2010 Oscar Awards

The Oscar winners 2010 list is filled with new and overdue names. Yet the Oscar winners list was basically filled out by most fans weeks ago, if not months ago. At least a few names were expected to win way back in summer 2009, while others took until around nomination time to pull away. Only the two big races were in doubt, but by the end of the show, it became clear which contenders had pulled ahead. Now that the Oscar winners 2010 list has been finalized, the names and movies selected can officially pass into history.

When the night began, Christoph Waltz picked up around his billionth Best Supporting Actor win for "Inglourious Basterds." Afterwards, "Up" and "Crazy Heart" won for Best Animated Film and Best Song, and then the pattern of the Oscar winners 2010 list emerged when "The Hurt Locker" won for Best Original Screenplay.

"The Hurt Locker" and "Avatar" were alleged to be neck-and-neck all Oscar season. However, the low-budget Iraq war drama never lost its lead over "Avatar" for most wins between the two. Briefly, "Precious" held the lead for most overall wins when Mo'Nique and screenwriter Geoffery Fletcher triumphed. But with Sound Mixing and Sound Editing victories, "The Hurt Locker" took the lead for good.The Oscar winners 2010 list made room for "Avatar" to get its visual prizes, for Art Direction, Cinematography, and Visual Effects. Yet that was all the $700 million blue behemoth would get as 3D effects weren't the difference maker that they were at the box office.

But before the final "Avatar" vs. "Hurt Locker" showdowns, the Oscar winners list officially included names that had been waiting a long time. Jeff Bridges' long awaited first trophy became inevitable, and his audiences of friends and former co-stars stood up when he won for "Crazy Heart." Sandra Bullock, on the other hand, won Best Actress on her first try for "The Blind Side."In the end, the two final showdowns capped off the 2010 list with history. Barbra Streisand gave Kathryn Bigelow the first Best Director Oscar for a woman, and then Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker" became the lowest-grossing

 Best Picture ever. The $12 million indie that could beat the biggest movie Goliath in history with six Oscars to "Avatar"'s three.

Only three other films got more than one trophy as "Up," "Crazy Heart," and "Precious" each received two. "Inglourious Basterds" got the first victory of the night and was shut out afterward, while "Up In The Air" was completely shut out.

The Oscar winners 2010 list may have been historic and overdue in a few cases, but no one was too surprised by it. Despite some unparalleled results, everyone expected them months ago, which took the actual drama from the history. Audiences didn't get surprises out of the 3 ½ hour show, but the winners still got a bit more out of it.