My overdue Halfway Awards for 2009....

I know that most of what you're about to see will have changed dramatically by the time the Oscars draw near, but hell, it's fun to do this now to have something to compare. It's as simple as it sounds: I'm going to reveal where my personal Oscars (the Texans) would go at this point in the year (I waited a little longer, so that now I'm judging out of 30 films total). I'm just putting up the nominations (and I won't do 10 Best Picture nominees until my lineups are just about finalized in early 2010). So, without further adieu, your current (picture-free) slate of nominees for the 2009 Texan Awards ("winners" will be revealed later this week)...

Best Picture:

(500) Days of Summer

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

The Hurt Locker

Moon

Star Trek

Best Director:

JJ Abrams - Star Trek

Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker

Duncan Jones - Moon

Marc Webb - (500) Days of Summer

David Yates - Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Best Actor:

Johnny Depp - Public Enemies

Jesse Eisenberg - Adventureland

Joseph Gordon-Levitt - (500) Days of Summer

Jeremy Renner - The Hurt Locker

Sam Rockwell - Moon

Best Actress:

Amy Adams - Sunshine Cleaning

Emily Blunt - Sunshine Cleaning

Zooey Deschanel - (500) Days of Summer

Michelle Pfeiffer - Cheri

Maya Rudolph - Away We Go

Best Supporting Actor:

Michael Gambon - Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Jackie Earle Hayley - Watchmen

Anthony Mackie - The Hurt Locker

Jeffrey Dean Morgan - Watchmen

Zachary Quinto - Star Trek

Best Supporting Actress:

Marion Cotillard - Public Enemies

Eva Green - Franklyn

Maggie Gyllenhaal - Away We Go

Kristin Scott Thomas - Easy Virtue

Rachel Weisz - The Brothers Bloom

Best Original Screenplay:

(500) Days of Summer

Adventureland

Away We Go

The Hurt Locker

Sunshine Cleaning

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Cheri

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Star Trek

State of Play

Watchmen

Best Editing:

(500) Days of Summer

Franklyn

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

The Hurt Locker

Star Trek

Best Cinematography:

Cheri

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

The Hurt Locker

Public Enemies

Watchmen

Best Art Direction:

Cheri

Easy Virtue

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Franklyn

Watchmen

Best Costume Design:

Cheri

Easy Virtue

Franklyn

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Watchmen

Best Original Score:

Alexandre Desplat - Cheri

Michael Giacchino - Up

Elliot Goldenthal - Public Enemies

Clint Mansell - Moon

Hans Zimmer - Angels and Demons

Best Original Song:

N/A

Best Animated Film:

Coraline

Up

Best Foreign Language Film:

N/A

Best Makeup:

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

The Hurt Locker

Star Trek

Watchmen

Angels and Demons

Best Visual Effects:

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Star Trek

Transformers - Revenge of the Fallen

Watchmen

X-Men Origins: Wolverine