The Oscar nominations will be announced tomorrow morning, and while I try every year to predict the winners I won’t even attempt to try to guess the nominees.  However, I do have some things I would like to see when the nominations are announced tomorrow.  I’ve divided these into two categories: actual, genuine “Possibilities” and “Not a Chance”.  I may be hopeful, but I try to keep things at least moderately realistic.  I’ve left out some of the more obvious ones, like Gravity for Best Picture, Director, Actress and all of the technical categories, simply because I think that they’re foregone conclusions and I’m not really sweating them.  Come back later tomorrow after the nominations have been announced (and I’ve gotten home and can actually write about them) for some quick thoughts on who made the cut and who was left out.  In the meantime, read on for the names and films I would like to hear Chris Hemsworth read outtomorrow.

Possibilities:

Best Animated Feature

There’s already a short list for this category, and we can probably predict what the final nominees will be with some accuracy.  I think The Wind Rises is probably a sure bet, but the films I really want to see nominated are Frozen, Epic, Monsters University and Despicable Me 2.  I also wouldn’t object to The Croods, though obviously the maximum number of nominees is 5.  I think Frozen is a safe bet, and probably Epic doesn’t stand much of a chance.  I’ll go out on a limb on this one and predict that the other 5 (minus Epic) all receive a nomination.

Other categories for Frozen

As long as we’re talking about Frozen, I definitely want to see it get more than just the Best Animated Feature nomination.  I’d love for it to make the Best Picture category, but there’s no way that’ll happen.  More reasonably, I would expect “Let it Go” by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez to make the cut for Best Original Song.  Interestingly, when the Academy released their 75 eligible songs for the category, “Let it Go” was the only song from Frozen that was included, despite other films having multiple nominations.  Perhaps this is a ploy by Disney to try to focus all votes for Frozen onto its hit song in order to avoid split votes among multiple potentials and eventually multiple nominees (see what happened to Enchanted and other films with multiple nominees in this category).  The Best Original Song category has been the most bizarre and disappointing category at the Oscars lately, with some disappointing winners, some odd choices for nominations and culminating in only 2 nominees from 2011.  Hopefully it will shape up as things move forward.  I’d also like to see Frozen get a Best Original Score nomination for composer Christophe Beck, which I don’t think is entirely out of the question.

Saving Mr. Banks

I would love to see Saving Mr. Banks nominated in many of the big categories, and I think some of them are definite possibilities.  I think Best Picture and Best Actress (Emma Thompson) are very likely, while Best Supporting Actor (Tom Hanks), Director and Adapted Screenplay seem somewhat less likely.  I don’t know if Thomas Newman’s score is eligible, seeing as how it uses so many of the Sherman Brothers’ songs throughout the film, but I thought the way he adapted those songs was stunning.  I think Best Costumes is a possibility (for all of those early 1960s clothes), but the film didn’t make the short list for Best Makeup and Hairstyling.

Oprah Winfrey for Lee Daniels’ The Butler

The Butler was an early favorite for major consideration for Oscars when it was released, but seems to have largely disappeared from the conversation these days.  And while I really liked the film, I won’t be terribly disappointed if it is shut out tomorrow.  However, the one category I would love to see it pick up a nomination in is Best Supporting Actress for Oprah Winfrey.  A previous Oscar nominee, she was the highlight of the film for me, and is still thought to have a chance at a nomination (even if she was left out of the Golden Globes).

The Lone Ranger

While I realize that the odds are against The Lone Ranger getting nominated for anything at all, it did make the short list for both Best Makeup and Hairstyling and Best Visual Effects, so clearly it has been recognized as being notable in both categories.  I think it is definitely deserving in Makeup and Hairstyling, for Tonto’s old age makeup if nothing else, which was seriously impressive.  I thought the effects were great, particularly as they were a change from the CG city destruction of some of the other films (mercifully Man of Steel did not make the short list).  I’d love to see a Costume nomination, as well as Production Design and Cinematography and the two Sound categories, perhaps even Editing, but while I think those are all theoretically possible I don’t think they’re very likely.  One interesting possibility is Best Original Score for Hans Zimmer, which is also probably not likely, but I loved the way he adapted the William Tell Overture for the finale of the film.

John Williams for The Book Thief

This one is pretty obvious and seems like a safe bet at this point, but I always want to see John Williams nominated and his score for The Book Thief was outstanding.

The Great Gatsby in the technical categories

The Great Gatsby might not have been the awards powerhouse that had been hoped when it began production, but it still was a visually stunning, elaborately made film that is worthy of being remembered.  It made the shortlist in Makeup and Hairstyling, and I’d love to see it nominated for Production Design, Costumes, Cinematography, Editing and Sound Mixing.

Not a Chance:

Lake Bell for In a World…

I know there’s not a chance of Lake Bell getting a nomination from her hilarious film In a World…, but I can dream all the same.  There aren’t a lot of female writer-director-stars out there, and it would be huge if she was nominated for Best Actress, Director and Original Screenplay for the same film, particularly as only 4 women have ever been nominated for Best Director (with only one winner, Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker).

Jena Malone for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Obviously not a chance here either, and I’ve already talked about how awesome Jena Malone was in Catching Fire, but I would still love it if she were nominated for Best Supporting Actress.  She was the best part of a film that was uniformly great, and has been the subject of lots of discussion as a result.  Wouldn’t it be great to hear her name read out tomorrow with the others?

Star Trek Into Darkness for nothing

I almost never root against a film, in fact the last time I did was probably Borat, but I’d love it if Star Trek Into Darkness was completely shut out.  Obviously it only stands a chance in the technical qualities, but I was so incensed by it that I’d love it to miss out on those too.

Much Ado About Nothing for everything

I actually had some hope for Much Ado after it came out.  I told myself, “This is a unique movie, made by the director of the third highest-grossing film of all time and getting great reviews.  It stands a chance.”  Of course, I’m a bit idealistic that way.  However, in my fantasy world, it would be nominated in most categories, the same as if it were Lincoln from last year.  I’d want to see it in Best Picture, of course, but also Director, Actor (Alexis Denisof), Actress (Amy Acker), twice for Supporting Actor (Reed Diamond and Nathan Fillion), Adapted Screenplay (yes, Whedon used all of Shakespeare’s words, but the way it was adapted to a modern setting and shaped to fit Whedon’s style and the actors was phenomenal), Editing, Cinematography (the black and white was a gorgeous choice), Original Score and Original Song (for “Sigh No More”, adapted from Shakespeare’s words).  Hey, a guy can dream, right?

What about you?  What do you most want to see from the nominations tomorrow?  Let me know in the comments!