And the Oscar goes to...

The Golden Globes went Avatar blue. The People's Choice Awards went gaga for Tarantino's Bastards.

Now the recently announced Oscar nominations have left us longing for a Single Man, a Hurt Locker and a Precious story taking us Up in the Air.

The countdown has officially began as the Kodak Theatre waits for the envelope to open revealing the magic words of the night The Oscar goes to...

Hopefully we get to see a fashion extravaganza, a cheeky Adrian Brody-esque kiss or a sobbing Kate Winslet to spice up the 3 hour long ceremony.

But what is it that makes us bite our nails and pull our hair in desperation while watching the Oscars? At the end of the day do we really care whether George takes it home or fellow Brit Carey Mulligan makes her official debut in Hollywood? Hell yes!

These awards are subjective lists produced by a bunch of elitist film critics but we all love a winner just as much as we love rooting for the underdog. After all there's nothing better than a good fight in Louboutin heels and Armani suits.

Why do we love the award season so much and we do we seem to care now more than ever? The reason for this is simple as Hollywood has funnily enough come up with various surprisingly good films after years of mediocrity.

For the first time since 1943, there are 10 films up for best picture-instead of the usual five- and the competition is fierce. Basterds, Avatars, Hurt Lockers and a funny hatchet man Up in the Air want to take Uncle Oscar home!

Hollywood's heavyweights contend the best director category in the so called battle of the exes as James Cameron and his former spouse Kathryn Bigelow are both nominated for Avatar and The Hurt Locker. Ouch this is gonna hurt!

But let's not forget about cheeky Quentin Tarantino whose particular vision of the second world war has won Inglorious Basterds a total of eight nominations. Will Tarantino spoil Cameron's big night and finally take the Oscar home?

The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony is cinema's big night hosted by Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin. Let the battle commence!

To view the complete Oscar nominations, click here.

Hollywood Royalty Gets Real!

Ever wondered what celebrities look like off-camera? Ever fantasied about the off-screen Hollywood drama? The parties,the dirty secrets and the cat fights?

Wonder no longer cause Mario Testino-aka the world's most famous photographer-takes you inside Hollywood in his latest portrait collection "Let me in".

Testino's work oozes glamour as he snaps some of the most celebrated movie stars of our time in the most unusual ways.

"Let me in" shines a light on some of the most recognisable faces of the decade under Testino's magnetic eye. At home, at the Oscars. It doesn't really matter.

Testino has been collecting a personal archive of off-screen moments, often taken spontaneously before, during, and after official photoshoots for magazine covers of the likes of Vanity Fair or Vogue.

The result is a portrait not just of a generation of the most wanted and talked-about, but, as the tagline reads, an invitation to be part of the backstage parties and unstaged moments of Testino's life.

From Nicole Kidman, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, George Clooney, Gwyneth Paltrow or Jake Gyllenhaal...The list goes on forever. One thing is for sure: it's strictly VIP in here!

Testino's "Let me in" includes 300 pages in color and black and white featuring more than 100 contemporary stars, an introduction by Michael Roberts, fashion director of Vanity Fair and a foreword by Nicole Kidman

Get your own copy on amazon, here.

Photo Credits: Mario Testino "Let Me in" Taschen GmbH; Ltd Sgd Mu edition (15 Mar 2007)

There's more to Jennifer than a hot body!

Oscar-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody strikes again with a High School tale gone psycho in the highly anticipated Jennifer's Body.

You should know upfront that this is a typical teen comedy...On acid! There's an impressive amount of cheesy dialogue of the likes of OMG, BFF and all that Paris Hilton baby talk.

And of course, there's Megan Fox playing the hot chick making the gentlemen go Hell, yeah!

But there's also a lot of blood, girl-on-girl action and a virgin sacrifice cause Jennifer's actually evil not just high school evil.

Things start to go officially off-the-rails when Jennifer is murdered by a Maroon 5 wannabe emo band hoping to get a record deal by sacrificing a virgin. But it all goes horribly wrong as Jennifer is far from being a sweet little virgin.

She becomes a devilish creature feeding on human flesh and sets off on a high-school boys killing spree. Jennifer seduces her class mates eating them alive to satisfy her insatiable appetite.

This is all good until her nerdy BFF Needy, played by Mamma Mia's Amanda Seyfriend, finds out determined to kill Jennifer and save the town's boys...Although she can't even finish gym class!

Jennifer's Body is a sexy horror flick with a wicked sense of humour that explores female relationships during high-school as both Jennifer and Needy depend on each other to reasure their personalites.

Fox's character is a teen femme fatale exploiting her sexuality to remain the woman she wants to be while Needy decides to step away from Jennifer's shadow in a desperate attempt to become the woman she wants to be.

The leading ladies' intoxicating relationship is by far most interesting point about Jennifer's Body. There's something rather fascinating about best friends competing for attention while battling their own insecurities.

Jennifer is abusive and possessive over Needy but is still dependent on her support. Needy is a clever and funny but still needs Jennifer by her side to battle her own insecurities.

"Hell is a teenage girl" reads the film's opening line and anyone who still remembers their high-school years would agree that it is a scary place where girls bitch hoping to become the next Queen B. It's all about being popular, hot and skinny.

Photo Credit: Doane Gregory

TM and 2009 Twentieth Century Fox Fim Coorporation

It's a va va boom premiere for Nine!

Cinema royalty walked the red carpet in true Hollywood style at the world premiere of Nine last night in London.

