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Zach Creer:

Meryll Strep for Julie and Julia has to be some kind of lifetime achievement thing because that movie was horribly boring and not a standout in any sense. Perhaps in her place Vera Farmiga should've been nominated for Up in the Air. I might be alone in saying this, but I actually found her performance better than George Clooney's in the same movie.

Stephanie Poquette:

Oscar noms are out, and I am delighted that The Hurt Locker, Up, and Inglourious Basterds are nominated. The award shows have been pretty consistent except for the Best Picture category. I’m one for great visuals, but Avatar just doesn’t seem right. I was pleasantly surprised by Inglourious Basterds this year, and I only wish the amazing Melanie Laurent would receive a nomination. But the biggest disappointment goes to Viggo Mortenson, whose performance in The Road puts most of these nominees to shame. So he’s not big Hollywood with his lifestyle; he is one of the best actors out there. We’ll see what the night brings; I vote no alien films for the win! Also, I love Meryl—no matter what crappy film she’s in.

Andy Herren:

You did it, The Hurt Locker and Inglourious Basterds! You were robbed, (500) Days of Summer and Fantastic Mr. Fox. Penelope Cruz scoring a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Nine over Melanie Laurent or Diane Kruger for Inglourious Basterds? Shameful, Academy. Shameful. Oh, and it will be so lovely to watch Sandra Bullock win her first Oscar come March. She's great.

Liza Booker:

I'm excited that Up was nominated for Best Picture. It is a big accomplishment for it to be the second animated movie to be nominated for best picture. Precious is also a film that deserved to be nominated for best picture. Lee Daniels, the director of Precious is only the second African-American director to receive a Best Director nomination.

Katharine O'Brian:

While I have no major disappointments, I was sorry to see that Tom Ford’s gorgeous A Single Man was not nominated for Best Picture or Best Cinematography. That said, I was thrilled that Maggie Gyllenhaal got a nomination for Crazy Heart. She won’t win, but she always does good work.

Nick Martin:

I really hope Jeff Bridges wins. No, I did not see Crazy Heart (though I want to), but if he wins, I will consider it an act of atonement on the part of the academy for not giving Bridges an Oscar for his heart-wrenching, subtle, and nuanced portrayal of "The Dude" in a little known film called The Grand Lebowski.

Jefferson Badger:

Marc Webb’s (500) Days of Summer is a creative and fresh take on the romantic comedy/drama genre that avoids what has made the genre so monotonous by depicting the modern relationship in a unique way. Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s performance gives the movie heart and his onscreen chemistry with Zooey Deschanel gives the film a realistic feel, thus making the movie relatable to the viewer. As a movie that dared to try something new and go deeper than the usual skin deep film, (500) Days of Summer was robbed of a Best Picture Nomination.

Matt Carey:

As happy as I am to see Jeremy Renner get his due for The Hurt Locker, and District 9 getting a Best Picture nod, there are as always a few disappointments. How Ponyo didn't get a Best Animated film nomination is beyond me, since I'm one of those people who thinks it was better than The Fantastic Mr. Fox. Also, The Blind Side for Best Picture is atrocious, but I guess a bad choice is inevitable when there's 10 nominees.

Stephanie Ruiz:

I wish I could say this year’s Oscar nominations left me pleasantly surprised, but alas, the freshly compiled list is everything I expected it to be (other than the Best Picture nod for The Blind Side, because…what?). I’m very excited for Up and Inglorious Basterds and especially Christoph Waltz, whose performance, I thought, was phenomenal. And although the projectile vomit of Avatar nominations were expected (I wonder who will win for visual effects), I still don’t think Cameron needs, or deserves, the ego boost. Oh, and I’ll always love Meryl, but this year I’m more than keeping my fingers crossed for Sandra. She makes it so hard not to like her.

Sarah Gorr:

To no one’s surprise, Avatar nabbed a solid nine nominations. The Academy’s lack of acknowledgement for A Single Man is appalling. While Colin Firth, the film’s lead, rightly received a nomination for Best Actor, it was shut out of the Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress (Julianne Moore), Best Cinematography and Best Original Soundtrack categories, though it was deserving for all. Despite the oversight, it looks to be a good show this year with power couple James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow dogging it out as they go head to head in the biggest categories (Avatar v. The Hurt Locker).