The biggest television event of Hollywood takes place tonight when the Academy Awards are presented on ABC.
The televised event starts at 7 PM with the ceremony officially kicking off at 8 PM EST. This year's Oscars is one of the most fascinating as it features an unpredictable cast of nominees in different categories. Prior to the announcement of the nominations back in November, many felt that Ben Affleck's "Argo" and Kathryn Bigelow's "Zero Dark Thirty" were the top contenders for the big prize. Unfortunately, neither Affleck of Bigelow were nominated for Best Director and most pundits felt that the two films were out of contention. However, since the nominations "Argo" has went on a run and garnered victories at the Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild, Directors Guild, Screenwriters Guild and Producers Guild. Victories at all of these organizations have essentially placed the film in a comfortable front-runner position.
Despite "Argo's" status as a front-runner, there are a number of interesting factors to consider in this race. "Amour" is the first foreign film to be nominated in the top category since 2000 when "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" was recognized. More importantly, either Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" or David O. Russell's "Silver Linings Playbook" could potentially upset "Argo". "Lincoln" garnered 12 nominations while "Silver Linings" was the first film in decades to achieve nominations for all four major acting categories; both of these films were among the favorites of the Academy this year and could be favored.
There is no official live stream for the event but the Red Carpet will be show online by a number of sites including the E!, Associated Press (available on livestream.com), MTV and Policymic (Policymic claims that it will put up a live feed of the event, which could be the only live stream available online). The official Oscar websitewill also showcase a live stream of the event and is also offering a Backstage Pass that will feature pictures throughout the evening of Oscar winners and events going on backstage.
Check out Latinos Post's live Red Carpet coverage HERE.