After
underwhelming
auds for the
past few years,
Pedro
Almodovar
handed her the
role of a
lifetime -- and
she's great.

AGAINST HER

Every once in a
while, one of
the supposed
sure things
tanks at the
last second. It
happens
rarely, but it
can still
happen.

She could
easily be
overlooked if
one of the
stronger fall
contenders
creeps up in
acclaim in the
precursor
showdown.

Her character is
such a turn-off
that voters
may not warm
to her as a
nominee -- or
they may
decide to
nominate fresh
faces.

No one
questions how
hard it is for
foreigners to
land spots in
the acting
categories.
Cruz has a big
hill to climb in
that regard.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL, Sherrybaby
I'll concede -- there's just one slot too few for her this year.

ANNETTE BENING, Running With Scissors
Does she really have a perennial slot lined up?

NAOMI WATTS, The Painted Veil
Perhaps too small to catch voters' eyes.

BEYONCE KNOWLES, Dreamgirls
Can voters look past her thin Hollywood resume?

CATE BLANCHETT, The Good German
Her face appears in a lot of contenders this year.

GRETCHEN MOL, The Notorious Bettie Page
Good reviews, but it came out ages ago.

ELLEN PAGE, Hard Candy
She was definitely one of my favorites.

MARCH 10

DUNST

BENING

KIDMAN

WATTS

WINSLET

NOV 29

MIRREN

BENING

STREEP

CRUZ

GYLLENHAAL