Updated Gurus Chart

As you can see, I have slipped The Hurt Locker into my number one spot to win Best Picture, along with Director and Screenplay. It is far too early to predict anything in this race. But what I do know is that all of the best picture for Avatar chatter hurt that film, in my opinion, because it lifted it into that risky slot of being the frontrunner. No film (well, maybe Schindler’s List and Slumdog Millionaire) can survive that. It has hurt Up in the Air and it begins to hurt Avatar. The film that has absolutely no baggage and all good will, benefiting greatly from coming into the race the clear underdog is the The Hurt Locker. This is The Departed part two. Remember how everyone said Martin Scorsese was winning Best Director but another film would be winning Best Pic?¬† Here it is, folks, playing out before your very eyes.

At any rate, Avatar still has many predicting it to win. And we still have a long way to go before this thing is over.