Oscar Predictions: Best Sound

Last year’s nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Slumdog Millionaire, Wall-E, Wanted

The contenders: Avatar, The Hurt Locker, Up, Star Trek, District 9, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Inglourious Bastereds, Nine, 2012, The Lovely Bones

The rundown: I honestly don’t know much about this category, though it’s usually dominated by action and animation. Last year brought two big surprises – a snub for “Iron Man” and the inclusion of a film no one had expected to do well with awards, “Wanted.” My not predicting “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” probably isn’t smart since the first film was nominated for both Sound and Sound Editing, and even lackluster sequels like “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” make the cut. Still, I feel like it will be overshadowed by other fare which qualifies here.

Forecasted winner: Avatar