SAG Nominees: Best Actress in a Leading Role

My predictions: 4/5, picking Manville over Swank
Who’s missing: Golden Globe nominees Halle Berry (Frankie and Alice), Julianne Moore (The Kids Are All Right), and Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine); Lesley Manville (Another Year)

I usually like Hilary Swank. I even didn’t hate last year’s flop “Amelia” nearly as much as anyone I know. But her nomination for “Conviction” just isn’t necessary or deserved, and it upsets me greatly that the wonderful Lesley Manville now has to come from out of nowhere and take this up-for-grabs last spot if she wants to be recognized at all. The other four Oscar nominees are now set in stone: Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), Jennifer Lawrence (Winter’s Bone), and Natalie Portman (Black Swan).

Who could win? A battle to the death between Bening and Portman; my money is on Bening here.