Most are the usual suspects that have already topped the year-end critics votes. Some are deserving (Brokeback Mountain, Squid and the Whale, Capote, History of Violence), others dubious (Crash) and many teeter somewhere in between (Good Night, and Good Luck, Constant Gardener, Syriana).
These selections represent lack of imagination more than anything _ from the writers, of all people, which may explain why wethink that there aren't any original movie stories anymore.
But that's not nearly as embarrassing as the guild's attempt to be edgy and hip by including The 40 Year-Old Virgin in its original screenplay category. The movie was hit-and-miss funny, had a smattering of credible character work and _ oooh, subversive _ made lots of dirty jokes. But it was hardly the cleverest comedy of the year, or even the nastiest (those honors would be split between the more popular Wedding Crashers and the almost-unknown Mail Order Wife).
And now is, apparently, the time to say it. Cinderella Man deserved its disappointing box-office, due mainly to a paper-thin script built on stoic platitudes and sentimentalized suffering. The more establishment approval cliche-fests like this get, the better a tough-minded piece like Munich looks.
And how about that? This year, Steven Spielberg takes the aggrieved Hollywood rebel role away from the constantly disrespected writers. There's a truly great plot twist.