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JT: But what do reviewers want? Among the nominees, what was the best picture? And may its director have a prize, too?

NM: “The Help” and “War Horse” strike me as Hollywood doing what it does best—entertaining moviegoers everywhere. I found Malick’s “Tree of Life” pretentious—auteurism at its most self-indulgent. I liked “Moneyball,” but don’t quite get the general hype over it.

I applaud “Midnight in Paris” and “The Artist” for sheer originality, marveled at the density of Scorsese’s gorgeous and elegiac “Hugo,” and admired the elegance and restraint of “The Descendants.” (I missed “Extremely Loud” because I could never convince any of my moviegoing companions to see it!) My choice — and I’m guessing the Academy’s as well — is “The Artist,” a delightful and fully realized tour de force that really took me by surprise.

MR: I've been mulling this over and my pick for best picture and best director is "Midnight in Paris" and Woody Allen. This probably seems like a retrograde choice, but it's the film that I enjoyed most completely of all the ones nominated, and Allen is one of our most important and gifted filmmakers, and underappreciated, I would argue. Lately, his work hasn't been as good, but "Midnight in Paris" proved that he can still produce work of very high quality. Like his best movies, it's deeply humane, and romantic in the best sense.

I found "Hugo" to be one of Scorsese's lesser efforts, despite the beautiful images. It felt airless and overly composed to me, like a gorgeous artifact. Perhaps that's what he was going for, but movies should feel alive, not preserved.

JT: I revel in "The Tree of Life." And it should go without saying, Terrence Malick is the best director. I know those won't be the results. I'm even sympathetic to the view that "Tree" is so Malick-esque that it's almost self-parody. Nevertheless, he remains in a class by himself in showing what movies can be, even as Michel Hazanavicius takes home the directing award. I could live with most other nominees for best picture, though they do thin out after "Midnight in Paris" and "The Artist."

JS: The nine-film nomination list is awkward and instantly creates a first class and second class among the movies. "The Artist," "The Tree of Life," "Hugo" and "The Descendants" are worthy contenders, each showcasing a director willing to take risks with their material.

"The Artist," the likely winner, is heartwarming and creative, but there's not too much meat on its bones. Its a concept movie that deserves applause, but earning the top award of the year is a tougher sell. "The Descendants" broke my heart, something that continually happens when experiencing an Alexander Payne movie. He has a way of getting to the core of adult male characters, and George Clooney proves to be a worthy vessel.

I am a convert to the church of Terrence Malick. I love his JD Salinger elusiveness from the press and public, and he certainly knows how to engage audience members with new ideas, strange occurrences and compelling characters. "The Tree of Life" features Brad Pitt's finest performance, and it stands as the only movie to capture true reality. Watching this father and mother raise kids in mid-century Texas was like watching home video footage. Here's a director who cleverly uses images of bygone Americana not as a postcard from the past, but as connective tissue to the greater universe. I even enjoyed the dinosaurs and Sean Penn's wandering businessman. It all seemed oddly (and wonderfully) conjoined into a single tapestry.