Today's Obsession: It's Oscar Time!

The weekend everyone in Hollywood has been waiting for is finally here. In what almost turned into an Oscar-less awards season, the Academy Awards will take place this Sunday and will air on ABC at 8:30 p.m.

I’m all set. I have my Oscar ballot all filled out and ready to go. However, I didn’t see many of the movies nominated this year. Hey, I’m a college student on a budget. Out of all the movies nominated for an Oscar, I’ve seen “Atonement,” “Juno,” “American Gangster,” “Ratatouille,” “Lars and the Real Girl,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,” “Across the Universe,” “3:10 to Yuma” and “Once.” Ok, so nine isn’t so bad I guess, but it did make picking winners a little difficult. I had to rely on reviews from friends, magazines and such to figure it out.

So here are my picks on who will take home the golden statue Sunday night:

Movie: “There Will Be Blood” – my boyfriend saw it and said it was crazy-good.

Actor: Daniel Day Lewis for “There Will Be Blood” – ditto.

Actress: I was honestly stumped, but I hear Julie Christie in “Away from Her” will take the prize.

Supporting Actor: Again, I was stumped. I need these movies to come out on DVD! Most critics saw Javier Bardem will win for “No Country for Old Men.”

Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan in “Gone Baby Gone,” because I have a friend who went to the New York and Boston premieres for the movie who loves it.

Director: The Coen brothers should take it for “No Country for Old Men.”

Animated Feature: “Ratatouille,” duh! What a great movie.

Original Screenplay: I would really love to see Diablo Cody win for “Juno.”

Original Song: If you haven’t seen “Once” or heard “Falling Slowly,” go out right now and get the movie. My BFF Whitney got me hooked. The soundtrack is amazing.

Ok, so there you have it. Click here to check out a classic Oscar moment. Enjoy!

I’m obsessed, and you should be too.

Today's Obsession: Dexter!

First off - let's all let out a sigh of relief because the WRITER'S STRIKE IS OVER! Now everyone is getting back to work to give us more episodes of the shows we love. All of the return dates of are still a little sketchy, but I'm hearing "The Office" might be back in a matter of weeks. Keep your fingers crossed!

In other exciting TV news, one of my new favorite shows is making its network debut tonight on CBS. The execs at "Dexter," whose original home is on Showtime, made a deal with CBS to bring the serial-killing awesomeness of the show to the network to fill the void left due to a) the end of the football season and b) the lack of shows because of the writer's strike.

I became obsessed with this show over winter break where I watched both seasons over the course of a few days. I mean nothing really says "Merry Christmas" than a healthy dose of serial killing, right?

So here's the deal: Dexter Morgan works as a blood-splatter specialist with the Miami Police Department. He's the one who documents everything and helps determine how the victim died. Sounds kind of CSI-ish, I know. But here's the twist: Dexter has a little hobby - killing bad guys. He uses his resources at the police department to access unsolved murder cases, hunt down the killer and give them a taste of their own medicine.

This show rocks and here's why: The cast of the show is believable in their roles. The storylines are pulled together so well that you can't wait to see the next episode. And although editor.obsession does not endorse killing of any kind, it's really interesting to see how the mind of a serial killer works.

So tune in tonight and every Sunday at 10 p.m. on CBS to catch what is arguable one of the best shows on TV these days.

Here's a trailer for the first season:



I'm obsessed and you should be too.

Today's Obsession: Yes We Can Song

Now I’m not one to really get into politics. Of course I vote, and I do the research so I know who and what I’m voting for. But I don’t get wrapped up in campaign races. However, being as it is Virginia’s primary today, I thought it would be appropriate to share with you a cool video one of my friends on Facebook had on their profile.

The video, which has been spreading like wildfire across the Internet and YouTube, is by will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas and was inspired by a speech Obama gave after the New Hampshire primary last month.

The singer enlisted other celebrity supporters of the presidential hopeful, including Scarlett Johansson, Kate Walsh, John Legend and many more, to participate in the video.

Now, you know I love everything celebrity, and I love music, and now I’m starting to love Obama. I just think that the video is a great, creative way to get people interested in the presidential race. What do you think?

Check out the video below, and for more information, check out this article that was posted by ABC News last Friday.



I’m obsessed, and you should be too.

Today's Obsession: It's Grammy Time!

Tomorrow is the day that everyone in the music has been waiting for: The Grammys. In general, I’m not a big fan of award shows. I really just watch them to see that everyone is wearing. But the thing with the Grammys is that they have a whopping number of performances during the show. According to grammy.com, the performers tomorrow include:

“Beyoncé and Tina Turner; Andrea Bocelli and Josh Groban; Eldar; Feist; Fergie and John Legend; John Fogerty with Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard; Foo Fighters (with special guest conductor John Paul Jones); Herbie Hancock and Lang Lang (conducted by famed maestro John Mauceri); Alicia Keys; Kid Rock; Dave Koz; Brad Paisley; Keely Smith; Carrie Underwood; 2008 MusiCares Person of the Year Aretha Franklin, the Clark Sisters, Israel And New Breed, and Trin-I-Tee 5:7 in a special gospel segment; the casts of "The Beatles LOVE by Cirque du Soleil" and Across The Universe in a special Beatles segment; and Rihanna with a reunited the Time in a special 50th anniversary segment.”

John Mayer, Kanye West, BeBe Winans and frequent rehab resident Amy Winehouse were added to list just today and will perform at the award show tomorrow. However, Wino will perform via satellite from the U.K.

And now, since I always like to guess who will win, here are my picks for the winners of a few Grammy categories tomorrow:

Record of the Year: Rihanna feat. Jay-Z – “Umbrella”
Because she somehow made a device to keep one dry during a shower into something really, really sexy.
Album of the Year: Kanye West – Graduation
Although I’d kinda like to see him lose just to see how mad he gets.
Best New Artist: Amy Winehouse
The poor girl may be troubled, but her “Rehab” song is the anthem of 2007. Just ask Lindsay, Britney, or … Amy Winehouse.
Best Female Pop Vocal: Amy Winehouse – “Rehab”
See my reasoning on why she should win best new artist.

For a complete list of all the Grammy nominees, go here.

I’m obsessed, and you should be too.

Today's Obsession: Vampire Weekend

In case you don’t know, I’m the arts and entertainment editor at The Breeze at James Madison University. In the last issue, we ran a CD review of Vampire Weekend’s self-titled album by a lovely writer named Alex Allenchey. You can check it out here.

Usually I’ll just edit the review, slap it on the page and be done with it. But for some reason, perhaps out of complete boredom and lack of good music on my iPod, I decided to give Vampire Weekend a listen. Thanks to that iTunes giftcard Aunt Sue gave me for Christmas, I downloaded the CD and fell in love. I even stumbled upon them in the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly right as I was listening to the album. Go figure.

At first I was a little weary – the name does make them out to be some dark, demonic musical group. But their music is anything but dark. In fact, they’re pretty bright and sunny. The group is a quartet of Columbia grads singing about all things preppy, Louis Vuitton included.

Check out their Web site to listen to a couple tunes, and check out their video for “Mansard Roof” right here.



Doesn’t it make you wish for summertime?

I’m obsessed and you should be too.