Oscar Nominees: Best Foreign Language Film

My predictions: 4/5, picking “Pina” over “Bullhead”
My ballot: Come back next week!
The nominees: Bullhead (Belgium), Footnote (Israel), In Darkness (Poland), Monsieur Lazhar (Canada), A Separation (Iran)

I managed to get 4/5 here, with “Pina” being relegated to the Best Documentary field, underlining once again how hard it is to get nominated in two specialty categories. The only film I’ve seen her is the superb “A Separation” (review forthcoming), which is currently playing in NYC theatres and pulled off a Best Original Screenplay mention. Otherwise, the films are on their way: “In Darkness” arrives at the Angelika on February 10th, “Footnote” will be out in theatres on Oscar weekend, and ”Bullhead” isn’t scheduled to be released until April. I’m not sure about “Bullhead,” and can’t find anything definitive online. I hope to see most of these films by Oscar night, and will offer more detailed commentary in my winner predictions.

My current bet to win: “A Separation”