Coulda, shoulda contenders share spotlight.(living)

Publication: Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV)

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COPYRIGHT 2005 Las Vegas Review-Journal

BYLINE: CAROL CLING , REVIEW-JOURNAL

Misery loves company.

So let's hope Paul Giamatti's throwing himself one whale of a wine-tasting party tonight.

For the second consecutive year, Giamatti emerges with the dubious honor of being the Academy Awards' biggest snub victim.

Last year, Giamatti lost out despite splendiferous work as a world-class crank in "American Splendor."

This year, he plays a wine-soaked lost soul in the wry, sly "Sideways," which is up for five major Academy Awards: best picture, director, adapted screenplay, supporting actor and supporting actress.

But a nomination for Giamatti, who so subtly and poignantly embodies the movie's hapless heart, soul and raison d'etre?

Sorry, buddy. Not your year -- or your night.

Yet Giamatti's Oscar loss automatically makes him a winner in the Review-Journal's 21st annual Terry Awards.

Named for Terry Malloy, the "On the Waterfront" palooka who first uttered the immortal line "I coulda been a contender," the Terry Awards honor cinematic achievements that coulda, shoulda caught Oscar's golden eye.

As usual, egregious oversights abound in several categories, from cinematography (the groundbreaking digital work of "Collateral's" Dion Beebe and Paul Cameron) to documentary feature. (It's Michael Moore's own fault that his incendiary "Fahrenheit 9/11" isn't there, but what happened to the...

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