Best Actress

Helen Mirren has already won the Oscar. The formalities of bestowing a nomination on January 23rd and opening the sealed envelope on February 25th will be carried out per tradition, but she has already won the Oscar. This will be her third career nomination and her second for portraying an English Queen: This year as Elizabeth II and 12 years ago as George III’s wife Charlotte in The Madness of King George. She also won the most recent Emmy and Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Movie as Queen Elizabeth I, so she may win not just the Oscar, but an Academy royal title. 2006 will always be remembered as the year that Judi Dench, Meryl Streep, and Kate Winslet competed against each other…that is of course, if it’s not confused with every other damn year for the past 10 years. Dench will pick up her sixth nod in 10 years, Winslet her fifth in 12 years, and Streep will break her own record as the most nominated performer of all time, with 14 nods in 29 years. Pardon me while I yawn. Dench is a shoo-in for her career-best reviews for Notes on a Scandal and Academy voters are putty in Streep’s hands when she takes a break from the weepy accent roles and vamps up the comedy. The only Oscar virgin here will be Penelope Cruz, a revelation in Volver. From Cruz’s American filmography, you’d think her only talent was batting her eyelashes, but in returning to her native Spain and re-teaming with the director who made her a star, Pedro Almodovar, she gave a fierce, heart-felt performance sure to be recognized. These five women are pretty much the Best Actress nominees for every awards group in the country, so it’s most likely they’ll make up the Academy’s shortlist as well. Unfortunately, the film that was supposed to finally get Annette Bening into the winners’ circle, Running With Scissors, got mediocre reviews and crippled her chances. Conversely, Dreamgirls is shaping up to be a major contender, but with the attention focused on the supporting players, it is unlikely Beyonce Knowles will make the cut. The only actress who has a real shot at an upset is Maggie Gyllenhaal, who earned glowing reviews for the little-seen indie SherryBaby. If she can knock anyone out of contention, I’d guess it would be Winslet.