LOS ANGELES — In olden times, part of the fun in watching the Oscars via this medium we used to call "TV" was parsing the early awards given during the show and imagining how they were creating a narrative and, perhaps, forecasting which movie would win the ceremony's last prize.
Nowadays, it's a battle just to get all the awards to be presented on air, and many viewers pay closer attention to the body language and forced smiles of the attendees than to the awards themselves. If it was guaranteed that Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck would reprise their Grammys audience act at the Oscars, ratings would skyrocket. Could the film academy brass make this happen by offering them a lifetime supply of Dunkin' donuts? Perhaps ... though let's be real: J. Lo probably hasn't eaten an apple fritter in decades. (Hey ... more for Ben!)
But the Oscar clues are still there for those who care enough to pay attention. What prizes do the leading best picture contenders need to take to score that top award? Grab a cruller and let's take a look!
