Hooray, Ron; Sorry, Baz

The weeks between the announcement of the Academy Award nominations and the show itself are a heady time for movie fans. It's when everybody becomes a Hollywood pundit. How could they leave out Gene Hackman? Why isn't Jennifer Connelly in the Best Actress category? Judi Dench again? Well, we don't think of ourselves as complainers, but TIME would like to kick off the Oscar season with some awards of our own:

BEST HOLLYWOOD CITIZEN Ron Howard has made millions for the industry, with films like Splash, Apollo 13 and How the Grinch Stole Christmas, but has never even been nominated for an Oscar. This year, with A Beautiful Mind, Opie finally gets some respect from the Academy: a Best Director nomination. Call it his Lifetime Achievement Award.

BEST NONPERFORMANCE BY A SUPPORTING ACTOR Jon Voight was barely recognizable as Howard Cosell in Ali, and he captured the toupeed one's vocal rhythms even more convincingly than John Turturro did in the TV movie Monday Night Mayhem. But since when do impersonations win acting awards?

MOST DISAPPOINTED NOMINEE Shrek was one of three movies nominated in the new category of Best Animated Film. But the folks at DreamWorks must be bummed: they rereleased the film in just a few theaters last month and spent a wad on monster-size newspaper ads, with the clear aim of getting a Best Picture nomination. It didn't come. Now Shrek has to settle for a fight on the undercard with Monsters, Inc.

BEST COUNTRY The Golden Globes were in love with Australia this year, but the Oscar nominators went for that old favorite, Britain. Her Majesty's subjects corralled six of the 10 slots for Supporting Actor and Actress, plus two more in the lead categories. And some handicappers may have been surprised that Texas actress Renee Zellweger got a nod for Bridget Jones's Diary. But why not? She had a British accent.

BEST REASON TO RELEASE YOUR FILM IN DECEMBER O.K., maybe Lord of the Rings would have received 13 nominations anyway. But Academy members showed once again that they pay the most attention to the films they see most recently. Of the 13 that garnered nominations in the top four categories, only two were released before October.

BIGGEST OMISSION Moulin Rouge got eight nominations (tied for second most), but the ones it missed out on were the most surprising. The year's most honored musical failed to snag a nomination for either Best Score or Best Song. And despite the Best Picture nod, director Baz Luhrmann was passed over. Moulin Rouge may not have been the best directed film of the year, but it was certainly the most directed.

RISKIEST EDITORIAL GAMBIT TIME predicts the winners: A Beautiful Mind wins most of the top awards, interrupted by a heartfelt acceptance speech from Sissy Spacek