All eyes were on the film's leading ladies Nicole Kidman, Penelope Cruz and Kate Hudson who dazzled in Haute Couture gowns despite the chilly London weather.

Director Rob Marshall also attended the London premiere as well as the film's leading man Daniel Day-Lewis accompanied by Dame Judi Dench who plays the role of his confidant in the movie.

The 35 year-old Cruz stole the show in a turquoise Ralph Lauren long dress proving once again that her Spanish Enchantress title is well deserved.

On singing for the first time in a movie, she said: "I've never been able to sing professionally in any way before this movie. I'm very shy about signing."

Kate Hudson braved the cold in a stunning white Atalier Versace looking every inch of a Hollywood siren.

She plays a fashion journalist who confronts Day-Lewi's character throughout the film. Kudson has been spotted during the past days with her new beau baseball star Alex Rodriguez.

The Australian Nicole Kidman lighted up Leicester square in a formal suit flaunting her killer legs in a short pleated skirt.

Kidman previously stunned critics with her performer in a movie musical in Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge! as the beautiful Parisian courtesan Satine.

Nine is the story of the famous film director Guido Contini as he tries to balance his creative troubles and the many women in his life. Ah,it's playboy's life!

Nine opens in cinemas worldwide December 25.

Photo Credit: AP, REUTERS.

Polanski's $2.7m jail bail-out

Director Roman Polanski is set free from jail after paying a staggering £2.7m bail-out to the Swiss authorities who arrested him at the Zurich airport last September.

The 78-year-old will now be placed under house arrest at his holiday home in the Alpine resort village of Gstaad.

The Pianist director surrendered his passport and personal documents as part of the bail-out agreement as well as the compulsory use of an electronic tag to track his movements at all times.

Polanski was arrested last September 26 by the Swiss police at the request of the US authorities as he travelled to Switzlerland to receive a lifelong achievement award.

The Oscar-winning director has been a fugitive for the US authorities since fleeing the country after pleading guilty to charges of unlawful sexual intercourse with an underage girl during a party in 1977.

Polanski was initially accused of raping the 13-year-old aspiring model Samantha Geimer plying her with pills and champagne in a hot tub at Jack Nicholson's Hollywood mansion.

Have Yourself a Merry Movie Christmas!

Is there a better way of celebrating Christmas than to cuddle up with the family and watch those feel-good Christmas classics that always put a smile on your face?

At Cinema Paradiso Web we've done the work for you and selected some of the best Christmas movies titles.

Get your cosy pyjamas on cause you're soon going to be walking a Christmas Wonderland!

Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life is to Christmas what Robin is to Batman. An unmissable classic about a depressed family-man who's saved by angels from suicide and returns home with a renewed faith in life and love on Christmas Eve.

George Seaton's Miracle on 34th Street tagline reads "Capture the spirit of Christmas with this timeless classic" and you sure will be!

A heart-warming story about an old man who's institutionalised while claiming to be the real Santa Claus and the young lawyer who defends his case only to rediscover his own faith in Christmas miracles.

Will Ferrell shines in Elf as the misfit Buddy rescued as a baby by Santa and raised up as an elf in North Pole.

As Buddy discovers his human-like condition he then sets off to New York hoping to find his real family and bring a little merry Christmas.

Ferrell's comedy genius makes Elf an instant Christmas classic with its charming mood and wicked sense of humour.

Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a cult tale of Christmas gone wrong as the six-feet-under Jack Skellington tries to take over Christmastown and all he ever gets is an epic disaster.

Jack spreads chaos and mayhem across the idyllic town until Santa arrives just in time to save Christmas teaching the witty skeleton a lesson on how to get Christmas right.

Have Yourself a Merry Movie Christmas!

Follow us on Twitter at @CinemaParadisoW and tell us about your favourite Christmas movie!

Love at first bite.

Romance and vampires do the trick in Stephenie Meyer's best-selling Twilight saga and its latest movie adaptation New Moon.

There's something about an ordinary girl falling for a drop-dead-gorgeous vampire who's willing to sacrifice himself for her love that makes teens go gaga.

In fact, Twilight vampires sacrifice their thirst for blood in return for a highly romanticised concept of love that makes good girls go bad.

But there's no need to lock up your daughters when RPattz's in town as Meyer's vampires get little wish-fulfilment. They may well be the ultimate sex icons but they can't enjoy any of it.

Twilight is for many a Mormon's tale that boils in desire but remains disturbingly unconsummated in an attempt to promote chastity and abstinence.

There's gorgeous Edward and a whole bunch of shirtless werewolves but none of them would dare to touch the film's heroine, Bella. This ain't Gossip Girl!

At the end of the day, this vampire romance is written by a straitlaced Mormon who doesn’t drink alcohol or smoke and had never read a vampire book or seen an R-rated movie prior to the release of Twilight.

As film critic Andrew O'Hagan explains "the fundamental problem lies in the film’s philosophy, which hankers constantly after a creepy purity imposed from above."

In Meyer's world the young and beautiful are doomed and love seems unobtainable. But for thousands of adolescents across the world abstinence has never been so sexy.

No matter how dangerously patronising or ridiculously puritanical the Twilight phenomenon may seem it's here to stay...And fans can't get enough of it!

Keep reading "No sex in New Moon please, we're vampires", here.

Photo Credit: Vanity Fair magazine outtakes.

Images by © Peggy Sirota/Corbis Outline