VFX: wonder if I was the only one to vote for Gemini Man (I doubt I was the only one to vote for Alita)

Sound: wait, there's a Sound category now? That wasn't there when I first copied the list of categories into a .txt file to start drafting my submission. Can't really argue most of the nominees, though I'm sure I'd have thrown in something different like Uncut Gems to mix it up a little.

Score: can't really argue these choices (not even Joker, even if its reliance of cello drones only goes so far).

Breakout: eh. Kind of wonder how Florence Pugh is nominated for both Little Women and Midsommar in the same slot - did they get an equal number of votes or something?

Cinematography: respectable. Kind of hoping 1917 doesn't take it at this point, though - the more I think about it, the more its approach doesn't really sit right with me.

Cast this is going to be a tough one to pick (aside from Endgame, obviously).

Mixed Bag: the ones I've seen are good contenders (one might even be too good for Mixed Bag), though the other two seem like even likelier contenders (and at least seem halfway-watchable).

Funniest Scene: if you asked for Least Funny Scene, I'd have nominated that Jojo Rabbit scene. The rest are fine, I guess (but especially the ones I nominated). For comparison's sake, my picks that didn't make it include the peach montage from Parasite and the ending of Ready or Not.

Most Memorable Scene: I do like to see nominees that I considered but didn't pick or which make me go "of course, why didn't I think of that", I'll say that much. Disappointed that the knife museum scene from John Wick 3 didn't merit a mention, though.

Underrated: only one of my picks made it and in that company I'm not so sure I'll even vote for it (though I guess I still have to see The Peanut Butter Falcon and Fighting with my Family).

Overrated: doesn't go hard enough for my liking (no Jojo Rabbit or Midsommar?), but otherwise fine.

Disappointment: while I'll defend at least one or two of these titles, I can't really argue their placement in a generally solid field. This once again begs the question of what constitutes disappointment - does it still count if you weren't expecting the film itself to be good but you're more disappointed at its place within a greater context? Like I wasn't expecting Rise of Skywalker to be good because they handed it back to J.J. Abrams for course-correction after the comparative boldness of The Last Jedi but it's disappointing as the apparent final chapter in the whole Skywalker saga - likewise, I had nominated Hellboy because of the high hopes I had for the third Hellboy movie but I see other people apparently went straight to Worst Film for that one (which I suppose is fair). Not sure how to feel about Terminator: Dark Fate not meriting a nomination - I would've thought that was a shoo-in even though I didn't want it to be (despite nominating it).

Surprise: definitely a surprising collection of nominees (especially Bait - I'm surprised enough people have seen it, though I suppose it deserves a place here). Surprise is also a tough thing to gauge because of the points of comparison - I liked Uncut Gems but I didn't consider it a surprise because I knew the Safdies would probably pull off another good film in the wake of Good Time, whereas I'm presuming it got nominated as a surprise on account of being Sandler's first legit good film in ages. Whether that means I'll vote for it remains to be seen - as with all these special categories, I always have to ask if I vote for the one I liked/disliked the most or the one that I find most surprising/disappointing/whatever (which isn't the same thing).

Foreign Language Film: this year was just too stacked. I also nominated Long Day's Journey Into Night and Transit (plus Ash is Purest White was a real hard cut to make), but I can't fault any of the nominees.

Documentary: always a tough category to vote in simply because of the availability of nominees. I've only seen two so whether I manage the rest remains to be seen, but I'll try.

Animated: maybe the most boring field of nominees here.

Screenplay: part of me wonders if we should split this into Original and Adapted (but then again, since all these nominees would be Original then maybe people don't care that much). Can't argue these nominees even if I do have other preferences.

Supporting Actress: heh, y'all really weren't feeling J-Lo in Hustlers. That's no worse than Johansson's turn in Jojo Rabbit. My main disappointment is more that Adele Haenel didn't make it in for Portrait of a Lady on Fire.

Supporting Actor: only real difference is that I decided to throw a nomination to Eric Bogosian in Uncut Gems (really doing a lot with a little, pretty much the opposite of Pacino in The Irishman). Otherwise, this is going to be a tough one.

Lead Actress: Respectable field, even if only two of my picks made it. Should've known Noemie Merlant and Zhao Tao were long shots.

Lead Actor: my honourable mentions include Brad Pitt in Ad Astra, Antonio Banderas in Pain and Glory, and (yes really) Paul Walter Hauser in Richard Jewell. Obviously hoping there's an upset but I'm not sure who would be the real contender here.

Director: Mendes is whatever, but better him than Phillips. Honourable mention goes to Celine Sciamma.

Worst Movie: you might as well have called this "Worst Movie Of The Year That Isn't Cats" just to make it interesting, but the only other one I've watched is Hellboy and I didn't think it was that bad. Whether or not I actually go through with subjecting myself to the remaining nominees remains to be seen - can't tell whether or not that's better than last year where I had already seen all the nominees.

Best Movie: guess I gotta watch The Peanut Butter Falcon now (who was in the voting bloc on that one?). I picked Jojo Rabbit for overrated and I didn't think Knives Out held up that well on a second viewing. Aside from that, it's a hell of a selection.