| | | Oscar gets his moment in the spotlight Sunday, but the Page 2 crew has been too fixated on spring training and the Sweet 16 to pay much attention to the darlings of the silver screen. So we enlisted our own panel of experts to predict Hollywood's highest honors.
They tell us that director Stephen Soderbergh may lose to himself, that Julia Roberts is a sentimental shoe-in, and that the real best picture might not have been nominated. So get out your statuette scorecard. But don't forget the cardinal rule of prognostication: Watch out for the upsets. Cinderella made her mark in the movies, you know.
Our expert panel, honored because of their ties to entertainment, span the sports world. We've got actors:
Milwaukee Bucks guard and Mr. Jesus Shuttlesworth himself, Ray Allen;
Rick Fox, the Lakers forward who made a cameo in "He Got Game," appeared in "Eddie" and HBO's "Oz," and married the actress Vanessa Williams;
Vivica A. Fox, star of the upcoming flick about a cross-dressing basketballer, "Juwanna Man;"
Giants running back and occasional WFAN radio personality Tiki Barber.
Die-hard movie lovers Lance Pitlick of the Florida Panthers, Denny Neagle of the Colorado Rockies and Rob Dibble of ESPN Radio.
And our own cinematic talent, Sports Center anchors Trey Wingo and Dan Patrick.
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Name
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Pick
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Why
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Ray Allen
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"Gladiator"
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It was more than what I expected it to be. There haven't been a whole host of films out about that period in our history. "Gladiator" came on the scene and shocked everybody. Russell Crowe gave a great performance, and the scenes in the Parthenon were great.
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Tiki Barber
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"Gladiator"
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I thought "Gladiator" was the best movie of the year by far. It really came to life in the theatre.
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Rob Dibble
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"Traffic"
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I would go with "Gladiator," but "Traffic" scared the hell out of me. I have a daughter, and a brother-in-law who works in law enforcement. This film hit home with me and I thought it was realistic, not sensationalized.
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Rick Fox
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"Gladiator"
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My reasons are tied to our playoff run to an NBA championship last year. We watched this movie epic as a team during the playoff series in Phoenix. It will forever be linked in my mind to our own epic battles in our arena.
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Vivica A. Fox
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"Gladiator"
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Best picture of the year.
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Denny Neagle
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"Gladiator"
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My choice is "Almost Famous," but just as I say that, I realize that isn't even nominated. And it was my favorite picture. I would nominate that one and give the award to it. But of the other ones, I've gotta go with "Gladiator." I think that would be the consensus among athletes. It's a great action movie and I left the theater thinking I could throw 95. After seeing that, a punch-and-judy hitter would think he can hit 35 bombs.
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Lance Pitlick
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"Gladiator"
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It was a real solid show. My wife and I just had our second baby so I haven't seen "Cast Away" yet, is that brutal or what?! The other one I really liked is "Traffic," because it really hits home about what's going on between the United States and Mexico, as far as the drug trade.
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Dan Patrick
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"Gladiator"
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"Traffic" was a great movie and "Gladiator" was merely good. But "Gladiator " may be this era's "Ben-Hur." Big budget, big box office, a strong leading man and great special effects should equal Oscar.
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Trey Wingo
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"Traffic"
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That movie was good on so many levels. One of the more underrated parts of the movie...was the lack of senseless blood and violence in the film. Whatever was in there...was necessary...without any gratuitousness. Hard to do in a movie about drug lords. But what the hell do I know...I'm just a jock sniffer.
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